Record Number of Ex-Muslims Celebrate Christmas this Year

[Excerpts]More Muslims converted to faith in Jesus Christ over the past decade than at any other time in human history.
A spiritual revolution is underwaythroughout North Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia.

As a result, arecord number of ex-Muslims are celebrating Christmas this year, despiteintense persecution, arrests, assassinations, and widespread churchbombings.Iraq: more than 5,000 new Muslim converts to Christianity have beenidentified since the end of major combat operations, with 14 new churchesopened in Baghdad, and dozens of new churches opened in Kurdistan, some ofwhich have 500 to 800 members.

Also, more than 1 million Bibles shipped intothe country since 2003, and pastors report Iraqis are snatching them up sofast they constantly need more Bibles. [Update: Iraqi Christians CelebrateChristmas, 12/25]Egypt: some reports say 1 million Egyptians have trusted Christ over thepast decade or so.
The Egyptian Bible Society told me they used to sellabout 3,000 copies of the JESUS film a year in the early 1990s. But lastyear they sold 600,000 copies, plus 750,000 copies of the Bible on tape (inArabic) and about a half million copies of the Arabic New Testament."Egyptians are increasingly hungry for God's Word," an Egyptian Christianleader told me. Last Christmas, I had the privilege of visiting the largestChristian congregation in the Middle East, which meets in an enormous caveon the outskirts of Cairo. Some 10,000 believers worship there everyweekend.
A prayer conference the church held in May 2005 drew some 20,000believers.Afghanistan: only 17 Muslim converts to Christianity before 9/11/01, but nowmore than 10,000. Dozens of baptisms every week.Kazakstan: only 3 known Christians in 1990, but now more than 15,000.Uzbekistan: no known Christians in 1990, but now more than 30,000.Sudan: more than 1 million Sudanese have converted to Christianity justsince 2000, and some 5 million have become Christians since the early 1990s,despite a radical Islamic regime and an on-going genocide that has killedmore than 200,000. Seminaries are being held in caves to train pastors to shepherd the huge numbers of people coming to Christ.

Why such a dramatics piritual awakening? "People have seen real Islam, and they want Jesus instead," one Sudanese evangelical leader told me.

Iran: in 1979, there were only 500 known Muslim converts to Christianity,but today Iranian pastors and evangelical leaders tell me there are morethan 1 million Iranian believers in Jesus Christ, most of whom meet inunderground house churches. [Update: Iranian authorities arrest 8 leaders ofhouse church movement.]

December 2001, Sheikh Ahmad al Qataani, a leading Saudi cleric, appeared ona live interview on Aljazeera satellite television to confirm that, sureenough, Muslims were turning to Jesus in alarming numbers. "In every hour,667 Muslims convert to Christianity," Al Qataani warned.

"Every day, 16,000Muslims convert to Christianity. Every year, 6 million Muslims convert toChristianity."Stunned, the interviewer interrupted the cleric. "Hold on! Let me clarify.

Do we have six million converting from Islam to Christianity?" Al Qataani repeated his assertion. "Every year," the cleric confirmed, adding, "a tragedy has happened."