I met with a pastor this week who followed God’s leading to a hugely challenging church planting assignment. While there must be 100 distinct communities in Colorado that are growing (Welcome Californians, Arizonans and other foreigners!), he and his wife went to Walsenburg, a town in near uninterrupted decline since the mines closed after WW 2. But God called, they went and prayed their heads off. Now, by the grace of God, they’re seeing some harvest.
Outreach to Muslims is the Walsenburg of missions.
It comes with some of the same questions: “Do I want to move there?” “Will my kids be safe?” “Will I be able to feed them?” “Will we ever see any fruit?”
While we all agree we need to move forward by faith, not sight, some occasional “sight” can be encouraging. Here’s two:
Juman Al Qawasmi
When you’ve got a couple of minutes, watch this amazing video. (It’s 17 minutes long, but once you start you’ll be hooked!) Juman is a Palestinian woman, born in Qatar and raised in Gaza. Her dad was a leader in Hamas. Her story of Jesus reaching out to her is wonderful and the way she shares it is winsome. You might not agree with her on everything, but I appreciated the reminder that God is still at work, that Jesus loves Muslims and the Holy Spirit still surprises us.
Ali Boualou
I met Ali a few weeks ago. He’s a Muslim background guy who’s now following Jesus. Ali served in the Moroccan Special Forces, spent time in a Moroccan prison and lived in Indiana (A hat trick of hard times!). His story is one of divine provision, personal resilience and goodness of God’s grace flowing into one’s life.
If Ali’s book, The Apostate, is half as good as the personal testimony I heard him share, you’ll be amply encouraged and strongly challenged.
Take heart, Muslim Connect tribe: God is at work. Jesus’s prayer in Matthew 6.10 is being answered by God with a resounding yes! His Kingdom is coming!