On our final day of engagement, a very hot & humid day, we drove to Dearborn ate a Lebanese lunch, engaged in a shop, & visited the largest mosque in the US. I’ve been to many mosques, but this was my first Shiite mosque & the saddest for me. Unlike most prayer services, the women in this mosque were praying with the men, only in the back. The sight of these sweet ladies observing the rituals of a religion that completely devalues them & offers them no hope was especially heartbreaking. Jonny & Zach quickly connected with a man, but, before they could engage, he handed them over to the imam. We left Dearborn & drove back for our final work in Hamtramck. Josh & I headed out for some door to door. I loved watching how skilled & confident Josh had become by the end of the week. While sharing with one Yemeni man, we received our first veiled threat: “Many in this neighborhood (meaning him) would not like seeing you go door to door here. The cops are corrupt here. It is very dangerous.” This came at the end of the week when we had been received well by over 100 Mslms.
One Bengali lady received us with a smile & warmly received the gospel message. She wanted the gift of Paradise through Jesus and was ready to commit her life to Christ; but, her husband was talking in the background and she said: “I’ll need to think about it.” We ended the day at Grace Baptist’s community event. The park was filled with Yemenis enjoying the games & free food, and the team joined right in. Katy pulled out her Jesus Story Book Bible, reading the Lost Son story & sharing Christ. Her young Yemeni friend was excited to see her again! Zach, Jonny,& I had tough, long talks with several Yemenis. After engaging one man for over an hour, a Yemeni called Jonny “demonic” & walked off. Jonny was confident that the man’s confidence in Islam had been shaken. Zach and I had the same type of experience, engaging for a long time, but being rebuffed. Yet, Christ was exalted, many heard, & received NTs for the first time. I was proud of Zach after one long talk with 3 Yemeni men: “Honestly, guys, it rips my heart out to hear you devalue Jesus repeatedly! Jesus is the Son of God! He’s changed my life & he’ll change yours, but your just too hard to accept it!” After that statement, 2 of the men still accepted NTs! On our last day, 12 Yemenis & Bengalis heard the gospel for the first time.
Grace and Peace,
Jon Shepherd and The Team