My name is Ansu Koroma. I come from the Kono district, and I am married and the father of four.

I am the oldest of six children, born into a family whose religious beliefs are divided—my father is Muslim, and my mother is Christian. Five of my siblings chose to follow my mother’s Christianity, while I decided to follow the Islam of my father.

While a Muslim, I became involved in many bad habits: smoking, drinking alcohol and taking dangerous drugs. Worst of all, I was seeing other women outside of my marriage and mistreating my wife, who is a Christian. The more she tried to give me advice and guide me, the more I mistreated her.

My wife is friends with the wife of Pastor Leno. Every night, my wife and children would go to the pastor’s house to pray. Through that friendship, Pastor Leno eventually visited our house, where he found me smoking. Right then, he began to talk to me about how much God loves us and how He wants us to be healthy.

Honestly, and I do not know how, but his words touched my soul deeply. I loved what he said. I immediately abandoned my cigarettes and asked the pastor to pray for me. Afterward, I decided to spend three days in prayer and fasting, asking God to give me the strength to quit smoking. In response, the Lord gave me the courage to stop smoking, astounding everyone—especially my wife.

I now want to know more about Jesus, who delivered me from that power.

There are many young men like Koroma in this village who need to be set free from such bondage. Through your prayers and support, we can reach them for Christ.

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