The Month That Is Not On Your Calendar
While I'm busy training pastors, there is another burden of my heart that I'd like to share with you and ask for your prayers. India is the second largest nation in the world by population figures. It also has the third largest population of Muslims in any one country. Only Indonesia and Pakistan (barely) surpass the Muslim population of India.
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| An Arab man who needs to know Jesus. |
According to their beliefs, it is a time to purify their souls, refocus attention on God and practice self-sacrifice. They are commanded to use this month to re-evaluate their lives in light of Islamic guidance, make peace with those who have wronged them, strengthen ties with family and friends and to do away with bad habits. They believe that it is during this month that they have one of the very few chances in their lives to actually connect to God.
Regardless of their misguided attempts to draw near to God, the fact is, a great majority are desperately longing to know God. From infancy they are taught that God is unknowable, unapproachable and uninterested in a relationship with them. Somehow, this month they hope to "do the impossible" and actually draw nigh to the god they think is capricious, angry and offended by their presence.
I cannot think of a more miserable, frightening way to live. To want God, but to know that you cannot know God -- that would be the most hopeless despair this side of eternity in Hell. Nevertheless, millions of Muslims will sacrifice and attempt to purify their actions and deeds in desperate hopes that God will somehow accept them. It is during this time of Ramadan that more Muslims are open to the Gospel than at any other. They will more likely listen to what someone has to say about Jesus now and enquire into the message of hope and freedom in Christ.
In the very middle of Ramadan, I will have the opportunity to return to a heavily populated Muslim area of India. I am praying sincerely that God will open hearts and doors of ministry among these poor souls who deserve to know of salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ.
They have heard of Jesus. They know He worked miracles, they know that He was sinless, and born of a virgin. But they violently reject that He is divine or the Son of God. I'm asking you to pray that God would visit millions of Muslims this Ramadan, open their blinded eyes and point them to the truth.
While that would be wonderful and it is vital, the fact is, if there is no one there to share the message of Truth with them, how many will ever finally come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ? If no one shares the love of God with them, how will they ever find peace?
And, please, don't just pray for me, here. Pray for yourself, wherever you are. It's hard to live in America or Europe and not have Muslims around you. The key is seeking for them, praying and fasting that God will give you words of love and grace to provoke them to seek the peace that you have in your own soul.
A common greeting between Muslims during this time is: Ramadan Mubarak! (Blessed Ramadan). There is only one way that their month of self-denial and sacrifice can be blessed. That will be if during this time, someone reaches them with the Gospel and they are truly born again by God's grace.
Wednesday evening, June 17, when most of you are in church, would be a good time to begin a month of special prayer requests for the Islamic world. Ramadan will end on the evening of Friday, July 17, 2015.
Here are some things for which you can pray:
1. Pray for God to open the hearts of the 1.57 billion Muslims who make up more than 23% of the world's population. That's almost 1 out of every 4 individuals alive today.
2. Pray that God will prepare the hearts of many who are sincerely seeking for truth by placing a person, a tract or a Bible in their path. As you pray for others to do this, begin yourself by actively building friendships among Islamic immigrants and giving tracts or a Bible to them in your town.
3. Pray for the Muslims who do find Christ.
- Pray that God will encourage and strengthen them in their faith.
- Pray that they will be filled with God's Spirit and have boldness and courage to follow Jesus and share the news with others.
- Pray that God will use you and other believers to become their family, their friends, and their social network. As a convert to Christianity, most will be driven out of their own family and social circle. Their culture makes this the most devastating hurdle for Muslims.
- And pray for those who will doubtless be forced to give their lives for their new faith.
4. Pray for the very small number of missionaries who are focused upon working among Muslims. 74% of Protestant missionaries work among nominal Christians. Only 6% work among Muslims.
- Pray for spiritual revival among missionaries. More than 1/2 of missionaries starting out never make it past the first term on the field due to burn-out, discouragement, exhaustion, lack of visible "success", and internal family pressures.
- Pray for physical strength and protection. Missionaries are one of five "professions" in Christendom that has a murder rate over 3%. To compare, police and detectives have a 4% murder rate. Working among Muslims, these figures skyrocket above all other missionaries and christian workers in other fields.
If you would like to commit yourself to special prayer for Muslims and ministry to Muslims during this month of Ramadan, why not email and let me know? I would count your participation as a great blessing during this time. If you are interested, I would like to share some more basic resources with you that would help focus your month of prayer for the souls of Muslims everywhere.
Sincerely,
Beyond Frontiers
Let me know if you will join with us in prayer during Ramadan! beyondfrontiers2011@gmail.com
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