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PRISONERS OF FAITH
SAVED FROM DEATH A former soldier in the Middle East who came to Christ has suffered imprisonment for more than two years – and needs our prayers Mohammed was both a lay expert in the Koran and an expert trainer of snipers in the military of his Muslim country. That is, until the Arab Spring swept away his nation’s longestablished dictator during the wave of revolutions starting in 2011.
Mohammed was already dissatisfied with Islam. He had started watching Coptic Christian satellite programmes from Egypt – and was fascinated by the message of the Cross and its offer of forgiveness. After a few months he bowed the knee to Jesus, and convinced his immediate and extended family members to do the same. At this time, he knew no other Christians. Noting
from the TV that baptism seemed to be important, he went ahead and baptised himself and all his family. He renamed himself and the others with biblical names. So Mohammed became Ezra and his wife, Martha. As new believers they prayed to God and their worship and teaching comprised a daily dose of Coptic television.
Ezra suffered from diabetes and had to visit hospital regularly. During one stay he watched a Christian guest worker, Abraham, going from bed to bed, praying for the sick. Ezra was amazed when one of the people was dramatically healed and walked out of the hospital! 16
‘I’ve got to know this man who was praying’, thought Ezra, and friendship with Abraham soon followed.
Jesus visited him in a dream and told him, ‘I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.’ After the Arab Spring passed, an Arab winter fell across this now war-torn country. Word got out that Ezra had left the fold of Islam, and ISISrelated militia took him into custody. However, he soon managed to escape.
Back home, he received lots of visitors but did not venture much outside. The imam from a local mosque frequently visited, trying to convince Ezra to recant his Christian faith – sometimes threatening and sometimes reasoning. One morning the imam showed up at his door, trembling and looking pale.