Profile of a Disciple: Ali

Seeking Healing

My name is Ali. I grew up in a Muslim family and my mom was the second wife of my father. She had to be hard working to be able to raise me and two of my elder brothers.

One day, my brother got sick. We all didn’t know what happened to him. He couldn’t eat and from time to time got epilepsy conditions. That moved me to start researching God. Naturally, I started with Islam. I was trying to obey all Islamic regulations and traditions only for one reason: to please God so that He would heal my brother.

My mom was doing her part to be able to help, too. She went to every possible doctor in our area, and finally one told her, “Only God can heal your son.” She started to search for God’s healing among Islamic imams, but the only thing we got was despair and debt. All the while, my brother became worse and worse. He could not eat any kind of food.

Jesus, Who Has the Power to Heal

At that time, I was working in another city at a sewing factory. I was improving my skills before I started my business in my native town. I heard about God and Jesus, but never paid attention because I considered myself a Muslim.

But one day the man who ran the factory asked me why I was so sad and could not concentrate on work. I told him about our problem with my brother’s health back home. So he told me, “Let’s ask Jesus, who has the power to heal your brother.”

After he prayed, he connected me with the pastor of a house church in my native town, who could pray for my brother and mom. I asked my boss how much I needed to pay for his prayer and how much that pastor would expect us to pay for his prayer. My boss smiled and told me, “It’s God’s power and it’s invaluable.”

So I sent contacts to my mom without any hope of continuing my work. On the weekends, I would go visit my family. When I got home, I was shocked to see my brother acting, eating, and talking like a normal human. I asked my mother what had happened and how it was possible — and how much his treatment cost.

My mom said, “I used this only and last hope and went to see this pastor to ask him to pray. He prayed in a very simple way in the name of Jesus and I saw that your brother had “demons,” which is why his condition day by day was worse and worse. My mom surrendered her life with Jesus after she saw what He did with my brother.

After a few days, my mom invited me to my brother’s “healing celebration day.” It was his baptism day and the day when I gave my life to Jesus. Now my desire is to follow Him and lead my business to serve my clients and my workers at my sewing factory in my native town. My brother and my mom attend the same house church as that pastor!