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Surrounded by 30 Muslim children struggling with hunger at the top of the Shebelle River in Imi, Ethiopia, Nik Ripken opened a case of military MREs (Meals, Ready-to-Eat). To his shock, all of the prepackaged meals were made of pork, unsuitable for feeding a group of Muslims. He regretted not checking them before this moment. How do you pray in a time like this?

In this episode, Nik wrestles with the efficacy of prayer.

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How do you pray?

“Dr. Nik, you can’t feed them this. But Dr. Nik, you cannot not feed them this, because they’re going to die,” commented the guard and the driver.

Nik thought for a moment. He remembered hearing stories of how Ethiopians loved zebra meat. Nik suggested, “What if I lay my hands on this last box that’s all pork and I pray to my God in Jesus’ name that he changes it all to zebra meat?”

The guard and the driver replied, “That’s what you must do.”

And so I bowed my head, I laid my hands on that box of food, and I prayed over those starving children, I prayed over this situation, I prayed on how they were going to die if we didn’t do something at that time and buy some days to where somebody else could get there. I just prayed my heart out, and said God, you’ve got to change this pork into zebra meat, and you’ve got to do it in Jesus’ name, and I said Amen. When I looked up, they were taking their bayonets, cutting open those MREs, and distributing them to all of those starving children around them – anybody who made it up that bank.

But when Nik Ripken prayed for divine intervention, he wasn’t sure that it would work.

Every Muslim… 100% of those Muslims believed that my God turned that pork into zebra meat that was kosher for them to eat. Why is it that the only person who doubted that miracle was the person who prayed that prayer?

Despite feeling unsure about whether his prayer would be answered, Nik knew that if God chose to intervene then there was still hope for the children in front of him.

Why Muslims don’t eat pork

For Muslims, the prohibition against eating pork is not a cultural or dietary restriction, but rather a religious obligation. Their Quran expressly prohibits the consumption of pork out of a shared belief that it is unclean. Those who intentionally choose to eat pork are considered to be in violation of Islamic law and are subject to punishment.

Nevertheless, Muslims believe that if they eat pork without intending to, they’re not responsible for the mistake. In other words, their Quran says that “there is no sin on [them]” (al-Ahzab 33:5).

Does God answer all prayers?

According to Psalm 139:4, God knows our prayers before we speak them. 1 John 5:14–15 explains that if we ask anything of God according to his will, he hears us. 1 Peter 3:12 tells us that God is attentive to prayer. Rest assured that all prayers are heard.

Yet the question remains… are all prayers answered in the affirmative?

No, not all prayers are answered in the affirmative. Just because somebody prays for something does not mean that they will automatically get what they want. In 1 Chronicles 28, David desired to build a temple but later said that God declined his request. Instead, David’s son Solomon would be the one to build this temple. Sometimes people may not get what they prayed for because it is not in their best interest or because God has other plans.

Does prayer work?

What really happened that day when Nik prayed for the food to be changed from pork to zebra meat?

First, we can have full confidence that God heard his prayer.

Second, because the children eating the MREs would not have recognized the taste of pork, it’s hard to be sure whether God answered it in the affirmative or negative.

We might have known more about what the children ate if Nik had eaten some of the MREs himself. As the only non-Muslim in the group, Nik might have recognized the difference in taste between pork and some other meat. He might have been able to compare the taste of the last case of MREs with the ones he had in the weeks prior. However, with more than 30 starving children in front of him, eating some of these emergency rations would have resulted in less food for them. This seems objectionable in itself.

The efficacy of prayer

So was it pork or zebra meat? If Nik had eaten some of the MREs after praying, he might have relayed to us that this was indeed zebra meat, thereby strengthening his testimony. In contrast, if it tasted just like salted pork, he may have had to face the cognitive dissonance of having fed pork to a full group of Muslims.

To know what would have happened? No. Nobody is ever told that.

But we do know that the group of children felt Dr. Nik’s love and care for them, and they were fully convinced he had their best interests at heart. The children saw that he was willing to intercede with God on their behalf. In this way, they were able to stave off hunger another day.

In retrospect, Nik’s deepest desire was that the children in front of him were fed that day. We see that came true, just as the psalmist said it would (Psalm 37:4).

Today, in many parts of the world, to be a follower of Jesus can cost you your life. Just as Jesus was crucified by the Romans for his actions and beliefs, so too are Christian leaders killed by Muslims in many Islamic countries.

Nik explains, “In Islam… the Soviet Union… East Asia…. very few leaders of the faith die of natural causes.”

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What does it mean to witness in Christianity?

When we talk about witnessing, we are talking about sharing our faith in Jesus Christ with others. This can be done in a number of ways, such as through one-on-one conversations, testifying to what God has done in our lives, or living out our faith by our actions. Ultimately, the goal is to lead others to a personal relationship with Christ.

In the Islamic community, the cost of witnessing is death. This is because Islam teaches that there is only one god, Allah, and that Muhammad is his prophet. To become a Christian is to renounce Islam and its teachings. This puts Christians at odds with the majority of the Islamic community, which leads to persecution, torture, and death for anyone willing to challenge it.

The Illusion of Safety

When Pastor Haik was invited to speak at a meeting with other faith leaders, his 10-minute testimony turned into a 2-hour indictment. For two hours, Haik spoke about the crimes and corruption he witnessed firsthand in the Islamic world.

Haik gave such detailed information that it was easy to identify the security policemen he was talking about. His passionate response left the other faith leaders speechless. It was clear that Haik had found his calling to expose the truth and fight for Christianity in the Persian-speaking world.

The leaders to his left and right started tugging at his clothing, suggesting he was saying too much.

But Pastor Haik refused. “I am in a safe place for the first time in years, and I’m just going to get these things off my heart,” he explained.

Betrayed with a Kiss

Two weeks later, Ruth informed Nik Ripken that Pastor Haik had disappeared.

“We found out, later on, that one of the persons in that room had turned Haik in to the government, to the security police. The guy who called and formed the meeting did not screen the donor properly.”

A policeman explained:

They’ve killed your pastor. They killed Pastor Haik. They’ve tortured him for weeks upon weeks, and I was able to watch when they took his body out in the wilderness, and I’ve marked the spot so I can take you to the place where they buried him so that you can bring Pastor Haik home.

Another pastor received this phone call while standing in the waters of baptism. After receiving this news, he looked out to 35 new converts. “Your pastor is dead.” He asked if these Muslim-background believers were ready for their personal crucifixion and resurrection ahead.

All said yes, knowing the gravity of their statement.

Crucifixion and Resurrection

Nik Ripken explains that crucifixion and resurrection is still very much present in the Islamic community. Christian leaders are killed for their actions and beliefs, and the dividing line they have crossed is witnessing to others:

These people, if they are silent in their faith and they keep Christ to themselves, they can die of old age. They can keep their jobs, they can keep their children, [and] they won’t go to jail. As leaders, they can avoid prison and torture and beatings. They can avoid being tortured to death and buried in a field where nobody knows where they are, except that policeman.

But Nik reminds us that there will be a day of judgment.

“You can die in your sleep at an old age, but I fear for you when you stand before God.”

Dmitri, the pastor of a small house church in the former Soviet Union, is one of the most powerful examples of faith in The Insanity of God book and movie. One night, communist officials burst into his home during worship and arrested him. They sent him to prison for 17 years, more than 600 miles from his family. He was the only believer among 1,500 hardened criminals.

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Dmitri’s Story: 17 Years of Persecution

Despite the horrific conditions of the prison, Dmitri continued to share his faith and continue his worship practices. He even led some of his fellow prisoners to Christ. When the Soviet officials finally released him from prison, Dmitri continued to lead his family in their faith journey. Dmitri’s story is an amazing testimony to the power of God’s love and grace.

“What’s tough is that Dmitri’s faith is normal, biblical Christianity,” Nik reflects. “[This is] how Timothy must have felt sitting at the feet of the Apostle Paul.”

Dmitri explained to Nik that he learned from his father and grandfather the two practices that allowed him to practice his faith in a Soviet Union prison.

Writing on the Wall

Dmitri’s first practice gave him hope:

Every morning, when I got out of bed, if I could find a small piece of paper… a piece of charcoal, a pen… I would write every verse of the Bible. If there was enough, I’d write down a story from the Bible, a scriptural song… I would put that on one of those wet concrete pillars, and it would stick there.

Dmitri recalls that other prisoners did the same but it was usually a secular message, the name of their girlfriend, or someone they were cursing out:

When the guards came in and saw the content, they would take that piece of paper and tear it into shreds, and then they would smack me and throw me around, and go out. Every morning… I would recall the Word of God… and write the Word of God and put it on that wet concrete pillar.

The prison guards punished Dmitri as the other prisoners watched.

Praising God in Prison

His second practice was a controversial one. Dmitri would stand at the bars of his prison. Every morning, as the sun rose, he would stand and raise his hands in praise as high as he could reach up in the air. “He would sing his heart songs to Jesus,” Nik explains.

Nik describes the prisoners’ disgusted response as they threw human waste, food, and garbage at Dmitri. They laughed and cursed him, rattling metal cups on their cages trying to drown him out. Eventually, these 1500 prisoners learned Dmitri’s worship song and used it to save him from the execution line.

My Wife’s Dead

The prison guards tortured him with an illusion of men raping his wife and carrying her out dead. After seeing this, Dmitri was ready to give up. “My wife’s dead. I don’t know where my boys are. God… I can’t do this anymore.” He offered to sign whatever they wanted to write.

The Soviet Union officials urged Dmitri to sign a confession that they prepared: first, that he was not a follower of Jesus Christ and second, that he was paid by Western governments to overthrow the Soviet Union.

Overnight, God renewed Dmitri’s spirit. He heard the voices of his wife, his brother, and his three sons as they prayed for him. In this way, he knew that his family was alive and had remained faithful to God.

The next morning, Dmitri told the jailers that he would sign nothing. “And he threw the jailers out of his cell.” The other prisoners witnessed this and honored Dmitri in the exercise yard.

Who Are You?

Eventually, Dmitri’s guards began to despair. “We’ve tried everything, and nothing stops you from singing those stupid songs.”

The communist officials explained their intent to execute him. “In 15 minutes, you’re going to be tied to that post. In 20 minutes, you’re going to be shot dead. We’re done with you.”

Then, the jailers dragged him out of the prison cell towards the execution yard.

As they reached the door of the execution yard,

1500 hardened criminals stood at attention outside of their cells. With their arms raised in praise facing the East, they began to sing those heart songs that they heard the man sing all of those years…. And the guards, in sheer terror, let go of Dmitri and jumped away from him. They asked, “Who are you?”

Dmitri responded, “I am the Son of the Living God, and Jesus is His name.”

The Rest of the Story

Recently, Dmitri’s son revealed the rest of the story. “Nik, don’t go. You need to know something. I’m now the chaplain of the prison that held my daddy for 17 years.”

Dmitri’s son chose to continue his father’s legacy at the very prison that held him.

Impressed, Nik urges believers to stay in the story as Dmitri’s family did. Regardless of internal conflict or hurt feelings, staying in the story allows Christ followers to see the full effect of their faithfulness.

Nik Ripken is a man who has been to some of the most broken and dark places on earth. He has seen war, devastation, and famine in Somalia first hand. And yet, he continues to go back to treat young kids affected by the Somali famine. Why?

Find out as Nik shares a story about a Somali girl that will break your heart.

Fighting the Somali Famine

When Nik walked over to this 3-year-old, 13-pound Somali girl and rubbed his index finger across her cheek, she smiled in a way that changed him. It was a smile full of hope and resilience, despite the odds stacked against her. He knew he had to help in any way that he could. He decided to adopt her and bring her back home. However, minutes after he decided to save her life, she died.

Although Nik didn’t know the girl for very long, he was devastated by her death. He had hoped that by adopting her, he could give her a better life than she would have had – starved by the Somali famine.

“That’s one face I still see,” Nik said, shaking his head:

If I could have gotten there a day earlier… we could’ve gotten some IVs into her, and they could’ve started feeding her a bit of the stuff we bring… it would have taken us a month to get her strong enough to carry her.

It was a wasted life, Nik felt. One that could have been saved if only they’d gotten there in time.

Continue the Mission

Nik Ripken is a man on a mission. For more than 30 years, Nik has been involved in global missions, working to bring the hope of the gospel to some of the most broken and hurting places on earth. Learn more about Nik, send a friendly message, or request an interview.

Those without Jesus should not be forced to become literate in order to be welcomed into God’s kingdom.

What is 1 of the top 3 challenges in modern missions?

Out of the 2.8 billion people on the planet that don’t know Christ – most have not one verse of the Bible, and not one song about heaven in their language. More than 80% of them cannot read or write a word.

We are equipping you with just literate tools to be pastors and teachers. We’re not equipping you to go in to the marketplaces of life. I’m talking about understanding that the Bible is equally the Word of God in both its content and its context. Jesus filled His heart, His soul, His mind with the Word of God so that when He went to the marketplace, He did not have to take a written note with Him, and He could reproduce the Old Testament by memory. He could tell the stories of God.

When we say that 83% of those without Christ who are oral learners or those who are illiterate, we are NOT saying they are a bunch of dummies. Oral peoples only have to hear something one time to own it! Literate peoples have to hear it seven times.

More than 80% of the unreached people in the world are oral communicators. By definition, that means they cannot read or write at a functional level. These people live in oral cultures.

While believers around the world long for the written Word of God, in a church planting movement, there is little time for literacy training or translation of Scripture. The written Word and the ability to read it are of absolute importance, but while these goals are being sought (through Bible translation and literacy training), the stories of the Bible are communicated orally. Taking the time to translate Scripture or taking the time to provide literacy training is a luxury that these rapidly growing movements cannot afford. Those without Jesus should not be forced to become literate in order to be welcomed into God’s kingdom. The need to share the gospel is immediate, so it is shared in the only way that it can be shared: orally. The point must be repeated; a literate Bible is indispensable. Yet those carrying the gospel to the nations must not wait ten to twenty years for the first printed Bible in an unengaged and unreached environment before broadly sowing the Good News.

We found the church in China, in particular, hungry for the written Word of God; at the same time, the church in China was not paralyzed by the absence of the written Word of God. Earlier in their movements, copies of the Bible are extremely rare, but Bible stories were known and repeated and memorized. Waiting for ten years (or more) for an initial Bible translation is simply not an option. By its nature and by necessity, the incipient movement is oral.

In many of the people groups that are without Jesus, illiteracy can be as high as 45 percent for the men and 90 percent for the women! That’s a significant challenge in the modern missions movement.

How can you be equipped today? Model the method of Jesus. Commit the stories of the Bible to heart. Internalize the Word of God in such a way that you can share it with your kids, your family, and those around you, orally. What you practice today will create a culture of oral learning that equips us to more effectively go, send, and pray for the nations and the 2.8 billion people around the world with little to no access to Jesus.