Mauritania has a growing number of internet users, but just last year a report published by Hootsuite indicated that only 18 per cent of its population were online, while just 15 per cent were active on social media. It won’t, therefore, come as a surprise that our response team doesn’t hear from many Mauritanians.
But one man has been persistently contacting us and asking many different questions since April…
A conservative beginning
Abu* grew up in a conservative Muslim family. By the age of eight, he had memorised the Qur’an.
Now 21, he lives on his own and in a different city to his family, giving him a bit of freedom.
‘I want to know more’
One day as he was browsing the internet, Abu encountered some information about the Christian faith. The words he read stayed with him.
‘Send me some videos on the genealogy of Jesus Christ,’ he wrote to us. ‘I want to know more about this religion.’
Bit by bit, Abu began losing his Islamic beliefs. It wasn’t long before he was convinced that Jesus is the true Saviour of the world.
Meet with me
Abu called our team and talked with Mira*, who answered his questions and shared about Jesus’ salvation through the cross. He was hungry to understand the Word of God. We sent him the Gospel of Luke, which he read very quickly.
There was so much more that Abu wanted to know. He wondered if there was a Christian in Mauritania with whom he could meet face to face; could we help him find someone?
We didn’t know of any local Christians in Mauritania, but we began searching for someone to meet with Abu.
The dream
While this was happening, Abu called to say that he’d had a dream in which he met three people who taught him about the Bible.
Soon after, we learned of an Egyptian couple who were visiting Mauritania for a short time. We contacted Abu and told him that two people would be able to visit him, but not three as his dream had indicated.
The visit
After the encounter, Abu called, excited to tell us about the visit. The Egyptian couple had gone to see him and, just as his dream had indicated, they brought along a friend. Three people had come to his house and taught him from the Bible.
Abu was so happy about the visit he’d received. He now had a physical copy of the Bible and had also been able to pray with other believers.
A rare opportunity
Abu then had another dream in which he was studying the Bible with two people. When he learned that the Egyptian couple prolonged their stay in Mauritania, he took a whole month off work so that he could study the Bible with them daily.
Abu realised this was a rare opportunity – maybe the only chance he would get to study the Bible with people in his own country. He was hungry to know the Word of God and wanted to grow in his knowledge of Jesus.
Some things to pray
Our response team says they have never seen anyone as eager to understand the Bible as Abu is.
- Pray for Abu as he continues to be in touch with our team.
- Pray that he would not feel isolated as he follows Jesus.
- Pray that more in Mauritania would come to know Christ’s transformative love.
*Please note that names have been changed for security.