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Reaching Yemenis in the Midwest
154 Plays9 months ago
The Let's Talk Diaspora podcast features a special guest, Jen, who works among a The Yemeni people group in a Midwest city. The episode, part of Season 3, explores the intersection of global and local perspectives in diaspora missions. The discussion highlights how diaspora missions provide access to the gospel for people from these challenging regions who have relocated to North American and European cities.
Jen shares her personal journey from growing up in the Bible Belt to finding faith during a mission trip to Yemen. The podcast delves into the complexities of living in Yemen and the challenges faced by believers in predominantly Muslim societies. Jen emphasizes the importance of understanding the unique dynamics of Yemen, a country considered the "armpit of the Middle East," with a conservative culture deeply intertwined with Islamic beliefs.
The conversation shifts to Jen's current work in a Midwest city with a substantial Yemeni population, often referred to as "Little Yemen." The challenges of building relationships, earning trust, and sharing the gospel in a community marked by fear and conservatism are discussed. Jen also explains her approach to accessing the local community through initiatives like English as a Second Language classes and women's fitness programs, aiming to create opportunities for connection and conversation.
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Transcript
Spreading the Gospel in North America
00:00:02
Speaker
Are you a pastor, ministry leader, or volunteer? Perhaps a stay-at-home parent, business executive, or college student. Do you desire to see the nations come to faith in Jesus Christ? Let me tell you something fascinating. Something that is happening in our lives that's never happened before. The nations are coming to us.
00:00:23
Speaker
Yes, where we once had to travel across the world to share the gospel, the nations are now coming to North America through means of business, tourism, university study, and more. The world's most unreached people groups are coming to us. The next best question to ask?
00:00:42
Speaker
How do we reach them with the gospel?
Introduction to Global Gates
00:00:44
Speaker
I want to introduce you to a missions organization called Global Gates. Global Gates exists to reach the ends of the earth through Global Gateway Cities. You too can be involved in this mission from wherever you are. Simply go to globalgates.info for more information.
Jen's Role in Diaspora Missions
00:01:14
Speaker
Welcome to the Let's Talk Diaspora podcast. And today we have a special guest with us, Jen from a city in the Midwest. And Jen is working among a very strategic people group. We're going to let her share more about that, but I just want to set up the episode as we're in season three, talking about this idea of global and local, or glocal, and just how Diaspora missions actually helps fulfill the Great Commission globally.
00:01:43
Speaker
So there are countries in the world where it is extremely difficult for followers of Jesus, especially from a Western context to go and live, not even with the title of missionary, but just in general because of lots of different issues. So countries like Afghanistan may come to mind, but there's also countries that have not been in the news as much lately, like Somalia, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Iran.
Challenges for Christians from Conflict Zones
00:02:12
Speaker
all of those places, it's challenging to live. And so, but our God has brought many of those people to North American cities and even European cities where there's access to the gospel. So just setting that up for our episode today, thinking about this global and local context. Welcome to the podcast, Jen. Yeah. Thanks for having me. I'm blessed to be on it with you guys.
00:02:39
Speaker
Jen, can you tell us how you got started? Where did God start this process with you and how did it roll along?
Jen's Spiritual Journey and Work in Yemen
00:02:48
Speaker
Yeah. So I am from the South in the Bible Belt. So I grew up in, well, grew up. I went to church when I was younger, up until about middle school. And when I realized that
00:03:03
Speaker
Or, well, when I experienced just a list of rules and regulations, I very quickly got disillusioned and decided to walk away. So about middle school, I just decided I'm going to go my own way. And so I did my own thing for a long time. High school and college, I really dabbled in a lot of dark things and just was looking for identity and value and acceptance in all the wrong areas.
00:03:32
Speaker
And when I graduated college I moved to another city in the south where a girl had invited me to church we were in a training program at work and she invited me to her church. And it's interesting looking back now I think well this was definitely the holy spirit but at the time.
00:03:49
Speaker
I don't know what I thought, but I had this idea, well, I should probably meet people at church rather than like a bar, right? So like that would be a better place. So I said yes and started going with her to church, quickly got into a discipleship group and just started really reading the Bible, asking questions. And I had been going to church
00:04:11
Speaker
probably for about a month and was really involved. My friend was really involved, so I just followed her everywhere. And we were at a church service Wednesday night, which was typically like an Old Testament reading. And they kind of switched it up and they had a mission team that had just come back from Yemen on the stage. And I remember looking at my friend and going, where's Yemen? Geography is not my strong suit. So she was like, I have no idea. So we're just listening to the team talk about
00:04:41
Speaker
their time in the country and how much they really valued the people and how wonderful they were and how hospitable they were. But the reality was that they were walking in darkness and they were separated from God because they didn't believe in who Jesus really was. And it was in that moment that my eyes were opened and I realized I'm just like them. I don't know Jesus. I'm separated from God. I'm walking in darkness and I need him.
00:05:10
Speaker
So that was in 2007. I became a believer that night, surrendered my life to the Lord. And then less than a year later, I went on my first trip to Yemen.
00:05:24
Speaker
Wow, wow, wow. What an amazing story. And also just to think of the pieces that God used in each of that, your friend, you know, the people being there at this one time to be able to share about Yemen and how God began to plant that in your heart and your life. So tell us a little more about how, so then what was the process from there that led you to even where you are today?
Working with Yemeni People in the Midwest
00:05:52
Speaker
Yeah, so after I became a believer, I think I was very quickly kind of being set up to be in ministry. I wouldn't have said that at the time. I didn't really know what that was, but I felt like the Lord was really refining me and taking me through a lot of things. My past had involved a lot of
00:06:14
Speaker
darkness and demonic things and just lots of sinful activities and so he was really stripping me away very quickly and preparing my heart and so everybody thought you know what a cool thing this girl comes to know Jesus the night that a team there wasn't even an altar call there was nothing in specific about like hey does anybody want to follow Jesus that was not the idea for the night
00:06:41
Speaker
But they all were like, wow, this is so cool. Of course she's going to go to Yemen. And I remember just really desiring to follow the Lord, really desiring for it to be Him working and not just a great idea that came from me or from someone else.
00:07:00
Speaker
Everybody would ask me, so you're going on the trip, right? You're going, you know, and I said, I just really want to hear from the Lord. So I prayed and I said, God, if you want me to go on this trip to Yemen, then I need you to make it abundantly clear. And within a week, I had two dreams back to back.
00:07:16
Speaker
And there were lots of details in those dreams that the Lord then confirmed when I got to Yemen. But I remembered thinking like, this is miraculous. I can't. There's no way. And then also he confirmed it through wise counsel, through scripture, through prayer, all of the ways that God speaks. It was just abundantly clear that he wanted me to go to Yemen. And so I am
00:07:43
Speaker
Yeah, very well, I would say not now. I used to be very high maintenance. So I go to Yemen and it's like third world country. You know, you can only take a shower like once a week. It's very dirty. Um, you know, lots of things are not clean. So, um, but I absolutely loved it. And so the people who were with us, when we went on this team, they were like, whoa, this is God.
00:08:06
Speaker
Because this is not this is not her And so I remember coming back from that trip well even being there and just feeling like God giving me a heart for the people and what I would say as I've journeyed down this road what I would say to believers is when you know in scripture when it talks about
00:08:27
Speaker
giving us, removing our heart of stone and giving us a heart of flesh. I would say that the night that God removed my heart of stone and gave me a heart of flesh, it was a heart synonymous with the Yemeni people.
00:08:39
Speaker
And so I continue to go back on short-term trips for four years total consecutive. And every time we went, God just continued to burden my heart for the people. And it was like, two weeks is not long enough. Two months is not long enough. Two years is not long enough. This people group needs investment. They need people to walk alongside them and to lead them to Jesus.
00:09:05
Speaker
And so we were there a week before the Arab spring happened in 2011. Um, and it was really interesting cause we had no idea it was coming, but we were there in the city. We're getting ready to get on a plane and come back to America. And those of us who had been coming for years, we just had this deep sense, this, this grief that we weren't coming back. And of course we didn't know that the Arab spring was just around the corner.
00:09:31
Speaker
And so when we get back to the States and everything happens, we're like, Oh, God was giving us a heads up. And so, um, it was grievous, but at the same time we were trusting the Lord. And then for a few years, we went on other, I went on other short-term trips to the middle East, um, and really enjoyed my time there, but, but God was continuing to put the Yemeni people on my heart. And so in.
00:09:57
Speaker
2014, we found out there was a huge Yemeni population in this Midwest city.
00:10:07
Speaker
And it was kind of like at the beginning of that year, God had been speaking to me in his word about moving, lots of verses about moving. And I was working up the corporate ladder, but I was kind of discontent, well, actually very discontent with my job. And so I thought it was metaphorical for like changing jobs. So I was going on all these interviews, trying to figure out what God was doing and all the while praying and asking him to reveal his will to me.
00:10:36
Speaker
And all these doors were closing and it was like okay i don't know what's happening but i feel like something big is happening and so. When we found out about this the city with a ton of yemeni.
00:10:52
Speaker
It was kind of like a vision trip for our church, but then the Lord began to show me this is actually a vision trip for you. This is something I want you to be fasting and praying about. And it was interesting because during that time,
00:11:08
Speaker
One of the verses that I think the Lord gave me specifically was Habakkuk 2 3 which says though the vision Terry wait for it It will surely come to pass and so I just held on to that and continued to seek his will While I was stepping out in fates going. Okay, I don't know what the next I don't know what the next thing is But it seems like I need to be walking in this direction and just trusting him so I went on this short-term week-long trip in 2014 and I
00:11:37
Speaker
What I found in this city was, I mean, now it's a city of 30,000
Cultural Dynamics of a Yemeni City in North America
00:11:42
Speaker
people. Back then it was 20,000 or so.
00:11:45
Speaker
It's like living in Yemen. I mean, they actually call it Little Yemen because, or Little Sana'a, which is the capital of Yemen, because there's thousands and thousands and thousands of Yemeni Muslims, and you can live in this city for your whole life and never learn English and be totally fine. We have no American grocery store. There's a few American restaurants, but almost everything is Arab. All the gas stations are run by Arabs, all the restaurants, all the grocery stores,
00:12:15
Speaker
I mean, all of the places are, it does it. And there's, now we have, I think between 12 and 14 mosques in the city and they do the call to prayer five times a day. So you're outside, I was there last night and I was getting in my car to go home and I hear the call to prayer outside. So anywhere you are five times a day, you're gonna hear the call to prayer. And so what I found in this city was, wow, it's like living in Yemen, but it's not, you're in America. So 10 minutes,
00:12:44
Speaker
you know, outside the city and you're in normalcy. Um, and what I also found was there were people who were living in that were there in some capacity to share the gospel or to be a witness, but there was a real deep sense of fear. And I think that's a thread that goes throughout the city, not just, not just with workers or, or people who were trying to live intentional.
00:13:10
Speaker
But with the Yemeni Muslims there in general, there's this deep rooted sense of fear, a spirit of fear that we pray against daily. Because in Yemen, it's 99.999% Muslim. And if you even get caught with a Bible, they have the right to kill you, let alone choosing to follow Jesus.
00:13:38
Speaker
and what we thought when we moved here, which I've been here almost eight and a half years.
00:13:44
Speaker
we thought, oh, well, they've come to America. So there's more freedom, more opportunity, which in certain ways there is like we, as believers, we have the opportunity to be as bold as we want to. Um, in Yemen, it wouldn't be that way. Like Bud said, it's, you know, Yemen, it's very hard to live there as a, as a foreigner in general, but for
00:14:11
Speaker
The Yemeni population, I would say it's even stricter here than it is in Yemen. You might have women who they all cover their hair, right? But, but maybe they didn't cover their face in Yemen and they move here and they cover their face in this city because they're such a tight knit community and they're all from this one city in Yemen that's very conservative. And so.
00:14:38
Speaker
I think there's even more a sense of we have to be Muslim, we have to stick together. And so it's tough soil. I mean, it is extremely tough soil. But I believe that God has brought them here for such a time as this. I believe that He has great plans for them. Isaiah 9 too is a verse that I cling to and pray for often.
00:15:02
Speaker
And it's talking about the people who are walking in darkness will see a great light, and those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them. And so that is our prayer, that is our hope, and that is really the call, you know, is to be the light shining in the darkness as Jesus works through us to bring really a nation who largely
00:15:27
Speaker
is stuck in darkness and walking apart from God, bringing them into the kingdom, you know, so. That's so interesting how you describe, basically they've, they've doubled down on, on their identity, because there's this, you see this among some people, there's this fear of losing their cultural identity and their religion and culture is so intertwined. You don't know where one starts or one stops. And so they become just overwhelmingly entrenched
00:15:56
Speaker
in that and it's just a very unique dynamic. So if someone's like you and in the beginning you didn't even know geographically where Yemen was, give us just a little crash course on Yemen. Where is Yemen? What are some characteristics about the Yemeni people?
00:16:20
Speaker
Uh, I will just set it up by saying if if you're interested in reaching like some of the least reached people in the world Um, you know, maybe you're familiar with the term we've talked about front-tier people groups Yeah, many Arabs are a front-tier people group which means less than one Out of every thousand people are believers and I would say it's significantly less than one in every thousand But that's the threshold to get the front-tier people group distinction Right. Yeah, it's very true
00:16:50
Speaker
Yeah, if you wanna challenge, come where we are. Because you will be challenged. Yes, so Yemen is considered the armpit of the
Cultural and Religious Norms in Yemen
00:17:01
Speaker
Middle East. So it is the poorest of all the Arab countries. It does not have any oil. It claims that Saudi Arabia took its oil. I don't actually know if that's true, but that's what they say. But it is sandwiched between Saudi and Oman.
00:17:16
Speaker
It is, like I said before, 99.9% Muslim. They are one of the, well, besides Saudi, I would say that they are the most conservative Arab country in the Middle East. And so you have a lot of identity wrapped up in, I am Muslim.
00:17:39
Speaker
You don't have there's not a separation of culture and religion. It is all smushed together and so there is great fear with Being different at all in any way shape or form thinking outside the box is not Not something that they in fact, I would say you know when I first started going to Yemen in 2008 I
00:18:06
Speaker
There was one, our Arabic teacher, she drove, she actually was divorced and she drove a car and she was like a total outcast. She had a job and her family actually did welcome her back once she got divorced, but she was like, people don't talk to me.
00:18:29
Speaker
because she was divorced and because she drove. And now I think there's a little bit of a more progressive thought process, especially in the bigger cities in Yemen, of we should let our women learn how to drive, we should let them go to high school. The women that I worked with both in Yemen and here, the first generation, they may be finished second grade.
00:18:56
Speaker
Education is not a big deal and I think that a big reason for that is that you start educating women and they start thinking, wait a second, why am I just absent-mindedly following these list of rules and following a culture and a religion that doesn't honor me, that doesn't value me as a woman? And so I think largely it's been, let's not educate, let's keep them bound,
00:19:25
Speaker
Let's not teach them to critically think. That's another issue that we've run into for years, is you ask them to think outside the box and they just retell the things that they've always been told. They don't actually think about what they're saying. And they don't understand that it doesn't make sense. And that's not just even religiously, it's just in general, in life.
00:19:53
Speaker
These things don't make sense, but they don't know how to put them together. And so you've got the women who are oppressed, who, you know, largely don't go to school. They get married at 15, 16.
00:20:10
Speaker
All the marriages are arranged, even in our city, which you'd think in America that wouldn't be the case, but it absolutely is, all arranged. And by arranged, I mean, before they sign, they're not allowed to talk to each other or even meet each other in person before they sign the contract, the marriage contract. And the marriage contract is the two that are getting married don't even have to be there for the contract. It's the families that are now binding together.
00:20:39
Speaker
So the dads usually from both sides will get together and they will sign the contract. And then the husband and the wife can then meet and get to know each other. And sometimes they can't even get to know each other until they have the big formal party, the big formal wedding that announces to the community that they are now married. So I've attended many weddings both in the country and here where the bride and groom met two days before.
00:21:08
Speaker
They got married so and then i think for the men in the country there is a lot of push for power you know the islam as a whole.
00:21:21
Speaker
It really honors men, it elevates men, it gives them a lot of authority. Women are bought and sold. When they get married, they are transferred from their dad's house or their older brother's house to their husband's house via a financial transaction.
00:21:42
Speaker
continues that cycle of men are more powerful, they are dominant, they own you. And so the power dynamic is very difficult.
00:21:55
Speaker
And so I think, you know, in other, we're seeing it in other countries, right? In like Iran, we're seeing women saying we're done with this. We don't want this. This is not the way that God created us. And this is not the way that God created the world. And so we want something better and that's where they're finding Jesus. And so that, when I look at Iran and what's happening with Iran, that's my hope for Yemen. That's my hope for what's happening in our, you know, for what God wants to do in our city.
00:22:24
Speaker
is that these women will see like, this is not okay. And we are tired and we are desperate for truth. We are desperate to know who we are and what God says about us. And Islam doesn't provide the truth for that.
00:22:42
Speaker
Being someone from outside of the culture, reaching into the culture, how are you finding ways or how is God providing ways for you to connect with women, particularly from Yemen there in your city?
Building Trust with Yemeni Women
00:22:57
Speaker
Yeah, so there's been a few different ways over the years. We call it access ministry. And so we desire to come into a city and say, God, where do you want us to help the most? What is the biggest need? And what we found was overwhelmingly
00:23:16
Speaker
English as a second language was the biggest need and so we started a nonprofit educational nonprofit that provided free classes. We also provided free babysitting and a free bus for the women because a lot of them don't drive.
00:23:32
Speaker
And so we started off that way and for years had a thriving English school. When COVID happened, it flipped a lot of things. And so now I primarily will do English like tutoring. And then also I teach at a local women's gym that is women's only and it's specifically targeting the Yemeni community. And so
00:24:00
Speaker
My goal in these access ministries is to build relationships with the women outside of class and outside of that bigger arena to then build relationship, build trust. It takes a long time with Yemeni in particular because they've been taught their whole lives that followers of Jesus are liars and they want to change them. And so we spend a lot of time building our reputation
00:24:30
Speaker
as people who love God and want to honor God and want to love people and serve people and then also building the foundation that were truth tellers and so You know building that takes a long time and so but but that's the goal is is building relationship to then invite them in to studying the word because we believe that the the word of God by the Spirit of God is going to make the people of God and so we really want to
00:25:01
Speaker
get them to a place where they're discovering who Jesus is on their own and not just hearing it from me, but also I don't shy away from sharing my testimony. I've shared with multiple Yemeni people actually over the years that how I got to Yemen, that God gave me dreams. In fact, he gave me dreams every year I went to Yemen.
00:25:23
Speaker
and they muslims love dreams so they are fascinated by that and they they're actually hilarious they're like you should write a book so funny um and maybe one day i will but i
00:25:37
Speaker
Yeah. So I think, you know, sharing my testimony, sharing stories, sharing truth, praying for them, you know, walking alongside them in their day to day life. How can we help you? How can we serve you? Those things stand out. And so, but all of that with the desire of let's get you in the word discovering who Jesus is for yourself. So on the topic of
00:26:03
Speaker
especially the females getting into the word with the lack of education. Are they illiterate people? How do you interact with them as they interact with the Scriptures?
00:26:15
Speaker
Yeah, so we've done a few different things over the years, depending on where they are. If they are truly illiterate, then we use, we have a discovery app, which has the scripture, the discovering God scripture set, discovering Bible study scripture set. It has it in dialect that they understand. Yemen has a ton of different dialects in their country.
00:26:40
Speaker
And so it is in one of theirs that they can actually understand, and it is oral. So they listen to it, and then we discuss the passage after. Depending on where they are, if they do read Arabic, then we would bring the scripture on paper or use a YouVersion app on our phone with Arabic so that they can read it, and then we discuss it.
00:27:05
Speaker
The hope, we really don't wanna do one-on-one, although we will, and I have, and one-on-one has actually spawned off into bigger groups, but I really, the most fruitful time I've seen has been with like a family, where there's been a family, whether it's all women, you know, the moms and the sisters and the daughters, or the family with like all the kids. And so that dynamic has proven to be
00:27:35
Speaker
I think the best. Can you share with us one way you've seen God work in the time that you've been serving there in your city?
Kate's Story: Interest in Christianity
00:27:46
Speaker
Yeah. At least one. I'm sure there's many more than one. Yeah.
00:27:52
Speaker
Yeah, you know, I think it is, like I said before, it's tough soil. And so I don't know of any Yemeni believers in our city, which really breaks my heart because there's 30,000 people that live here. And I would say, I don't know, 75, 80% are from Yemen. And so that's a lot of people. But I do think that there are secret believers. I just think they're in hiding because of the fear aspect.
00:28:20
Speaker
Um, but I will share a story that is, it's encouraging. And then it's also just reality of where we are. Cause I think it's, it's just very telling. Um, I was at a park, um, hanging out with some ladies. We were doing English class several years ago now. And these girls came up to me mid twenties and they were like, teacher, can you teach us English? And, um, I'm known as a teacher here.
00:28:50
Speaker
They all know my name too, but it's like a, it's like an elevated thing if they call you teacher. So they said, teacher, can you teach us English? And I said, Oh, well, we're actually opening a brand new school. We would love to have you. Um, can you come to our school? And they said, Oh, our father is really strict. He won't let us go to school. And I said, Oh, okay. Well, that's fine. Where do you live? I'll come to your house. They literally lived right next door to the new school that we were opening.
00:29:18
Speaker
like you could throw a rock and get into the school. And so I said, you guys are right next door. Can you come? And they said, no, no, our dad is still very strict. He won't let us. So I went over to the house, totally was planning on just tutoring them in their home. And God just gave immeasurable favor. I met the dad. He was like, and this is funny, he said, mi casa su casa, which is hilarious because he's Arab. He speaks English, but he was speaking to me in Spanish.
00:29:48
Speaker
And so I said, thank you so much. And I said, I would really love for your wife and your daughters to come to our school. We're literally right here. You can see the building from your window right here. I would love to have them. And he said, yes, yes, yes. You are our family. They can go to school. And it was amazing because not only did they all get to come to school, but we were able to hire the youngest daughter
00:30:12
Speaker
21 22 at the time to be our babysitter. So she was our babysitter for a whole year. She made a you know, she made income It was great. I mean there's challenges with working with Arabs who have never had a job before but it was still fantastic in terms of being able to help her see her value and her worth and be able to encourage that, you know opportunity and so
00:30:37
Speaker
But then as we were spending time with this family, we would go over every week and we would have a meal together and we would ask, how can we pray for you? And they started listing off all of these things that we could pray for them. And so we would all pray and like one would be in the kitchen and we would ask the question and they would run in and go, wait, wait, don't forget about me. You know? And so then they would share what they wanted us to pray for. And one of the ladies was struggling with infertility. She had one kid, but she wanted more.
00:31:08
Speaker
And so I shared the story of Hannah and Samuel.
00:31:10
Speaker
And she loved that story. They all did. And I said, you know, there are so many more stories like this in the holy books. Would you guys want to read? And they were like, yes, we want to read. So we started to discovery Bible study with them. My friend at the time who lived here, she actually spent a lot of time in Yemen. So she spoke Yemeni Arabic, which was super helpful because two of the ladies out of this family group only spoke Arabic. And so it was really helpful to have her there to translate.
00:31:39
Speaker
So we're reading through the Bible. There's all kinds of crazy stuff going on. The middle sister, she clearly was identified as the leader of the family, even though she's the middle sister. So I started training her to do Discovery Bible study. She's doing the Discovery Bible study every week. Her husband steals the Bible from her.
00:31:58
Speaker
and says, you may not read anymore. And I said, we'll call her Kate. I said, Kate, what do you wanna do? And she said, bring me the scripture on paper. I'm like, all right. So I bring her the scripture on paper every week, every time I get there, she's like, okay, where's the next story? I want the next story. Like she was in it.
00:32:17
Speaker
And she led the Bible study every week. I came, I participated, but she led and I trained her as we went. Somebody would go off on this random tangent and I would say, okay, so right now, here's an opportunity where you can say, okay, that's great, but from this story, what do we learn about God? And she's like, oh yes, yes. And so then she would just model that.
00:32:41
Speaker
And her husband finally gave her the Bible back and said, you know what, I'm really okay with you reading with your friend, but I really want you to tell me everything that you're reading. Well, that's perfect because that's what we want you to do anyway. So they start, you know, so we so we're continuing down the road and then his
00:32:58
Speaker
his co-workers who I don't interact with men, but his co-workers were saying, you know, she's trying to convert your wife. You need to keep her away from her and all this stuff. And so I said to my friend again, Kate, what do you want to do? And she said, I still want to meet with you. And I said, why? And she goes, because only God can change a heart. And I'm like, it's very true. Only God can change a heart.
00:33:22
Speaker
So we're continuing to read, we get to Isaiah 53, she says, who is this talking about? And I said, who do you think it's talking about? And she goes, Musa, Moses? And I said, no. And she goes, Esa, Jesus? And I said, yes. And she goes, okay, we're ready to know everything there is to know about Jesus. And I was like, perfect, because the next set is gonna be all in the New Testament.
00:33:49
Speaker
So we're reading, reading, there's, I mean, we read the passage where John baptizes Jesus and God says, this is my son and whom I'm well pleased. And this is a big contentious part with Muslims, right? Where it's like, you don't really want to go there unless you're ready to debate. And I said, so what do we learn about Jesus from this passage? And she goes, well, that he's God's son.
00:34:13
Speaker
And I said, uh-huh, like I'm just waiting for it. And she goes, listen, if I was American, I would follow Jesus, but I am Yemeni and I have to be Muslim.
00:34:25
Speaker
And of course that broke my heart because I'm like, but you don't understand, Jesus was not American. Jesus didn't even speak English, you know? And so that was hard to hear, but also we talked through that. And I said, actually, there are people who follow Jesus all over the world in all of these Muslim countries in Yemen. And she goes, that's not possible. And again, this goes back to the critical thinking piece and what they've been told their whole lives.
00:34:52
Speaker
they've been inundated with lies their whole lives. So we keep reading, you know, all of these things. It's just like, it just, the Holy Spirit is moving. And then her dad finds out that we've been reading, which I thought her mom was sharing with him, but I guess she wasn't. And she doesn't speak English. So maybe there was a language barrier there, but
00:35:17
Speaker
Dad finds out and threatens to send his wife and all three daughters back to Yemen to kill them. And when I asked Kate, you know, every time there had been an obstacle, I said, Kate, what do you want to do? This time I said, Kate, what do you want to do? And she said, I can't, I can't move forward because I have kids. I have four kids. I can't, you know, and so.
00:35:42
Speaker
I think that God is still moving. I feel like there's still opportunity, especially in this family and with Kate specifically, I think that there is a real possibility that she is a secret believer, but the reality of the threat is very real.
00:36:10
Speaker
It's interesting you wouldn't think that would happen here, but that's something and that's something that we didn't expect. But I think that just goes to show that the spiritual strongholds are so severe and we need, as we do with anything, but we need the Holy Spirit to break through because
00:36:32
Speaker
There are so many people, I think, like Kate, who were like, if I was American, I would follow Jesus, but I am Yemeni and I have to be Muslim. They see no other choice. And so I think God is working. God is moving. He is doing things. And we just need more of His Spirit. We just need an outpouring of the Holy Spirit here because
00:37:00
Speaker
The fear aspect is so great and we need freedom for the women, especially here. As I hear your story, I think too, we need the Holy Spirit to work. We also need to continue to pray that God would send more workers like you that will be obedient to spend the time, spend the years, and just really feed into those
00:37:29
Speaker
Even if you do hear a father saying, but you know that Kate has heard, you know, because of your faithfulness, she's had that chance to hear. Um, and she can be a secret believer, but it's not, she wouldn't have known that without God putting you there to speak in and through you, his spirit to speak in and through you. So can you tell us ways that you feel like would be the greatest needs and opportunities for people to get involved?
Need for Workers and Prayer in Yemeni Community
00:37:58
Speaker
Yeah, I think we need more workers. You know, when Jesus says like, you know, the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. I feel that very, very deeply here. I think there are several people who live here who just want to work at a thrift store or volunteer at the gym or teach English.
00:38:25
Speaker
And then it stops there. They don't want to take the next step into actually spiritually discipling, walking with people day in, day out. Because discipleship is hard. It's messy. It's not for the faint of heart.
00:38:38
Speaker
But we're called to be disciples that make disciples. And so I think, you know, for years people have prayed, people who live here prayed, bring more workers. Well, my prayer has changed to God bring people who are serious about spiritual discipleship, people who are serious about getting in the muck with people and walking with them.
00:38:59
Speaker
because when people experience desperation, when they experience the end of themselves, that's when they're ready to hear about Jesus. And we don't always just come into that. I mean, God can sometimes plan us in there in that season, but a lot of times it's a walking with them for an extended period of time. And so being willing to invest and being willing to be bold and being willing to, yeah, go all out. I mean, I think,
00:39:28
Speaker
Yeah, we have several people who live here, but not a lot of people who are, like I can count on one hand, maybe a hand and a half, of people who live here who I would want discipling people, who I would want, who I would send. Like if I was sick and I couldn't do something, I would say, please go spend time with this person because they're gonna be legit. So we just need,
00:39:56
Speaker
Yeah, more people who really want to invest in the kingdom. And prayer. Prayer is a huge part of it. So always, always, always we're seeking people who will pray for our city, pray for the thousands and thousands of people here who are walking in darkness and separated from God. Jen, thank you so much for
00:40:26
Speaker
Sharing with us one, just final question, if someone wants to get involved praying specifically, do you have a network, like maybe a Zoom meeting or something like that that we could maybe not publicly put out, but if you contact us via email, that we would be able to share something like that exists?
00:40:48
Speaker
Yes, so we do have, I'm a part of a prayer initiative here and we are always looking for different ways to get people involved with prayer. So I can give you my contact information and anybody who's interested, we can get connected and we can start them. I also have a newsletter and all kinds of updates to send with specific prayer requests, but
00:41:15
Speaker
Yes, as far as yeah, a zoom meeting or anything like that, we are definitely always open and up for how the Lord wants us to partner together. Great. Thank you. I just want to continue to cast vision for the Yemeni people. If God has really stirred your heart, reach out to us for next steps. You know, there's, there's over.
00:41:37
Speaker
Almost 9 million Yemenis globally and very, very few known believers, over 100,000 Yemenis in North America. So if you're in a city that has a significant population, maybe God's put you there.
00:41:50
Speaker
on purpose for a purpose. So thank you so much for listening to the Let's Talk diaspora podcast. If you know someone who has a heart for Yemen, please share this and maybe God would move them to move among the Yemeni people so that they may know and follow Jesus.