He Still Multiplies Food

We have been blessed by the Lord. Below is a letter from a friend who attended the party on Saturday: Dear Pastor Hicham, Let me tell you what joy and inspiration I shared with the more than 200 people who last Saturday night attended your “Middle Eastern Food Extravaganza . ” Your Salam Christian Fellowship went the full limit in offering the Word of God in a spirit of love not only to the American Muslims and Arabs there but also to us “regulars. ” There never was a question in my mind that my donation to the Fellowship was badly needed for Christ’s work among the 500,000 or so Muslims in the Greater Chicago area. And let’s not forget the excellent audio-visual presentations of those four “conversions ” nor the humor and keyboard music of one minister nor that tasty food—truly the best I’ve eaten here or in the Middle East itself. You and the several ministers who spoke are to be congratulated for how each of you roused our hearts to do good for “the least of them. ” Save me a chair for next year !

Come to Salam's Party

Salam Celebrating Fifth Anniversary of Arabic Worship Come celebrate with Salam's fifth anniversary and thank faithful volunteers and donors... Great Middle Eastern food, from Lebanon, Iran, and Iraq....great music played by Rennie Kaufmann (http://renniekaufmann.com/), a professional entertainer, and Arabic worship music by Scott Swingle. Also you will have an opportunity to support Salam's ministries. Where: Immanuel Lutheran Church at 950 Hart Road, Batavia, IL 60510 When: Saturday, Feb. 2, at 6 pm All are welcome. Posted by Hakim at 9:39 PM

Is Faith in Christ a Decision?

Being a Follower of Christ, from a Muslim background, I may have different perspective on how people are called to faith in Christ I believe that I did not take a decision for Christ...He has dragged me from the scruff of the neck...I was dragged into salvation in spite of myself. However, I can tell you when the seed of faith in Christ was planted, when the flower started to blossom, and when the fruit started to appear, or mature... We will stay sinners, whether we trust Jesus or not, but AFTER the seed is planted, we feel the emptiness in our heart that only Christ could fill…After the flower start blossoming, we start to feel the conviction of the Holy Spirit for sins, repent, and lose "our addiction" to sin. I believe that faith is a mystery...nothing that I am saying is new... How people come to faith, I believe that everyone has or need a different dynamic that calls him/her to Christ...However, the common dynamic is the WORD of God...I know that I am not saying anything new...but I believe that He drags us like fish in a net, from the sea of sin and unbelief...As an evangelist, I keep casting my net, and trust God to bring fish.. Concerning the Word of God and evangelism, I noticed, through the years, that everyone has a different "silver bullet" that brings him/ her to his/her knees, or shoot him/ her in the heart; mine was: "Love your enemies"

What Does Al Masih Mean?

In 1972, I used to sit at he feet of my Egyptian Imam, 80 years old, daily and learn from him the basics of Islam, Arabic poetry, and Jurisprudence. One evening, I asked him: Sheikh! what does Massih (Christ in Arabic) mean? He replied: Maybe it means flat-footed, or sojourner, because he traveled a lot, or the one who wiped pain from the face of the earth. Actually we do not know, Allah knows. Please read this article, and you will know:

http://www.answering-islam.org/Authors/Memsuah/al-masih.htm

Salam Celebrating Fifth Anniversary of Arabic Worship

Come celebrate with Salam's fifth anniversary and thank faithful volunteers and donors... Great Middle Eastern food, from Lebanon, Iran, and Iraq....great music played by Rennie Kaufmann (http://renniekaufmann.com/), a professional entertainer, and Arabic worship music by Scott Swingle. Also you will have an opportunity to support Salam's ministries.

Where: Immanuel Lutheran Church at 950 Hart Road, Batavia, IL 60510 When: Saturday, Feb. 2, at 6 pm All are welcome.

Salam Touching the Lives of Muslims

Dear Friends, I would like to share with you a text message I received from a young Muslim Algerian immigrant who arrived a month ago to Chicago, with his eight-month pregnant wife, and had nothing. The new immigrant got my phone number from a Lutheran church in his neighborhood. ( I still do not know who gave him my number) I called Lutheran Church Charities (LCC), after I received his call, and we moved toward furnishing his studio apartment. With the help of five volunteers from Salam Fellowship, we were able to take furniture, directly from donors to his apartment. Below is his text, with its spelling mistakes. "Haw are you hichem , thank you very much for your help ,because of you we have a comfortable home ,we thank god and we ask him to protect you all." Because of LCC and Salam, this family will have their first Christmas in the USA with proper housing. Because of LCC, they see the love of Christ in action. Merry Xmas

Even though I am in prison, I feel free in Jesus

A year ago, an Iraqi young Muslim refugee, Ahmed (not his real name), 22, born in Lebanon, was arrested for drug trafficking. Ahmed lost his refugee status in the USA, and was transferred an immigration detention facility with the illegal aliens, awaiting deportation. His family had been coming to Salam Fellowship for years. We did not give up on him. We kept visiting and praying for him in prison, especially my wife, Mona. She was filled with compassion towards this young man, and considered him a victim of his broken family, not a criminal. His parents were divorced, and their five kids were lost in a sinful world. He started reading the Bible with great interest, and praying that Jesus would save him from his incarceration. Mona and I were greatly inspired whenever we visited him.

Ahmed would repeat with joy. Psalms and Proverbs were his favorite. He used describe how his attitude towards h is inmates and guards changed. He started to treat everyone gently and patiently, with love. Mona helped his family get an attorney who was able to convince the judge of granting him another chance. It was a miracle, because it was his third time in prison. Ahmed was given parole, and was not deported. He was released three weeks ago. God answered all our prayers. Please pray that Ahmed would stay the course, follow Jesus Christ, and grow spiritually. Ahmed passion is fast cars and sports….They have provedto be distracting…Please pray that he would seek the Kingdom of God first, and stay focused on Jesus. Amen

WOW Egyptian Fast Food in Carol Stream, IL

...Great place, great people...open six days a week Monday to Saturday: 105 Stark Dr Carol Stream, IL 60188 (630) 690-4969

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God, But People Are Disappointing

I want to say this: I am really disappointed with the Church. I posted Mohammed's need to rent a room with a Christian family for 6 months and nobody even offered to meet Mohammed and see if there is a possibility to rent him a room!!..I know that there are a lot of big empty houses, but many Christians do not want to muddy their feet or soil their hands with missions to Muslims. Mohammed lives next to Mosque where the majority of people are Muslims and has two Muslim roommates...His friend was killed in the West Bank because of his conversion....any body on fire for the Lord!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMdlbCV9k9Y

I Was A Stranger And You Welcomed Me

I was a stranger and you welcomed me, Matthew 25: 35 Today I helped a Tunisian refugee family get an apartment...They have been 15 days in the USA and have no income or credit...It was a miracle.....The husband said that he is indebted to Salam all his life...I have heard this before...I may not believe it...but I saw Christ in action....All Glory be to God.

Prayers for Hassan

Friends, Please pray for Hassan as he is hospitalized for knee surgery...pray for healing, as well as spiritual growth. Thanks

Though I Am in Prison, I Celebrate my Freedom in Christ."

Dear Friends, Please pray for the incarcerated young man from Lebanon nicknamed Kay-two. I visited him in prison, and he is now very repentant...reading the Bible, and wants to follow Jesus...some of his words: Though I Am in Prison, I Celebrate my Freedom in Christ." "

Yesterday I met a guy 76 years old, former Muslim Arab who was called to faith in Christ at the age of 75...With God all things are possible....I have to disciple him...he has encyclopedic knowledge of history, including history of the Church. He is almost of the age of my late earthly father...you can see the challenge!!

Muslim Background Believers (MBBs) lose everything, but gain Christ. His grace is sufficient. When a Muslim converts, the person loses family which is the pillar of the community in the Middle East..this is why the church should support converts properly...this is not happening as it should. Support is in discipleship as well as daily life issues. We are His sheep, we cannot grow without a flock. I did not have a flock in Lebanon...only one man stood with me..he was an American who lived most of his life in the Middle East and understood our plight. Below is a painful but inspiring story. Convert from Islam in Sudan Loses Wife, Children Wed, Jun. 20, 2012 Posted: 09:15 AM EDT KHARTOUM, Sudan – A year ago Mohammed Khidir Khalil was glad his family had obtained refugee status in Egypt after fleeing Islamic hostilities in Sudan. The 38-year-old Christian was also heartened that his formerly unbelieving wife was attending church with him. Today the convert from Islam is back in Sudan fighting to recover his family after his in-laws compelled his wife to claim she was Muslim and divorce him. A Sudanese court automatically granted her custody of their two sons and forbade him to see them, he said. He fears that if he persists in his legal battle, he faces the threat of being accused of "apostasy," or leaving Islam. It was last August that his Muslim mother-in-law visited them in Egypt. "Without my knowledge, she took my wife and children back to Sudan," Khalil said. The couple had fled Sudan just before the South Sudan vote for independence on Jan. 9, 2011, after threats from the couples' Muslim families and others intensified, Khalil said. In Egypt, they reported their case to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and won asylum. In emails to friends back in Sudan, Khalil freely shared his Christian experience and pointed out what he termed as contradictions in Islam. Hearing nothing from his family after his mother-in-law took his wife and two sons back to Sudan, on Christmas Day Khalil decided to return to an undisclosed town in Sudan to search for them. He was shocked to discover that his wife, Manal Hassan, had filed for divorce on grounds that she was a Muslim and he a Christian. Khalil, who converted to Christianity in 2001, had met Hassan in 2007. At that time she said she was neither a Christian nor a Muslim, and they married in a non-religious wedding. The bride's Muslim family learned that Khalil was a Christian but had no objection to the marriage, he said. By 2010 the couple had joined an undisclosed church and had become visibly active in it; opposition from their families grew, leading to the couple's flight to Egypt in early 2011. Last February, Khalil decided to appeal the divorce ruling. His wife had presented a copy of the UNHCR certificate showing Khalil's testimony as a Christian, however, and that was proof enough for a judge to rule in March that the marriage be annulled and the children automatically handed over to the spouse professing "the popular religion" – Islam, the supposed faith of Hassan. In spite of the court's ruling that Khalil did not have a right to even visit the children, in April he decided to try to see them. His former wife's family threatened to call police if he persisted. "I am very upset with courts like this that bar one from seeing one's children," he said. "I have to appeal against this." Asked what risks he might incur by appealing, Khalil said it could lead to a case against him for apostasy – punishable by death in Sudan, where sharia (Islamic law) is established as a primary source of legislation. "They might take the case to a prosecution court, which might lead to my sentencing to death according to Islamic apostasy law – but I am ready for this," Khalil said. "I want the world to know this. What crime have I done? Is it because I became a Christian? I know if the world is watching, they will be afraid to do any harm to me." Conversion Khalil was a practicing Sufi Muslim when he began studies at a university in Alexandria, Egypt, in 1998. By the time he graduated in 2000, he had left Islam; he returned to Sudan an atheist. After his return to Sudan, Khalil came into contact with a U.S. pastor who inspired him with his Christian faith. "He was very calm and confident," Khalil said. He recalled that the pastor made reference to the Nubian people of southern Egypt and northern Sudan calling themselves "sons of the Nile," the river being considered the source of life, and connecting that idea with the Son of God likewise coming from God as the source of all life. References to Jesus as the Good Shepherd whose Father was the God of love also moved him. Khalil decided to visit the pastor's church, and he entrusted his life to Christ in 2001. He stayed with the pastor for three months before he left to his home village. The pastor paid him visits, and when his family realized that Khalil had embraced the Christian faith, his father threatened to shoot him. Khalil fled home. He was later baptized in a historically Nubian area near his home village. Khalil began winning friends to Christ, and persecution intensified; family members reported him to the police, and he fled his country. "Life became unbearable, and I decided to flee to the United Arab Emirates, where I was received by a Sudanese family in 2001," he said. He remained there until the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement between north and south Sudan in 2005, and then decided to return to Sudan with the hope of serving his community. He became an English teacher, at the same time developing programs to promote Nobiin, one of the Nubian languages, and its cultural heritage. Building a literacy program for children in Nobiin, he also wrote poetry in the language and translated several hymns and Bible verses into it. Along with his other challenges, Khalil is working toward publishing his sundry manuscripts in the Nobiin language, in spite of financial constraints. A deacon at his church summed up: "Mohammed needs prayers and support at this trying moment." Compass Direct News Copyright © Christianpost.com. All rights reserved.

Salafi Leader: No Freedom in Islam; Apostates Must be Persecuted Apostasy is Treason

Last month, Sheikh Yassir al-Burhami, a prominent figure in Egypt’s Salafi movement made clear what the issue was: Apostasy—if Muslims have the right to leave Islam and convert to other religions. In the words of Burhami: For example, is it the right of the Muslim to convert to Christianity or another religion? Of course this is not a right; this is a matter that Sharia has clearly addressed, according to the agreed upon hadiths. It is impermissible, for any reason, for a Muslim to leave the community. Of course, you cannot coerce any infidel to enter into Islam [Koran 2:256]—except for the apostate. It is impossible to let the apostate remain in [a state of] apostasy, deeming it a form of “freedom.” For the record, the “agreed upon hadiths” that Burhami indicated, are, in fact, unequivocal in regards to the crime of apostasy. The most canonical and oft cited among them simply has Muhammad saying: “Whoever leaves his religion, kill him.”

It Is A Great Commission...Not A Great Recommendation

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Some of our Lord Jesus Christ’s last words before He was taken up to heaven were, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19–20). This is what is called the Great Commission, not the “Great Recommendation!” Jesus commanded us to go make disciples of all nations: the Hispanics, the Somalis, the Arabs, the Greeks—yes, Jesus meant all nations, not only the Europeans! “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly” (Romans 5:6). Jesus died for all, not only for Christians, not only for Lutherans—for all. In April 2001, I was going into a bank building when I bumped into a retired Lutheran pastor from Northern Minnesota. Pastor Bernie Lutz was a missionary in Papua New Guinea when his wife was pregnant with their first child. Papua New Guinea was then in the Stone Age. He was also a missionary in Nigeria, and he pastored many churches in Northern Minnesota. But he promised his wife that when they retired, he would take her south… So he took her to Lebanon. Anyway, when he suggested to Lutheran Hour Ministries that he go to Lebanon, they told him, “There are Arab Christians in Lebanon, so why go there? Let the Arab Christians share the Gospel with the Muslims there.” But like most of us in the West, most of those Arab Christians have neglected Jesus’ Great Commission for centuries. We all deserve God’s wrath for neglecting the Great Commission. We are guilty of ignoring Jesus’ Great Commission and deserve God’s wrath, as we have confessed today. Arab Christians in Lebanon are not a persecuted minority. They were granted privileges above the rest of the population there, since the foundation of the country. Lebanon is the only Arab country which has, by mandate and constitution, a Christian president. Muslims wanted to share power with Christians, first through democratic means—but they were ignored. I was caught in that tug-of-war since the age of 7. CHRISTIAN ARABS, INSTEAD OF SHARING THE LOVE OF CHRIST, KILLED MY ONLY BROTHER. [For Pastor Chehab’s personal story, visit his website at http://salamarabicfellowship.blogspot.com/.] Though I contemplated revenge against my Christian enemies, I was struck by the command of Jesus: LOVE YOUR ENEMIES and pray for those who persecute you. ONCE I ASKED A LEBANESE CHRISTIAN CONGREGATION: ARE YOU READING A DIFFERENT BIBLE? WHILE MY BIBLE TEACHES ME TO LOVE MY NEIGHBOR AS MYSELF, I SEE THAT YOU KILL YOUR NEIGHBORS. Brothers and Sisters, ALL OF US HAVE SINNED AGAINST OUR NEIGHBOR AND DESERVE THE WRATH OF GOD. But God out of His Amazing Grace and love wants to have mercy on us. AS WE READ JOHN 3:16, WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE HOPE IN CHRIST. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). HOWEVER, SOME OF US TAKE JOHN 3:16 AS A LICENSE TO INDULGE IN A SINFUL LIFE, instead of living a life that makes us salt and light in this world, a life worthy of disciples of Jesus. “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:14–16). Dietrich Bonhoeffer understood what kind of love that is and what kind of discipleship Jesus commanded. Bonhoeffer taught that grace is free, but discipleship is costly. Actually, it could cost us our lives. Two days after Hitler was installed as Chancellor of Germany, Bonhoeffer delivered a radio speech in which he attacked Hitler and warned Germany against slipping into an idolatrous cult of the Führer. After accepting an invitation to come and teach in America, he wrote, “I have come to the conclusion that I made a mistake in coming to America. I must live through this difficult period in our national history with the people of Germany. I will have no right to participate in the reconstruction of Christian life in Germany after the war if I do not share the trials of this time with my people...” He returned to Germany on the last scheduled steamer to cross the Atlantic, AS THE WAR BROKE OUT. He was arrested in April 1943 by the Gestapo and executed by hanging in April 1945, 23 days before the Nazis’ surrender. Brothers and Sisters, the Gospel is the POWER of GOD—dynamis (from which we get our word “dynamite”). This is why before Jesus commanded us to make disciples he called us FRIENDS. He told His disciples, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). And His last words to the disciples in the Great Commission were: “Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). May the God of hope fill you with joy and peace, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. AMEN

Some Translations That Target Muslims Compromises The Gospel Fears are arising that missionary groups are seeking to “Islamize” the Bible by altering references to God as “Father” and to Jesus as the “Son” when translating the holy book into languages in Muslim-dominated parts of the globe. The issue has been raised by Biblical Missiology in the U.S., after translations by the missionary groups Wycliffe Bible Translators, the Summer Institute of Linguistics and Frontiers removed or modified terms that may be offensive to Muslims. An Nahar daily said Wednesday that Lebanese priest George Hosni, who hails from Zghorta, has also been spearheading the campaign against such translations. Biblical Missiology has issued a petition stating that Wycliffe and the others “are producing Bibles that remove Father, Son and Son of God because these terms are offensive to Muslims.” One example can be seen in an Arabic version of the Gospel of Matthew produced and promoted by Frontiers and SIL. It changes Matthew 28:19 from “baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” to “cleanse them by water in the name of Allah, his Messiah and his Holy Spirit.” The Presbyterian Church of America has also criticized the issue, saying in a report drafted by a study team that “footnotes, parentheticals and other paratextual comments may be used to explain the biblical and theological riches of Scripture, while never subverting the important truths embedded in the biological contours of Scripture’s words.” The PCA will discuss the study’s findings at its annual meeting in June. But after numerous appeals were rejected, the online petition was launched calling for an end to the translations.

Evangelical Christians Persecute a Muslim Background Christian.

Samer, a brother in Christ, from a Muslim background, was kicked out of his Arab Evangelical church (in Lebanon), because he gave his testimony (from a Muslim extremist to a Christian) on TV. A friend explained that it was due to the Arab Christians' instinct of self-preservation. I wrote back: the instinct of self-preservation, made Christian Arabs a dying minority that could be persecuted and driven out of any Arab country...easily...However, sooner or later, the price will be paid for being Christian, whether they succumb to Islamic terrorism, or they are bold with the Gospel.

Next Tuesday: ACMN Meeting (9 a.m.)... with Rev. Hicham Chehab at WCM - Tuesday May 15… The Aurora Christian Ministry Network (ACMN) is inviting Aurora and Fox Valley area pastors and Christian leaders to the next ACMN meeting on Tuesday, May 15, 9-10:30 a.m., at Wayside Cross Ministries(WCM), chapel, 215 E. New York St., Aurora, IL 60505. Rev. Hicham Chehab will give his story, Hicham Chehab; from a Muslim Extremist to a Follower of Christ, a Testimony to Jesus our Savior. Coffee and rolls will be served. Hicham Chehab grew up in a world of bitter animosity between Muslims and Christians, which he experienced personally in a physical attack when only about 7. By age 13 he was recruited by an extremist Muslim group(the Muslim Brotherhood) and later fought against Christians in the 1975 war in Lebanon. He was preparing to become a Muslim preacher (Imam) when a car accident laid him up for a year. In 1980, Hicham decided to become a doctor and enrolled at the American University of Beirut. In his first semester in college, his brother was killed by Christian militia. Hicham's response was to study by day, and by night take out his revenge in attacks on Christians. However, hearing the Sermon on the Mount (in a college course on cultural studies) at the climax of his hate and thirst for vengeance , he was brought to faith. Later, Hicham earned an M.A. in the history of Arabs and did Ph.D. studies in the history of Islam. Hicham finished his pastoral education at Concordia, Fort Wayne, IN. Presently, he pastors Salam Arabic Church, and works as a missionary to the Muslims in Illinois.