Meet Mary

(Mary is in the middle. Rebecca, her daughter, and her mom are also in the picture.)


Mary Abak is a very sweet lady who works on the compound. She was the one who bought us all sodas when we came to visit her house. A very generous gesture. Mary is a pleasure to work with. She washes the dishes, cleans the rooms and helps us prepare food. I am so thankful for her hard work.

Mary also loves the Lord. She usually has something to contribute during our Bible studies. She is not able to read her Bible, but she says she carries it in her heart. Lately Mary has been going through a hard time. Mary is one of four wives which means her husband is gone a lot. Her oldest daughter was given to an old man in an arranged marriage. She was unhappy so she ran away with another man. She has been on the run since. Mary's husband has been trying to track her down to return her to her husband. In addition, yesterday Mary found out she has to leave her house. Someone had been letting her stay there, but now wants her out. Needless to say, Mary is under a lot of stress.

Today I walked into the kitchen and Mabior was there with his Bible. He was reading something to Mary. I asked him what was going on and this is what he told me: Mary was really upset last night and cried out to God. During a dream, He told her to read Matthew 5:4-9. Since she can't read, she asked Mabior to read it to her. He didn't quite understand it, so I grabbed my Bible and read it with them. Mary found a lot of comfort in those verses. She said she felt God was with her during her hard times and He will take care of her. We discussed her hardships and I assured her God would provide.

I am happy to report Mary now has a place to stay. There is a house someone started to build on Sabet and Suzy's land, just outside the compound. No one is there now, so Sabet and Suzy said she could stay there. She just needs to put a roof on. When I saw her later this afternoon she was estatic. Mary is very solemn and usually doesn't show much emotion. During the foot washing, we couldn't tell if she liked it or not. Her face showed no expression. Sabet translated for us and said she was filled with joy. We never would have known! When I saw her this afternoon, I knew she had talked to Sabet and Suzy. I said "God is good, Hallelujah!" and she pointed to the sky and started singing "Jesus loves me, Jesus loves me..." in Dinka. I recognized it as one of the songs we sing in devotion. It was such a special moment to see serious Mary showing so much emotion. God took that burden off of her and she was overjoyed. I could see the relief she felt.

Please pray for Mary. While she no longer has to worry about where she will stay, she still is worried about her oldest daughter.