I am a widowed Hui lady, almost eighty years old. I have several children, grandchildren, and even great grandchildren.

My family once lived in a rural area, where we made our living by farming. However, as the city expanded, the government turned our land into residential property. To compensate us, they gave us several apartments that we could live in and rent out. My children grew up in the city, and they live quite differently than I do. For one thing, I wear a head covering at all times, but my daughters and granddaughters do not. While my husband was alive, he made it a priority to attend the mosque on Fridays, while I worshipped from home. Our children are very busy with their work, so they say that they will participate in these worship activities after they retire, and there are not so many other demands on their lives.

My home is decorated with several things that represent my faith in Islam. There is a large cross-stitch hanging above my couch that has an Arabic phrase from the Quran in green lettering. I have a prayer rug in my bedroom that I go and kneel on five times a day for the required prayers. By the door, there is small pot that I burn incense on, mostly on special occasions. After my husband died, we burned incense here often as part of our funeral rituals that last 100 days.

Now that I live alone, I rely on my children and grandchildren to come and visit me and help take care of me. I try to keep myself busy by going out to buy things and visiting my friends. Because I live in a city where there are both Han and Hui people, several of my friends are Han. When I go to my Han friends’ houses, I do not eat their food or even drink any water because I am afraid that it will not be Halal. The older that I get, the more concerned I am with following the rules of Islam just right. I need my good deeds to outweigh the bad so that I can get into Heaven. Some foreign friends have told me about Jesus. I appreciate that they tell me that God is close to those who are brokenhearted because that is how I have felt recently. At this point, I’m not very interested in discovering more about Jesus. I have lived almost eighty years in Islam, and it would take something very big to change my heart.

Prayer Requests

• Pray that Nai Nai, and other widows like her, would know the comfort and presence of Jesus during their loneliness and hard times. Pray that the One True God would draw her, and others like her, to Himself during this time.
• Pray that Nai Nai would understand that her good works can never earn her way into Heaven. Pray that she would put her faith in Jesus, the only one who can take away her sin and restore her relationship with God.
• Pray that believers would continue to share the Good News with Nai Nai. Pray that she would hear the Gospel spoken and see it lived out as believers serve and love her.
• Pray for Nai Nai’s children and grandchildren and others in their generation. They are straying away from Islam, but not to Jesus. They have made a god of the world and are pursuing wealth, status, and happiness. Pray that they would pursue Jesus and the True Joy He gives instead.

The picture is not of the storyteller in order to protect the identities of those who have shared their stories and lives with us over the years.