By a member of SEND Diaspora | North America team.
Have you had any vivid dreams recently? This isn’t a question you would normally ask most people, but we often ask it now since we have heard many dream stories from Muslims. Most Westerners attribute dreams to eating something spicy the night before, but in many other parts of the world, dreams are taken very seriously.
My wife asked a couple we were visiting this past week whether they had any dreams recently. The husband’s response was very quick and interesting. He said, “No I haven’t…well, not yet. But I know a friend who has and it has changed his life.” He proceeded to tell an amazing story of how his friend traveled the Afghanistan-Iran-Turkey-Greece-plus another European country path. It's a common route Afghan immigrants take to get to Europe. This friend was pretending to be a Christian because he had heard it might help his chances of getting from Afghanistan to the West.
He had spent his last bit of money to reach his final European destination, but he arrived there penniless. He decided to just sit down and wait. Soon, two men came down the street and he thought to himself, Ah! Here are two men who look just like me. He called out to them in his language, but they ignored him. A little while later, another man came down the street and he thought, Yes, this man is certainly Afghan. However, when he called out to him, “Friend, countryman! How are you?” This man also ignored him.
He was disappointed, but without any money, he had nowhere else to go. So, he continued to wait. Not long after, he spotted another man who looked a bit like him. He called out to him the same way, but this time, the man showed the slightest flicker of recognition in his face as he walked by. However, he didn’t stop or even respond to his greeting. The traveler guessed from the man’s facial response that he was a countryman, and even though the man ignored him, he followed him home from a distance.
He reached the house that the man had gone into, pounded on the door, and shouted, “Please, open up the door. I know you are Afghan. I have no money and just need a place to stay for one night!” The door slowly opened and after some back and forth, the man let him in. He was given some food and a small room ot stay in. Over tea, they discovered they had some friends in common, namely the husband who was telling me the story here in America. By the end of the day, he went to sleep in a small room with a window.
Suddenly, he awoke from a deep sleep with the brightest light he had ever seen shining on him through the window. He was dazed as it was still the middle of the night and should have been pitch black outside. Much to his surprise, the light increased and there was now a man standing there radiating the blinding light! The man in white said, “Come.” and motioned with his hand. He repeated, “Come.” The traveler knew immediately that this man in white was Jesus, and that he should no longer pretend to be a follower of Jesus. He should now follow Jesus with his whole heart.
While he was thinking this, two more men in blinding white light also appeared on either side of the first man, and they repeated the same word, “Come.” Then, as quickly as they arrived, they were gone, and he lay there in bed stunned. He woke up his new friend and they called their mutual friend in Indonesia and another one in Germany. He told them what had just happened and suggested they all follow Jesus, too. The others, though amazed, still declined. But they said, if Jesus appears to them, then they will certainly follow him.
The husband telling us this story said he was still waiting. We shared that we have been followers of Jesus for many years and have never had a vision like that. We also added that God doesn’t give dreams or visions to all his followers. But the man was unmoved and repeated he was still waiting for a vision or dream. We talked further and prayed for him that God would show him that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Please join us in praying for this young man and his family; they are so close to entering the Kingdom of God!
How has this Ramadan month gone for you? Have you had opportunities to interact with Muslims? Have you had an opportunity to share about the meaning of true fasting? Some people we know are holding out and still fervently fasting, others have given up on fasting and aren’t even trying to fake it. They said, “It is just too hard to do and we are so hungry.” Fasting is hard and it is a clear example of human effort to try to please God.
This Friday (April 5) or Saturday (April 6) will be what Muslims call the “Night of Power”, the night Muslims celebrate the giving of the first words of the Quran to Mohammed. They don’t know the exact day, but many believe it to be the night of the 27th day of fasting. Prayers said on this day are believed to be worth more than any other day or time. Some people will spend the whole night praying in the mosque to gain more favor. This night is also a special night for Muslims as many believe it is also the “Night of Destiny” wherein your whole next year will be decided this night. It is a blend of superstition and tradition, and we pray for many Muslims to be freed from this bondage.
It is the gospel, the good news, that our salvation rests on Jesus and him alone, not on anything good we might have done or will do. That shows both God’s love and his grace. Jesus died on the cross for us so that we might have life. He loves us the same, every day. His love isn’t fickle, nor does it come in varying degrees depending on the day. His love is steady and he is ever faithful.
Join us as we pray for the Muslim world, especially during this special season of Ramadan. Muslims are seeking a special revelation and spiritual growth during this time, and we pray that God will reveal himself like never before. Through dreams and visions, we pray that his grace would flood out across the Muslim world and draw many to himself. We are praying for 10% of the Muslim world to come to Christ in 10 years. What a wonderful time for a spiritual awakening to happen during the month of fasting that the true Savior of the world would become known to many.
Feel free to ask others in your church, in your small group, or in your Sunday School class to join you in special prayer for the Muslim world this month. Muslims are praying more during Ramadan, than any other month, for revelation and direction. Pray for the Lord of the Harvest to answer their prayers with dreams and visions that point them to the True and Living Hope, Jesus Christ.
Pray for Muslims as they celebrate the end of Ramadan with days of feasting, parties, and get-togethers, that they will come to see Jesus as the Lord and giver of life.
It is hard for many Christians living and working in Muslim countries during Ramadan month. May they experience the grace of God in abundant measure as they serve in his name.
