“And now, behold, the cry of the sons of Israel has come to Me; furthermore, I have seen the oppression with which the Egyptians are oppressing them.”
Exodus 3:9 (NASB)
The story of Exodus teaches us that God sees all suffering and hears the cries of all people, whatever their race or national origin is. He heard the cries of Israelite slaves 1400 years BC, just as He heard the cries of African slaves in the early days of America. He hears the cries of all people in every country today, who suffer injustice and cry out to Him. This is a brief story of the Kurdish people, and their years of crying out to God, especially one man in particular.
The Kurds are a people who originally lived in Kurdistan, an area spread across Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria. They have migrated from place to place, seeking independence and self rule. Their faith tradition is Sunni Moslem, who are a peace loving people, although they have suffered under many oppressive, militant regimes in predominantly Muslim regions.
Nihad is a Kurdish man from Syria who was once imprisoned and charged with political crimes, for protesting the Syrian regime of Assad, who ruled that country for over half a century. The Kurds also suffered under Sadam Hussein in Iraq as well as other regions and dictatorships.
While Nihad was lying in pain from a beating, in a tiny prison cell in Syria, he wished to die, but then he remembered a book once given to him by someone from a Billy Graham ministry.
In his pain and desperation, Nihad prayed. “Jesus, if you are real, please help me.” That day, he had a clear vision in that cramped, dirty prison cell. In the vision, he saw a man dressed in pure white, walking into his cell, and carrying a bowl of olive oil. The man in white poured olive oil over Nihad’s wounds and his pain immediately left. The man in his vision said something he never forgot. He said, “You are my beloved and I love you”, and then disappeared. Nihad knew in his heart that the man was Jesus.
Six months later, Nihad was freed from prison, but those words have energized him ever since. He is now a Christian pastor, discipling other Kurds who have also found faith in Jesus, and migrated to South Korea for refuge.
Thousands of Kurds have been turning to Christianity through a dream or a vision of Jesus, and traveled to South Korea, where a growing community of Kurdish Christians, like Nihad, are living in safety and freedom.
Jesus is calling disciples from all races, religions and nations, but in the Mideast, He seems to be doing it through dreams and visions. The Lord said that those who seek for Him with all their heart, will find Him, and many are.
(Jeremiah 29:13)
God seems to be extending a special grace to people in these oppressive, war torn countries, where citizens suffer torture, imprisonment and murder, just for seeking freedom. God hears their cries and He is responding, by revealing His beloved Son to them. God is making disciples in the faith, giving them comfort, hope and peace.
I heard an interesting explanation of the difference between a religious person and a disciple:
Religious people like to tell others what they’ve done for God, but a disciple loves to tell others what God has done for him. May God keep making disciples throughout the world.
Jesus said that the pure in heart shall see God, and many are seeing Him for the first time. No matter how bad a situation appears to be, with large scale violence or injustice, God is still on His throne and He responds to all who cry out to Him.
Lord, we praise you for hearing the cries of all people. We pray for those who suffer, and ask you to give them a place of refuge and hope in you. Amen
