Still breathing hard from my last set, I picked up my gym bag and headed for the locker room. As I packed up my equipment for the night, a young guy from my fitness class entered. I was exhausted and badly in need of a shower. On the verge of just going home, something made me slow down. If I wanted God to use me to reach the Muslims in my community, I had to be willing to be inconvenienced—even when I only felt like falling into bed.

“Salam alaykum,” I greeted him. “I’m James.” We talked about the class and joked about how sore we were. Soon, Afram and I were walking out of the humid gym into the cool evening air.

“It must be hard for you to learn all the different names here,” Afram said, referring to the large array of cultures represented in our city.

“Some are more familiar,” I replied. “Like yours. It’s similar to the name Ephraim from the Bible.”

“Hmm,” he mused. “I’m pretty sure my name comes from Arabic. Is your name from the Bible?”

“Yes,” I said smiling. “James was the brother of Jesus the Messiah.”

We had reached my car in the parking lot, but neither of us wanted to end the conversation. We sat down on the curb, and I described how I had tried to live up to my name since becoming a believer. He kept asking questions, and I told him the story of how I met and became a follower of Jesus. Then I waited to see how he would respond.

“My family and I are Muslim,” Afram said slowly. “Although, I don’t really feel connected to my religion anymore. I am a seeker. I like learning as much as I can about what other people believe.”

This felt like a clear open door. “Well, I spend a lot of time studying the Bible,” I said, getting up and throwing my gear into the back seat of my car. “If you want to know more about Jesus, let’s meet somewhere and read it together.”

Afram leaned backward in a stretch while he considered the offer. I could tell my openness surprised him, but after a moment he said, “Yes, I think I’d like that.” We swapped numbers and planned to meet that weekend.

On Saturday, thunder boomed as I jogged through the rain to the safety of the restaurant where Afram and I had agreed to meet. I grabbed us a booth, creating a puddle underneath the table from my dripping shoes. I prayed Afram wouldn’t cancel because of the inconvenient weather.

Just as the old-fashioned wall clock ticked fifteen minutes past our meeting time, Afram blew in from outside, looking even more waterlogged than me. Nevertheless, he grinned and waved when he saw me in the corner booth.

We ordered our drinks and started chatting. He told me his parents had moved to Europe when he was young, and he had grown up there. When the conversation turned to religion, it was clear that he had a very basic understanding of Jesus and the Bible.

Finally, we dug into Scripture and followed questions and bunny trails across the Old and New Testaments. Before we knew it, three-and-a-half hours had passed.

After reading the end of the Gospel of John, he stopped me. “I get that Jesus died on a cross,” he said. “But how does that make it possible to be forgiven for sin?”

As I got to explain the Gospel, I was so thankful I had listened to the Holy Spirit and introduced myself at the gym. You never know what conversation God will use for His glory. When I finished sharing, Afram sat back in thought. I could tell he was thinking of even more questions, but the restaurant employees were starting to wipe down tables and sweep the floors. We sucked down the last of our coffees and headed for the door.

Before we parted ways, I showed him how to download the Bible on his phone.

“Read more on your own—and ask God to speak to you,” I encouraged. “When you have more questions, let’s do this again.”

Afram smiled gratefully. Then his expression grew thoughtful. “It would be very difficult to tell my family if I became a Christ follower,” he said, like he was warning me not to get my hopes up.

But after I left the restaurant, I glanced back and saw Afram still planted under the awning of the diner, reading the Word on his phone with an intrigued smile.  

Pray:

• Pray that the Holy Spirit speaks to Muslims like Afram, who are reading the Word, and moves them to ask more questions.
• Ask God to lead spiritual seekers to Frontiers field workers who can share the Good News with them.
• Lift up Muslims who are afraid to follow Christ because of their families. Pray that God will fill them with courage to choose truth over what is easy.

**This account comes from a long-term worker. Names and places have been changed for security.**

Main photo on iStock: Anchiy

Original article: https://frontiersusa.org/blog/willing/