Boundless hatred and a speechless sheikh

Despite the extremely difficult situation in Lebanon, our co-workers there are out and about helping people in need and sharing the Gospel with them. And many are coming to faith in Jesus. Bro. John* shares the story of Fatima*:

“Fatima first came to our meeting because she needed help and was looking for something to eat. She comes from a Sunni family in Aleppo, Syria. As a refugee, she simply didn’t know how to feed her family any longer. As she was waiting to receive food aid, she listened to the sermon preached. John 3:16 was read aloud: ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.’ These words touched her deeply. She began attending our meetings regularly, came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and was baptised a few months ago.

To this day, Fatima does not know how her mother found out that she had left Islam and now believes in Jesus. Her mother lives in a predominantly Sunni area of Lebanon, far away from the Bekaa Valley. At the beginning of February, her mother came to visit Fatima. Naturally, Fatima made coffee for herself and her mother. Her eleven-year-old son, Mustafa*, was also in the room. Suddenly, her mother asked, ‘Have you become a Christian now?’

Before Fatima could give an answer, her mother grabbed the pot of hot coffee and poured it over Fatima’s leg. Fatima screamed in pain: ‘Mum, what are you doing, you’ve burnt me!’ But her mother replied coldly: ‘This is just a small taste of the fire that will burn you in hell. You are an apostate and an unbeliever. You deserve the fire of hell. From now on, you are no longer my daughter. I no longer know you.’ Having said that, her mother stormed out of the room.

Fatima is still receiving medical treatment for her burns. Nevertheless, she says with full conviction: ‘I don’t care what people say. I am a child of God and want to live for Him.’ With great boldness, she continues to bear witness to her faith in Jesus Christ. She has already brought several friends of her to our church and is encouraging them to believe in Jesus. Recently, a respected local Islamic sheikh came to visit Fatima. He tried to persuade her to return to the Islamic faith. He urged her to pray to Allah and invited her to accompany him to a mosque to perform the Islamic prayer there.

During this conversation, Mustafa, Fatima’s eleven-year-old son, who has also already entrusted his life to Jesus, addressed the sheikh directly and asked him a simple question: ‘When you die, where will you go?’ The sheikh replied openly and honestly: ‘I don’t know; I have no answer to that.’ Mustafa looked at the sheikh and said, ‘Why should I follow a teacher who doesn’t know where he will go after he dies? My mother and I, we know. We will most certainly go to heaven and be with Jesus. Your Allah is different from our God. Our God gives us the assurance that we are saved because He loves us and we are His children. Why don’t you follow Him too?’ The Sheikh was speechless. He didn’t know how to reply!”