When Families Forgive

How amazing that what started from a handful of frightened disciples over 2,000 years ago has now spread across time zones and cultures.

The Gospel continues to transform the hearts of people around the world. It’s beautiful and miraculous, and it’s happening among Muslims in my neighborhood!

My local friend Nassrin is a new believer. From the beginning of her faith, she had boldly shared everything she knows about the Gospel with her Muslim friends and family.

Nassrin is an oral learner from an oral culture. Reading is neither easy nor natural for her. She struggles with reading the Bible daily and growing in her understanding of the Word.

Recently, I gave Nassrin a translation of the Bible that I thought would be easier for her to understand.

Now she can’t get enough of the Word. She reads it hungrily. Last week, she came several times to discuss the meaning of different passages with me. God’s Word is taking root in her life, and it’s transforming her relationships.

“I have good news,” Nassrin told me one day. Prompted by Jesus’ teachings on forgiveness, she had sat down with her mother and forgiven her for past hurts. After hearing Nassrin describe her hope in Christ, her mother received the Good News with tears.

“These words about Jesus must be true,” her mother said.

I can’t overemphasize the power of forgiveness in a culture like Nassrin’s, where grudges and resentment choke relationships in so many families. As Jesus transforms Nassrin and helps her forgive, walls are being torn down to make way for the Kingdom of Heaven. And in this case, it’s helping her mother embrace Jesus.

Pray for Nassrin’s entire family to accept the Gospel. And pray that their spiritual roots would go deep into Christ, so they can help many others enter the Kingdom of Heaven.