Tawfik grew up in a community that had no Christians and knew nothing about Christianity. By the age of 13, he had memorized the entirety of his holy book. After graduating from secondary school, he decided to join the troops fighting against Christians in his country.
He finished his assignment and returned home to find the religious leader he has been following, and who encouraged and enlisted youth to fight, was now preaching a different message and saying, “Your brothers who were killed in the war died in vain.” Tawfik began to question his beliefs and his devotion faltered. Four years later when war broke out among his own people, who all shared the same faith, his skepticism increased until he no longer practiced or believed in his religion.
Through a series of God-ordained situations and different people God placed in his life, Tawfik began to learn more about Christianity. One day, he was given a Bible by his coworker who had become a believer. After three months of daily Bible reading, he came to the Sermon on the Mount. Tawfik recalls, “As I read ‘Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you… because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven,’ and ‘love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,’ I was impressed – those were divine words, not human words! I knew the Bible was truly the Word of God.”
Three years later, Tawfik was invited to attend a training program organized by AWEMA. “It was one great month of studying the Bible,” said Tawfik. “I understood the Word well and gave my life to Christ.”
“God wanted me to study theology that I may preach the Gospel to others.”
Tawfik was later selected to join AWEMA’s six-month theological education program. “That experience changed my life. I learned a lot and went deeper with the Lord,” said Tawfik as he reflected on his time of study. “God wanted me to study theology that I may preach the Gospel to others.”
Tawfik’s faith in Christ didn’t come at no cost. When his faith became known, nobody would hire him, but God always provided for his needs. His community avoided him, but he was there for them in their happy and sad occasions. “I had to show them the light of Christ by my works,” explained Tawfik. When they asked him why he was good to them although they had rejected him, he told them about Christ.
Tawfik did the work of an evangelist not only in his hometown but in other areas of that region as well. He planted and pastors many house churches.
Tawfik’s prayer is that his life and ministry be built on God’s Word, and that God will continue to give him strength, grace, and the resources he needs to reach out to his entire region.
(Names have been changed for identity protection)