Source: Vision Beyond Borders, April 2016
Before civil war erupted in 2011, ninety percent of Syrians adhered to Islam and proselytizing was restricted. The government had cracked down on churches and Christian groups who tried to evangelize Muslims, arresting some and closing buildings that were used for Christian meetings. Now, many of Syria’s unreached have been uprooted and scattered. Nearly half the population is displaced. But the movement isn’t merely physical; a powerful shift is taking place spiritually, creating an unparalleled openness to the gospel.
The closed doors are now open in refugee camps, where many are hearing about their Savior for the first time. One worker explained, “You can’t share the gospel freely in Syria, so these people have never heard it before. In a short period of time, we’ve been able to share with the same number of Syrians that it would take us months and months to share with in Syria.”
Our contacts report an extraordinary trend in the number of Muslims they have seen coming to faith in Christ in recent years. “In 2013, we started seeing a marked increase, with at least one person coming to Christ just about every week…Then in 2014, it started going crazy… There were over 400 that came to Christ in 2014, and again over 400 in 2015!” A pastor who works with Syrian refugees noted: “God is at work in a special way.”
Among this influx of new believers are many refugees from areas that Islamic State controls… and where Christians would have never gone.
[One ministry reports] discipling several hundred new believers, and are impressed by the special way God is moving in their lives: “This group has been maturing quickly and many of them are even taking over discipleship groups. It’s been amazing growth, and we are harnessing this growth in order to mobilize Lebanese and Syrian missionaries to reach out for Christ around the Middle East and North Africa.”
» See also an encouraging story about New Movements of Christ in Thailand (World Outreach International).