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From the Middle East – An Introduction
Posted by Guest Author in Uncategorized
For some time now a frontier missionary who calls himself, “From the Middle East,” has been participating in our dialog here at sbc IMPACT! His unique perspective has always been insightful and challenging. We thought that it might have a positive impact upon Southern Baptist life to hear the front line stories and perspectives from someone serving in the most challenging of mission fields … a Muslim country and culture.
So, we have invited “From the Middle East” to be a semi-regular guest contributor to sbc IMPACT! For now most of his posts will appear on Saturdays as he is able to write (unless he gets moved up in the “batting order” … like today. 
) . Enjoy his writing, ask him questions, but please respect his anonymity. It is of ultimate importance to his safety and security. You can also check out his ministry stories at this blog that he has recently created and launched.
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Several years ago, I learned a truth. What I learned was that no matter how hard I tried to stop doing “bad” things, I just could not do it. Realizing that I was a slave to something was a very sobering thought at that time in my life. And it was, quite frankly, really annoying. So much so that I would lie awake at night and consider how someone born in the land of the free could be enslaved. And it really bothered me. And it kept bothering me more and more. So much so that I finally cried out to God to set me free. I knew in my mind and believed in my heart that He was really the only one who could do it. But what I had no way of knowing at the time was that this plea for freedom would put me on the strangest, most painful, yet most exhilarating path in the world…
Skip down a few years to the relevant part of this story. About six years ago, I was minding my own business. Working a regular job, doing a little prison ministry, discipling a couple of new believers and out of nowhere God starts speaking to my heart about His plan for the nations. By nations I mean people who talk, look, act and smell different than me ;^) At first I was resistant, but finally recognized what He wanted was for me to take a look at the world from His perspective. After skimming through the Bible with this in mind, there was no arguing that God’s heart is set on every tribe, tongue and nation worshipping Him. There was/is no doubt that He deeply loves and grieves over all peoples (even those that smell funny). As my eyes and heart were opened, I began to weep over the vast numbers in the world who do not know Him. Finally, I said, “Fine. I’ll go. I’ll go anywhere you want me to go — except I don’t like Muslims. I’m scared of them. I won’t go to a Muslim country.” Then my wife heard the Spirit speak to her in the same way (without me saying a word). So, I confirmed to her and the Lord that I would go anywhere except for a Muslim country.
A few months later, came an invitation to go on a short-term trip to a VERY Muslim country. God said, “GO!” So we did. As soon as we got back, we knew there was no way we could remain stateside. We had to go. We spoke with those closest to us. All confirmed they had known for quite some time that we were called to cross-cultural church planting. We thanked them for keeping that a secret for so long and filled out applications for a two-year term with the IMB.
Now, I’ll have to admit that I’ve always had the kind of personality where if I’m going to do something, I’MA GONNA DO IT RITE! So, not only did we move to a Muslim country, but we moved to one of the most conservative Muslim countries in the world and studied Arabic for two years. It was life-changing. To begin to understand another worldview and see how the Gospel interacts with it is utterly stunning. To look into someone’s eyes as they hear the Gospel in their own language, using their own metaphors, idioms and expressions for the first time… there is absolutely nothing like it! To share the Gospel with those who have never heard — that’s what my wife and I were created for!
After our commitment with the IMB was completed, God called us back home. While we love our family and friends and love being able to visit with them whenever we want… to be honest, we do not like living here anymore. Our hearts are among unreached Muslims. And our heart’s desire is to live among them once again. And we expressed this to our Father and then He expressed His desire for us as well. It was slightly different…
He brought us home to raise awareness/mobilize, train and lead individuals and congregations on short-term trips to the Northern Africa & Middle East (NAME) Region. And I love it. The only thing better than getting to share the Good News of Jesus with someone who has never heard is to watch someone else that God has used me to mobilize and train do the same! Right now, I guess you could say that my passion is seeing folks lose their prejudices about Muslims so that they can identify with them, communicate the Gospel effectively and ultimately see healthy, reproducing churches planted among Muslim peoples.
We work through a very small organization whose focus is leading the Church here to go to those who have never heard. We have no long-term personnel (no reason to duplicate other agencies). Instead, we form strategic partnerships with long-term personnel (primarily from the IMB) and then mobilize and train others to meet their short-term needs. These teams meet strategic needs of missionaries on the field. Needs that will play a role in seeing the church planted among the unreached.
Our service to the Church is two-fold. We serve the long-term missionaries by being an intermediary. Being familiar with their strategy, long-term goals, acronyms, etc, we are able to train and lead the teams. This frees long-term missionaries up to focus on other aspects of their ministry. It is also a benefit to churches. We have found that few churches have staff specifically focused on, or even experienced in, reaching unreached people groups in “difficult” areas. So, we serve the local church by assisting them in reaching out through short-term trips. And, of course, the reason we ultimately go is to serve those who have never heard the Gospel. This year my responsibilities include ten teams going to five countries working with seven people groups (all >99.7% Muslim).
That’s “what” I do and obviously indicates in many ways “who” I am. One of the ways that I love to define “who” I am is as a member/ambassador of His Kingdom and another is as a learner. Here’s the thing – and I guess it’s like this no matter what role God has called us to – I’m always learning. Learning about the Bible, Arabic, evangelism, traveling, walking with Jesus, Muslims, church-planting, training team members, team dynamics, you name it. I’ve interacted with Muslims from Egypt, Sudan, Somalia, Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Yemen, the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, India and Bahrain. And I’ve learned from all of them. We’ve sat with the poorest of the poor, listened to militants rant against the West, shared with many and God has been amazing and faithful in every situation. And the more of this I experience, the more I realize I’ve got a lot to learn!
I’ve been a reader and occasional commenter in the blogosphere for couple of years now. But never have officially contributed to a blog like this. All of this is to say that iron sharpens iron and it is exciting for me to be able to learn with all of you… fellow ambassadors of His Kingdom!
My apologies for the extra-long post today. But as Geoff and I discussed the idea of me posting on a regular basis here at sbc Impact!, we thought it would be a good idea to start off with my background. Please don’t ask where I live, what organization I work through, where we travel to, etc on this website. I will be happy to discuss any of these things via email if you would like, but not in a public forum. And I really do look forward to some great discussion about cross-cultural ministry… specifically Muslim ministry. While I feel honored to be a contributer, I also feel a little intimidated and unqualified.
Looking forward to growing with all of you!
His peace be with us all,
From the Middle East
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Dear “intimidated and unqualified”,
Oh that there were thousands of equally “intimidated and unqualified” servants as you out there in the Muslim world! After reading your comments here-there-and yon’ in the blog world, it has been great to learn a little bit more about you. We all need to learn how to better engage the Islamic world, and I look forward to your future posts.
You write, We serve the long-term missionaries by being an intermediary.
What are your thoughts about the role of short-term missions efforts in the Muslim world. Are they effective? Do they really help the long-term missionaries in these places? What are the strengths and weaknesses of this kind of missions approach?
Thanks for all you do.
Brother Guy,
Good question. You have just inspired another post!
I am absolutely convinced that short-term teams are effective in church-planting among Muslims. The key is to look at everyone involved among a people group as part of the team. Not just short-termers, not just long-termerss, not just front-line evangelists, not just Southern Baptists, etc.
A few of thoughts on how short-term teams can effectively help long-termers:
1. In many “closed-countries” short-term teams can help immensely in the area of “broad seed sowing.” We cannot get to reproducing churches without getting the Gospel out there! A short-term group can usually get away with some things that long-termers cannot and then play the “Oh, I just got here and didn’t know I wasn’t supposed to do that” card. Those who “have ears to hear” (possible people of peace) can then be followed-up with by the long-term folks. This has it’s weaknesses in areas where there will be a lot of contact with local missionaries (risking their resident visas) and in areas where there is very little English spoken.
2. In areas where there is poverty, short-term teams can build in-roads to difficult-to-access peoples by bringing “mercy teams.” Teams that meet practical needs in the name of Jesus and give the long-termers greater legitimacy and help build goodwill towards them. Examples of this type of “work” are: water projects, English teaching, medical/dental education, community development, economic development, helping in orphanages, special needs schools, etc. The goal of this is to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, help the oppressed and depressed in the name of Jesus… which is a great thing in and of itself. But the strategic side of it is that it often gives long-termers access to otherwise inaccessible people groups.
3. Smaller teams can spend time with long-termers and get a real feel for what their daily lives are like. This also gives long-termers an opportunity to introduce others who are like-minded to any who are showing interest in the Good News. And another voice/testimony is heard. The team members can then return with greater insight for praying and mobilizing others to pray for those who have never heard and those who serve among them.
4. Teams that go out in humility and with some preparedness are almost always encouraging and refreshing for long-termers.
In a few minutes, I’ll comment on the weaknesses of short-term teams.
May His face shine upon you,
From the Middle East
What can you tell us about the short-term missionaries role once they return to their local church? Can they be an effective witness for mobilizing others?
Brother Guy,
Major weaknesses of short-term teams include:
1. Lack of cultural understanding (this includes but is not limited to language). In the New Testament, the Gospel is proclaimed in a way that the hearers can understand. In order for this to take place, some understanding of the worldview of the hearers must be present. This can be overcome through proper training and, of course, experience. This is one of the major reasons that I love my role in all of this. To train folks on basics prior to going, then walking with them through cross-cultural ministry has proved to be very exciting for me. The long-termers we work with also know how we train and this alleviates many of their fears of short-termers coming in and being counterproductive to the work God is doing.
2. Pride. Some short-term teams go with the attitude that they know how it should be done. They go with irreversible pre-conceived ideas, instead of with a teachable spirit. This is not biblical in any setting. We should always be open to learning from our brothers and sisters.
3. Sometimes short-term mission work can become a fad. An attitude of “let’s go here this year, there next year, etc.” We encourage groups of people, whether they be Sunday school classes, cell groups, a group of like-minded friends or entire congregations, to form “strategic partnerships” with a people group. A repeated witness is effective in showing the Gospel and not just preaching it. The Gospel is to be both proclaimed and lived out among the unreached. This seems to be best accomplished by multiple trips to the same people group. This is also extremely effective among those people groups who have NO long-term missionaries focused on them. A good example of this is a people group of 2,000,000 people (less than 20 or 30 indigenous believers among them and none meeting together). Only one missionary family is focused on reaching them. One of the churches we work with is now sending two teams a year to this people group to support the work the long-termers are doing and is having great success in proclamation and Bible distribution! They are committed through prayer and going. They have committed to continue this praying and going until healthy, reproducing churches are present!
I’m sure there are other weaknesses that will come to mind later, but those are the major ones I can think of now… the ones we are always try to guard against! Thanks again for the question. I will add this topic to my list of possible posts.
His peace be with you,
From the Middle East
tg2,
Good question.
Once we know something, we are responsible for it. Ezekiel 33:1-9 is normally applied to evangelism in general, but I think it applies here as well. Once we know of the need, we must inform others. More short-term teams can be mobilized by lay people or pastors going back to their congregations than can be mobilized by someone like me. The local church knows “Frank the plant worker” as a normal church member. When he comes back in awe of what God is doing and in love with these weird people half-way around the world… the Spirit uses this to move in the hearts of others!
There is another thing we, “those who have been,” are responsible for as well. That is reaching out to the stranger in our land. I met a man once in the Middle East who was born and raised in a very conservative Muslim country. He subsequently spent over 30 years working in the States, then retired in his homeland. We had a great time visiting. I asked him how many Americans invited him to their homes during his time in America. His answer was two. After sharing the Gospel from Genesis to the resurrection with him, he looked at me and said, “That is a beautiful Story. I’ve never heard that before.” HE LIVED HERE FOR OVER 30 YEARS AND NO ONE EVER SHARED THE GOSPEL WITH HIM!!! I was convicted of all the international folks I had bumped into in the past without showing hospitality befitting the people of God. There is typically an increased awareness of internationals around a Believer once they have served among the unreached.
These things MUST be covered some way or another with team members. De-briefing is an effective way of doing this.
His grace be yours in abundance,
From the Middle East
al humdu lillah! It is funny how God frequently sends us where we said we would never go. My reasons for saying no are usually based in fear or thinking that I have a better plan than the Creator and Sustainer of the universe.
Short term volunteers can get away with evangelism in ways that people with residence visas may not be able to. However, they also need to be smart and culturally appropriate as well, which is where the training comes in. Volunteers can leave a huge mess behind; the long term workers are left taking the blame for actions of an ill-prepared team. I greatly appreciate the work that our brother from the Middle East is undertaking as it can prevent other workers from facing the obstacles created by well-meaning but uninformed volunteers.
In His mercy,
a sister recently in M.E.
Middle East,
Thank you for an inspiring post! Your passion comes through in a marvelous way.
Do you have a DVD that churches could receive in order to present such an idea for a short-term trip to our congregations? If so, I would like to get one.
Great to hear this story and glad to know you are sharing it with others.
Sister recently in the Middle East & Abu Daoud,
Thank you for your encouragement.
Brother Les,
Thank you for your encouragement as well. We do have a DVD that may be helpful for you. Just click on the “email me” button on my blog and send me your contact info.
His grace be with us all,
From the Middle East
From the M.E. Welcome to Impact and thank you for an inspiring post. Have you worked with groups on how to share the Gospel with Muslims here in America? Would simply inviting them to our homes be the way to go? selahV
Sister SelahV,
Yes, we do training on how to reach Muslims here in the States. Inviting any foreigner to your home is a great idea! You might want to read a little on what their basic beliefs are… specifically dietary restrictions if you are inviting them to a meal. But hospitality is not just appealing to all peoples, it is also a command from Scripture. Great idea! We should be good neighbors and what better way of making someone feel welcome than by inviting them into our homes.
As far as sharing the Gospel, the biblical model is to never change the message, but to adapt the presentation depending upon the hearer… with the goal of the hearer understanding. Implicit in this is our need to understand where they are coming from. And this will vary from worldview to worldview – not all Muslims have the same worldview! So, I would encourage you to explore their beliefs in search for common ground AND areas that need the Gospel. The more you interact with someone from a particular background, the better you will become at evangelism with others from the same background. But don’t let fear of “messing up” hold you back. We must learn through experience and the Gospel is powerful even when we communicate it poorly. Ultimately, the only witness that God cannot use is no witness at all! Go for it!
May His Light shine through you,
From the Middle East
PS – If you are thinking of a specific person or people group that is common in your area, send me an email and I’ll try to get some good resources to you.
M.E., I’m glad to see you writing here. Tell ‘em what it’s all about and send a few folks our way.
I am more amazed everyday at the differences between what I know of Arabic Islam and how it is practiced here in West Africa. We shouldn’t even call this Islam, but it’s still a good place to be. I’m going to start learning Arabic soon. Hope that goes well. Hooray for trying to be 5-lingual.
Brother Shadrach,
Thanks for the encouragement! I completely agree with your assessment of the “folk Islam” that is common in rural Africa. Let me know if you want any recommendations on introductory texts to Arabic.
His grace be with you as you study Arabic ;^)
From the Middle East
I am always open to help. One of our guards is a Qur’anic teacher and teaches basic, Qur’anic Arabic. That and a couple of downloadable internet beginners where going to be my starting place.