Romans 16:3–5A (ESV) Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks as well. Greet also the church in their house…
The Apostle Paul wrote his letter to the Romans while in Corinth. In the final chapter he greeted many fellow gospel workers, first among them his beloved friends Priscilla and Aquila. Apparently, they had returned to Rome and started a church in their house.
Persecution, whether by Jewish or Roman authorities, forced Christians to meet in small groups in home churches. Persecution forces Muslim background believers to do the same today. Here is a recent story from Darfur, Sudan illustrating this principle.
Halima and her husband received Jesus while living in Al Geneina, West Darfur. Fierce fighting forced them to flee east. They were stopped along the way by soldiers. Her husband was pulled from the truck and killed because he was a Christian. Halima was not allowed to bury him and left his body by the side of the road.
When Halima and her children arrived at the home of her husband’s family, they were mistreated because of their faith. Her children were beaten. They fled again to the house of one of her aunts. But even there the persecution continued.
Halima heard many Christians had fled to Jebel Marra. During a lull in the fighting, she and her children traveled there. They received a “happy welcome” from the believers and made to feel at home even though they all lived in an open school yard. There CRM provided her with a Bible, food, and materials to build a shelter.
Halima’s aunt eventually came to visit, and while there, received Jesus through the testimony of Halima and the Christian community. Several months later, Halima went to visit her aunt. She was pleased to find that her aunt’s entire family had received the Lord Jesus and started a church in their home. Halima saw people who had formerly persecuted her now studying the Bible.
Because it’s God’s time for Sudan, stories like Halima’s are happening all over Darfur. Recently we learned that 117 of the 400 families registered for the January-February food aid project—almost 1000 people—left Islam to follow Jesus. Thanks to your generous support, between June and mid-August 2025, over 73,000 Sudanese Muslims received a first-time gospel witness, 589 of whom publicly confessed Jesus as Lord.
Please consider helping CRM and its Sudanese partners build on the momentum in the Muslim community in war-torn Darfur already created by the provision of Bibles and humanitarian aid. Every advance results in lives changed for time and eternity, and many, like Halima’s aunt, may start a church in their house.
In His Name,
David Crane
President, Calvary Road Ministries