Ayub Maate was a Muslim before he converted to Christianity. He practiced his faith daily, even sounding the trumpet three times a day, which would call fellow Muslims to prayer. However, in 2011, his mother heard the Good News and believed in Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior. His father, who is a sheikh in Bundibugyo, was furious with his wife and children for converting to Christianity.

“When my mother received Christ, she witnessed to us [her children] and we all believed in Jesus Christ and converted to Christianity,” said Ayub. “Dad was not happy with us. He started mistreating my mom. His attitude towards us changed and he eventually burnt my mom’s business and our clothes and chased us away. We had no other alternative apart from moving from Bundibugyo to Kasese town where we lived in the streets. We had nothing to eat and nowhere to sleep.”

Rev. Johnckson Murabyo, who helps converts from Islam, heard about Ayub and his family and took them into his home.

When Ayub’s father discovered that his family was in Kasese and a church was hosting them, he sent a letter disowning them. Ayub remembered the letter. “It said in part, ‘If my wife dies, let her be buried like a dog for she is a Murtad Fitri. She is no longer my wife. Let my children be stoned to death too. According to Islam, they are all Murtad Fitri and should be killed by stoning.’”

The family grew in faith and started reaching out to other Muslims in Kasese, a move that irritated Ayub’s father even more.

“When my father learned about this, he conspired with local Muslims to kill my mother. One day while she was in Kasese for some casual work, she took tea from a local hotel, not knowing it had poison. She died before getting to the hospital. We were devastated. We lost hope, but we never thought of converting back to Islam.”

Ayub is now a bold ambassador of Christ to his Muslim friends and he does not shy from spreading the Good News.

Read full article here