Shamil Finds Freedom

For months, I’d been asking God for a spiritual breakthrough in the heart of my Muslim friend Shamil.

We met last year at the local gym. Every chance I had, I told Shamil a little more about my faith in Jesus Christ. And when we started spending time together outside of the gym, God gave me more opportunities to share the Gospel with him.

But Shamil never showed any interest in spiritual things.

Then, one day, he came to me for advice. He had lied to a friend and was overcome with guilt. For the first time in his life, Shamil felt convicted of his sin.

As soon as he confessed, Shamil felt a freedom like he had never experienced.

“This silent shame—this slavery to a lie—feels so oppressive,” Shamil said. “I can’t keep living like this.”

As we talked, I suggested he had a choice to make. He could either confess to his friend and ask for forgiveness. Or he could continue living in the lie to avoid embarrassment and public shame.

So, he decided to own up and ask his friend to forgive him.

As soon as he confessed, Shamil felt a freedom like he had never experienced. He couldn’t get over how different he felt. For days afterwards, all he could think about were the other areas in his life where he also needed to be set free from lies and their enslavement.

“This silent shame—this slavery to a lie—feels so oppressive. I can’t keep living like this.”

“If you want to experience more freedom,” I suggested to Shamil, “then let’s start reading the stories from God’s Word together.” I explained to him that Jesus Christ is the perfect example of forgiveness and our best model for learning to live a full life. Hungry for more freedom, Shamil readily agreed to start studying the Bible together.

Now, for the first time in his life, Shamil is reading the Gospels. We’ve been meeting to discuss the Word and talk about what it looks like to live in Christ’s forgiveness and freedom.