A Pastor's Prayers Lead to Baptism in Prison!

By Philip Baptiste

Amina is currently serving a five-year prison sentence in one of the countries of the East-Central Africa Division. She was arrested on her way to India, where she and others had planned to blow up a huge facility. Amina had been indoctrinated by her Muslim leaders who taught that if she eliminated evil, she would attain righteousness and live in paradise.

By the grace of God, and persistent visits from a local Seventh-day Adventist district pastor, Amina gave her life to the Lord while in prison. Amina was in solitary confinement, in an isolated cell, due to the nature of her crime. The officer in charge of the prison had arranged for the pastor to come in as a counselor for Amina.

Amina initially resisted the visits, but later consented because the sessions were held outside of her cell and she really needed to get some sunshine.

However when the pastor asked if he could pray for Amina the first time, she refused. She told the pastor that he should pray for himself instead. The pastor prayed for her anyway, and kept praying. After a few sessions together, the pastor had to be away for a few weeks. It was then that Amina longed for the pastor's visits. When he did not return as soon as she expected, she started reading his Bible, which he had left with her.

A few months later, the Adventist church organized a camp meeting at the prison and Amina was invited. For the sake of socializing, Amina attended the gathering, and to her own surprise, when the pastor made an alter call, she went forward to surrender her life to Jesus. Not long after she was baptized.

Amina confesses that she does not understand how, during the counseling sessions, she lost interest in her Islamic prayer life. But she has not longed for these prayers since. She believes God brought her to prison to reveal the truth to her, and now she is anxious to reach her friends. “When I get out of prison, I will spend all that I have to reach them,” she confided. “I just praise God for the Adventist pastor who consistently prayed for me and visited me in my time of great need.”

Philip Baptiste, DMin, is Special Assistant to the President of the East-Central Africa Division of Seventh-day Adventists.

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World Church Praise Report and Prayer Requests May 21-28, 2017

• PRAISE REPORT: Thank you for praying for Institute of World Mission held recently in Turkey. God blessed the meetings. It was a good experience for all those that attended, including the children.
• PRAISE REPORT: Thank you for praying for the “Reach the World: Issues Impacting Children, Women, and Families” leadership conference conducted in Budapest, Hungary. Participants came from every continent except Antarctica and expressed their joy and gratitude for such inspirational and eye-opening seminars. Many expressed a renewed commitment to allow God to use them to “Reach the World.” Thank you to the countless members around the world who have been praying. The Lord blessed in marvelous ways, beyond our wildest imagination.
• PRAYER REQUEST: Please continue to pray for our church leaders worldwide as they travel, teach, mentor, share, and carry very busy schedules. Pray that they will guard their daily time with God, and that the Holy Spirit will continue to be poured out in all they do.
• PRAYER REQUEST: Pray for the translation process of the Ten Days of Prayer materials, that God will bless as the message is shared in multiple languages.
• PRAYER REQUEST: Pray for those young people who are graduating from high school, colleges, and universities during this month. Pray that God will give them clear direction in their journey and that their focus would be to “seek Him first” in all that they do.
• PRAYER REQUEST: Please pray for our Division, Union, and Conference leaders working in difficult regions of the world (such as the Middle East, Northern and Southern Asia, and elsewhere), where the spread of the gospel is often hindered due to political issues. Pray that God gives courage and wisdom to these leaders.