Sometime before or during the pandemic, (it's all a blur these days), I met a woman at the University of Delware who was from Brazil. Her name is Odila. Her niece was planning to attend UD and needed assistance with her English speaking. I think Odila was connecting with me because she hoped to find someone to help her niece.  Sadly our plans fell through due to complications caused by the pandemic. With all of the chaos lately, I had forgotten about Odila until she popped up in my life again in December. She commented on one of my Facebook posts and tagged the name of someone I had never met before named Sophe. As it turns out, Sophe and her husband Reza had just moved from Iran to Delaware, and she was looking for English lessons for him. When we met the first time I learned so much about them. While she has been a citizen here for years, her husband had visited the US but never lived here. He is a VERY accomplished musician in Iran with a large Instagram following of almost 28,000 people! Wow! (See attached photo.) I also learned that Sophe has had a brain tumor and other health complications that make Reza's presence more needed right now. As he joins and cares for her, Sophe is trying to get him a grant to work with the music department at UD. Reza's English skills could use some improving, and this is where I have a window into their lives! They are gracious Muslims, enjoy meeting with Christians, and do not seem to feel any reservations about meeting with me. They are happy to read the Bible as they understand it to be a respected and holy book even in their faith!

I would like to think this situation is unique to Delaware, but it's not; it's unique to almost every campus in the US. A follower of Jesus can get connected with someone from Brazil who knows someone from Iran whose husband needs help with English! God gives me an open door, and the English conversations have begun! Maybe you'll want to follow Reza on Instagram as well... God is working to bring him closer to Jesus so that one day we hope he will be a follower of Jesus, and then some of Reza's social media "followers" will learn of his faith in Jesus and it might change their lives as well. This why we invest in a few to reach the many!
 

Say a prayer for Reza and Sophe will you? 

Blessings,

Casey