And yet he didn't marry me, He often promises me a wedding, but then he always postpones it, so I am married and I am not married, I am confused, what makes marriage a marriage?"
"How long have you been living together?"
"For more than a year."
"Do you have children?"
"No, he doesn't want any?"
I could just imagine the problem.
"He is very good to me," the voice said.  "He pays for my education, he takes me to school in the morning and pick me up at night."
"Takes you to school? How old are you?"
"I'm twenty two, my parents were not able to give me good education, so I am catching up now."
"Where do your parents live."
"In a small village hundred miles from here."
"Could not you go back to your parents and return only under the condition that a marriage is arranged?"
"That's impossible, my parents threw me out their house when I started to live with him, they don't approve of him."
"Why not?"
"He is European."
This explains many things: that he had money, don't want a child, and wanted "free love".
"Well you really are in a difficult situation, could you come and see me here in the hotel?"
"No he wouldn't allow that, he never allows me to go out by my self."
"Why don't you bring him alone?"
She laughed. "He would never come."
"Could you come to my lecture tonight?"
"I have classes tonight, besides, he doesn't want me to go to any church."
"How do you spend your weekend?"
"I stay home, when he goes out, he locks me up in the house."
"Where does he go?"
"I do not know, he never tells me."
I was speechless, then I heard her voice again.
"But what can I do, pastor? what can I do?"
The old question, "I don't know," I said, I really don't."
"can you at least pray with me?"
Pray...? Are you a Christian?"
I had hardly asked this question when I regretted it, What would it matter? The answer came.
"No, My parents are Moslem.  but I was educated in a Christian school, there was no other school in the village."
Pray! I must admit that I had never prayed over the telephone, let alone with a person I had never seen.
Then I thought, why not? Did it matter whether I saw and know her? Did not God see and know her just as he see and know me?  If we couldn't meet in this hotel room, why couldn't we meet in God?
So I prayed, I said that I had no solution, I asked to show us a solution, when I said "Amen," she hung up.
The quietness of my room engulfed me, I stared at the lecture notes in front of me and felt helpless, they seemed to have no relationship to life.
Then it came to me with a start that I had forgotten to ask the girl for her name and telephone number, what a mistake! there was no chance to get in touch with her, would say, would she call back?
 The telephone rang again, I picked up the receive eagerly, hoping it would be she, but it was the operator.
"There is a gate man in the lobby waiting for you."
"Tell him I will be right there."
I thrust my notes in my briefcase and went down to meet him.
A distinguished looking man in his thirties wearing a well tailored suit introduced himself as Maurice, he had come to take me to the church where I was to give my lecture, and led me to his car.
Are you married?" I asked, as a way of starting conversation.
"No, not yet"
"How old are you?
"Thirty four years old."
Thirty four years and not married, what could be the reason for that? I thought,   then Maurice continued:
"I lost my father in my early childhood, I had to take care of my mother, besides, I wanted to finish my studies first and have a decent job, I am business manager for a construction company, also it's not easy to find a girl to marry."
"What makes it difficult?"
"The getting acquainted,I don't know where to meet a girl."
"Do you have one in mind?"
"Yes I do."
"And What does she say?"
"I don't know, I haven't talked to her yet."
"Why not?"
"The only place I can meet her is in the bus, I know which bus she takes when she goes to school in the morning, I take the same one and try to have a chat with her between two bus stop."
"How old is she?"
I do not know, not more than sixteen, I guess."
I gasped, could this be possible? here was a fine looking, distinguished gentleman who had a good job with much responsibility, yet he was pursuing a young school girl in a bus!
"Why do you choose such a young girl?"
"The older ones are either spoiled, or already married, do you think it is a mistake?"
"Well, you must think that when you are sixty, she will be forty two."
"Maybe I should think about that."
"Are we going directly to the church? it's quite a long way," I said.
"I made a detour," Maurice answered, "in order to introduce you to one of our greatest problem".
Here is our "red light district".
We had left the down town area, hundred of small mud huts with thatched roof were on both sides of the unpaved road, there must have been thousand of people living in this area.
"What makes a woman become a prostitute?"
"Many of them are barren woman who are sent away by their husbands because they don't have children."
"What makes them barren?"
"The doctor say it is mostly because of venereal disease which they often get from their husbands who have been in affected by prostitutes, it is a vicious circle,