The Book Of Faisal Malick
Introduction
Faisal
Malick was born in Pakistan and raised a devout Sunni Muslim. Although he was
steeped in this religious training, he felt empty inside. This Canadian
businessman considered Jesus to be no more than a Prophet, the Bible
inaccurate, and the worship of Jesus unforgivable blasphemy. He took pleasure
in challenging Christians in heated debates and was determined to win them to
Islam.
Invitation
A friend invited Faisal to go to church with him. Faisal declined and
instead asked the friend to go to the mosque with him. This same friend invited
him to a business conference with approximately 20,000 people. An offer had
been given for front row seats at the afternoon business conference for all who
attended the First Day morning session. As an entrepreneurial businessman and
eager student, Malick understood that the best instructors are those that had
already achieved success in their area of instruction and purposed to take
advantage of opportunities to learn from the “masters”. A guaranteed front row
seat for the seminar was an enticing reward for simply attending the early
meeting. It wasn’t until the morning session started that the realization of
the purpose of the First Day service became clear. As the speaker stepped to
the podium, he welcomed the crowded room announcing, “Jesus is the Son of God.”
Faisal thought this was blasphemous! However, he admired the technique that was
used and made the decision that he would use the same strategy to promote
Islam.
AN ENCOUNTER WITH GOD
Faisal attended two additional religious services connected with the
business conventions. It was at the third service that he had an encounter with
God. This was on July 3, 1994. He received the message of God’s love; he
noticed that Christians had a peace about them. As the altar call was given at
the conclusion of the meeting, Malick watched without emotion as others
responded to the invitation for salvation.
Suddenly he sensed God’s presence right in front of him. His first
thought was - why would God manifest Himself among these people! Immediately he
had a multitude of questions racing through his mind, but in his heart, he
asked God only one: “God, what are you doing here? I thought these
Christians were the bad guys.”
In response, Malick heard an audible voice reply three times with the
same answer, “No, these are My children.” As God spoke, His voice moved through
Faisal and everything he had ever known up to that moment shattered.
He also asked the Lord, “Take away my stony heart and give me a new
heart,” was Malick’s cry as he experienced new birth. “I didn’t completely
understand what happened or how completely I had been changed until
later.”
FROM MUSLIM TO MINISTER
Now, the same zeal which had motivated him to win others to Allah, was
directed at winning people to Christ. Sharing his testimony became a daily
event and within two or three years, Faisal had led approximately 1,500 people
to the Lord - Muslims to Jews and Hindus, most of them in his car which was
affectionately called the “Save Mobile.”
He didn’t realize that what he was doing was unusual. Faisal recalls
that one Muslim man came for two years without accepting Jesus. On the night he
finally did decide to receive Christ, he said a presence kept following him and
didn’t leave until he accepted the Lord.
Another Muslim man came to him with his top 20 questions no Christian
could answer. Faisal did not know what the man was going to ask or what he
would answer him. Suddenly, an answer came after the man’s first question - and
the answers kept coming. By the fifteenth or sixteenth question, God’s change
came upon the man. He had to run to the bathroom because he was weeping. He
came back and his twentieth question was, “How do I know that what you’re
saying is truth?”
Faisal answered, “Truth is a person.”
Then the man’s next question was, “How do I know this Jesus?”
Faisal’s family somehow heard about his new found faith and sold the
house they allowed him to live in. Faisal had to live in his car during one of
the worst winters in Canada. He would move from parking lot to parking lot in
the evenings and go to McDonald’s in the mornings to shave. This did not stop
him from sharing the Gospel with others. He eventually was able to move
into a basement and his life went back to normal.
However, now he had the challenge of his family. He went back to visit
them in Pakistan, six years after he saw them last. When his step-father, who
is a great man of integrity and well respected in the family and community, saw
Faisal, he sensed Faisal was a “holy person.” After his three-week visit,
although his family did not receive Christ, his stepfather said, “You have
exceeded my expectations and seem to be a pure and holy man of God.”
Also, God has given him a unique opportunity among the Muslim and Hindu
people through both his background and what is referred to as the “mehrab.”
Faisal says in the Islamic world a mehrab is a mark on the forehead, which
Muslims believe is a sign from God of a holy man. Hindus favour this mark too
as a sign of God’s miraculous blessing. Many try to achieve this mark
from their faithful devotion to the ritual of daily prayers. Faisal has a mark
on his forehead. The most interesting thing is that it is not a birthmark. It
just appeared when he was about 14-years-old. At the time, he didn’t understand
its significance. But, today, Faisal sees it as a gift. Through this sign, God
has opened doors of acceptance Faisal could never open himself.
In Canada, he would meet people at the local Perkins Restaurant. But,
this newly found passion took him on the road traveling and ministering life in
schools, homes, churches and business communities. People would also invite him
to speak at home groups, most averaging 150 people, and lives would be
transformed. Many that attended these group meetings became pastors, knew
pastors, etc., that would tell others about Faisal.
Once he was invited to speak at a church. The pastor told him there were
two TV cameras at the back of the church and that it would be telecast in
Canada and the U.S. – and he would minister in front of the church. Faisal read
a passage from the Gospel of John. He felt the power of God, and one third of
the crowd gave their lives to Christ. This was the first time Faisal was on TV.
More ministry opportunities presented themselves.
In August 2003, Faisal’s ministry made a transition to TV. God told
Faisal to ‘love these My people.’ God showed Faisal the power of TV and that
Faisal would be used in a great way on TV to minister to Muslims. God also
showed Faisal that the wall of Islam would fall. He was also making more TV
appearances on the Inspirational Network, Sid Roth’s show and others. He
launched his daily show, Plumbline,
on February 2, 2009, which reaches at least 55 nations a month.
GOD’S MESSAGE TO MUSLIMS
God loves the Muslim people. About 40 percent of the gentile population
is Muslim. God has not forgotten them. God still has a Father’s heart towards
them, and hears their cry and longing for their Father. Just like in the story
of Ishmael, the firstborn son of Abraham, who was exiled into the desert in favour
of Abraham’s promised son, Isaac (see Genesis 21:17). The name Ishmael means,
“God hears.” He was one of four people in the Bible named before they were
born, which indicated their destiny. Ishmael and his mother, Haggar, were
exiled to the desert at the request of Sarah for the sake of Abraham’s promised
child, Isaac. After a long journey in the desert, Ishmael was dying of thirst
and cried out. God heard Ishmael’s cry and took care of him.
God
promises to hear the Muslims’ hearts and be their loving Father. Understanding
the roots of the Muslim people is an important key to understanding the current
situation as well as ministering to Muslims. Dreams and visions are important
to the Muslims. There will be a generation of Muslims that come to Jesus
through dreams and visions – in the dreams and visions, they see a Man clothed
in white garment. The Church needs to be ready to explain. Muslims are
open to dreams and visions, open to God speaking to them in this way.
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