Arishia is from a Muslim family and lives in the Southern area of  Ethiopia. Before she was born her parents went to the town of Dato to the Awlia (priest of witchcraft) and made an offering and asked for help to have children since Arishia’s mother was not able to conceive at that time.  Thus Arishia was dedicated to the services of evil spirits before her birth.  Her family was Muslim but engaged in the worship of spirits and witchcraft.  On Sunday they worshipped the spirit, Dado and on Tuesday they worshipped Nurhussen, on Wednesday it was a spirit named Jilal and on Thursday another spirit named Muhammed (not necessarily identified with the prophet). Arishia was a Kidim (servant) of this worship from her childhood and so participated in this worship by preparing coffee, chat (a narcotic leaf that is chewed) and offering prayers. From time to time she would accompany her father in going to the Awlia to make an offering and seek some special favor.

Before coming to Christ she hated and avoided the bible and all Christians as much as possible. Then in 1994 when she was in the 7th grade she went to visit her aunt who is a Christian. She was sleeping in the house when she had a dream. A light filled the house except the corners of the house which remained dark.  There was a bible and also some printed songs in the light but she wanted to avoid them and the light so she tried to hide in the dark corners.  While she was trying to move into the darkness a voice came out of the light saying, “Come back!” She was afraid and trembling when she woke up.

The next day she went to a girl she knew who was a Christian and told her she wanted to go to church with her.  Her friend was surprised but Arishia told her that if she was asked why Alishia was coming she should say that Arishia wanted to receive Christ. After receiving the Lord Arishia went home but there she could not attend church or worship, so for many days all she could do was to pray by herself.  Finally she told her family she would visit her aunt again and so she was able to go to church with her friend in the town of her aunt and there she received the baptism in the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues. She was so happy as she returned home again but when she arrived there her family was waiting for her with sticks to beat her. She did not know how they found out about her conversion but they were waiting ready to beat her because of her faith in Christ.  But when they raised their hands to strike they could not bring them down again because something invisible held them back and so she was able to escape.

She hid behind the house in a field that night while a guest came to visit the family home who knew her and asked concerning her.  The family said they had driven her off since she had become a Christian but the guest helped make peace with the family and she was allowed to return home but she could not go to church and could only pray in tongues secretly. After four months she went again to see her friend and to go to church.  The Holy Spirit gave her a song at that time and she began to sing and to worship using that song. She felt then the Lord wanted her to sing and to write songs and so she asked her friend if she could join the choir but her friend warned her there would be trouble. She had been known as a person in the town who danced and received money when she was not saved and so the choir would not accept her for that reason.  So she returned home again.  On the way some children who knew her met her and told her that all her things had been thrown out of her house and if she returned there they planned to kill her. But since she had nowhere else to go she went on anyway and hid herself in a place near the house and spent the night there. She had no food, no mattress, no help or support of any kind.  One day while she was hiding they killed a sheep she had been raising and told her that that was just a sign and the next time it would be her. Her father called the family and relatives together and they told her that she must leave Christianity or they would kill her and in that area a family decision like that can be carried out without penalty. She refused, so the family began to leave with the intention of killing her when the Holy Spirit told her to call them back and tell them she would not go to church but that God would judge them for stopping her.  At these words they agreed to allow her to go to church but only on Sunday and they would not give her food or support to live.

They saw that she persisted so they arranged for a man to come to beat her.  When the children saw the man beating her they cried out and the family stopped the beating but even today she has pain in her hand and arm.  She went out from the house into a deserted area and spent the night in a tree so the hyena should not find and kill her.  The next day she went to her aunt who cried when she saw her bruises and bleeding.  After this Arishia was discouraged and depressed and wanted to die. So much so that she went into the highway and stood in the middle trying to be killed by a car but the driver stopped and told her to go away and that she should not do such things.  Then she decided to throw herself in the river and drown and so she went to the river and was about to carry out her plan when the Holy Spirit came upon her and she lost consciousness and fell to the ground.  She was unconscious for some time and when she awoke she found near her some money laying on the ground and two clusters of coffee beans. She picked them up and the Lord spoke to her that He did not want her to die but that he would care for her and that she would have a ministry giving coffee to people and as they drank coffee in her presence she would preach the gospel to them so she felt called to the ministry and she began to prepare.

At this point she began to travel back to her family but on the way she met the man who had beat her and he was loading his donkey.  But the donkey became angry and bit him on his thigh which seriously injured him.  When the people of the town saw what happened they said it was the God of Arishia who judged that man and so he was afraid and so was her family so they allowed her to come home. After a time her father contacted one of his brothers from Sheshemene (another town, not her home) to come to discuss with him concerning his daughter who had become a Christian.  They spent the night talking and chewing chat and plotting against her.  The next day her uncle went back home and when he arrived there he found that his business had been closed by the government and so he told the father that this happened because they plotted against Arishia and so they were afraid and the uncle even asked Arishia to pray for him.

Still the father wanted her to turn away from Christ and become a Muslim again.  This time he called his other brother from England who was a known Fundamentalist Muslim to come to help persuade her.  When the brother arrived they called the whole family together to discuss about her and another girl from the family who had converted to Christ. The uncle offered to give them money, clothing, education and all sorts of things if they would turn away from Christ. The other girl told Arishia just to take the money and then when they were gone she could go back to serving the Lord but she would have their money. This is what the other girl planned to do.  But Arishia refused to take this money and clothing and so they sent her away but received the other girl who was willing to renounce Christ.  But as she was going away the Holy Spirit told her to go back and to proclaim that Jesus is Lord to them.  So she went back and told them that she had something to say and so they assumed she wanted to change her mind and gave her opportunity to speak. But when she spoke she boldly proclaimed Jesus is Lord and so a disturbance broke out in the home and she left.

They stopped the family meeting at that point but the girl who had taken the money to renounce Christ began to go to the town and tell everyone what Arishia had done.  She went to her school, to the market, around the city and told how Arishia had refused to receive money to renounce Christ even though this other girl had accepted it and so all in the area heard this story. At that time, Arishia went back to school but she had nothing, no school supplies nor even a place to live so she was very discouraged.  She went out into the street and just slept along the road but that day a man came looking for her to the school.  They told him she was along the street and so he came to find her and told her that he had heard how she was serving the Lord and had not turned away even for money and told her he would pay for a place for her to live, her school fees, her food and all her needs would be met. He did all these things for her as he promised.

She became known throughout the area because of her testimony and was accepted as an evangelist by her church and began to go out to preach the gospel in that area. She has been preaching and planting churches all around Alaba these past few years. Now she is very well known and respected as a Christian and even her family has accepted her decision.  Most of them have not become Christians themselves yet but they have made it known in the community that they accept her and they have threatened to kill any Muslims who may harm her.

Alisha is a graduate of SBCE Missionary Outreach Certificate Program and a missionary with RVVP. The Lord gives her songs of worship.