The Lord is My Shepherd (Fatima's Testimony - Moslem To Christian)

It was February 10, 1990 on a Saturday when I sat at the airport at the age of 23. I thought about what happened in my past life, what is happening to me now, and what could happen to me in the future. My plane to Jordan would leave in an hour and my life would never be the same. I would marry a man whom my father chose for me and I would never return to the U.S. unless my husband decided to move here.

You see, I was born in Jordan to a Palestinian family. As the third and middle child, my grandmother decided I should be the first of my brothers and sisters to carry a Muslim name. She named me after one of the messenger Mohammed's daughters. When I was at the age of eight, my father decided to come to the U.S. to make some money and eventually go back to Jordan because he feared his daughters would grow up to become American women and possibly even marry American men. My father held very strongly to his Arab customs and wanted his children to follow the customs and Islam, especially his daughters. It is a disgrace to the family and forbidden in Islam for an Arab Muslim woman to marry a non-Muslim man. On the other hand my brothers were allowed to marry anyone they want as long as they are believers of the Books (Torah and Gospel) because Islam gave them that right. That is why my father sent me to Jordan to go to school.

I lived with my grandmother, my uncle and his family for a few years. My father was so pleased with me because I became a devout Muslim. He was relieved to know he didn't have to worry about my older sister because she was already married to an Arab Muslim, my younger sister was too young for him to worry about, and I was living the life that would please God and him. I traveled back and forth from Jordan to the US so I can be with my family while I was going to school in Jordan. As much as I loved seeing my family, I felt happy living in Jordan and following God's ways. I prayed five times a day, fasted the month of Ramadan, read the Qur'an daily, wore the veil (covering the entire body and showing only the hands, face and feet) and tried to imitate the prophet Mohammed in every way. No matter what I did for God, I felt I needed to do more to show him how obedient I am to Him. I would sit with my brothers and sisters and start quoting the prophet Mohammed and the Qur'an to them. My father was so proud of me.

The more I spent time in Islam, the further I drifted from God. The Muslims I knew didn't seem to truly love God. They worshipped Him to obtain heaven and feared His wrath and anger. I also began wonder about my motive in following Islam. "Was I following it for God or for the people around me?", I thought to myself. I'm not sure what my answer was, but I decided not to wear the veil anymore and act like a Muslim instead of looking like one. Worshipping God suddenly became an issue only between God and me.

At the age of twenty three, my father decided I should be married. In the Arab culture, the marriage process required a man asking for a woman's hand from her family. Dating is not allowed, but both have a chance to talk to each other in the presence of their families before they decide if they are right for each other. Several Arab Muslims came to ask for my hand, but I refused. I had a hard time marrying someone that I didn't know just to please my father. The culture and Islam allow marriages between first cousins. I refused to marry my cousin along with distant relatives and even strangers. "Why would my father want me to marry someone I didn't love or even know?", I felt. At the same time, my father didn't understand why I would refuse all these good men when he knew quite well that love comes after marriage and not before. When my dad realized that reasoning with me wouldn't work, he tried force. He decided I should go back to Jordan and stay there until I was married. My younger sister was sixteen at the time, so my dad felt she should come with me. That was a trying moment in my life.

Disgrace in the family brought by a daughter is the worst shame a family can go through. Many families have killed their daughters for what the culture considers disgrace. That was what I had to think about when I sat at the airport with my sister as we prepared to leave for Jordan. My dad flew to Jordan before us to prepare for my wedding and my brother made sure we would get to the airport without any problems. As I sat in the airport, I knew what I had to face; disgrace or misery: disgrace the family if I ran away or be miserable when married to one of my cousins for the rest of my life. At that point, I was so angry at my father and God: angry at my father for what he was doing and angry at God for allowing what was happening to me. I felt my heart screaming at God and saying, "Out of everyone in my family, it was ME who prayed to You, ME who fasted for You, ME who studied the Qur'an and this is what You allow to happen to me?! Why did You allow my family to send me to Jordan when I was still a teen-ager? Why did I have to live in an uncaring home? Why didn't You help me pursue my education when my dad refused to let me continue my education? Why did You allow my grandmother, my uncle and his family to treat me so harshly when I was with them? Why did You allow all these bad things to happen to me? Why God, WHY?!" I made a decision that day to stop praying to God and stop worshiping Him the way I did in the past.

February 10, 1990 was the day that completely changed my life. My younger sister and I took our luggage and we were on our way to the nearest hotel. The plane landed sixteen hours later as my father, along with other relatives, waited for us in the airport to greet us. When my father realized that we weren't on the plane, he went out of his mind! He called my brother and told him we weren't on the plane so my brother began to desperately search for us. My sister knew she had to go back home because the family would kill us both once they found us. There was a possibility they would claim I kidnapped my sister because she was under age. We both agreed she would tell them that I dragged her off the plane and forced her to come with me so they would not harm her. I promised her that if they try to force her to do anything she didn't want, I would come back and get her. We tearfully said good-bye to one another thinking that we would never see each other again.

God alone was the only One who could protect me, but I was so angry at Him that I didn't ask for His help. I didn't have much money and I couldn't work because they would find me under social security number. I didn't have many American friends because my father wouldn't allow me to be influenced by their "Satanic ways". And more importantly, I didn't know what to do in a society I hardly associated with. I needed courage, strength and wisdom.

I joined the U.S. Army National Guard so the government can protect me. Once I was done with my military, I went back to a suburb in the city where my family lived and lived there in hiding. During that time, I found a job and became very successful at work, I rented an apartment from the money I saved while I was on active duty in the military, and met many friends that would care for me as if I was a member of their family.

Four years later, I slowly began to contact my family. My father had moved to Jordan and married another woman there, my brothers were living on their own, and my mom and younger sister were living together. After five years, I made peace with my family and they accepted me living alone and running my own life. It amazed me to see how accepting my family was of that I began to see God's grace in my life. "He didn't neglect me after all", I thought, "I don't know what I would have done without His love and grace. He took me out of a bad situation to put me in a better one. He protected me and gave me the courage, wisdom and strength to survive on my own." I felt ashamed for being angry at Him and I needed to make peace with Him by going back to Islam. I didn't pray five times a day, but I thanked daily and did nice things that I thought would please Him.

February of 1998, I accepted a job for a company that would move me to another state to work as a salesperson. That same month a dear friend of mine died of a car accident leaving me in agony and distress. Because I had made peace with God, I was able to talk to Him and for the first time have conversations with Him. I didn't know why He did what He did, but I had to accept it because from my past experience, I knew He did things for a reason even though I don't understand. Nonetheless, I asked for His help, and actually asked Him to help everyone in the world who needs help.

The month of May had arrived and it was time for me to move. I arrived not knowing anyone or what to expect from this city. I was scared being in a new city, and sad that I left my family and friends, but excited about my new job. I wanted to be close to Mexico so I could learn more Spanish and travel there for my company. My plan was to be successful in international sales, but the Lord had other plans for me.

Under the strangest circumstances, I met a woman one evening that was walking her dog in front of my apartment. She and I became friends instantly so one day she invited me to go to her church. I didn't think there was any harm in me going to church, "After all", I thought, "God sent down Judaism and Christianity so He would not be upset if I went to church even though I'm a Muslim"

I really enjoyed the pastor's sermons and felt that he offered sound teachings. The only thing that didn't seem sound to me was when the pastor talked about Jesus being the Son of God. I felt, though, that God would forgive the pastor because he was misled by his family to believe that Jesus is the Son of God. Sometimes the pastor would say that Jesus is God in the flesh and sometimes he would say that Jesus is the Son of God. I knew for sure that the pastor was obviously confused because how can Jesus be God and then be God's Son? That just didn't make any sense to me. I continued to go to church until one day the pastor said that Muslims didn't know Jesus Christ. I was struck by that comment. Something inside of me said, "Of course Muslims know Jesus; the pastor is sadly mistaken and I need to set the record straight." After the service, I went to the pastor, introduced myself to him that I'm a Muslim and I DO know Jesus Christ. He apologized for making a blanket statement, and said, " I know that Muslims believe he is a prophet." I told him that I would like to meet with him to talk about his faith. Sooner or later, I would have approached the pastor, but that comment expedited the whole process for me to search for the truth. That was another turning point in my life.

My heart and soul were convinced that the prophet Mohammed was the last messenger and the Qur'an was the last book sent by God. The Qur'an clearly states that Jesus was a messenger that was born of a virgin mother, Mary. He had many miracles including bringing the dead to life, healing the sick, speaking when he was a baby, and creating a bird out of clay. The Lord loved him so much that when his enemies were preparing to crucify him, God sent someone to look Jesus and die on the cross instead of Jesus. Muslims believe that he never died, but was raised to heaven to be protected from his enemies. Jesus, in the Qur'an, claims he never told anyone to worship him but to worship the One true God. The Bible has been changed, according to Muslims, that Christians and Jews really don't have the true Books. When God gave Mohammed the message, God preserved the Qur'an and made sure no one would change it like the Torah and the Gospel.

I continued to go to Church and listen to the pastor's sermons, but I began to wonder why Christians had different beliefs than Muslims. As I listened and began to read different books on Christianity and Islam, I became very confused and didn't know what to believe anymore. I had to wrestle with many issues: Was Jesus crucified? Did Jesus die on the cross for man's sins? Is Jesus God or the Son of God? Is God a Triune God? Is the Bible really accurate and had the Bible been preserved after all these years? If the answer was yes to all my questions, that would mean then that Mohammed was a liar and the Qur'an was not from God. Work, family, friends, and everything else around me suddenly became meaningless. My days and evenings were consumed with tears and agony over God and the truth. How could I know what really happened 2,000 years ago? How could I betray my family or maybe even God if I believed in Jesus Christ? That was a decision I was not willing to make myself. Nonetheless, I continued to read and search for answers to all my questions.

My questions needed convincing answers and I didn't know who would help me until the pastor recommended a professor at a seminary. As I spoke with the professor and read many books, things started making sense. The Bible had to be accurate because of the Dead Sea Scrolls. One of the Dead Sea Scrolls was the book of Isaiah that dates back to 125 BC. Apart from the Dead Sea Scrolls there are also parts of very old manuscripts of the Gospel according to John and the Gospel according to Matthew that we currently have that are in museums around Europe and the Middle East. I began to read compare the prophesies that were in the Old Testament about the coming of the Messiah and how they were all fulfilled in the New Testament. The Old Testament talks about the Messiah's hands and feet being pierced for man's transgressions, he would be born of a virgin mother, he would be led like a lamb to the slaughter, he would be sold for 30 pieces, he would enter Jerusalem on a donkey, and he would be called the Almighty God and Prince of Peace. These prophesies in the Old Testament and how they were fulfilled in the New Testament lead me to believe in the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The only thing left for me to wrestle with was Jesus' deity as part of a Triune God. "I can not, under any circumstances, believe that Jesus is God; that would be pure blasphemy!", I thought to myself. I had to either end my search or challenge Jesus' deity because I knew I couldn't embrace Christianity if I knew I had to believe in Jesus' deity. I needed a miracle.

One day I said to Jesus, "O.K. Mr. Messiah, it's my way or the highway. If you are God, you would prove it to me by doing what I want you to do." Jesus didn't respond. I was beginning to believe that God didn't want me to trust in Jesus because I thought for He'd respond to my prayers. Then one Sunday, I went to church and the pastor was talking about prayer. He said, "When I pray for something, I usually say: God, if this is Your will, then open the door wide open or slam it shut, but please Lord, don't let me make this decision myself." I felt good about that prayer because I was afraid of making the wrong decision about God. As soon as I got home that day I prayed and said, "God, if you want me to follow Christianity, then open the doors wide open or slam it shut, but please Lord let me make this decision myself." For a whole week nothing happened.

Sunday morning August 2, 1998, I woke up feeling depressed as usual about my search. I decided not to go to church because I didn't want to hear people say that Jesus is God anymore. An Iranian Christian pastor called me and said he would like a Qur'an. That evening, I went to his church to give him a Qur'an because I thought it was nice thing to do. He knew I had been searching for a few months. When I arrived at church, he asked me where I was in my search. I told him that I believed in the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, but I didn't believe in his deity. I also told the Iranian pastor that I've studied the life of Jesus, I would want a man like him to be my neighbor, my brother, my father, by boss, my judge in a court of law, my king in a country because no one in history compared to him. He said, "Well, if you think he is that wonderful and that he died on the cross for your sins, will you confess that before God?" I agreed so we prayed together and he told me he would like to be the first person to shake my hand and congratulate me for being one of God's children. He asked me to continue to pray, read the Bible daily, and tell everyone what I just did. I had no idea what he was talking about. The pastor and I said good-bye to one another and I headed for my car. I got in my car and it all hit me. I sat there in total shock and said out loud as if God was sitting right next me, "You really wanted me to do this all along didn't You? You really wanted me to take this step, didn't You? " I then began to cry because I realized what happened. God made the decision for me! I fought with Jesus and I lost! I wanted him to reveal himself to me on my terms, but he was willing to reveal himself to me on His terms. It was clear to me that Jesus wanted me to walk with him instead of challenge Him.

I am grateful that the Lord has been my shepherd throughout my life. He has been there for me when I needed Him and even when I thought I didn't need Him. He has taken me through roads and routes I never dreamed to take. Above all, I'm amazed and that He loved me so much, He sent Jesus do die on the cross for me! How humbling and precious that is to me! The Lord is my shepherd and He has been leading His sheep.

If you would like to contact me, send me an email.

Muslim To Christian (Mary's Testimony)

Some of my earliest memories revolve around Church, I was taken to many church related activities from the time that I was a little girl. As I grew, my family attended less and less often and soon we spent Sundays watching television and at other leisure activities. When I was 9 years old we began attending a small, independent church that was heavy on doctrine such as spare the rod and spoil the child and wives obey your husbands. They never mentioned any responsibility on the husband's or parents part. I was really frightened when I went to school, church and sunday school that I would either be whipped or shamed. They would not let the girls lead the flag salute or pray since girls were suposdly less than boys. We only went to that church for a few months, but it made a huge inpact on my life.

After a major move when I was 12 years old, we began attending church regularly again. I recall being happy to feel a part of a "church family" but what I did not see at the time was this was one of those churches known for "having a form of Godliness but denying the power within." I attended regularly, even though my parents began to attend less and less. Soon I was the only one from my family attending. I listened to the Pastor's stories of goodness and faith, but they never really made sense when the members of the congregation were involved in lying, cheating each other and showing off who had the most money. By the time I graduated for high school I was attending only sporadically at best.

I went away to college in 1990 and began to live my life as an agnostic, radical feminist. I did not want to believe anything that religion had to say about women being submissive. After a relationship that I was in fell apart, I began to turn back to God and religion in general. A large group of Muslim students began attending the University around this time and I began to talk to them about the way of life called Islam. They told me that Islam was a way of life and not simply a religion. I became fascinated by all the aspects and more and more interested in the fact that Muslim men were duty bound to take care of and treat their wives with care and gentleness. I was told that the prophet Mohammed told his followers that "the best of you is the one who is the best to his wife" but no one told me about the sura that states that if your wife is disobedient, you may beat her until she is. I wanted a good husband who would support me and treat me right.

I became a Muslim in November of 1991 and soon things began to fall apart in my life. I was so convinced that I had found the proper path that I became belligerant to my co-workers and was soon fired. I began to look for another job and was told by the Imam that I had to return to my parents home since Islam forbids single women from living alone. I moved home in January of 1992. Understandably, my parents did not like the idea of me wearing the traditional Muslim garb and they tried to forbid me from wearing it at any chance they got. Of course this only made me more adamant about wearing it. Soon my family and former friends were all reluctant to be around me and I spent more and more time exclusively with Muslims.

In February of 1992 I was introduced to my future husband. I was simply led into a room and told that he was the man that I was supposed to marry and I had no choice in the matter. We married in May. I soon entered hell. I was not to leave the apartment without his permission and was not to turn the airconditioner on for any circumstances. This was during 100 degree weather in the summer. I sweltered my way through the rest of the summer with heat rash and an eventual case of heat exhaustion. Mohammed forced me to relinquish control of my car to my parents in September, so I was truly stuck at home. What I did not understand about my new husband was that he would spend inordinate amounts of time away from home and never ask me to go with him. I soon learned (painfully) that Islam forbids the listening to music. That was the first time that he hit me.

After our first year of marriage, he was preparing to return to Morocco (without me) to visit his family. Shortly before he left, we had been on a day trip to Dallas where he had not allowed me to have any food except a small bag of chips. As we did not have anything in the house to eat, I called one of his friends who knew that Mohammed often left me without anything to eat.

I waited for him to bring me just a small sandwich for dinner when Mohammed came home unexpectedly. He had heard of the call and was furious. He told me to get my stuff together and leave the next day, he began to beat me and scream at me, rupturing one of my eardrums. I ran to a friend's house gain help. Mohammed tearfully apologised and we stayed together.

After he returned from Morocco, I was able to get a job and be able to pay some of my bills and have enough to eat (he let me have my car back). But I began to understand that this was no marriage. We were simply roomates and one was terrorizing the other.

I began to question some of the things about Islam, the hypocrisy and infighting as well as the treatement of women. I was abruptly informed that I was not to question and all that I had to do was to read and I would understand. I began to look longingly at women who did not have to wear the heavy oppressive clothing and endure the rude looks from others. I was accused of causing a miscarrage with the evil eye since I was trying desperately to become pregnant. I would cry and ask God why he would not let me achieve the supreme Muslim woman's duty of bearing children. I became more and more depressed and even prayed for God to take me out of this world. Little did I know that he would answer my prayer in a way that I had not dreamed of.

At the end of the third year of our marriage, Mohammed decided that he needed to go to Morocco again. He told me that he did not care where I went or what I did; he was going home. Well, I got my own apartment and when I did not hear from him in a month, I filed for divorce. My faith was destroyed and my health and finances were also destroyed. I began to attend church again.

I went from church to church until I really gave my life to Christ in December of 1998. I was Baptised with the Holy spirit in April of this year and my life has really changed for the better. I praise God every day that he has brought me home and given me a wonderful Church Home with people who love me.

Praise to the Lord now and forever !!!

WHERE WILL I GO AFTER I DIE ??! (Muslim Became Christian - Gunjoa's Testimony - West Africa)

1. LACK OF ASSURANCE

My name is Gunjoa, I am African, 43 years old, married, and father of three children. I live in a country where more than 90% of the population is Muslim. Islam is the religion into which I was born. My father is a fervent student of the Qur’an, much of which he memorized at a young age. I myself was sent to the Qur’anic school when I was three years old. Later I alternated studies between the French academic school and Qur’anic school. The days I didn’t go to French school, I went to study the Qur’an. As I grew up, my boyhood friends and I did many foolish things. But when I reached the age of 19 or 20, I began to take matters of religion more seriously. I would spend a lot of time thinking about paradise and hell, because I had been taught at a young age that these two places exist, and that after death, each person will end up in one place or the other—depending on whether they did good or bad during their earthly existence. This is what I had been taught.

Consequently, I would ask myself the question: "Where will I go after I die?" This question followed me wherever I went. It troubled me continually. As a result, I became more faithful in my religious obligations: I prayed five times a day, attended the mosque on Friday, fasted during Ramadan, gave alms, etc… Each time I finished my ritual prayers, I would ask God to put me on the right path, because I continued to be troubled by the thought of facing hell after death. I questioned people who knew Islam better than I. But I never received a satisfying answer. All they could tell me each time I asked was that I simply needed to fulfill my religious duties, do more good than bad, and then leave the rest in the hands of God who determines my eternal destiny. They all told me the same thing, "No one can know in this life where they will go after they die. Only God knows!" But such a response did not in any way satisfy my heart. Inside of me there was nothing but turmoil. I had no peace as the same question continued to pop up in my mind: "Where will I go after I die?"

For three years while I lived in the Capital city to pursue further studies, I lived among a particular sect of Muslims who believed that their marabout (religious leader) was Isa (Jesus) who had come back at the end of the world. They attributed to their marabout a certain number of miracles. I was impressed with their stories and I thought to myself: If their Jesus could do such miracles, the original Jesus must have been truly great! I desperately wanted to know what kind of miracles the first Jesus did. I thought, "Surely there can’t be any harm in this!" This is what motivated me to know more about "the true Jesus". I should tell you that up to this point in my life I had never met any true disciples of Jesus Christ, nor had I ever read their book: the Bible.

After I successfully completed my studies and received my diploma, I returned to my native town with a clear objective: I would do some serious research and find a book that records the life, words and works of Jesus Christ. Thus, one morning I got up and went to pay a visit to some Catholics—since in my country, back in those days, when one spoke of Jesus, the Bible or Christians, we automatically thought "Catholic." (Today this tendency is changing.) So, as I was saying, I went to visit them, but it wasn’t there that I found what I was looking for. But as I was walking back home, God opened my eyes to notice a little library where I was privileged to meet some evangelical Christians for the first time in my life. I was 25 years old when I began to read the Scriptures of the Bible for myself.

2. FROM THE PROPHETS TO JESUS

Now my research began to take on a whole new dimension. As a Muslim, I continued to pray to God to place me on the right path. This was because I still had not discovered a solution to the dilemma which would not leave my mind: "Where will I go after I die?" I had not yet found a solid, satisfying answer. People around me continued to say, "Only God knows. No one can know their eternal destiny." But I wanted to know in this life where I would go after I died! After nearly two years of research, of studying the Bible, of reading the testimonies of Christians who came out of Islam, and of discussions with Christians, God’s answer to my question became clear to me. I surrendered to the evidence. Yes, I had discovered some wonderful things!

First of all, in the Old Testament Scriptures of the Bible, I discovered that all the prophets had announced the coming of a Messiah. They were preparing mankind to receive this Savior of the world who would come at the time appointed by God. The prophets prophesied about the Messiah’s miraculous birth, the place of His birth, the circumstances preceding and following His birth. They also foretold how He would be mistreated by the religious leaders of His own nation who would misunderstand Him and hate Him. The prophets also announced the Messiah’s sufferings and how His enemies would plot to have Him put to death. They even described in detail the manner by which He would die. Most importantly, they told why the Messiah would allow Himself to be killed, refusing to save Himself even though He had the power to do so. Certain prophets also wrote of the Messiah’s resurrection which would take place three days later.

In my research, I discovered that, from the very beginning, it was God’s plan that the Messiah should pay the sin-penalty for the whole world—so that all those who believe in Him would not have to pay that penalty themselves. I learned that the penalty for sin is death and eternal separation from our perfect and righteous Creator who must punish all sin. But the Good News was that the sinless Messiah would come to fulfill the meaning of thousands of years of symbolical animal sacrifices. Prophets like Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon and Isaiah all offered up spotless lambs and rams to God—as blood sacrifices to cover their sins. This was God’s idea. It was also God’s idea to send the Messiah who would offer up Himself as the Final Sacrifice "as a Lamb led to the slaughter." (Isaiah 53) However, there was a distinction. The Messiah’s sacrifice would not merely cover sin before God, it would remove sin’s penalty—for all who believe God and His way of salvation. In reading the New Testament (Injil) record about Jesus of Nazareth, I discovered that He is the One who perfectly fulfilled all these prophecies, and not someone else.

Next, in my research, I discovered in the Bible that this "original Jesus" had provided a clear and uncompromising answer to my question: "Where will I go after I die?" Jesus’ death and resurrection was God’s answer to my question! Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. …[I] came to seek and to save what was lost. …I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. …I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life." (John 14:6; Luke 19:10; John 10:11; John 5:24) Such words and many others like them in the Bible are declarations which no other person has ever dared to make. These and other verses in the Bible helped me to understand and accept Jesus for who He is: the One and only Savior promised by God, who died and rose again to provide a perfect salvation for all who believe. Thus, I placed my faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and in the fact that He died for me, for my sins, in my place.

3. CHANGES MADE BY CHRIST

Interestingly, after I placed my confidence in the Lord Jesus and in what He did for me on the cross—I felt a peace that I had never before experienced. What a change! I no longer have any worries about my eternal destiny, because I know that Jesus has paid the full penalty for all my sins which condemned me. I am saved! I am now completely confident about where I will go after I die. I know that I will go to Heaven—not because I am good, but because of God’s grace, which has been provided through Jesus Christ. My faith in Jesus has changed my perspective on life. Now I seek to please God in all things—not because I have to, but because I want to. God has changed my heart. I am no longer afraid of anything or of anyone. Of course, I am conscious of the power of the devil and demons, and of opposition from people, but I am absolutely convinced that the Lord Jesus is infinitely more powerful. He has proven Himself to me personally so many times. He controls and cares for me, my family and every aspect of my life.

4. OPPOSITION

Right after I believed God’s message, it all seemed so clear and logical that I didn’t anticipate the major trials and troubles that awaited me because of my newfound faith. But I quickly learned the reality of what Jesus told the people of Nazareth (the area where He grew up as a boy): "Only in his hometown and in his own house is a prophet without honor." (Matt. 13:57) Not only did my father, my uncle, my brothers and my friends do their best to make light of Jesus’ death on the cross for our sins, but they also harassed me in a number of ways, finally excluding me from the family, putting me out of the house. It was painfully difficult for me to be rejected by my own family like this. It was not what I wanted. They are the ones who put me out—simply because of my faith in Christ. When folks speak of Islam as a religion of truth, peace and love, I ask myself how that can be—if it cannot even tolerate those who sincerely believe in the One about whom all the prophets wrote?

By the grace of my Lord, I have overcome all these hostilities about which Jesus warned us. He said, "All men will hate you because of me. …In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (Luke 21:17; John 16:33) In all these circumstances, God has taken care of me and has taught me many important lessons which have been a necessary part of my own spiritual growth. I have now been walking with the Lord for 17 years. What a privilege! Also, God has graciously been using me as He desires in His service for His glory alone.

5. SERVANT OF CHRIST

It was in 1991 that the Lord first called me to serve Him in some new, specific ways (Job 22:24-28). I accepted His call and by His grace I began to participate in various projects: translation of Gospel literature in local languages; production and broadcast of radio programs, and involvement in special outreaches to large groups of people.

Recently, the Lord has expanded my direction and vision. My wife and I are convinced that the Lord has called us to carry out an itinerate ministry in our country. The Spirit of God continually directs us in this way. Our vision is to follow the example of our Lord Jesus Christ who "traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God." (Luke 8:1)

Prepared in French by "Gunjoa"

October 2004

To contact the author: TWOR@iname.com.

Muslim to Christian (Liban Ibrahim Hassan - Somali Martyr)

Liibaan Ibraahim Xasan (Liban Ibrahim Hassan) was shot dead in Muqdisho (Mogadishu), apparently because of his Christian activities in the Somali capital.

While growing up, Liibaan had listened to Christian radio broadcasts both in Somali and in English. In 1982, at the age of about 13, he read Sigmund Freud's Dreams, which disturbed him so much that he began to suffer from insomnia. Traditional solutions - visits to sheikhs, reading the Qur'an etc. - did not cure him. An expatriate Christian gave him a New Testament and suggested that he read the first letter of John. During the mid-1980s Liibaan struggled over deep theological and spiritual issues as he read the Bible in Italian and English. He also read Italian devotional books on the epistles of Paul. He prayed for God to show him the right path.

Liibaan became dissatisfied with Islam for a variety of reasons. He wondered why it was necessary always to pray to God in Arabic, a foreign language. He wondered why it was necessary to face Mecca when praying. Ethical issues also troubled him, particularly the fact that the Quran, he believed, sanctioned polygamy and abuse of women.

Finally, in 1985, Liibaan decided that only the Bible could be true and not the Qur'an. He decided that the first thing he must do as a follower of Jesus Christ was to practice humility. (Humility is not normally considered a desirable trait in Somali culture.) Liibaan's friends began to notice a change in him the following year, and he told them about his new faith. In 1990 he sent off for a Somali New Testament. "Please be aware that if you send me [this book] you will be sending me the greatest gift that can be given to a human," he wrote.

In 1992 Liibaan married a young lady from his neighborhood. He also desired baptism and traveled to Ethiopia in order to be baptized. In December 1992 Liibaan's wife decided to join her husband in following Jesus Christ and was baptized.

The civil war in Somalia provided Liibaan with many opportunities to witness. While working in the hospital, medical staff noticed that he had a totally different attitude from the other workers. He did not differentiate between patients based on their clan. He showed sympathy and concern for people; working as a nurse's aide in the operating room was not just a job for Liibaan.

He used to have religious discussions with a sheikh who had been badly wounded. Later, he donated blood for this man, and after the sheikh had recovered Liibaan told him to listen to the Somali Christian radio broadcasts. In due course the sheikh wrote to the radio station to request Christian Scriptures and a correspondence course.

This sheikh was just one of many whose lives were touched by Liibaan. He encouraged numbers of people to study the Scriptures and some of them embraced Christianity. The scattered Christians in Muqdisho met in his home and he pastored them. At the relief agency where he worked, all the workers went to him with their problems. Even the men who guarded the vehicles of the relief agency - battle-hardened veterans of the street fighting of the past four years of civil war - had perceptibly changed through their contact with Liibaan.

Such a bold Christian stance made him notorious in a country which is almost 100% Muslim. In 1993 Islamic radicals criticized his activities in newspaper articles.

On the morning of 21 March 1994, two gunmen were waiting for Liibaan on the sandy road near his office. At 7.30 a.m., as he was walking to work, they ambushed him and shot him at close range. He died a few minutes later.

It is not known who killed him, but it is most likely that the motives were religious. Many Muslims believe that it is their duty to kill an apostate themselves if the state fails to uphold the sharia and that God will reward them for it.

Miracles in India

In January, 1999 I spent a couple of weeks in India, in the southern State of Kerala. In the course of my trip there I had the opportunity to speak to a number of Christians, and also to unbelievers, telling them about Jesus and what God can do. I also had the opportunity to pray for the sick in Jesus' name.

Quite a number of people were healed of all sorts of medical conditions through faith in the name of Jesus. There were people healed of breathing problems, back problems and a variety of other things. But the one miracle that stood out to me was a young girl brought to me by her father. She was totally deaf mute. I prayed for her one night but nothing seemed to change. The next night she was brought to me and I commanded the deaf-mute spirits to come out of her in Jesus' name. I want to praise God for this, because she actually began, first of all to hear, and then to make sounds for the first time in her life. Many people believed in Jesus because of these healings in this remote Indian village.

All this has resulted in the establishment of a new church in that area. The new pastor, I am told, has a lot of work on his hands - plenty of enquirers. More reports of healing have come back, including one of a lady who was totally blind but is now reading her Bible. To God be the glory!

Jesus said, "These signs will follow those who believe. In my name they will drive out demons, they will speak with new tongues ... they will lay hands on the sick and they shall recover." (Mark 16:17,18). How can we expect unbelievers to trust the Word of God if we Christians don't even believe it ourselves? But if we do believe it, then let us act on it ALL, and trust God to confirm His Word with signs following.

Has God appointed anyone to tell believers which parts of the Bible we should no longer believe and act upon? If not, lets get motivated and draw near to God, so we can understand the meaning of Jesus when He said, "All things are possible to those who believe."

Note: This was not my last trip to India. On my next trip to India we recorded more miracles on video tapes. We had 5 hours of testimonies recorded from people healed in those meetings. Even the muslim cameraman got healed of a growth on his arm! To God be the glory.

Brother Michael