Along the Way

"Lufti" was introduced to Christ in elementary school and secretly became a believer. His father learned of his son's new-found faith and called a family meeting, inviting several Muslim religious leaders to join. Lufti received an ultimatum: Serve Christ and leave school; or remain in Islam and continue his education.

Lufti stood firm and refused to exchange serving Christ for the promise of schooling. "Whether or not you abandon me, whether you pay my school fees or not, I am for Christ and will not go back to Islam," he answered. His family told him to leave the house immediately. For a young Sudanese boy, this could have been devastating. However, Lufti, now 18, clung to his faith in Christ and, with the help of donations, continues to attend school.

VOM supports believers like Lufti in the Nuba Mountains where the largest population of Sudanese Christians remains. While VOM provides medicine, blankets, Bibles and other necessary practical items, a partnering organization, Lift Up the Vulnerable, works to defend the especially helpless from human trafficking. Together, the ministries help protect those in Sudan and South Sudan who have been left defenseless through war and oppression, suffered persecution and are at high risk of exploitation.

"I pray that the Lord will help me to practise what is written here in my Bible," says Lufti of the edition he received in his language. "And I trust that one day my family will come to know the Christ whom I serve.