Project Prayer: Ramadan 2016 - Day 27

Day 27: “Night of Power” – dreams and visions

By Gary Fallesen, founding president, Climbing For Christ
 

The blind man, whom we have visited each of the past three missions to Mount Ararat, knew we’d be coming. He had a dream about it. In the dream, I knocked on his door and held photos in my hand.

We were earlier than he expected when we arrived at his house in eastern Turkey on June 9, 2015. In previous years, we’d visited at the beginning of August (2013) and in late June (2014).

But we did show up with photos in hand; photos of his family from the year before. He was overjoyed.

Through a Kurdish friend’s translation I told him I had come because Jesus had sent me. He said he knew that. I also told him that I believed he would have more dreams about Jesus. He said he understood, and he asked us to pray for him.

My prayer was that he would have more dreams about Christ and through them realize Jesus is the One True God.

This is our prayer today: may many of our Muslim friends and neighbors (next door and to the ends of the earth) be reached by dreams and visions of the God of the Bible.

The 27th night of Ramadan is called Laylat al-Qadr, which means great or valuable night. This is also known as the Night of Decree, Night of Power, and Night of Destiny.

Laylat al-Qadr was the first night of revelation of the Holy Qur’an to the prophet Muhammad by the angel Gabriel (Jibrail). Muslims consider this the most important moment in history. They spend much of the 27th night of Ramadan in prayer and worship. Prayers offered on this night are said to be worth all of the prayers of 1,000 months.

“Indeed, We sent the Qur’an down during the Night of Decree. And what can make you know what is the Night of Decree? The Night of Decree is better than a thousand months. The angels and the Spirit descend therein by permission of their Lord for every matter. Peace it is until the emergence of dawn.” (Surah 97:1-5)

Muslims believe that on this night the blessings and mercy of God are abundant. Sins are forgiven, prayers are heard, and their fate for the next year will be revealed by angels. This means they are open to God revealing Himself to them.

It is our prayer that the Holy Spirit will touch the hearts of many, many Muslims on this night.

I pray that the scores of Kurdish and Turkish people we have ministered to over the years will be among those reached. We were originally planning to be in Turkey on Mission: Ararat 2016 in about one week, but had to cancel this expedition because of the violence that has escalated in the past year in eastern Turkey. This decision was made before the terrorist attack at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport on Tuesday.

As Turkish journalist Mustafa Akyol wrote Wednesday in an Op-Ed story for The New York Times:

“On Tuesday night, just as millions of Muslims here were breaking their Ramadan fasts, three terrorists attacked the city’s busy airport. They fired randomly at passengers with automatic weapons before blowing themselves up. They killed 41 innocent people, most of them Muslims, supposedly in the name of Islam.

“The assault on the airport is the latest in a series of horrible traumas in Turkey. In the past year, the country has endured almost a dozen major terrorist attacks. Some were the work of the Islamic State, which kills in the name of God; others were the work of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or P.K.K., which kills in the name of the people.

“This country was much more peaceful a year ago. It was only last summer that a two-year-old peace process between the government and the P.K.K. fell apart. Meanwhile, the Islamic State, which initially benefited from Turkey’s lax control of the Syrian border, began to carry its violence inside Turkey. Islamic State suicide bombers first aimed at secular Kurds, then Western tourists and finally random people at the airport.”

We pray that the nightmare of this violence helps prepare Muslims for the peace that Jesus offers all of us this night for 1,000 months and beyond.

The series

• Day 1: Introduction to 30 days of prayer and preparation to preach the Good News to the Muslim world.
• Day 2: Understanding Islam, part 1 —Allah and his prophet.
• Day 3: The honor/shame culture, part 1.
• Day 4: Sharing the Gospel, part 1 — Truth and love, no compromise.
• Day 5: The Muslim unengaged.
• Day 6: What’s so radical about loving Muslims?
• Day 7: Entering rooms in the House of Islam —Pakistan.
• Day 8: Entering rooms in the House of Islam — Nigeria.
• Day 9: Entering rooms in the House of Islam — Turkey.
• Day 10: Understanding Islam, part 2.
• Day 11: Sharing the Gospel, part 2 — Simply Jesus.
• Day 12: Overcoming obstacles, part 1 — Family, fear, community and tradition.
• Day 13: Something is happening! New ways for new movements.
• Day 14: Entering rooms in the House of Islam – East Africa.
• Day 15: Understanding Islam, part 3 — Beliefs and duties
• Day 16: Sharing the Gospel, part 3 — Persevering in prayer.
• Day 17: The honor/shame culture, part 2 — Who I am.
• Day 18: Overcoming obstacles, part 2 — A history of conflict and contempt.
• Day 19: Muslim extremists — praying for our enemies.
• Day 20: Entering rooms in the House of Islam —Indonesia.
• Day 21: The honor/shame culture, part 3 — For His purpose.
• Day 22: Sharing the Gospel with Muslims, part 4 — A growing opportunity.
• Day 23: A sacred stirring – Muslims coming to Christ in unprecedented numbers.
• Day 24: Counting the cost.
• Day 25: Five daily prayers for the Muslim world.
• Day 26: Entering rooms in the House of Islam – Philippines.
• Day 27: “Night of Power” – dreams and visions.