Pray for Bamako

I live in Bamako, the capital of Mali, a land that stretches wide under the desert sun. Our country is vast — dry and flat — yet the Niger River winds through it like a lifeline, bringing water, color, and life to everything it touches. Most of our people live along this river, depending on it for farming, fishing, and cattle herding. In a land where the soil often cracks and the rains are uncertain, water means hope.

Mali is growing quickly, and so is Bamako. Every day, families from small villages arrive here, searching for work, education, or simply survival. The markets overflow with sound — traders shouting prices, children laughing, the rhythm of drums and conversation. There is beauty here — in our artisans, in our culture, in our strength — but also brokenness. Poverty, instability, and growing Islamic extremism have left deep scars on our land.

And yet, I see God at work. Amid hardship, people are thirsty — not just for clean water, but for living water. The Church in Mali is small but steadfast, reaching out in love, praying for peace, and sharing the Gospel with courage. As Bamako becomes a gathering place for the nation, I believe it can also become a well of salvation — where many will come to drink from the truth of Jesus, the one source that never runs dry.