Najla shielded her eyes from the bright, Middle Eastern sun while she scanned the bustling park for Mandy. Soon, she spotted the American woman, who’d invited her to book club, sitting beneath a tree with a small group of ladies all relaxing in the shade.

Najla hurried over. “I’m sorry I’m late. May I still join you?”

“Of course. We’re glad you came.” Mandy patted an empty patch of grass beside her and introduced Najla to the rest of the women. “We just finished sharing why we’re all here.”

Najla settled in and pulled the assigned novel out of her purse. “I suppose I simply love books.”

“I love them, too—both fiction and non-fiction.” Mandy’s smile grew. “I read the Bible every morning as well.”

At the mention of God’s Word, Najla’s pulse quickened. The conversation continued around her, yet she could only think about whether she’d heard Mandy correctly. Was she finally sitting face-to-face with another follower of Christ?

When the book discussion ended and the women began to disperse, Najla turned to Mandy. “Excuse me. Did you say you read the Bible?”

Mandy nodded. “Have you read it?”

“I have,” she said brightly, though her smile fell as she shook her head. “But I don’t always understand it. Could we talk about it together sometime?”

“Absolutely!” Mandy glanced at her watch. “Do you have time right now?”

Within minutes Najla was sharing her story, starting with her doubts about Islam as a young teen. “That’s when I started researching other religions online. I discovered Satanism and almost joined, but that required me to write out a denial of Jesus’ deity in my own blood. That made me curious. The Quran only considers Jesus a prophet, so I wanted to know why others thought He was God.”

Najla’s desire for answers ultimately led her to dig into the Injil. After reading most of the New Testament online, Najla had recognized that Jesus was the answer to her doubts and had the power to save. She decided to follow Him. “That was eight years ago.”

“Praise God! What an incredible journey to Jesus.” Mandy wiped away a tear. “And you’ve been following Him all this time?”

“Not really.” Najla sighed. “I want to, but when I reached out to someone online to help me learn more about Jesus, they told me I had to be baptized first. You’re the first follower of Christ I’ve met in person.”

“Would you like to be baptized?” Mandy asked.

Najla dropped her chin. “I’m not sure I would be brave enough to go through with it. What if the wrong person found out? I haven’t even told my parents what I believe.”   

“You don’t have to do anything you’re not ready for, but you’re not alone in your faith. Not anymore.” Mandy placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Can I introduce you to a few of my friends who are also followers of Jesus?”

Najla quickly agreed, and several days later, she met up with Mandy and a couple other women. They spent hours together reading and discussing God’s Word. By the time Najla left, they had made plans to meet regularly.

A few weeks later, Najla was at home washing dishes when her mother approached. “You were late for supper tonight. Yesterday, too. Are these new friends of yours Muslim?”

Najla was grateful her parents no longer forced her to pray or fast with them, but they would never approve of her friendship with Mandy and other women they didn’t know. They certainly wouldn’t approve of her following Jesus.

Her heart squeezed. “I’m sorry. I won’t be late again.”

That night, she thought about sending Mandy a message saying she couldn’t study the Word with her anymore. Najla was afraid of what her parents might do if they found out. But she was more afraid of what her life would be like if she didn’t follow Jesus.

She prayed for a way to please her Lord and still respect her parents’ rules.

A couple days later, she and Mandy were able to meet again. Though she couldn’t visit as often as she would’ve liked, Najla’s time spent in God’s Word with her sweet friends always proved rich and rewarding.

One day, Mandy told Najla about an opportunity to be baptized. “Are you ready?” Mandy asked.

Najla took a deep breath and nodded.

The following week at a private, indoor pool, Najla glanced around the room at smiling friendly faces. Swallowing the fear that the wrong person might find out about her baptism and tell her parents, she shared her story of coming to faith in Christ and deciding that He was worth any risk.

When she was done, she saw Mandy and others wiping away tears of joy. And as Najla rose from the water, she was crying, too. How beautiful to finally follow her Lord in this way, surrounded by so many other believers.

“Thank you, everyone.” But she was most grateful to God.

Najla is still wary of sharing her faith with her parents, but she has begun spreading the Good News with her non-religious and foreign friends. She hopes one day all peoples—especially her own—will know the truth about Christ.

Pray:

• Praise the Lord for Muslim-background believers like Najla, who desire to share the Gospel despite their fears. Ask Him to grant them wisdom and boldness.
• Ask God to send even more teams of Frontiers field workers to the least-reached places to partner with local believers and see the Kingdom grow.
• Pray that the Lord will use MBBs to fulfill the Great Commission and start movements of faith in Christ.

**This account comes from a long-term worker. Names have been changed for security.**

Main photo on iStock

Original article: https://frontiersusa.org/blog/faith-follow/