Pastor Johnson Odoyo is a church planter who delights in seeing people set free from bondage and brought into a living relationship with Jesus Christ.
From his base in Kisessa, Tanzania, Johnson has planted several churches over the past five years, including ministries among the Hadzabe and Datoga tribal peoples. When a new church is established, Johnson entrusts the pastoral work to a capable believer who remains under his guidance, which is very much in the spirit of the apostle Paul in the New Testament.
One of those churches is now led by Syness Bhoke, a schoolteacher whom Johnson himself led to faith in Christ. Syness is the wife of Marwa, a school principal and the mother of four children.
Marwa was raised Catholic, and though he had stopped attending church years ago, he remained strongly opposed to any other form of worship.
At first, he tolerated his wife’s joy in her newfound faith. But as Bible studies and prayer meetings multiplied, his patience wore thin. It wasn’t long before gatherings were moved out of their home and into the church building, and for a time that compromise satisfied him.
Then Marwa demanded that Syness stop attending the meetings altogether. Arguments grew heated as he insisted that she abandon her ministry responsibilities.
Syness was in despair. She wanted to honor and please her husband, yet she could not ignore what she believed God had called her to do. In desperation, she began an extreme period of fasting and praying, asking the Lord to intervene. After many days, her physical weakness alarmed Pastor Johnson. He urged her to resume eating, assuring her that God had heard her prayers. But what troubled him even more were the unmistakable signs of domestic abuse on her face and arms.
Determined to intervene, Johnson summoned a couple of fellow believers and went to confront Marwa. Their first visit nearly ended in disaster. When Marwa saw the three men approaching his home, he grabbed a machete and threatened to kill anyone who entered.
It took several visits before he finally allowed them inside. Johnson and the others persuaded him that they were coming peacefully, only wanting to ensure the safety of his wife, Syness, their sister in the Lord.
Even then, the conversation was unfruitful. Marwa refused to listen or even let the men speak. Instead, he dominated the room with an endless stream of words, speaking loudly and often irrationally, leaving no room for anyone else to speak.
Finally, Johnson quietly interrupted.
“Okay,” he said. “Let’s pray.”
In that moment, the Holy Spirit began to work. As Johnson prayed, the presence of God filled the room and Marwa fell silent.
During the next visits, the same pattern repeated itself. Whenever Marwa filled the conversation with angry words, Johnson would simply say again, “Okay, let’s pray.” Little by little, Marwa’s heart began to soften in the presence of God.
Eventually, he found himself longing for the same peace and presence of God that he felt whenever Johnson prayed. Then one day, Marwa confessed his sins and asked Jesus Christ to become his Lord and Savior.
Since that day, their household is different. There is very little fighting. And Marwa and Johnson meet regularly … not as adversaries but as friends and brothers seeking the Lord together. Some of the older children who had drifted away from the family have returned home. A home that was once full of anger is now full of joy and hope.
Miraculously, today, the marriage that seemed to be headed for destruction is now entering its second year of peace made possible by the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. Praise God! Pray for this new church plant in Kitumba, that God would strengthen Syness and bring many to faith through her ministry.
