A Story of Courage and of God’s Provision
Veiled ladies in our local park enjoy a tea break
It’s been one month now since we moved into our new home, and we are mostly settled. We’ve begun to meet neighbors and find our way around the community. It’s definitely an immigrant part of town; I stand in the check-out line at the 99-cent store with Spanish-speakers, Asians, and Muslim refugees.
At a friends’ home we met “Grace” and her husband “John,” recently arrived from Nigeria. When I heard that they had arrived in the US via the Mexican border just south of us, I knew there must be a story. They are applying for asylum, and when they expressed a need for help with the complicated legal process, Brad offered to lend a hand. They came over one morning last week so we could help them type up and print their paperwork.
I met Grace at a friend’s holiday party
Talk about stories! Wow—I’ve had some long and exhausting journeys over the years, but nothing like what Grace and John went through. The backstory is a romantic one; John, who was from a Muslim family, fell in love with Grace, from a Christian family. At her request, he started going to church with her, and the Spirit went to work on his heart and drew him to faith. That’s when the trouble started, and from that time his family’s door was closed to him. John and Grace had a church wedding, and when his family found out about it, a group of male relatives came to their home and attacked them.
So much for romance… John and Grace spent their honeymoon running for their lives. They made their way to Senegal, and got passage in the hold of a cargo ship. After three months at sea, they were put ashore in Venezuela. It took them four more months to travel overland, north through Central America to Mexico. They made their way by bus, by boat, and by foot through miles of jungle, without knowing any Spanish! John told us that at one point, in Costa Rica, they had run out of money and didn’t know what to do. A local person, who was a Christian, sensed God telling him to help them and he gave them a thousand dollars!
Eventually they arrived at the US border and turned themselves in to the authorities, asking for political asylum. John was held in a detention camp for four months, but was then released with a GPS device around his ankle. If their request for asylum is granted, they hope to find jobs, settle down, and start a “normal” married life.
Despite their ordeal and the uncertainties of the future, Grace and John told us that they have much to be thankful for. They have seen God’s hand of protection and provision in their lives in some dramatic ways. We also have many reasons for gratitude as this year draws to a close, such as a new home and exciting new work. And we are thankful for the chance to make new friends, whose courageous stories inspire us.
Posted in Uncategorized by Lisa