Supernatural Dreams, The Grace of God, and a Muslim’s Conversion

 

In short… I’m blown away!  In long, here’s the story:
 

It started out as a normal morning of evangelism, just walking around door-to-door with Edison (my translator).  Honestly… I’m tired, hot, not very enthused, and dreaming about lunch!  Good thing the grace of God is not limited to my pathetic attitude!

 

So we travel back through this gate into a little courtyard of sorts.  It was an open space just off the main road surrounded by mud huts and other stick structures.  We notice four guys sitting on a homemade bench and so we walk over there to engage them.  After saying hello, Edison just looks at me and says, “You can share now.â€� 

 
“….uh… okay.”  Plenty of hesitancy in my voice.
 
 

I ask about their spiritual backgrounds.  Then after some introduction to who I am and what this white person is doing in Tanzania, I begin a basic presentation of the gospel message.  About five minutes into it a man, probably around the age of 35, comes from around the side of the shack and takes his seat in front of me.  I continued to share, but his presence actually unnerved me a bit… he had his shirt off and was staring at me pretty intensely… I couldn’t quite tell what his motive was.  The more I spoke, however, the more it seemed he might actually be receiving the message.

 

It was about a 20 min talk, and as I concluded, this same guy starts getting very demonstrative, leaning over and talking forcefully to the rest of the guys that were there… by now a few others had joined.  I’m just sitting there, like, “Uh, what in the world is going on?â€�  I don’t have a clue what anyone is saying. 

 

Then my translator, Edison, starts communicating with him.  At this point I’m thinking, “This guy is against the gospel and my translator is trying to calm him down.â€�  I locate the nearest exit and look for anything I could possibly use for a weapon (just kidding mom!)… okay, well maybe.

 

Then Edison informs me of something that rocked my world.

 

So this guy’s name is Ramadon.  He has been a Muslim all his life.  Just recently he had a dream that he was on a stage singing praises to Jesus… and when he was done singing he broke down weeping.  Upon waking from his dream he acknowledged that the feeling he had in his dream was unlike anything he had ever felt.  And so he set out on a mission to find out what this Jesus is all about.  Being in a Muslim community, however, nobody could satisfy any of his questions, and they downplayed his curiosity. 

 

Today he just “happenedâ€� to be passing by, (behind the house, which was even more weird) and he said he could hear someone teaching about Jesus… so he had to stop.  He goes on to explain that he knows God brought him here to meet me, and that as I was sharing about Jesus, he knew that it was truth!

 

So then what was he all demonstrative about after I was done… turns out Ramadon was not trying to stir up people against me (what I kind of thought).  He was telling everyone in forceful tone that I was from God, and that my message is true.  Haha!  What grace!?

 

As we were about to leave, I felt a strong sense that we needed to pray for him.  Ramadon stands before me and I place my hands on his shoulder, and begin praying over his life… Edison translating beside me.  And as I opened my mouth in prayer, God filled it with specific words for this man.  In saying “Amenâ€�, I opened my eyes to see a look on his face I will never forget.  Tears were flowing down both his cheeks, and his face had this sacred combination of humility, peace, and joy.

 

What grace oh God?  Sure wasn’t expecting that when I got out of bed this morning!  I felt like I was in a storybook.  I was buzzing all through lunch with wonder of our God…The Master Orchestrator!