Hanging Out with the Lord

Values. Everyone has them, whether they are expressed, or not. In the Old Testament, the word we translate as 'value' means heavy or weighty, referring to precious metals or the heavy wheat being separated from the lighter chaff. It is the important, weighty things; the things that matter.

When we talk about our values at ReachAcross, we are talking about the things that God has built into our work that reflects who He is. Our most important value is prayer. We have a personal God who makes it possible for us to connect with him constantly. To use modern slang, we’re ‘hanging out’ with Him all the time! We get closer to other people by spending time with them. The same is true with God. Because He has promised to be with us always(Matthew 28:20), we can always be spending time with Him in prayer. Through prayer, our relationship with God can grow deeper as we discover what is on His heart for us and other people. We can not only lay out our own burdens before Him, but those of others as well. The work of ReachAcross was born in prayer, and it is prayer that continues to make this service for Muslims possible.

Recently we experienced a very evident answer to prayer—a pretty hopeless visa situation suddenly changed, and only God could have done it. We were reminded again that it is He who opens doors. As the Apostle Paul wrote: 

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. (Col. 4:2-4)

Open doors are always a miracle, even when we don’t realize it. Whether God’s Lordship changes the life of an individual, or a family, or a whole clan—continued prayer is the key. That is where our partners have such a vital role to play.  Just like the men who brought their friend to Jesus, and let him down through the roof when there was no other way to get to Him, so our prayer partners bring Muslims to the Lord through their prayers.

“And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” (Mark 3:5)

It was not the paralytic’s faith, but the faith of his friends that impressed Jesus so much. Not only that, they wanted their friend to be in the presence of the Lord, so they went to extreme lengths to bring him to Jesus. We can do the same for those we care about, by praying for them. All of us, workers and prayer partners, are in this together.

Let us follow Paul’s advice and “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17), continually lifting up our concerns and those of others to the Lord.

If you would like to pray with us for the Lord’s work in the Muslim world, please follow @ReachAcrossPray on Twitter for prayer updates.

ReachAcross U.S. Director

On the Banks of the Awash: A Spotlight on the Afar People

By J. Daaud

“The camels are dying.” Edris’ father and respected Mekaban, clan leader, informs him in a ceremony of kisses and handshakes. “We need fresh water. More salt. It’s time to move.” He spits qat, a mild stimulant, on the cracked Assaita soil.

It doesn’t matter that a few weeks ago Edris and his girl bride, Hawa, witnessed goat blood splattered over their nuptial hut while they feasted and danced under a round moon. Or that Hawa constructed their thatched Ari, filling their new abode with furnishings. They are Afar—the people that move like the shifting sand. And as nomadic herders, they need to find water for the animals. The Danakil desert is a thirsty wasteland—less than seven inches of rainfall this past year. 

Edris watches the flies feast on a camel carcass. He remembers a praise song that his mother sang when he was a boy strapped to her back, “If the camels die, we die.” His father’s right, the clan must move forward or the flies will feast on them. 

They must set out quickly in order to beat the enemy to the fertile banks of the Awash River, Inshallah, if God wills.

 Edris feels the gille, a 16 inch curved dagger, below his waist and straps his Kalashnikov assault rifle across his chest. Though the Afar people are one ethnic group, their population of about three million is scattered throughout Eritrea, Ethiopia and Djibouti. There are hundreds of split clans and families and competition for water is fierce like the desert winds. Edris is willing to fight the other clans, even kill, for this liquid gold if the need arises.

Hawa joins the women in loading the camels with building materials and beds. The Afar people have dozens of words for water, and their canteens are full of it as they begin their biannual trek to the verdant river banks.

On their trek, Edris joins his friends in song, “The girl I love is not the short one, nor the tall one.” Their voices fill the air. “The girl I love is the perfect height: medium.” Edris and Hawa listen to jokes and stories of clan heroes and warriors. They join their ancestors in singing ancient songs, leaving their footprints in the sands of time. 

Much to Edris’ delight, his clan arrives at the river ahead of the other caravans. Immediately he joins the men in guarding the campsite. The women and children wash their feet in the cool water, while the animals drink their fill. They spend months in this location growing maize, cotton and tobacco, just enough for the clan. 

Each night, after a grueling day’s work, Edris and his wife sit around the fire drinking tea, listening to stories, watching dances. Tonight the dancing jenile prophesies in the midst of them. Will the sky god pour bountiful rains from the Heavens? She dances yes in circles around the licking flames. Will Allah protect them from intruders? The fire cackles. There’s no answer.

There’s a loud clanging sound as the fire flickers out. Edris’ heart pounds in his throat as the other men jump to their feet, assault rifles in hand. Dark figures emerge from the shadows, a neighboring clan attempting to raid their huts and steal camels—their very lives. Shots are fired in the arid air. Wails fill the night sky like smoke from the smoldering fire. He hears his father cry. Fear grips his heart and with a new resolve, he fires rounds at the enemy, forcing them out. Once the smoke clears, he gasps. Several camels are missing. And their clan leader, his father, is dead.

The next day Edris lays his father’s body on a bier with his head pointing north toward Mecca. He and the men carry their leader to the prepared grave chanting Quranic verses the entire way. Paid mourners join the procession, their wails and cries travel across the river. Edris marches toward the burial site with watery eyes. He marches into a new role as clan leader.

The season of mourning ends and grazing is scarce. As the new leader, Edris makes the call to trek back to Assaita. Before leaving camp, he dives to the river bed, scooping up clay to mark his face. He prays to the sky god for good rains, land to cultivate, protection from malaria and floods and an abundance of camels and good prices for the salt blocks. He prays to Allah for better luck as the caravan moves forward, leaving his sorrows on the banks of the Awash.

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Water is an extremely important commodity for the Afar pastoralists who are scattered throughout the Danakil desert. Please pray that they would have adequate clean water supplies. Most of all pray that they would encounter the living water—Jesus Christ.  

The Afar Scriptures are now available in print! Please pray that people like Edris and Hawa would have access to God’s word.

Resources on the Afar People :

Lewis, I.M. Peoples of the Horn of Africa: Somali, Afar and Saho. Red Sea Press INC: Lawrenceville, NJ, 1998.

Morell, Virginia. “Africa’s Danakil Desert.” National Geographic. October 2005. Web. 2 January, 2011.

Stokes, Jamie. Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Africa and the Middle East. Infobase Publishing, Inc.: New York, NY, 2009.