I Want My Home to Be a Light

As a young man, Jahiz memorized the entire Quran in preparation to become an imam. But the deeper he delved into the study of Islam, the more he questioned the truth of the Quran. It simply didn’t deliver the promise of transformation that Jahiz expected from a holy book. He started to search for truth elsewhere—beginning with the Bible.

As he read through the Old Testament, Jahiz felt certain that he’d stumbled upon the truth. Then, in the Gospels, he found himself drawn to Christ. He started having dreams of Jesus dressed in white. Each time, he woke up feeling overwhelmed by God’s holiness.

“So, who do you think Jesus is?” I asked Jahiz, my new friend, after he finished telling me about his ongoing search for truth.

“If the New Testament is true, then He couldn’t have been a regular man,” he replied. “If what’s written about Him is right, then Jesus must be divine or part of God.”

Up to now, Jahiz had been reading the Bible on his own. He’d never had the chance to study the Word with a follower of Jesus. So I suggested we meet regularly so he could understand the Bible and know Christ. “I’d love to,” Jahiz responded.

“If the New Testament is true, then Jesus couldn’t have been a regular man.”

As we studied the Word in the weeks that followed, Jahiz began to understand and joyfully apply Jesus’ teachings. At the same time, he began to share about deep wounds from his past that needed healing.

Years earlier, Jahiz’s eldest son had enlisted in the army. When a terrorist attacked his unit, the young soldier was killed. Jahiz and his wife were consumed by grief and anger over the loss of their son.

I sat in silence as Jahiz told me the story. “I can’t imagine any greater pain than losing your son,” I responded. God’s own Son was killed, I shared with him. But in allowing that to happen, God made a way for us to know his mercy and forgiveness.

“But the man who carried out the attack that killed my son—there’s no way I could ever forgive him,” Jahiz replied.

The next time I met with Jahiz, I asked my friend Fadi to join me. Fadi is a local believer who longs to see Muslims in his country follow Jesus. As he talked with Fadi, Jahiz shared openly about the grief and anger he felt over his son’s death. Then Fadi shared how an uncle once betrayed his father. His father, a follower of Jesus, forgave the uncle. This testimony astounded Jahiz.

“Jahiz, God feels the same pain you feel,” I shared. “His Son died a violent death, too. Still, He keeps loving and forgiving—and He wants us to do the same to others. Forgiving the person who killed your son will free you from the bitterness in your heart.”

Jahiz and his wife were consumed by grief over their loss.

Jahiz inhaled deeply. He still felt angry, he said. “But with Jesus’ help,” he declared, “I want to try to forgive my enemies. I need the power of God to heal my heart and take away my anger.” We prayed together, asking God to free Jahiz from bitterness and to give him the ability to forgive those who don’t deserve it.

Then, one day, Jahiz declared Jesus as his Lord and Savior. In the middle of celebrating this good news, I asked him what had ultimately led him to believe the truth of the Gospel. He said there hadn’t been a single event. It had happened over time as we read the Word together and as he discovered that applying it in his life brought him healing and lasting peace.

Jahiz still grieves for his son. But he’s been freed from anger and bitterness. He knows that Jesus saved and chose him to bear fruit for the Kingdom.

“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.” — John 15:16

As Jahiz shares the healing power of Christ, others in his family are discovering the Savior, too.

But Jahiz’s greatest hope is for his wife to also trust in Jesus.

“I want my home to shine the light of the Gospel,” Jahiz says. “I pray my wife will join me in shining Christ’s love to everyone around us.”