By the time I met with Ajmal, he was ready.
He’d first heard the Gospel from a satellite television station. Wanting to learn more, Ajmal started reading the Bible online. But he had questions, so he sent an email to the station.
Since my team lives in the same city as Ajmal, the station sent his contact information to us.
Ajmal and I met in a café. And for the first time in his life, Ajmal had the chance to talk to a follower of Jesus.
We got into the Word right away. By this point, he’d read a fair amount of the Bible. But he had a lot of questions he’d never been able to ask before. We addressed as many of them as we could. We also discussed some of the objections many Muslims hold against our faith, such as the deity of Christ.
For the first time in his life, Ajmal had the chance to talk to a follower of Jesus.
We chatted there for a couple of hours. After two hours, Ajmal said, “I believe all this. This is true; I know this is true. But it just seems like there should be something I have to do to enter in. Isn’t there something I need to do now?”
We read through Acts 2 and talked about Pentecost and Peter’s sermon on Christ crucified. In verse 37, we read that Peter’s listeners were cut to the heart. “Brothers, what shall we do?” they asked.
Peter responded, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38)
Ajmal and I talked about repentance and breaking from past sins. We read some of Paul’s writings on baptism. Then, Ajmal said, “I’m ready to do this.”
Only three hours after meeting one another, we found ourselves at the beach, preparing to wade through the waves to baptize Ajmal.
“I know this is true. It just seems like there should be something I have to do to enter in.”
Ajmal had dozens of experiences being exposed to the Gospel before I met him. God used these to prepare him to enter the Kingdom. And by the time I met him, he was ready. He knew that he needed to do something to mark his commitment. All he needed was a face-to-face encounter with a believer to help him discover what that was.
Life hasn’t been easy for Ajmal since he’s become a believer. He’s spent his entire life in a place where Jesus is not worshiped—among people who don’t know the gift of salvation. When you live in that for so long, coming into the light alone can be disorienting.
But his trust in Jesus is growing. And he’s learning to tell his friends and family about Jesus in ways they can truly hear and respond.
- Praise God for satellite television, social media, and other technologies that are bringing the Gospel to Muslims living in the least-reach places.
- Ask God to strengthen the faith of Ajmal and other new believers when they feel discouraged by the darkness all around them.
- Pray for more workers who will go and befriend Muslims, giving them face-to-face opportunities to learn about Jesus Christ.
This account comes from a long-term worker. Names and places have been changed for security.
Main photo by Adam Cohn