He came to kill Christian helpers – and found Jesus
The atrocities committed by the Islamic State and the steadfastness of Christians have led to more and more people in the Middle East coming to faith. Abdul *, on the other hand, had clung to Islam. But when he went to Amman with the firm intention of killing the Christian helpers there, something completely unexpected happened.
The horror of the Islamic State (IS) has spread throughout the Middle East. Even Muslims who were not yet extreme are forced to join the IS, otherwise they are kidnapped or murdered; Christians are forced to renounce their beliefs or are cruelly tortured and killed. And those who manage to escape are still not sure. The head of a Christian organization, whose name is not mentioned for security reasons, told the Mission Network News about the situation in refugee camps in the Middle East: „The Muslim gangs come as refugees, but they have their agenda. They are like the mafia. Even within the camps people are killed … »
Something stopped him from killing …
Even Christians who help the refugees in the camps are in mortal danger. Another leader of an organization working with Mission Aid Mission Christian Aid reports from Abdul *, a Muslim from northern Syria. He, like so many other men, was forced by ISIS to participate in the Holy War. However, when his brother was killed in the fighting, he fled the country and in front of the IS. Nevertheless, he continued to cling to Islam, Christians and Jews were impure „pigs“ for him.
At that point, Abdul heard that his relatives had fled to Amman, Jordan and received help from Christians there in a camp. That was not allowed! He immediately went to Amman with a single goal: to kill the Christians who helped his relatives. Once there, he went to a Christian meeting to kill the helpers there – but something stopped him.
From Saul to Paul
The following night Abdul saw Jesus in a dream. That completely upset him. The next day, he went to the meeting again and said, „I came here yesterday to kill you. But last night I saw Jesus and I want to know what you teach – who is this person who kept me from killing you? „The helpers began to tell him about Jesus. In tears Abdul gave his life to Jesus Christ. Today he is actively involved in the community and helps other refugees.
«The work is hard to cope with»
The martyrdom of the many Christians who have already died at the hands of IS leaves traces in the people of the Middle East. The leader of another Christian Aid Mission partner organization lost 11 employees and one of their sons in August, they were brutally killed by ISIS. But „they prayed aloud and told Jesus to the last breath, to all the villagers. It became a testimony to others … », says the leader and asks for prayer for the relatives of those who were killed, but also for himself.« All this is very difficult for me. What did people do wrong, that they have to die like that? – But something has happened: more and more people are being rescued. The service is growing and growing. We used to pray for a long time that a person of Muslim background would come to faith – today there are so many that we can barely work with them! »
* Name changed for security reasons
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