If you read today’s headlines, you’ll think the news in the Muslim world is all bad. Over the weekend, a Gaza man set himself on fire because he could not find a job. Syria’s leaders are moving to crush the rebels in their country, refusing any dialogue with their enemies. And Hezbollah’s leader has vowed to strike at Israel and U.S. bases in the region if Iran’s nuclear weapons facilities are attacked.
But there’s far more going on in the Muslim world than most media outlets are reporting. This morning I’d like you to know about Tom Doyle, a dear friend of mine and missionary to the Middle East. Across his years in the Islamic world, he’s witnessed first-hand one of the greatest miracles in human history: the revelation of Jesus Christ to Muslims around the globe. Tom’s new book, Dreams and Visions: Is Jesus Awakening the Muslim World? tells the story of this astounding movement. From Egypt to Saudi Arabia, from Iran to Jordan, from Syria to Iraq and Afghanistan, his stories read like the pages of the Book of Acts.
One chapter tells of an Egyptian evangelist who was rousted from his bed at gunpoint and forced into a room where he was convinced he would be executed. There he met a group of imams (mosque leaders) who had been converted to Christ through visions and dreams and wanted him to teach them the Bible. Another chapter introduces us to a woman in Saudi Arabia who met Jesus in her dreams and now worships in her bathroom as she prays for her husband to come to Christ. Each story is proof that God is on the march.
Why is the Spirit using dreams to reach Muslims today? They are open to such revelation, as their faith began with the visions of the Prophet Muhammad. Since 60 to 80 percent of the Muslim world is illiterate, God would need to speak to them verbally and directly.
And many Muslims live in countries closed to missionaries and Bibles. Of course, the Christ who stepped through locked doors to meet with his disciples (John 20:19, 26) is not bound by human limits. The God who spoke to patriarchs, prophets and apostles through visions is now speaking to Muslims in the same way. And more have come to Christ in the last 15 years than in the previous 15 centuries.
This evening, Tom and I are conducting a conference in Dallas on radical Islam and the movement of God in the Muslim world. If you’re in the area, we invite you to join us. Wherever you live, I encourage you to read Tom’s new book—I promise you’ll be inspired and encouraged. And I ask you to join me in praying every day for 100 million Muslims to come to Christ this year. Long ago, the Lord did what he’s doing today: “I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me; I was found by those who did not seek me” (Isaiah 65:1). His Kingdom is on the move, but his army marches on its knees.