by Donald Marsden, Associate Director
On a recent trip to Central Asia, a local pastor told me about a man, Umar*, who has been attending his church. For 15 years, Umar faithfully recited the Namaz—the prescribed prayers Muslims say five times per day. One night, he encountered an evil spirit as he slept. For weeks, the spirit tormented him. He was exhausted and sick. Umar began to ask, “Why is Allah allowing this spirit to plague me?”
He stopped praying the Namaz. He quit his job and lay in bed, terrified, wondering what he could do to alleviate this suffering. Umar then remembered a previous visit to a Russian Orthodox church, and wondered to himself “Maybe the Christians can help me.” Using the internet, he found recordings of Russian Orthodox prayers, joining his voice with the words and letting them play on repeat as he slept. Soon, a man appeared to Umar in a dream, wearing white clothing and shining brightly like the sun. He used his immeasurable power to dispel the evil spirit. When Umar woke the next day, he knew Jesus had revealed Himself to him and that He is more powerful than the Namaz.
Three days later, Umar saw his neighbor wearing a cross necklace. He asked him, “Are you a Christian?” His neighbor said, “Yes, I am.” Umar replied, “Please take me to your church. I want to pray with you, and I want you to pray with me!”
That Sunday, Umar told his story to the pastor of the church. He joyfully embraced Jesus as his Lord and Savior and went home to begin reading the Bible. The next day, his two teenage sons also chose to follow Jesus! Now, he and his sons have shared public displays of their faith in this local church. Praise God for the ways He reveals Himself to people from every culture and context.
The divine mystery of God’s power and plan to reconcile all things to Himself (Colossians 1:19-20) is hard for any of us to fully grasp; yet this is what has been revealed to each of us through Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. May we boldly carry this hope to others and remind them of God’s goodness, mercy and love for all peoples.
*Names changed for reasons of privacy or security
Comments are closed.