Equipping Evangelist shares Christ with teen in Turkey
Turkey is 99.8 percent Muslim. Culturally, to be a Turk is to be Muslim, which means that Christians in Turkey face high levels of persecution. This is just one reason we are praising God for a OneWay staff member’s recent opportunity to lead a teenage girl to Christ there.
OneWay’s Equipping Evangelist* spent time in late February with Farsi-speaking refugees in Turkey, teaching them to know and share God's Word through a curriculum called Heart Bible for the Nations.
During this time he became acquainted with a man who had left Islam and come to Christ through his wife in Iran a few years prior. Since then, the couple made their way to Turkey with their children, praying that their daughters, Eve* and Joy*, would one day share in their faith.
On the last of the three days, Equipping Evangelist shared a meal with five Iranian families, including this couple and their daughters. Sixteen-year-old Joy expressed interest in the Bible with a believer at the dinner, who asked Equipping Evangelist to share a Bible story with her. He told her the story of Jesus inviting Peter to walk to Him on the water (Matthew 14:22–33) and shared the powerful images of Jesus appearing like a ghost, stretching out His hand over a stormy sea.
When the story ended, Equipping Evangelist asked Joy, “Do you believe that you need a savior?” Humbly and sincerely, she answered, “Yes,” and he replied, “Why don’t you get out of that boat? Jesus is calling you.” As they prayed together and then with her parents, she accepted Jesus as her savior.
“I have been amazed over the years how God has prepared [Iranians’] hearts,” Equipping Evangelist said. “Their faith is just so simple … A lot of people believe, and they don’t even know it.” He recognizes that his place is to lead them to the water, invite them to drink and let God work.
Since returning home, Equipping Evangelist has received messages from the family and has prayed with them over Zoom. He hopes to return in the next few months to continue training them and other believers in the Heart Bible curriculum.
*Name changed for security reasons
HOW YOU CAN BE PRAYING
Pray that this family will grow in faith and knowledge of the Bible.
Pray for the maturity of the Iranian church in Turkey, that believers will learn the value of fellowship and how to love one another as they gain a deeper understanding of God’s kingdom.
Pray that the 24,000 Iranian refugees in Turkey will come to know Christ as their savior.
Pray that Equipping Evangelist will be able to return to Turkey in the next few months to continue helping leaders there disciple these new believers.
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