English Intercede

In late 1968, a French teenage girl, a recent attendee of Evangel Temple in Dakar, Senegal, stood at our front door. “Hello, Pastor” she said. Then, pointing to the Lebanese young man with her, she said, “This is my friend Faouzi. He would like to talk with you a bit. Is that okay?”

Just as the Law attracted many sojourners to the Israelite community during Old Testament times because of its superiority, many today are drawn to nations whose systems stand on its shoulders. The Law of Moses speaks to humankind’s desire for security, shalom, and selfhood. As people come to the West from all over the world, they are drawn to systems indebted to an ethic born of the Holy Scripture.

In the traditional way of evangelism, it is often perceived that we preach a gospel message, give an altar call, and ask people to express their desire to follow Jesus by an uplifted hand. We then ask them to repeat the sinner’s prayer. If they have prayed after us, we presume that they have become Christians. This traditional approach does not work with Muslims.

One of the great blessings of our ministry at Global Initiative is the opportunity to regularly interface with Christians from a Muslim background. It is amazing to note the variety of factors that influenced them to follow Jesus.

We must be willing to employ a full-court press and use every media tool available in order to deliver the Good News of Jesus to every Muslim. This article will highlight the roles of traditional and social media being employed by missionaries in fulfilling the Great Commission to preach the gospel to the world’s 1.9 billion Muslims.

April 2022 marks the 25th year for an intensive training program that began in Asia and has equipped over 1,000 students and impacted more than 50 nations. The Institute for Islamic Studies (IIS) was the first of a growing number of intensive training programs that reach around the world. This article will highlight its strategic beginnings and global impact.

Afghan women reacted swiftly after the Taliban suddenly took control of Kabul on August 15, 2021. In a flurry of interviews and news articles, journalists wanted to hear their stories. Prominent Afghan women, teachers, students, and rights activists expressed their fears that Afghanistan would revert back to the time when the Taliban controlled the country from 1996-2001.

Afghanistan is a diverse country consisting of more than 70 different ethnic groups and a total population of 38 million. Many of the ethnic groups come from the surrounding countries, like Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The three largest ethnic groups are the Pashtuns, the Tajiks, and the Hazaras; the Pashtuns are by far the largest (42%).

Muhammad holds the most honored place of all humans in Islam. The Islamic confession of faith states: “There is no deity except Allah, and Muhammad is the Apostle of Allah.” This statement boldly names Muhammad in the same breath with Allah. Upon entering a mosque, a worshipper will usually see the names of Allah and Muhammad written together on the left and right walls in beautiful Arabic calligraphy, emphasizing the importance of both names to all Muslims.

Many people like a good mystery, but when it involves matters of faith and destiny, the level of interest increases even further. This is certainly the case concerning mysterious aspects of Islam that have come to light in the last few years. For example, several YouTube sites with tens of thousands of subscribers are now airing weekly episodes revealing new findings about the foundations of Islam.

Everyone loves a good story. Children learn to love stories listening to their parents or teachers. John, the Gospel writer, believed that his was the greatest story, when he said, “These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:30).

Comorbidity. In this season of the corona virus pandemic, we have been continually confronted with this term “comorbidity.” These “comorbidities” are pre-existing conditions that compromise the ability of the body’s immune system to fight off the virus. Comorbidities, such as diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and old age, make it more likely that the patient will get seriously sick or die after contracting COVID-19.