In the previous post, Brother Emad shared about a conference on church planting that revolutionized his mindset:
"A) Friendship Evangelism vs. Argumentative Apologetic Evangelism
Our speaker introduced us to a
different approach to Muslims than I grew up witnessing: friendship evangelism. He
recognized that Muslims are very hospitable and generous people. So he decided
to invest in building relationships rather than confronting them. Though I knew
all that about Muslims...I stayed far away from them. After the conference, I started to use every
opportunity to invest in building relationships with Muslims. Now I invite
Muslims to my own home, share a meal and care for them as newcomers to North
America. Since I was once a newcomer, I know how to help settle them in Canada. Nothing brings joy and
excitement to my life like meeting the needs of my Muslim friends and sharing
Christ with them. B) Seeing Muslims from God’s Perspective
The second truth that helped me to move beyond my fear
is seeing Muslims from God’s perspective as human beings created in His image.
If someone asks: What is the difference between Muslims and us, I can say
“nothing but God’s grace.” This is what Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:1-10 that
we were ALL sinners and dead spiritually(vv. 1:1-3). Because of God’s grace we
are saved (vv. 4-10). The fact therefore is that if someone does not know Jesus
Christ as Savior, he or she is a sinner, regardless of how we label this person
whether Muslim, Christian, Jew, etc. Muslims like the rest of God’s creation
have fallen short of God’s glory and they need Christ. This biblical
perspective of Muslims helped me tremendously to approach Muslims with
compassion.
C) Evangelism is a Process
C) Evangelism is a Process
Instead of seeing evangelism as a one time event, I have learnt that evangelism is a process. I am just an instrument in God’s hand. I do not have to be the person who begins and ends the whole process. This means that my role, for example, may be breaking down the negative emotional barriers that Muslims may have towards Christianity. In other circumstances, I can be the person who leads a Muslim to Christ after many people have prayed and planted seeds in the life of this person. The bottom line is that we need to be faithful in whatever way God wants to use us.
Our North American Context
When I moved to North America, I realized
that fear also controls the lives of many here...the media is sometimes driven by
political agendas and presents a negative picture of Muslims. They are always
associated to terrorism, particularly since the September 11th attacks in the
USA. Such negative perspective has
sadly created feelings of fear and hatred in the hearts of many and pushed them
to see both Muslims and Islam as our enemies(those "evil" people who
want to invade and take over the West) and consequently led them to avoid any
contact with Muslims. My prayer is that you replace the media perspective with the biblical one...that God will set you free from the grip of fear and help you to see Muslims as human beings created in the image of God who need Christ. May the Holy Spirit pour his love into our hearts so that we can love Muslims and conquer fear that keeps us apart."
