One early morning, our neighbor Jacob came over with a horrified look on his face. He handed us his phone. “Have you seen that?” he asked.
It was a picture of our friend Ben, sitting in the dirt, hands tied behind his back, face bloodied and shoulder bruised. We were aghast. The story that went like wildfire on social media, together with the picture, said that he had been caught trying to kidnap a child. We couldn’t believe that Ben would ever harm a child. But we also knew that with this accusation, he would quickly find himself in the capital’s high-security prison, a place of no return. We had to find out what had really happened so we could do something. We certainly don’t have the habit of helping criminals escape their deserved punishment. But this was Ben, not a criminal.
We have known Ben for many years. As a teenager, he would come to my French and English classes. He occasionally participated in our Friday night worship, and for a while, he faithfully attended our Bible study group. He got baptized in another evangelical church. Things started to go downhill for Ben when he became part of a popular traditional dance group. They were invited to perform at a traditional ceremony or other festivity almost every weekend. Not only did this mean dancing and drinking until morning, but spiritual ceremonies were also usually involved.
Ben neglected school and eventually quit. He stopped going to church. He got his girlfriend pregnant, and she gave birth to twins. Ben went from one odd job to the next to provide for his family, but the dance group remained his priority. A friend got him a job at a road construction company. They left for the work site about 50 miles away, and we didn’t see them for many weeks. But we heard that they worked hard and that Ben had pretty much stopped drinking. We hoped being away from his dance group would help him overcome his bad habits. That’s when the bad news hit.
We called the friend with whom Ben was working to get more reliable information. Apparently, Ben had gotten drunk the night before. He staggered home to sleep, and the next thing he knew, he was being beaten and tied up. This friend confirmed that there was no proof that Ben had tried to kidnap a child. No child was missing or harmed. The accusations were unfounded. Still, people had caught and beaten him. At some point in the early morning hours, the police arrested Ben, which probably saved his life since the mob might very well have beaten him to death.
Toussaint started calling and meeting some people with good connections who might be able to help. I contacted some young people in our church who knew Ben, and we united in prayer. Negotiations started with the family of the purportedly kidnapped child. The police officers were actually quite helpful since they didn’t believe the story. But there had been several cases of kidnapping lately, so they had to take the accusation seriously. If no miracle happened, Ben would be moved to the capital prison in a few days.
God intervened. Forty-eight hours later, Ben was released, and the next morning he was home. We treated his wounds, made sure he rested and then we sat down for a serious talk. Jacob came over and reminded Ben that it was only by God’s grace that he had escaped death or at least a life sentence in prison. He said, “This time, God wrapped you up and put you in a protection bubble. But don’t you dare try God again!”
I wish I could say our message hit home. But now, only a few weeks later, we see how Ben slowly slides back into his old habits. He recently had another performance with his dance group. He also turned down a good job offer. The battle is not over. Please pray with us that Ben would see how much Satan has a grip on him and that he is in grave danger. He needs to consciously decide to follow Christ and let the Holy Spirit transform his life before it is too late.
