“Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus” presents a gripping and deeply personal account of Nabeel Qureshi’s journey to faith in Jesus.
Qureshi’s story of family, friends, and faith, intertwined with insights into Islam, helped me understand the Muslim world in new ways and see the powerful ways in which God is meeting seekers today.
March 7, 2017 – “My family and I have received the news that I have advanced stomach cancer, and the clinical prognosis is quite grim. Nonetheless, we are going to pursue healing aggressively, both medical and miraculous, relying on God and the fact that He is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine.
In the past few days my spirits have soared and sank as I pursue the Lord’s will and consider what the future might look like, but never once have I doubted this: that Jesus is Lord, His blood has paid my ransom, and by His wounds I am healed. I have firm faith that my soul is saved by the grace and mercy of the Triune God, and not by any accomplishment or merit of my own. I am so thankful that I am a child of the Father, redeemed by the Son, and sealed in the Spirit. No, in the midst of the storm, I do not have to worry about my salvation, and for that I praise you, God.” Nabeel’s FB Page
Nabeel’s Story
Qureshi, a medical doctor by training, began his study of the Gospel in order to challenge it. In so doing he joined the ranks of Dr Simon Greenleaf, CS Lewis, Josh McDowell, and Lee Stroebel – agnostics and atheists who set out to disprove the tenets of Christianity and became Christians in the process.
Growing up in a devout Muslim family, Qureshi read the entire Quran in Arabic by age five, memorized more than a dozen chapters by his teens and boldly proclaimed Islam to his friends of other religions. His devotion to Allah was only eclipsed by his love for his parents. He affectionately calls them “Abba” and “Ammi.”
His book is dedicated to his parents, whose hearts he broke by converting to Christianity.
Out Of The Struggle
Qureshi’s love for Islam defined and directed his life until a close college friend defended the Christian message with compelling evidence and disrupted everything he knew about religion, faith and meaning.
The depth of Qureshi’s inner struggles are reflected in his prayers in the Prologue as he pleads, “Allah, please have mercy on me. I don’t mean to doubt you.”
Its from this struggle that he emerged with a genuine faith in Jesus as his Saviour.
7 Insights Into Finding Faith in Jesus
1. The journey to faith in Jesus is intellectual and supernatural. Qureshi intellectually tested the claims of Christianity. Shaken by the potential that Christianity might be true, Qureshi turned to God for direct guidance and was given a vision and dreams that led him to Jesus.
2. Finding Jesus is about Jesus finding you. Any interest we have in finding Jesus is first prompted by His Spirit. God will use circumstances, coincidences, friendships, miracles, dreams and suffering to direct us to Jesus.
3. The strength of your faith is influenced by the depth of your struggle in coming to faith. “I knew that accepting Jesus would be like dying and I would have to give up everything, because for Muslims, following the gospel is more than a call to prayer. It is a call to die,” he explains. (p. 278)
“I gave my life to Jesus, and to this day my family is broken by the decision I made. It is excruciating every time I see the cost I had to pay.”
4. Becoming a Christian is not all joy, peace, love and the end of the struggle. Qureshi says, “My first year as a Christian was unimaginably difficult and without a doubt the most painful period of my life.” (p. 287)
When he declared his faith in Jesus to his family, his father told him, “I feel like my backbone has been ripped from inside,” and his mother pleaded, “Why have you betrayed me?” (p. 280, 281)
5. The journey to faith is more circuitous than linear. In leading others to Christ patience is a virtue. Honest questions should be asked. Inner struggles must be dealt with. For Qureshi it was a journey of almost four years. The length of time in coming to faith does not make a conversion any less supernatural – it just requires tenacity and patience in guiding someone to faith.
6. Leading someone to faith in Jesus is best served by respectful and loving relationships. Throughout his story, Qureshi provides a compassionate and powerful apologetic for Christianity, with an emphasis on building relationships and demonstrating love.
7. Think critically about your faith. Qureshi’s education shaped him to think critically but that shape didn’t fit into his culture. Christians have nothing to fear from critical thinking. The Bible, Jesus, the Resurrection and other critical tenets of the Christian faith can stand up to critical thinking. As a believer, you can’t afford to know what you believe without knowing why you believe it.
I was given a free copy of this book to review by BookLook bloggers.
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APPLICATION: Do you have friends who are Muslims or who have a Muslim heritage? What did you appreciate most about this review?
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Just a few days ago I watched Nabeel Qureshi and Ravi Zachariah’s meeting on Youtube. I follow lot of Dr.Ravi Zachariah’s seminar and meetings . Ravi also was born in an Indian Brahmin’s(Hindu Preacher’s family). It was a very challenging and heart warming meeting to watch and listen. A man ,(Ravi )who came from an orthodox Hindu preacher family and Nabeel from a Muslim preacher family,finds Jesus and follows HIM in such a powerful way.
The Spirit of the Lord is at work around the globe revealing Jesus to seekers in powerful ways. You’ll find Nabeel’s book informative and moving.
Last summer i went to an International Baptist Conference in Switzerland. The first night I was there, the speaker opened his message with, “Don’t you give up! Don’t you dare give up!” I was captured instantly by his passion and his compassion. Each night I felt my heart racing to get into the church to hear what he was going to say next. I was moved to tears by his story as he spoke about being raised in a Muslim family and searching for Christ. He spoke about his family, and the amazing work of God with such awe. I have goose bumps as I type this and remember his story. His name was Saliem Kahlel. You can view more of his story at http://www.sonspots.org/interviews/my-quest-for-god.html
I truly believe the statement above about the depth of your faith is in relation to the depth of your struggle. Saliem spoke strongly about this as well as leading others to Christ by love and respect.
You really get around – Switzerland. Wow. I’ll look up the site for Saliem. Thanks for commenting.
What a wonderful story. My girlfriend’s husband has a similar story of searching for more of Allah and finding Jesus. I love the reminder to seek more of God, he will be found.