Casting nets across social media

‘John’ is a BMB (believer from a Muslim background) serving with ReachAcross in East Africa. He is involved in several ministries, but tells us here about one of his most exciting activities, when, at the end of his day’s work, he seeks out seekers who may otherwise never have contact with Christians:

“First let me tell you one thing: my best day is when I share the gospel – whether people accept the truth or not – these days are my happiest.

I use messaging apps such as WhatsApp or Messenger. I look for people and add them as contacts – some add me back. My first communication is to say God bless you in Arabic, to which they often reply Amen. I never reveal where I am, just that I am a Christian man from Africa and want to tell them about Jesus. Many give me permission to proceed, so I send them Bible verses which they then respond to with many questions. Most of these men are from Arab Middle East countries.

‘Tariq’ asked me to send scripture verses every night as he wanted to read these before going to sleep. He said that he wants to do what Jesus commanded and asked why Christians are hiding the truth? He also asked how he could get a Bible so I told him where he could download one. Meanwhile ‘Bahir’ told me that what I was sharing with him had convinced him, and he wanted to be a Christian but did not know how – I was so happy and sent him verses from Romans 10: 9-13: “If you confess…”

Sometimes I ask if they ever read the Bible and they often reply that they do not need to: they have the Qur’an and claim that the Bible has been changed. This gives me the opportunity to ask questions like: Who changed the Bible? If this is true then why does the Qur’an say to read it? I am often asked if I believe in the Qur’an. Instead of saying yes or no, I tell them I believe in the Bible and that there are no references to the Qur’an in there.

If asked what I think about the Qur’an, I say there are some good things in it like how it mentions Jesus many times – even more than Muhammad, and that the Qur’an says that Jesus is the Word of God. I am also asked if I believe in the prophet Muhammad. I simply say that he is the prophet of Islam, and by that I mean he is not my prophet.

I am asked many questions but God has always given me answers, guiding me by His Holy Spirit. There are so many people who are open to the gospel across the Muslim world at this time. Many are looking for the truth but they do not know where to find it. I encourage Christians to share by any means you can. Just give people the word of God: that is the best thing you have, so give this freely.

There are many countries where missionaries cannot go and share the gospel, but there are ways you can reach many seekers from these places anyway, from your home, garden or favourite chair. Jesus commanded us to go and make disciples of all nations, and in these times it is even easier for everyone to engage in that commission and help isolated Muslims follow Jesus. Glory to God who put us here for such a time as this!”

Some of John’s keys to sharing:

• Do it for the glory of God
• Pray for God to give you wisdom and answers
• Be respectful: never insult those you want to reach
• Find out what they believe – even if you don’t know much about Islam you can ask about their beliefs, leading to more fruitful conversations
• Remember it is the Holy Spirit’s job to convict – not yours, so don’t be discouraged by negativity.

This article first appeared in the June 2018 newsletter of ReachAcross and is reproduced here with permission.