Following the meeting with the leaders at the conference, Sultan felt a strong desire to go into the Muslim villages, certain that the people there had never heard about Christ. But he was traveling with a local leader who wasn’t sure it was a good idea — it wasn’t safe, he said, for them to go. Out of deference, Sultan didn’t press the matter.

On the road, the two of them stopped to take a picture beside an interesting landmark. As Sultan climbed out of the car, his wallet slipped from his pocket and fell to the ground — though he never noticed. They took their photos, got back in, and drove on. It was hours later that Sultan realized the wallet was gone.

With no idea where he had lost it, they began retracing their steps, even scrolling back through the pictures they’d taken. And there it was — in one of the photos, the wallet lay plainly on the side of the road. They drove all the way back to the spot, but by the time they arrived, it had vanished.

As they searched, a man came walking by. Sultan asked whether he had seen the wallet. The man said he didn’t have it, but offered to take Sultan to his village leader — if anyone had found it, the leader would know. It was, of course, exactly where Sultan had longed to go all along. Just not at all the way he had imagined arriving.

Now standing in the village, Sultan sensed the Holy Spirit whisper to him: This is your desire — that these people would know Me. So he asked the leader whether the village had fallen on hard times, whether people had been sick. The leader said yes — many of the people had been ill, and so had many of their animals. Sultan prayed for them, asking God to bring healing even to the livestock. And as he prayed, the animals began to eat again, and the pain that had gripped the people lifted. In that moment, Sultan was free to tell them of the God who provides healing in the name of Jesus Christ.

The village leader is now asking Sultan to return. Whether he realizes it yet or not, he is really asking for Christ to move among him and his people. This is a new opportunity for the local workers — and an invitation for them to learn to depend on God’s provision as He makes a way for the Gospel, even among some of the most devoted followers of Islam. Pray for new doors to open among these people, that they may come to know God in Christ.