A few weeks ago, during our weekly outreach into the community, I met an Iraqi refugee named Joad. He was very friendly and very talkative. When I told him I was an American, I said, but it's OK, we can still be friends. He agreed, saying that it's all political and that the governments and the media of both of our countries practically try to make us hate each other. So, we had a really good chat for over an hour in the street. He told me and my other friend that it was really good just to be able to talk with someone about all the hard things that are going on in his life and have someone to listen to. Foreigners to Cyprus from the middle east are usually not treated well and not given equal status to natives. This man was very intelligent, friendly and his english was quite good. He told us he believes in God, because of the amazing intelligence and beauty and design he sees in nature. However, he said he was not a muslim nor a christian, because he says that religion has caused SO much hurt and pain and destruction in the world. He mentioned all the civil wars between Sunni and Shi'ite Muslims as well as Christianity and the Crusades. He poured out his heart about the deaths of family and friends and the terrible destruction that has ravaged his homeland. He was lucky/smart enough to get out of Iraq before the war.
Pray that we meet him again and have a chance to hear more of his story and introduce him to Jesus, not a religion.
