One of the most common questions we are asked as we share our story of being in relationships with Muslixms is “are you safe/do you fear M attacks?” I have to tell you, our Fulani M friends are so welcoming and caring that those thoughts do not even enter our minds. On 9/11, many came to us, asking us if we were okay and if our families and friends were okay. Over the years we have been impressed, in general, by their integrity and their thoughtfulness concerning others. It was heart wrenching when, as a result of the Chadian M Seleka takeover, the local non-M militia which fought back deemed all Ms as the enemy. Two months old, 85 years old, it didn’t matter, having been your peaceful next door neighbor for 40 years didn’t matter, being absolutely no relation to the Chadians didn’t matter. If you were M, you were the enemy and needed to leave. Maybe you left with just the clothes on your back, and maybe you ran as some of your family was attacked and murdered. When I, with 5 friends, tried to take a good friend’s belongings across the river, it was all taken from us by force, because it was M belongings. When I first encountered my friend after that incident, do you know what she said? She said, “I heard about what happened, will you forgive me?” Will YOU forgive ME. That’s the kind of Fulani M people we are with every day that we can be.
We recently read the book Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus and we were encouraged by the author’s story. He was a Muslixm and had a very good college friend, a Jesus follower, who, after years of friendship, trusted enough to have tough conversations with. His aim was to prove Allah and disprove the bible and Jesus. By the end of the book (but the beginning of this young man’s life!) and after many conversations and much seeking, he came to know the Messiah. We hope for this for our Fulani friends; that our relationships and a true life demonstration of the Lord’s deep love for each of us will be part of opening up their hearts and minds to God.
