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Using the time during Ramadan to dialogue and be a witness for Jesus among Muslims. Continued…

 What a liberating truth that if Jesus has called you to Himself, you’ve entered His courts! These courts are different though from those we might typically think of in our criminal justice systems. They’re courts that you abide in with Jesus and live from as His witness. Quite different from the other courts, right? I wonder if we ever so subtly neglect our rightful place as a witness in His “courts”-testifying to our “seeing” Jesus and instead assume the role of a “defense attorney”. It seems to me that to misplace the two would have ensuing implications that just might accomplish something we didn’t intend. Not to mention, He can plead His own cases. He did when He beckoned you through His Son, true?

As mentioned in Part 3, I will give two practical tools that might be useful in testifying to Jesus freely and through some of the preexisting channels that I wrote about in the last post. I’ll then conclude by asking you to consider responding, in Jesus name, to some current affairs within the Muslim community.

Storying: I’ve found that sharing Jesus stories is one of the most natural means of communicating Jesus to people. Not to mention He Himself taught that way! There are stories in scripture that will have relevance and application to all the channels I mentioned in the previous post. I’ve outlined some here. I’d encourage you to let them dwell in you and ask the Lord as you’re interacting with Muslims, “what would be Good News where this person is hurting or broken?” Trust the Holy Spirit to help you divinely insert it.

Prodigal Sons’ Father-Lk 15:11-32     

King Son’s Wedding Feast-Mt 22:1-14    

Gerasene Demoniac-Mk 5:1-20

Love Your Enemies-Mt 5: 38-48

Pharisees follow traditions & Fasting/Mourning-Mk 7:1-13, Mt 9:14-15

Pharisee & Tax Collector-Lk 18:9-14

Anointing/Parable of two debtors-Lk 7:36-50

Woman caught in adultery-Jn 8:1-11

Woman at the well-Jn 4:6-26

Prophets-signposts’ to Jesus: As mentioned before, the overall trajectory of ALL the prophets (of the O.T. & N.T.) message is pointing toward the Lamb of God. It could be extremely helpful in helping Muslims see the historical, biblical progression that is at the center of their rightness before God.

The first two show us what God will do for us.

 Garment of Righteousness…Adam (Gen 3:1-24)

 The Ark…Noah (Gen 6:5-9:17)

The next two show us how God will do this work.

Sacrifice…Abraham (Gen 12:1-4, 15:1-6)

 Blood…Moses (Ex 11:1-12:36)

The last three Signs show us through whom God will do this work.

The Psalms…David (2 Sam 7:8-17, Mt 1:1, 1:17)

The Sign of Jonah…Jonah (Jo 1-4, Mt 12:38-42)

Jesus the Messiah…Jesus (Fulfillment of all other signs)

 As you consider these tools, remember that’s all they are. At times we need to drop one and pick up another that fits better. If it doesn’t work, be creative, find something that does. With the guidance of His word and presence of His Spirit we can communicate the uncompromising truth of who Jesus is and what He’s done in various ways. It’s fascinating to watch the testimony of the gospel writers unfold in scripture as Jesus communicated the Kingdom differently to almost every individual he encountered.

In light of recent events (NYC Mosque & Qur’an burning), and ironically as Ramadan comes to a close on the brink of the 9/11 anniversary, I want to share something I just received from a friend.  “While reflecting on this proposed Koran Burning Event, I was reminded of the story when Jesus was seized in the Garden of Gethsemane.  You know the one, when Peter cut off the right ear of the high priest’s servant.  Then Jesus answered "No more of this!" And he touched the man's ear and healed him Lk 22:51.  As I continued to think about this story, I was reminded of the words of a pastor in Colorado, who wondered, “How are we cutting off the ear of those who oppose Jesus these days?” … “What are Jesus followers doing that cause people not to be able to hear him?”  The reality is that we do many things in the name of Christianity or out of an attempt to protect Jesus that he would not condone himself.  But this particular story in Florida makes me want to cry out with Jesus “no more of this”!”

Perhaps this 9/11 weekend in the relationship of Muslims and Christians could be used to promote peace and healing, through Jesus. I wonder how your Muslim friends or your Muslim community leader might respond to your sincere request for them to host an event at their mosque. What fruit might come from setting aside a meal together where you could extend the blessing of God as a Peacemaker?  What a beautiful hour to let the King of glory shine in!

I pray this blog series has served to increase your effectiveness and identity as an intercessor and witness to the Muslim world.

[Picture by The Boston Globe]

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How can believers use the time during Ramadan to dialogue and be a witness for Jesus among Muslims?

I’m a firm believer that we share with others (without realizing it) the things that we treasure and love the most. Free yourself from the tyranny that you filter words like “evangelism” through. We’ve allowed terms like this (that aren’t even in the bible) to complicate and overwhelm things. It’s so fun, refreshing, and empowering to allow Jesus to be the center of conversation, especially with Muslims. They are easier to talk with and more eager to hear about Jesus than most of your American friends would be. See for yourself! Besides, I’ve discovered that when I let Jesus into my conversations with people, I love Him more! What a return!

Hopefully, some of the ideas and suggestions given in Part 2 on effectively and informatively praying for the Muslim world, gave you a starting place to engage the Father’s heart. By the way, if you’re not praying, you shouldn’t expect that your heart would actually be affected by the plentifulness of the harvest. This is the single greatest means by which you will be compelled to share what’s GOOD to you, Jesus. Otherwise, sharing will come from your own natural efforts and capacity to love others. Yuck!

For starters, I’ll point out some things I’ve found to be helpful channels in sharing Jesus with Muslims. Then in Part 4, as a continuation of this post, I’ll offer some practical ways to go about sharing.

Helpful Channels:

Cleanliness: This is something that preoccupies the mind of most Muslims. It’s evidenced in the rigorous routine of washing before prayers, the measures taken during the women’s menstrual period, foods they abstain from, and animals they refrain from interacting with. This is a pearl within Islam! Jesus gave much attention to cleanliness during His ministry. The fact that Muslims view most everything that comes from “within” or has to do with bodily fluids as unclean is a present day New Testament theme we can build off of. Think about and research in scripture how Jesus was Good News to those that were considered unclean. Take and share those stories and Kingdom principles. (Ex 30:17-21, Co 2:11-13, Mk 7:20-23, Heb 9:13-14)

Sacrifice: Albeit Muslims have many ceremonies and celebrations that revolve around this theme, you can take this theme to whole new depths with them. When asking many of them why sacrifice is so important and probing at its purpose, many are uncertain. This is a great place to begin sowing in the necessity of Jesus’ death/bloodshed as something that God throughout history has chosen as a means to deal with sin. Help them to ask the ‘why” questions.

Shame: This is clear from the fall of mankind and today is woven into the social fabric and minds of Muslims. For the most part, a Muslims worldview is not dominated by a guilt and innocence paradigm. Below the surface of their rhetoric they don’t see their state in reference to a judge or law. Could we consider ‘shame’ as a parallel to the concept of guilt/innocence? With this working definition of shame-“a feeling and/or a condition stemming from a shortcoming in one's state of being either before God or peers” (Bruce Thomas), it’s clear that Good News is to be had by Muslims who live under this bondage. You’ll see this manifested in their works based theology-Ramadan is a time to make more “deposits”. Imagine a life of always trying to catch up and shore up those “shortcomings” with your own merits. (Gen 2:17 & 25, 3:7 & 21)

Kingdom of God: This is the central theme of Jesus’ message. It should be ours as well. For Muslims who are sincerely seeking God, there exists in them a deep hunger for His nearness. Through Jesus there is access and entrance into the realm and nature in which He dwells-life with God is experienced here. This is astoundingly Good News to the fertile heart who has only known a life with God with His back turned to them.

Prophets: The overall trajectory of ALL the prophets (of the O.T. & N.T.) message is pointing toward the Lamb of God. This channel, combined with sacrifice could be extremely helpful in helping Muslims see the historical, biblical progression that is at the center of their rightness before God. Most of them are unaware that Jesus came for them too!

Dreams & Visions: Many Muslims that are now living in America can testify to very vivid dreams and visions that they’ve had. Ask them about this. You might be the first person who has ever taken interest in this divine experience they’ve had. I’ve found many times they’re left not knowing what they mean or how to respond to them. Trust the Holy Spirit and God’s word to help you point them further toward Jesus.

Jesus: Keep your conversational direction focused on Him-Jesus is the means and the end. You will hear many Muslims say things like, “Oh, yes I love Jesus” or “Our book says that about Him too.” Keep in mind that even though the Qur’an gives more mention of Jesus than it does Mohammad, it’s just mentioning. Don’t assume that what you’re sharing about Jesus they’ve heard. Share about in depth, fresh encounters and interactions that He had with people, how he looked at them, how he felt toward them, or what type of people Jesus was drawn to. Most Muslims don’t know Jesus in this way. Be sure that His full personhood is a part of introducing people to Him.

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How can I effectively and informatively pray for the Muslim world during Ramadan?

“He (Jesus) came and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the the prayers of the saints.”

In the previous post we provided a basic introduction and summary to the question, “What is Ramadan?”. In hopes of building off our understanding of Ramadan and for our engagement in the Father’s heart for Muslims to know the “glorious riches of Jesus”, I will give some ideas for you to consider on how you can effectively and informatively pray for the Muslim world during Ramadan. However, in outlining the below ideas that myself, our community, and others have found to be effective and informative, you should take complete liberty to discover what ideas might be effective and informative in your context.

Praying for Muslim Women:

The social status of women in the Muslim world is diverse, but they are all left vulnerable to similar spiritual realitites. 

Sepcifically pray against a spirit of fear.  Many Muslim women fear death, not knowing what is after death and not having any assurance of salvation in Islam.  They as well fear evil spirits that may harm them and their family.  They believe in angels and demons as Christians do, but they don’t know that we can have protection and power over demons through Jesus.

Pray against a spirit of bondage.  Muslim women feel a great lack of personal worth since they are treated as inferior to men.  They are decieved into believeing their main value is in child bearing and housekeeping.  They are usually not consulted in decision-making and in the case of a divocrce, they have no right to keep their children.

Pray that God would open their eyes to the truth.  God calls us to share the gospel with people all we can, but as well to remember that only the Holy Spirit will bring them to belief.  The Holy Spirit… “When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgement.” John 16:8

Other Ways to Effectively Pray for Muslims:

Prayerwalking is great for those that need more action in their step or just want to set eyes to the peoples/places they’re praying for.  Go out into your city and pray throughout mosques, restaurants, neighborhoods, businesses, markets, and your friend’s homes.  Allowing your eyes and heart to cooperate with the Holy Spirit in “seeing” into the spiritual realities of these places will change the way pray and give you a wartime mentality.

Praying and worshipping with community is a powerful way to usher the Kingdom into the Muslim world from home.  Designate time with family, your community group, roomates, etc. to worship Jesus.  In groups, try creating a spread sheet with topics and times, going back & forth breaking up worship and prayer.

While praying, be sure to stop and listen to God.  Ask Him to show you how to pray and get quiet before Him thinking about Muslims and the reality of the gospel.  Applying scripture to your prayers and praying accordingly is a great way to listen to God in prayer as well.  At the end of the blog, there are specific scriptures to help guide you in this.

Lastly, ask a Muslim if you can pray for them: Hardly ever will a Muslim say no to being prayed for!  Seek them out and pray for them the way you would any of your friends.  It can be a great way to share the gospel and to show them truth as they are earnestly seeking it during this time of Ramadan.

Learn More:

Praying effectually also means praying informatively.  Below is are several links to news clippings, prayer guides and more.  Please use these.  Another idea is to get a Qur’an, read it and think about the ways Muslims are praying.  As you read, pray biblical truth and light in the areas that don’t align with the gospel.

News clippings: Use news clippings from these sites and more to guide your prayers for specific countries and situations. http://english.aljazeera.net/, http://www.bbc.co.uk/,

Guides: The 30 Days Prayer-Network: www.30-days.net . You can actually sign-up for the daily portions of the guide to be emailed to you. There is also a downloadable version of the guide.

Islamic Finder(www.islamicfinder.org): This is a great way to pray for Muslims at the exact times they are praying. You can download it to your computer and receive the Muslim call to prayer based on your timezone. Get ready to be awakened!

Praying Scripture: Praying God’s heart back into the hearts and lives of Muslims.

“Abiding fully means praying much.”

-Andrew Murray

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Today marks the beginning of Ramadan for 1.57 billion people on earth who know themselves as Muslims. After reading this post, please begin praying for them and continue through the month. We recommend this tool to guide you in prayer. 

What is Ramadan?

Ramadan is an Islamic annual celebration known of prayer-fasting. This 30 days of celebration and excitement occurs during the ninth month on the Muslim calendar and marks the month in which the Prophet Mohammad received the first of the revelations that are comprised in the Muslim holy book called the Qur’an.   This month of prayer and fasting is set apart as a time for Muslims to concentrate on their faith and consecrate themselves back to God through seeking forgiveness and purification of sins.

As you can imagine, Muslims around the world view Ramadan very differently. When visiting with one of my Saudi friends the other day I asked him, “so…are you excited for Ramadan? Do you have to prepare at all, mentally, etc?” His reply was, “neh…it get’s easy after the first few days, you just have to adjust your schedule. You know, go from sleeping at night and eating during the day to eating at night and sleeping during the day.” It isn’t uncommon for men to try and shorten their work hours in order to sleep during the day, while the women prepare for the evening meals. A more pious friend of my wife’s commented the other day that she was going to be starting Ramadan two days early this year. My wife being curious asked “why”, and she replyed that she had missed two days last year. She was starting early to make them up.

During Ramadan, Muslims are prohibited from eating during daylight hours. In some parts of the Muslim world it’s even illegal to eat in public and of course restaurants won’t open until sunset.  The most pious of Muslims will even spit to avoid swallowing their own saliva. They are also forbidden from smoking and sexual intercourse. In Islam fasting excemptions are only allowed for children, soldiers, pregnant woman, travelers, and the sick.

Though Ramadan is viewed as a time for storing up good works there are a number of sins that can negate the good that is done during Ramadan. These ultra-sins are lying, slandering, denouncing someone behind their back, giving a false oath, and greed or coveting.

Many Muslims will spend many hours of the day (sometimes all night) praying and studying the Qur’an at the Mosque. The normal five daily prayers are concluded at night with a special recited prayer called the Taraweeh or Night Prayer.

The two most important days throughout Ramadan are toward the end. The 27^th day of the month is the Night of Power, which Muslims believe to be the night when Muhammad first began to receive revelation. The Feast of Fast Breaking is a three day feast where friends and families gather to exchange gifts, pray, and celebrate the end of Ramadan .         

Perphaps this served as a refresher on Ramadan or answered some of your informative questions for the first time. If not, there are plenty of resources that would be better fitted for your further exploration on the subject of Islam and/or Ramadan. We are excited to see how the Lord might give you opportunities in the coming days to “love you neighbor”- Ahmad, Mohammad, or Ayeh, in Jesus name.                                                 

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The United Arab Emirates announced on August 3^rd the release of 724 prisoners! President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan ordered their release and promised to incur ALL prisoners’ debts and financial restitutions that stemmed from the cases against them.

Seriously?! For what?!                                                                  

He did this to inaugurate the holy month of Ramadan with a “humanitarian gesture”. That’s right…Ramadan is a big deal for 1.57 billion people on earth. Therefore, it should be a big deal for Christians.

This blog series will give attention to the month of Ramadan (Aug. 11 - Sept. 9, 2010). We begin the series by providing some basic backdrop and facts on Ramadan. We will entertain various questions throughout this series like, “How can I effectively pray for the Muslim world during Ramadan?” “How can believers use the month of Ramadan to dialogue and be a witness for Jesus?” “What are some of the ways I can learn about and/or experience the festivities of Ramadan in my community?”