[2024 Ramadan Day29] Blessings in the World, Syria- High Priest of Arab

Why have the Syrian people been in darkness for so long? Approximately 12 million people have become refugees both inside and outside Syria. There has probably never been a country in history where half the population has become refugees. God has written His history through the great migration of His people. God's new work advanced even further in the extreme situation of leaving his native country, his relatives, and his father's home. We must look at the refugee problem that the world is focusing on today from a spiritual perspective, and look at the amazing things God has planned by scattering the Syrian refugees, the world's largest refugee population. Especially in the Middle East, where many Syrian refugees live, Arab churches are rising up in solidarity to serve Syrian refugees. We are seeing the fulfillment of Isaiah 19, where young Arabs whose native language is Arabic come forward as missionaries and serve refugees with one vision. It is not just a matter of young people in Arab countries who decided to give their lives for Jesus serving Syrian refugees together. The same goes for inside Syria. Arab youth and young people from churches around the world are going into Syria, where no one goes yet because it is dangerous, and are seeing an amazing revival. Like the high priest who took on all the sins of the nation and went to the Holy of Holies, when Syria takes on all the sins and suffering of the Arabs and goes to the Holy of Holies, God's mission plan for the 2 billion Muslims, the descendants of Ishmael, will be accomplished more quickly. Arabs, the land where Islam originated, will see a great revival due to God's amazing intervention at the end.

We are not refugees we are missionaries!

God always works in direct opposition to the world's ways. Therefore, we cannot understand God’s providence through worldly logic. Refugees are the world's outcasts, the poorest and most pitiful people. Refugees are people who live with all kinds of worries and anxieties. However, it is clearly said that these people will be happy and have everything. What are the things Syrian refugees have heard the most so far? It would be the word ‘refugee.’ If a one-year-old child had come over as a refugee right after the war, he or she would have been 10 years old now. If he had passed when he was 10, the child would have been a 20-year-old young man. “You cannot do this or that because you are a refugee.” These words, which we have heard countless times, are their identity. But now, Syrian refugees are breaking away from this identity defined by the world and emerging with a new identity. Refugees are rising, confessing that they are not living abroad because of the war, but that the Lord has called them to be missionaries.

The Ramadan landscape for refugees is very different from before. In hometown, all shops are closed and no one buys or sells before Iftar (the first meal after fasting). However, in Turkiye, where there are the largest number of Syrian refugees, there are not many places closed and it feels like normal, but Syrian refugees are fasting more and more and seem to be finding their own identity here. The scenery of abundant food, expectations for the biggest holidays, and excursions to see family has changed a lot. Although they still look forward to Eid (the holiday after Ramadan), they feel sad that they cannot buy new clothes for all their children due to the skyrocketing cost of living and the difficulty of making a living. All of their relatives are in Syria, and they spend the holiday alone because they are alone. So we can see more of them coming down to their faith. However, through this darkness, the Lord begins even new things during this period.

Here, just before Ramadan, young people from all Arab countries gathered to hold a conference. It was a time when the young people who attended the conference made a stronger confession of faith than ever before, longed for revival, and decided to give their lives. In particular, many souls who had recently accepted Jesus attended, and after attending, there was time to make a decision about baptism. Hallelujah! At the opening time of Ramadan, the Lord has already revealed that victory has been achieved.

Even during the evangelism time held by all ministers once a week, more prepared souls are met and the gospel is spread powerfully. We met souls who had already been to church and souls who had converted in their families, and we read the Bible together. We listened to the confessions of souls who said, “The Bible moved my heart more, but I am still afraid to change my religion.” , We are seeing the Lord work beyond our thoughts and levels that it is difficult to meet souls during Ramadan. And when we meets souls who are poor in spirit or whose bodies are sick, and prays for them, he responds with tears and wants to continue meeting with them. He is attaching them to those who are ready!

Although there is spiritual resistance in church gatherings, news of grace is being heard. There were instances where friends who had been absent from meetings came back to attend worship services during Ramadan. As they progress and attend baptism school, they are moving forward with a stronger faith. Nevertheless, Satan's interference continued, causing them to postpone baptism, but we clearly see and experience that the Lord is doing even more powerful things during this Ramadan!

The Lord will allow us to see the Syrian people rise up through the spark of revival as missionaries, not refugees, and fulfill the words of the covenant!

[Today’s prayer]

1. More than half of the population is a Syrian people who have become refugees, but in order to leave their homeland, relatives and father's house, and rise up as a people who complete God's work, they abandon their identity as refugees and follow the call of the Lord who called them as missionaries to the ends of the earth. So that they can become a Syrian people moving forward.

2. During this Ramadan, may the Lord touch their thirsty hearts and bring about the work of salvation in which countless souls break the power of Islam and accept the Lord.