It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
– Galatians 5:1
As a Kenyan Muslim who had received Islamic teaching in a madrassa, Afaafa* had refused even to touch a Bible. She had planned to convert her Christian friends to Islam, but one of them challenged her to read the Bible for herself.
Bydla women and a man dance in celebration of a new water borehole
Afaafa then decided to read the first Bible verse she set her eyes on–and it “happened” to be Galatians 5:1. While reading it, she felt something powerful come on her. That night, she dreamed God was inviting her to choose slavery or freedom. She chose freedom and became a follower of Jesus. Her two sons are growing up knowing Jesus.
Since 2005, Afaafa has been a Bible translator.
“If God can change my life through one verse,” she says, “then I expect every verse I translate will impact the life of another Bydla* person.”
She longs to see her people – the Bydla – receive God’s Word in their language and know the freedom that comes in Christ. For God’s Word has power to change individuals, especially when His Word is in the language that speaks to them best.
*pseudonyms
Source: wycliffe.org.uk