By Sean Toomey –
Growing up in a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon, Samer Muhammed knew only about his people’s struggle and their hatred of the Jews, until a chance encounter challenged everything he believed.
His family entered the refugee camp after they fled Israel in 1948. His childhood was surrounded by violence, with his father involved in militant activities. He grew up with six brothers and six sisters.
“I grew up with a lot of guns,” he says on Messenger TV. “My father was a leader with Yasser Arafat. My father took a lot of people into Israel to fight and come back.”
Samer recalled being 19, full of hate, ready to die for Allah. He also led prayer in the mosque 5-6 times each day. He wanted to become an imam. He was taught to follow the same Islamic beliefs as Al Qaeda.
“When 9/11 happened, we went to the streets and danced because we were happy because we need to kill these people,” he says.
Then by chance, he met a Christian outside the Palestinian camp. He was talking about Jesus and handing out Bibles.
“I wanted to kill him,” Samer says. “Why are you telling me about Jesus? I already know about the Bible. My imam told me about the Bible. Don’t you know I open the mosque and lead the prayers in the mosque? We have the truth.”
But then he broke down. He thought he would read the Bible to refute it, so he took a copy.
I don’t believe this is the word of God but I want to know what my enemy believes, he thought. This can help me in the future when I become an imam.”
But as he read the Bible, Samer was startled by Jesus’ teaching to love your enemy. “Allah says, kill your enemy. What kind of God says love your enemy?”
God began to open his eyes and woo his heart.
He had lots of questions and found himself in a room full of Christians at a meeting. The group perplexed him.
“Why do these people love me when I want to kill them?” he thought. “Why do these people have peace? I want this peace. When I go to the mosque, I am afraid of Allah. I don’t know if he loves me or if he wants to take me to Hell. The god of Islam only wants to judge you.
“I found something different in the church,” he says.
After a year and half of reading the Bible and going to church, he started to doubt the “truth” of Islam.
At the mosque, he prayed. “What is the truth, Lord?” he says.
He asked his imam. “Why are you asking these questions?” his imam responded.
Samer opened up to him and admitted he’d been reading the Bible.
“WHAT??” the imam exploded. “You are not allowed to read the Bible.”
The imam quizzed him. Did they offer you money? Did they offer you a car, a wife? Did they put drugs in your coffee and tea?
The imam tried to exorcize the demon of Christianity out of him.
The imam visited his home and took all Christian things out.
It’s hard to convert from Islam because the punishment is death.
In 2001, Samer accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior, at the price of losing his family. After his conversion, he was jailed three times in Lebanon. “My family wants to kill me,” he says.
Eventually, he went to Cyprus and drank coffee with Jewish believers in Jesus.
That was a miracle because Muslims hate Jews even more than Christians.
“In Lebanon, we’re not allowed to talk to Jews,” he says.
The Jewish Christian community met with him several times. Both he and the Jews were shocked to be sharing together.
Eventually, the Jewish brothers asked to wash his feet.
“Now I love Israel, I love the Jews,” Samer says. “Who can do that? Only Jesus can do that. Now the Jews and Arabs are fighting for 70 years in the Middle East. America wants to help. But what’s the answer? I know the answer. Jesus is the answer. When Jesus comes, there is peace, there is shalom. Without Jesus, there is no peace.”
“I am without nationality. But I thank God now I have a new Jerusalem in Heaven.”
If you want to know more about a personal relationship with God, go here
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About the writer of this article: Sean Toomey studies at Lighthouse Christian Academy near Hollywood, CA.
