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The following information was taken from the 30 Days of Prayer for the Muslim World website.
The last ten days of Ramadan are considered highly blessed. They are marked by a heightened spiritual intensity.
One night in particular (this past Saturday to be exact), called the Night of Power or Night of Destiny, Muslims prayed for blessings and forgiveness all night long. In fact, one translation of the Hadith (Qur’an commentary), has the Prophet Muhammad declaring that “whoever prays during the Night of Power with faith and hoping for its reward will have all his previous sins forgiven.” Muslims believe that the prophet Muhammad had his destiny fulfilled by receiving the first revelation of the Qur’an on that night.
And so it was on this special night and in weeks to follow, that significant numbers prayed and will continue praying in desperation genuinely seeking help from God concerning their destinies. Many will even experience supernatural encounters with God for the supernatural is very much an accepted part of Muslim life.
Because they are open to dreams and visions, Ramadan is a strategic time for Christians to believe that God would in His sovereignty reveal Himself to those who do not yet know Him. There are many stories throughout the Bible where God spoke through a dream or vision (Genesis 41, Genesis 46:2 & 3, Daniel 4, Judges 7:10-15, Ezekiel 11:24, Matthew 2:12, 19, Acts 10:3-20, Revelation 1:1). In many of these cases the end result was for the purpose of salvation or physical safety.
Here are a few contended yet surprising statistics to consider about dreams and visions:
-80% of new Christians in South Asia come to Christ as a direct result of supernatural encounters.
-More than half of new believers in Iran have had a dream or vision of Jesus.
-At least 35% of all recent Turkish conversions were in response to a dream and/or vision.
Furthermore, as Ramadan draws to a close, Muslims from Abu Dhabi to Zanzibar will end their 30 days of fasting with a celebration feast called Eid al-Fitr. In many places this can last up to three days and include a special congregational Eid prayer and recitation that is normally performed at mosques or open areas like fields or squares. Apparently, Muslims are so open right now that conversation about faith could be easily initiated. Although Ramadan is over, the necessity for prayer and action towards Muslims continues.
So, let us fervently pray that:
-God would continue to draw people to himself through faith in his Son to the praise of his glory!
-as Muslims seek their God for favor and assurance of prosperity and fortune, the Lord would be gracious toward them and address their deepest need, their unbelieving hearts, by sending his Holy Spirit to convict them of sin and to bring about despair in their hope of Allah.
-believers around them would grow in boldness during this time of spiritual awareness to proclaim the light of Christ into their world of darkness.
-dreams or visions of Jesus might lead those who have heard the message of Jesus or even read parts of the Bible to put their complete trust in Him for their salvation!
~JM for the Missions Team