This mosque stands proudly at one of the major intersections in Sarajevo.
This represents a pictorial history of Sarajevo for the past 25 years. Sarajevo hosted the 1984 Winter Olympics. (The tower in the photo is displaying the Olympic rings.) Yet when Communism fell, Yugoslavia plunged into a civil war. The Croats, Serbs and Bosnians all were at war with each other. Sarajevo was one of the places hit hardest during the civil war. Both Christian and Muslim cemeteries are found throughout the city.
The room was stifling hot. The fact that the room was filled with people did not help to cool things. Even though it was evening, it had been well into the 90s earlier in the day. The windows were open but it just brought in the heat, noise and dirt from the street. Most everyone was trying to cool themselves with little hand fans made from paper. My shirt was soaked in sweat. Air conditioning was a luxury no one remotely expected. I had been speaking for almost an hour through a translator. I thought, “Too long; maybe I should just stop.”
But as I looked around the room all eyes were on me; the body language of my mostly Muslim audience said, “Keep going; we are listening.” I could not believe it! It was under these conditions I was lecturing on the Authority of the Bible.
To be in a Muslim country and to speak on this topic and share Christ was a dream come true and a highpoint of my life as a missionary!
I was in
Friday noon prayers at a mosque in Sarajevo. What 11:00 am Sunday is for American Christians, noon on Friday is for Muslims.
Campus Crusade has teams that rotate in and out of the city on one year cycles (STINT) as well as an extra influx of manpower during the early summer. I was asked to come there and speak three consecutive nights on three topics, “Creation vs. Evolution,” “Truth vs. Relativity,” and “the Authority of the Bible.” Instead of just presenting facts, I tried to connect with the heart of my audience, telling personal stories and showing movie clips to help illustrate my points.
“They came because they wanted to hear about the topic; no one is forcing them to be here,” one of the Campus Crusade staff told me. “They don’t hear this truth about the Bible or Jesus in their mosques, on TV, or from anywhere. They equate Christianity with MTV since both are from
During the Q & A time, one older man, who sat on the front row during all 3 lectures, said, “I have been searching for God for 25 years. There are 2 big hurdles keeping me from the Christian God.” He went on to cite classic Muslim arguments from John 14:16 (does Jesus predict Mohammad's coming here?) and the apocrypha writing, “Gospel of Barnabas,” which presents a very Muslim Jesus. Through God’s grace, I was able to give the Christian view (and the accurate historical view) of both topics. When the meeting ended, he was quickly talking with several of our summer missionaries.
One of the many Muslim cemeteries in Sarajevo. It is a reminder of all the Muslims daily that enter eternity without Jesus Christ.
During the Q & A, questions were asked implying a myriad of misconceptions ranging from the Trinity to exactly what happened in the Council of Nicea in AD 325, damage largely propagated by the movie, “The Da Vinci Code,” and snatched onto by Muslim apologists. I found it incredulous that the majority of Muslim arguments against the Bible are rooted in misinformation, urban legends and down-right lies. For many Muslims (not all) their style is to deny, deflect and to argue with a loud, intimidating voice. Only a few of the objections raised dealt with the content of what I had shared; rather many were pre-packaged arguments against Christianity.
Scott Moffatt (right), a life-long friend and staff member with Campus Crusade in Jacksonville, FL, brought his wife Katrina and 4 kids with him to Sarajevo for the summer. Here he is witnessing to Delvin after one of my talks. Delvin is a Muslim and has been associating with our work there in Sarajevo for years. Everyone likes Delvin but he is stubborn toward the God who loves him. Pray for Delvin!
When Paul preached in
Teams have labored in Sarajevo for years with little fruit. Yet many feel that is about to change. Here are two men who came to Christ just this past month through our work there. Ahmed (left) from a Muslim background and George (right) was saved from a background of drug abuse and organized crime. Pray for both of these guys!
When the lecture session finally broke up, conversations continued at a nearby outdoor café late into the evening. A college student nicknamed “Bookie” came up and hugged me and said, “I have never taken the Bible seriously. But because of your message tonight, I will start reading it.” One of our staff serving in
After one of my lectures, a group that had sat in the back came forward to talk to me. They were believers from the local "Seventh Day Adventist" churchplant. Their pastor told me, "Anytime the gospel is being preached in this town we try to get there and encourage our fellow Christians." When Christians are the minority, denominational differences are quickly set aside.
There is a beauty, a simplicity, even a purity that continues to attract me to these Balkan (
Men playing chess with life-sized pieces at a park in Sarajevo. The men watching were quick to either cheer or boo at each move made by the players.
This is me with both the Sarajevo summer team and the STINT team made up of mostly students from the Atlanta area. They faithfully shared Christ often to hard hearts in a tough setting.
