Dear friends and partners in the ministry,

We write to you with great joy and thankfulness in our hearts for the many blessings God has bestowed on us! We are so thankful to feel His presence daily watching over us, whether driving through the busy traffic or going through the different challenges that come our way. God is good, all the time!

We rejoice as we witness the Holy Spirit changing the hearts and lives of people around us! We realize more and more that the key to ministering to our Muslim friends is to form strong relationships with them, showing them the love of Jesus in action. A while ago, I shared the story of a dear friend, Lamin, whom we’ve known for more than 12 years. Many of the people that have come to Gambia with us over the years have met Lamin and every one of them loved him! When he got married and moved to another village, we lost contact and hadn’t seen him in a couple of years but last May we connected in a miraculous way. We were on our way to the school for our weekly Discovery Bible Study (DBS), and we invited him to come with us. He joined us that day and began to attend faithfully every Sunday. His hunger to learn more about the Bible was very evident from the first day he joined the group, as we studied the book of John and moved on to Acts, the Holy Spirit continued to move in his heart. Many times by the end of our service, his eyes were moist with tears and he would ask us to pray for God to reveal Jesus to him. A few weeks ago, we had the privilege of praying with him as he gave his life to the Lord!

Another example of how important relationships are in ministering to Muslims, comes from one of our former students that graduated two years ago from our school. Even after she moved to a new school, she often stopped by to see us. During one of her visits in January, as she was sharing with us her troubles at home, we led her to invite Jesus into her heart and her life! We wouldn’t have been able to lead her to the Lord without showing her love and having developed a relationship over the years.

Muslim people are hungry for God, and they seek to know and please Him. Our heart is to awaken the believers in this nation to the task entrusted to us–to be Christ-like and authentic representatives of Jesus.

We have been focusing more on training and equipping leaders and emerging leaders about how to minister to Muslims and how to represent Jesus within their community.

Last month, we had a follow-up training with a team of Pastors under the leadership of Dan Lucero, our Foursquare International Area Director. Dan challenged, encouraged and empowered our group of about 30 leaders to follow their God-given vision for this nation. His teachings were so impactful that as each person was challenged, they were ready to step out in faith and do what God had called them to do! Pastor Deo also shared his testimony with the group; he was a former Imam and Sheik (Islamic teacher and leader) who studied at an Islamic University in Saudi Arabia for 5 years learning how to teach Muslims to convert Christians. Needless to say, his mission now is to teach Christians how to reach Muslims! His testimony was powerful and it touched everyone’s heart. At the end of the class, Fanta, a Muslim lady we’ve been ministering to wanted to spend more time with Deo. She asked him more questions and they were able to speak in Arabic- the language of Islam. By the time they were done talking, she decided to join our DBS to find out more about Jesus. Please pray for her as she is seeking to find the truth!

We’ve been praying for workers, for the fields are ripe and ready for harvest. We see a strong team of disciples rising up and ready to go out and share the Good News of the Gospel. We are excited to see what God is going to do through each one of them, as they step out of their comfort zone and share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with this Muslim nation!

God is doing an amazing work in this nation and we believe He is about to do even more, beyond our imagination, as we continue to share the truth of the Gospel and hope through Jesus Christ!

Your faithful partnership is vital to us and to the work of God in this nation. We cannot thank you enough for your commitment to reach the lost! Please continue to pray for the children at the school and the believers that are being equipped to go out and share the Gospel. Pray for the Holy Spirit to empower them and give them favor and wisdom as they share His truth.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

Sol and Manuela Bah