Voodoo had always been a way of life for Winna, who lives in Benin. She had grown up surrounded by people who viewed voodoo rituals as necessities for success. And her husband, Osawaru, regularly gathered with other voodooists late at night to perform the ritual slaughter of animals in hope of appeasing spirits.

One day Osawaru came home and announced, “I just heard about this Good News. They say there is a man called Jesus, who is good. Let’s start studying to see what he can give us.”

Attending church

The couple began attending church services and both affirmed the Gospel and continued to learn about the Christian faith. Then suddenly, Osawaru announced that he was finished with Christianity.

A ‘voodoo woman’ had told Osawaru that the Christian teaching was not good for him. Winna recalled the woman telling Osawaru, “Your soul is filled with the snake, so the snake is going to starve.” The voodooist said Osawaru needed to start worshipping the snake spirit immediately.

Osawaru warned Winna that if she continued to worship Christ and attend church, she would have no place in his life. That same day, Osawaru set up a snake idol in their home.

Repeatedly rejected

Though Winna tried to maintain peace with her husband for her sake and that of their three children, a day came when Osawaru would no longer tolerate Winna’s Christian faith. He told Winna that other voodooists said her presence in the house inhibited the snake spirit’s power and that she must leave. “If you are hungry or need anything,” he told his wife, “go and meet the God you are regarding so that God can provide for you.”

Forced out of their home, Winna and her children began the search for another place to live. Every place she turned to, the owners, who all practised voodoo, eventually threatened her and kicked her and her children out.

“I started crying,” Winna said. “I told Jesus, ‘It is because of you I am suffering like this. Everybody is laughing at me because of you. Jesus, please help me.'”

Finding ways to stand firm

A Christian woman in Winna’s village offered to help her and her children with a place to stay. But without an income, she had no way of buying food, which the children needed badly.

Even her own parents refused to help her because she had rejected voodooism. Then, unexpectedly, Winna’s husband died and his family gave her an ultimatum: Return to voodooism or be rejected by the family. Winna refused to give up her faith in Christ, so her living situation remained difficult.

Today Winna and her children are doing more than just surviving. All three children have become followers of Christ, and the global body of Christ has helped pay the children’s school fees.

Winna, with help from other Christians, has started a small business selling vegetables. She has seen that she can trust the Bible’s promises, and she has learned that the God who cared for people long ago also provides for her.

A heart for those in bondage

Winna’s greatest desire and prayer is for her community to know the source of her strength and provision. She wants the voodooists, the villagers and the family members who have rejected her to clearly see what the Lord has done in her life and to place their own faith in Christ.

“So those people will say, ‘Ah, the God you are serving has changed your life, so I will serve your God.'”

Source: VOM