Who's That Knocking on My Door?

Our first visitor today was Bart. He is a Sonike, but we can't very well say, "I'm not here to reach your tribe, leave me alone!" (We work with the Fulani tribe mainly as well as other tribal groups such as Barts). Jim usually takes the time to sit with him on the porch and open the Scriptures with him (he understands Bambara and a little French). Bart is what our neighbors would call a faato, or crazy guy. He's not really crazy - the term is used rather broadly for anyone who is a bit different from the norm. And he is certainly intelligent and clear-headed enough to understand the Gospel.

Bart is a hard case because he is not only a Muslim, but he is deeply involved in Islamic mysticism, which is really just a form of spiritism or animism. Sometimes he shows Jim "magic squares"-number boxes where the digits add up to the same sum in every direction. They are considered to have power. Or he will have with him a paper with Arabic (presumably Quranic verses) written all over it, also considered to have some kind of power.

Pray that the Holy Spirit would open Bart's heart to hear, understand and believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and that he would renounce the Satanic charms and spells on which he depends.

-Jim and Jennifer , Mali

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