Aliya had just missed her train, so she quickly shifted into typical New Yorker time-killer mode, sitting on an empty bench and reading a book. That’s when she noticed something unusual. Despite the available space on the platform, a woman was walking straight toward her.

“Excuse me,” said the woman. “Please don’t mind me asking, but are you from Yemen?”

Aliya was surprised by the greeting. How could a white woman in New York City expertly “read” her hijab and conservative Islamic dress and conclude that she was Yemeni? While it’s true that some 20,000 Yemeni immigrants live across the metropolitan area, how could the woman pinpoint her nationality among all the Muslim-Arab immigrant people groups in the city?

“Yes. How did you know?” answered Aliya.

“Well, I have been praying for Yemen for many months now. My name is Zoe. Would you like to join me for coffee some time?”

The Spirit of God had drawn Zoe to study Yemen and pray for its war-torn people. Now, she lifts them up daily in prayer.

Unbeknownst to Zoe, Aliya had recently surrendered to Jesus, and she longed for deeper connections with Christ-following sisters. The Lord had answered her prayers through Zoe’s awkward but divinely inspired interruption.

“Yes. I’d love to,” Aliya replied.

Hailing from the cradle of Islam, Yeminis are among the least-reached people groups in the Western Hemisphere. Many live in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Queens, but few ever enjoy significant relationships with disciples of Christ.

Pray for outreach to diaspora Yemeni, and for concerted church planting efforts among them.

• Pray for more Christians to open their lives to Yemeni individuals and their families.
• Pray for Kingdom growth among this unreached people group and for wisdom and security as they connect and relate to one another in the West and abroad.