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An eight year student of
formal theological studies accepts Islam due to the consistency of its
message.
“What happened to you?” This was usually the first reaction I encountered when
my former classmates, friends and co-pastors saw me after having embraced
Islam. I suppose I couldn’t
blame them, I was a highly unlikely the person to change religions. Formerly, I was a professor,
pastor, church planter and missionary. If anyone was a radical fundamentalist it was I.
I had just graduated with
my Master’s Degree of Divinity from an elite seminary five months
before. It was after that time
I met a lady who had worked in Saudi Arabia and had embraced Islam. Of course, I asked her about the
treatment of women in Islam. I
was shocked at her answer, it wasn’t what I expected, so I proceeded to ask
other questions relating to God and Muhammad [may God praise him]. She informed me that she would take
me to the Islamic Center where they would be better able to answer my
questions.
Being prayed up,
meaning-asking Jesus for protection against demon spirits, seeing that what
we had been taught about Islam is that it is Demonic and Satanic religion. Having taught Evangelism, I was
quite shocked at their approach, it was direct and straightforward. No intimidation, no harassment, no
psychological manipulation, no subliminal influence! None of this, “Let’s have a Quranic
study in your house,” like a counter part of the Bible study. I couldn’t believe it! They gave me some books and told me
if I had some questions they were available to answer them in the office. That night I read all of the books
they gave. It was the first
time I had ever read a book about Islam written by a Muslim, we had studied
and read books about Islam only written by Christians. The next day I spent three hours at
the office asking questions.
This went on everyday for a week, by which time I had read twelve
books and knew why Muslims are the hardest people in the world to convert
to Christianity. Why? Because there is nothing to offer
them!! (In Islam) There is a relationship with God, forgiveness of sins,
salvation and promise of Eternal Life.
Naturally, my first question
centered on the deity of God.
Who is this God that the Muslims worship? We had been taught as Christians that this is another
god, a false god, when, in fact, He is the Omniscient-All Knowing,
Omnipotent-All Powerful, and Omnipresent-All Present God - The One and Only
without co-partners or co-equal.
It is interesting to note that there were bishops during the first
three hundred years of the Church that were teaching as the Muslim
believes, that Jesus [may God praise him] was a prophet and teacher!! It was only after the conversion of
Emperor Constantine that he was the one to call and introduce the doctrine
of the Trinity. He, a convert
to Christianity who knew nothing of this religion, introduced a paganistic
concept that goes back to Babylonian times. Space, however, does not permit me to go into detail
about the subject, but God willing, we will another time. Only, I must point out that the
word TRINITY is not found in the Bible in any of its many translation nor
is it found in the original Greek or Hebrew languages!
My other important question
centered on Muhammad [may God praise him]. Who is this Muhammad? I found out that Muslims do not pray to him like the
Christians pray to Jesus. He
is not an intermediary and in fact it is forbidden to pray to him. We ask blessing upon him at the end
of our prayer but likewise we ask blessings on Abraham. He is a Prophet and a Messenger,
the final and last Prophet. In
fact, until now, one thousand four hundred and eighteen years (1,418) later
there has been no prophet after him.
His message is for All Mankind, as opposed to the message of Jesus
or Moses (peace be upon them both) which was sent to the Jews. “Hear O Israel” But the message
is the same message of God.
“The Lord Your God is One God and you shall have no other gods
before Me.” (Mark 12:29)
Because prayer was a very
important part of my Christian life I was both interested and curious to
know what the Muslims were praying.
As Christians we were as ignorant on this aspect of Muslim belief as
on the other aspects. We
thought and were taught, that the Muslims were bowing down to the Kaaba (in
Mecca), that that was there god and center point of this false deity. Again, I was shocked to learn that
the manner of prayer is prescribed by God, Himself. The words of the prayer are one of
praise and exaltation. The
approach to prayer (ablution or washing) in cleanliness is under the
direction of God. He is a Holy
God and it is not for us to approach Him in an arbitrary manner, but only
reasonable that He should tell us how we should approach Him.
At the end of that week
after having spent eight (8) years of formal theological studies, I knew
cognitively (head knowledge) that Islam was true. But I did not embrace Islam at that time because I did
not believe it in my heart. I
continued to pray, to read the Bible, to attend lectures at the Islamic
Center. I was in earnest
asking and seeking God’s direction.
It is not easy to change your religion. I did not want to loose my salvation if there was
salvation to loose. I
continued to be shocked and amazed at what I was learning because it was
not what I was taught that Islam believed. In my Master’s level, the professor I had was respected
as an authority on Islam yet his teaching and that of Christianity in
general is full of Misunderstanding.
He and many Christians like him are sincere but they are sincerely
wrong.
Two months later after
having once again prayed seeking God’s direction, I felt something drop
into my being! I sat up, and
it was the first time I was to use the name of God, and I said, “God, I
believe you are the One and Only True God.” There was peace that descended upon me and from that day
four years ago until now I have never regretted embracing Islam. This decision did not come without
trial. I was fired from my job
as I was teaching in two Bible Colleges at that time, ostracized by my
former classmates, professors and co-pastors, disowned by my husband’s
family, misunderstood by my adult children and made a suspicion by my own
government. Without the faith
that enables man to stand up to Satanic forces I would not have been able
to withstand all of this. I am
ever so grateful to God that I am a Muslim and may I live and die a Muslim.
“Truly, my prayer, my service of sacrifice, my life and my
death are all for God the Cherisher of the Worlds. No partner has He, this I am
commanded. And I am the first
of those who bow to God in Islam.” (Quran 6:162-163)
Sister Khadijah Watson is
presently working as a teacher for women in one of the Da’wah (Invitation
to Islam) Centers in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
By
Sue Watson
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