I genuinely do not want to write this—yet what are we, if not ready writers for the words of the Lord?
It was 2:58 a.m. I was awake. Not because I woke up, but because sleep—after holding me for several hours—simply left. It released its grip and departed. I lay there, searching for sleep, but it eluded me. Over and over again.
What should I do with this time? I thought.
I genuinely wanted to go back to sleep so I wouldn’t be tired for work. Instead, I decided to pray, especially since I had just come out of an unpleasant dream. I prayed for several minutes, as the Lord led.
When I finished praying, I lay down again, hoping to sleep—but once more, sleep escaped me. Like an estranged wife, it eluded me again and again.
So I turned to a book I had been putting off for several days: Captive in Iran. A fascinating book—telling the story of Maryam and Marziyeh and their experiences as Christians in Iran.
I grabbed my phone, turned on the flashlight, and began to read. Flip. Flip. Page by page. Turn by turn.
Bold women. In their search for truth, they found Christ. Miraculously, they encountered Him even before laying eyes on a Bible. Their hearts were set on Him, and they sought to spread this new love they had found. They gave out copies of the New Testament to anyone willing and spoke of Christ to whoever was inclined to listen.
As I read, something struck me—maybe several things.
Maryam’s full conversion came after she read the book of Luke—yes, the entire book. On the last page was a confession of conversion, which she immediately recited, professing her faith and love for Christ.
Another moment: Maryam was in a bookstore when she saw a man ask for a Bible. When the manager said they didn’t have any, she followed the man outside and gave him one of her own. The man told her he had a dream in which Jesus instructed him to get a Bible and go to a quiet place in the mountains so He could speak with him. The man had his hiking pack with him and was already on his way to meet Jesus.
What a moment. What an encounter.
You see, I’ve been a Christian all my life. I’ve preached the Gospel. I’ve professed Christ to a handful of people. And to be honest with you—I do not think that’s enough.
These two encounters touched me deeply. I haven’t even finished the book yet—I’m still in Chapter 5.
First: I’ve read from the book of Luke, but I’ve never finished the book of Luke. I see this as a failure. To be saved is to be on fire for Christ, and to be on fire is to hunger for His Word. I see how little hunger I’ve had—and that realization is daunting. Scary, if I’m being honest.
Second: the bookstore encounter broke me. I was truly in tears. To be used by God—Maryam was right there, available, positioned for that man to encounter his Maker. And the man’s willingness—to go all the way to the mountains with a Bible he had probably never read before, just to meet his Savior and hear Him speak—I still wonder about his journey today.
As I write this, under the leading and nudging of the Holy Spirit, my heart is inclined to urge us to share the Gospel of Christ.
I see it all around me—Christians timid, wordless, prayerless, filled with misplaced and disordered passions. We are so engulfed by modern technology that we have lost our first love. Our passion for Christ has been pacified by things I can barely name.
I see it all around me.
You see it too.
The world is changing. Fewer people speak of Christ, while more are captured by this deep, dark world.
We are called to rise up—to pray, to speak, to return to the love that has set us free. We are to hunger for the Word. We are to pray more.
This has sparked something in me.
I am now on a journey to finish the book of Luke—and, in time, the whole Bible. I’ve prayed more today than I have in several days. I pray this fire continues. I pray that Christ finds confidence in me—maybe in you too—if you yield to the prompting of the Lord.
I’m still awake, writing this.
I pray this blesses you and sparks something within you.
Stay blessed.
