[came to Jesus through contact with a Christian and reading the Bible.]

Afghanistan
Mullah finds Jesus

"since the Taliban regime was overthrown, we've repeatedly heard of people becoming Christians," reports the mission agency Open Doors. "One of these people is Fahmir (name changed), an ex-Mullah. Mullahs are some of the most respected people in Afghan society; they know the whole Koran and many prayers and songs by heart. Fahmir is from a Mullah family, and came to Jesus through contact with a Christian and reading the Bible. 'I used to preach in mosques, now I want to preach the word of God,' he says."

from Dawn News


With God all things are possible.  We never know how the Holy Spirit is working and speaking to a person's heart.

AMEN DEBP!

That was beautiful and I really enjoyed it. THANKS!

Love In Christ,
Tom

 

Your welcome, Tom.  I like to read the testimonies of Muslims who came to believe on Christ as their Savior....it gives us hope for all.  We need to pray for all Muslims to become open to Jesus as their Savior.  It must be an awful thing to be raised in a religion that threatens to kill you, if you leave it.

Here is another brief testimony from Truth for Muslims:

Over a hundred years ago Haji Sultan Mohammed, Khan of Afghanistan, began to realize that Jesus is unique. Haji was an Islamic scholar who extensively studied the Quran and traditions of Mohammed. One day Haji read the words of Jesus from the Gospel according the Apostle Matthew which says, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” Haji began reading the New Testament more and he clearly saw that the biblical Jesus is different than the prophet of Islam.

In his written testimony, Haji said this,

The Messiah claims: “I will give you rest.” He shows how salvation depends on him. He does not merely point to a path which is above or beyond him. But he says “I am the way, and the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father but by me.”[1]
Haji discovered the truth! He soon dropped his allegiance to Islamic ideology, putting his own life at risk in the process, and became a passionate follower of Jesus the Messiah.

Haji’s testimony is proof that Muslims who decide to seriously consider the uniqueness of Jesus can make their greatest discovery: that Jesus himself is the Truth.

by Sinur

I was born in Mariwan in the Iranian part of Kurdistan. My dad was a Communist, and so was my mom. In 1981 my dad became a Christian. When my mom and dad saw each other again, and he told her about the best experience in his life and she also became a Christian. But my mom spent lot of time in prison. My dad was killed in 1984. The last time I saw my mom, she was in a hospital in Tehran. I was sitting outside when my uncle called me in to see my mom. I was shaking.  When I reached the door of her room, I fell down in tears. But she called me in and told me not to worry because she would be with God.

She told me that when I got back home to go to where the apricot trees are in a river. There I would find a bag with a book in it. She told me to take the book and read it. After I finished reading it, I was to put it back in the bag and in the river again. She told me not to cry but I could not help it. She kissed me and died after a while. Her last words she told me were "I want you to be where I am. You have never seen your father but you will."

One day, I went to the garden, got the bag, and tried to read the book. I couldn't read it because it was in Kurdish. At that time, I could only read Persian. But because they used the same alphabet I was able to figure out the words and by the grace of God, I learned how to read in Kurdish through that book. This book had an amazing impact on my life. Not in the first year, but as I read it over the years, I became better and it gave me the peace that I needed.

After my mom had passed away and because of the torture she had suffered, my uncle sent me to the mosque and I began reading the Qur'an. I loved it for its poetry but they never told us what it meant. I dared not to ask because I was thinking that it might be the word of God and we humans just don't understand it.

What troubled me was that the same character in the book of my mom was also in the Qur'an. And I remembered reading in Peter's confession that Jesus is the Son of God while the Qur'an denied it. So I wanted to know why it was different. One day, without realizing what would happen, I took both books Injil and Qur'an and showed them to my uncle and asked him why they were conflicting. He demanded, "Where did you get this book?" I said my mom hid it. He took it out of my hand and put it in a wood heater that we had. The book was burned to ashes. The only gift I had from my mom was gone. The only memory that kept me going was burned. Now I couldn't go to the garden, read it and cry over it. I used to cry over it all the time. I asked, "Why did you do this?" He said that I might end up like my mom and my dad. This is when I learned that my parents went from Communism to Christ. He insulted my parents and said I would be a kafir (unbeliever) too. My grandma said, "May the worms and snakes eat my parents in the grave and not leave them alone."

One night I prayed and said, "Jesus, you promised if we ask in your name you will answer and we would receive it." I prayed that he would help me to find someone from my city who was a Christian. This was a rather impossible request.

The Gulf War started and refugees poured into my city.  One day, I met Hiwa a Kurd from Iraq. Hiwa invited me to his place for Friday night but I had Qur'an classes and I could not go. I saw my mom in a dream and she told me to go on Sunday. Hiwa said that I couldn't go on Sunday since they were busy. But I said my mom told me to go on Sunday. He asked why she would say that. I told him the story and he then said that his father and mother had been Muslim but they became Christians through some Assyrian friends. Hiwa told me to meet him at his house at 5 p.m.

When I got to his house, it was time to eat and then hear some preaching from his dad.  I told them that my father had been fighting in the mountains, my mom too. One day they were attacked and my dad crossed the boarder into Iraq and went to seek refuge in the home of his friend who was an Assyrian. My dad saw so much through his friend that he hungered for God and became a Christian.  He asked if I was a Christian. I said I believe in Jesus and had read his book. But now my uncle had burned the book.  He said he became a Christian the same way as my dad. He said you have to call Christ into your life and allow him take over your life. I asked, "How do you do that?" He came and put his hands around me like I was his own son. He said to receive God's salvation all you need is a relationship. This relationship could only be through faith and trust. I asked, "How should I pray?" He said, "Repeat after me." I prayed, "Father, please forgive me, a sinner. I know that you are one. Your way is one. I know that Jesus is the way and I want him in my life." - My sorrows turned into joy and my heart was healed.

When I went to my Qur'an class, I asked if Christianity was right. My teacher said, "What?" He brought me in front of the class room (in the mosque not at school) and slapped me as hard as he could. I fell to ground with my whole face shaking. He asked some kids to go outside and get some sticks, dip them in water and then he hit me in the hands. He put pencils between my fingers and squeezed them until I could be only on one foot and I was jumping on it. He had me carry the heaviest kid in the class. I had to crawl around the room. After that he kicked me out of the class room. Hiwa's mom saw me unconscious, bleeding from my mouth and swollen. I couldn't help the tears coming down and she asked who had done this. I said, "Mamosta", which is Kurdish for master. She said, "Go, tell your uncle." I said he knew that I was close to becoming a Christians like my parents and he didn't want this. He didn't want me to be able to try and find out why my parents had become Christians. He was afraid this might make me into a Christian and my leaving Islam would bring lot of shame to his family. She took me to her home and shared a passage where Jesus said that they will persecute you all in my name. I knew this was not the way of God and I was glad that I was a Christian. She told me that they would be leaving in two weeks to go back to Shaqlawa. I said that I want to go with them and get away from my relatives. She said no I had to stay.

When I came back home, my uncle asked why am I looked so badly? I said I was punished. He asked for what? I said for asking a question. He said what kind of a question. I said that I had asked if Christianity was right. He yelled at me, "Why this question?" I said, "Because my parents were Christians." He picked up the broom and hit my head with it. Again I was bleeding on my head. He chased me down the stairs and I was hearing my grandmother saying "bikkosh, bikoosha" which means kill him, kill him. He chased me about ten minutes and I couldn't run anymore. I was dead-tired, hungry, and thirsty. I called on Jesus for help.   I didn't know where I was, but miraculously, I ended up at Hiwa's house. I was sitting to rest and than realized that it was their house. I got up and knocked. They were shocked at what they saw, a swollen face and ripped clothes. Dust was all over me and my head was bleeding. I took a shower and Hiwa lent me some of his clothes. I ate and drank and slept for a while but I got up with a hunger to call out to Jesus and study the Bible. The next day Mrs. Mahsun said that I could go with them. My uncle was looking for me. He saw me at a store and called me. He said, "I am sorry. You be a Muslim again and I will allow you back to my house." I didn't accept his offer.

Mr. Kamal came to me and said, "Islam can't be right because in Islam so many false prophets have appeared such as Baha'ullah and the Ahmadiyyas who claim to be the Messiah. No where in the Qur'an does God warn us of this. Jesus did warn us. He said that the Christian experience was not like any other faith. There is none like it. He explained that in all other world religions, man was trying to reach God. But God is too big for us. How can we reach him? He said in Christianity, God is the one that is reaching man.

I said what about the Trinity? He said, "The Trinity has nothing to do with how many gods there are. It only has to do with God's nature and the three persons make up the one God. He said, "Can a dog understand the nature of man?" I said no. He said, "Right, because we're too unique to be understood by a dog, and when we go to heaven WE will be learning more about God. I became a Christian because of my emptiness and because I needed someone that could meet my needs. Jesus Christ was the only person that did that. I became a Christian because Jesus appeared to me in my dream and told me that I would be with him. I became a Christian because the Bible answered all of my questions."

Today I am living in the U.S. I am working on preaching the Gospel of Jesus to Kurds.

Through my walk with Christ I gained understanding of life. I was told that when growing up I would find all of my questions answered in the Qur'an. But this is not the case now. I found the answers to my questions in Bible and not the Qur'an.  Christianity is the only religion that says that we are created to be with God in heaven, but through sin we came short of the glory of God and He has to redeem us. The peace and joy that one gains through Jesus can be found in no one else.

All you need is the peace of God. Jesus said in John 14:27
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."  All you need is Jesus. I urge you to call on him because he is the only one that can provide what the heart of man needs.  May God show you the truth and it shall set you free.

Being new at this format I took 30+ minutes to figure out how to find and write something. Please be patient.
As a new ministry with the local jail the opportunities to witness are endless. I have found that most people need to feel that someone cares and is interested in how they feel, think, and fear. If we reach them on the personal level they tend to listen when we offer them solutions that are not general or secular. All of us need to know that someone can help us even if the situation seems hopeless. I try to reach them on a conversational level and then offer Jesus and use examples of things He said and did.
When in other locations or situations, I let the Holy Spirit guide me. I have been known to ask my waitress if she knew the Lord and was saved but after general chit chat to promote some conversation and let her know how I believe. Praying prior to the meal when you eat out is a great witness starter just don't over do the contact by making them feel like you judge.
I pray for boldness to reach as many as the Lord sends my way. Presently, I am seeking to enrich my own studies and memory verses to have available when the situation calls for God's Word and not my own.
1 Cor 13 - says if we can do all things but do not have Love then nothing will be profited. I feel that to reach anyone even a stranger they have to feel the Love of Christ reaching out to them and that is the Holy Spirit working through out submitted lives.
I want to be all He can make me so that is why I look to others to help me remain just His vessel.

God's Best

Chara

Amen.  We need to love and care for people, not just superficially.  People can tell if you really care or not.   Making friendships/having conversations with people is good and this can open up dialogue about our faith in Christ....especially, if people have seen that our faith in Christ does make a difference in how we get through life and handle our trials.

Recently, I read an article about a man that asked his neighbor to go to church with him for 5 years.  The man never went...always made excuses.  But one day, the Christian man invited his neighbor on an outdoors trip (fishing/hunting) with his men's church group.  The neighbor accepted that invitation...and after being with these men, and having a great time and seeing what they were really like....the neighbor actually asked to go to church with them the next Sunday!!  He and his family showed up at church and became Christians, too, a bit later.

In the end it will be God who determines the outcome.

Amen.

Glad you are having some visits with your friends!

AIN'T  IT  THE  TRUTH


Joe Smith started the day early having set his alarm clock ( Made in Japan) for 6 am. While his coffeepot (Made in China) was perking, he shaved with his electric razor (Made in Hong Kong). He put on a dress shirt (Made in Sri Lanka), designer jeans (Made in Singapore) and tennis shoes (Made in Korea). After cooking his breakfast in his new electric skillet (Made in India) he sat down with his calculator (Made in Mexico) to see how much he could spend today. After setting his watch (Made in Taiwan) to the radio (Made in India) he got in his car (Made in Germany) filled it with gas from (Saudi Arabia) and continued his search for a good paying American Job. At the end of yet another discouraging and fruitless day checking his computer (Made in Malaysia), Joe decided to relax for a while. He put on his sandals (Made in Brazil), poured himself a glass of wine (Made in France), and turned on his TV (Made in Indonesia), and wondered why he can't find a good paying job in........America.


This is so true and so sad. All who read this please pray for our country and it's people, that things improve and that our government starts hearing the voices of the people of the United States of America. And by helping save the country before it's too late, instead of letting money and greed, ruin our beautiful land.

Hi Islandboy, have missed you.

Another thing....I heard the war in Iraq costs $12-$13 Billion dollars a month!!  I don't know how our gov't can spend this much on that, when there are needs here.  I was originally for the war as I thought Saddam was an evil dictator, but how much longer can we spend that kind of money?

To witness effectively is to walk the talk...When friends, family are troubled..and especially when they do not have a prayer...they will seek you out..because they will know you are genuine by the way you live day by day...not just on Sunday and Wednesday night...but day by day...applying what God has instructed in His word to your life...We are to let our light shine before men..and lights do not make a sound, but the brightness draws people to the light when they are in darkness...It is easy to live for the Lord when things are going well but not so easy when things fall apart and believe me..people watch you and how you react to each circumstance...

Sincerely,
Maryjane

Again I say amen to this.

In my early years I would do 3 Spiritual Laws style evangelism.  But now I find that my life in Christ, and my sincere caring for people helps to open doors for sharing about my faith in Christ to them. 

THOUGHT  FOR  THE  DAY:

The spiritual life has two parts. One is the life apart, the life of prayer and quiet communion with God. You spend this part of your life apart with God. Every day your mind can be set in the right direction so that your thoughts will be of the right kind. The other is the life impart----imparting to others what you have learned from your own prayer experience. The victories you have won over yourself through the help of God can be shared with others. You can help them by imparting to them some of the victory and security which you have gained in your life apart.

Hi Islandboy....the above is very, very good.  Please share it at the other site you visit, too.  I think everyone would benefit from it.

Wow, our Lord saved us and that how they repaid! I feel so shame for this.

Just keep walking with the Lord and trusting Him, Pizza_Al.....that is our hope whenever the world is evil around us.  God bless.

THE  WORLD  NEEDS  PEOPLE

Who cannot be bought;
Whose word is their bond;
Who put character above wealth;
Who possess opinions and a will;
Who are larger than their vocations;
Who do not hesitate to take chances;
Who will not lose their individuality in a crowd;
Who will be honest in small things as in great things;
Who will make no compromise with wrong;
Whose ambitions are not confined to their own selfish desires;
Who will not say they do it "because everybody else does it,"
Who are true to their friends in adversity as well as prosperity;
Who do not believe that shrewdness, cunning, and hardheadedness
are the best qualities for winning success.
Who are not ashamed or afraid to stand for the truth
Even when it is unpopular;
Who can say "no" with emphasis,
although all the rest of the world says "yes".

Hi Islandboy, love this poem. 

Thanks, Pastor Roger, for posting this.  I believe the Lord is able to work in Muslim hearts....sometimes it just takes longer.  And sometimes they just have some mistaken ideas about our faith in Christ....and once these are explained simply and in love, they are drawn more and more to Christ.

I haven't been able to visit here as often as before....just not enough time.  Miss your good posts.

I am registered as islandboy. I hope you can figure it out as I look forward to sharing posts with you there as well. The islandgirl name was someone who had use of one of my website, e-mail addresses and decided to use it for personal stuff. I told them in no uncertain terms that I did not want that and they were supposed to cancel the membership. Needless to say I was not happy about that. I hope that was done. I hate spam, except for the meat in the can.

Hi Islandboy, I just asked about your authorization....hopefully it will go through now.  Once you get authorized, we also have the pm function....makes it much easier if you need to chat with someone privately.

Question for Debp or Pastor Rogers, I went on over to the site cpals and joined up. However, everytime I go to post, I get an error message. The question is do they have a waiting period before you can post, or is this another wacky thing that happens only to me ??

This little poem seems to fit in this spot, matching the meaning of the verses above.

Lord, let me be a shining light
In all I say and do,
That Your great love displayed in me
May lead someone to You.

Hi Islandboy.  I saw last night that you visited there....are you Islandboy there, as there was also an Islandgirl?

Anyhow, yes, there is a short waiting period (authorization).  The administrators will check each new member first, as we had been getting some porn and spam postings.  I'll look to see if your authorization went through yet.  Just getting on the computer now.

We have come a long ways together you and I, as I have told of my life and about living in Florida, as well as some history of South Florida. Now I have decided to add a few Bible scripture quotes and poems to my little space here.
                                    Jesus said, "You are the light of the world."  (Matt. 5:14)

What does that mean to us as Christians?  Is it about making speeches about Jesus?  If not then what?
It is about what people see when they observe us. Many may not want to hear about Jesus, but you can be sure they are watching us, to see if having God in our lives makes a difference in the way we live. When Jesus said, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works" (Matt. v 16), He was saying that before we can speak to others about Jesus, we must live for Christ, by throwing away all our selfishness and unneeded wants, and show by our good works in compassion for others that we are living our lives as true, not false Christians. Turn on your light and shine for Jesus.

                                                          You are called with a holy calling
                                                             The light of the world to be,
                                                           To lift up the lamp of the Savior
                                                              That others His light may see.

                                         

Amen, Islandboy.  I agree totally.

While I don't have a aquarium now, when I was growing up we had a tank with some goldfish and angel fish. It is very relaxing and
interesting to sit and watch them. Even though they don't go far it is fun to watch their antics as they interact with each other. We also had pet turtles when I was a kid. The kind that were about as big as a fifty-cent piece and came with their own colorful
plastic home where they could get in water if they chose to do so, or climb the winding road and sit out of the water. Don't know what kind of turtles they were.

I've had aquariums since I was a teenager....yes, they are so relaxing.  It's also fun to learn about the different fish and which ones get along (community tank).

Had one of those turtles when I was a child, but poor thing, we didn't know anything about how to take care of it.