Nader came from a very devout Muslim family in Yemen. His father was an Imam who taught at the Mosque and believed their family to be descended from Ahl al-Bayt, the family line of the prophet Mohammed. Yet even knowing this from his childhood, Nader did not embrace Islam.
It was while he was in Saudi Arabia that he joined with a group of young men that denied the existence of God and declared themselves to be atheists. When the Saudi authorities found out about them, they were imprisoned, as it is against the law there to renounce Allah. While in prison, Nader met a Christian named Dinar, with whom he became friends. It was Dinar who began telling him about the God of the Bible.
Eventually Nader was released and deported to Sudan, as the war in Yemen made it impossible for him to go home. From Sudan he communicated with his wife and was startled to hear that while he had been in prison his wife had dreamed that people were trying to kill him – except for one man, who gave him a book. Not long after, Nader met a teacher in Sudan who did in fact give him a book: the Bible. Nader sent it to his wife, who confirmed that it was the book from her dream. This ignited a deep curiosity in Nader about the Bible’s teachings, so he began to attend a church, hoping to learn more.
Then he, too, had a dream. In his dream there was a stranger leading him by the hand to a church. A week after this, Nader attended a Christian conference where he saw the stranger from his dream: it was the priest who was giving the lecture! In that moment faith sprang to life in him and he believed completely. Not long after, he was baptized.
Living a life of faith has not been easy. Nader has now been a refugee in Sudan for the past three years, unable to find work or to send his family any financial support. He is persecuted for his new-found faith, and even his children in Yemen are bullied at school for having a father who is an “infidel”. Yet, Nader would not trade his faith for anything.
“Yes, I suffer a lot,” he says, humbly, “but still I thank God. We always thank God.”
