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Is Faith in Christ a Decision?

Being a Follower of Christ, from a Muslim background, I may have different perspective on how people are called to faith in Christ I believe that I did not take a decision for Christ…He has dragged me from the scruff of the neck…I was dragged into salvation in spite of myself. However, I can tell you when the seed of faith in Christ was planted, when the flower started to blossom, and when the fruit started to appear, or mature…

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We will stay sinners, whether we trust Jesus or not, but AFTER the seed is planted, we feel the emptiness in our heart that only Christ could fill…After the flower start blossoming, we start to feel the conviction of the Holy Spirit for sins, repent, and lose “our addiction” to sin. I believe that faith is a mystery…nothing that I am saying is new… How people come to faith, I believe that everyone has or need a different dynamic that calls him/her to Christ…However, the common dynamic is the WORD of God…I know that I am not saying anything new…but I believe that He drags us like fish in a net, from the sea of sin and unbelief…As an evangelist, I keep casting my net, and trust God to bring fish.. Concerning the Word of God and evangelism, I noticed, through the years, that everyone has a different “silver bullet” that brings him/ her to his/her knees, or shoot him/ her in the heart; mine was: “Love your enemies”

Hesham Shehab

Hicham [pronounced HESHAAM] grew up in a world of bitter animosity between Muslims and Christians, which he experienced personally in a physical attack when only about 7. By age 13 he was recruited by an extremist Muslim group and later fought against Christians in the 1975 war in Lebanon. He was preparing to become a Muslim Preacher (Imam) when a car accident laid him up for a year. In 1980, in his first semester in college, his brother was killed by Christian militia. Hicham's response was to study by day, and by night take out his revenge in attacks on Christians. However, hearing the Sermon on the Mount, in a course of cultural studies (in college), brought him to faith. Later, Hicham earned an M.A. in the history of the Arabs and did Ph.D studies in the history of Islam. Hicham finished his pastoral education at Concordia, Fort Wayne, IN, and is currently in the Ph. D program there. Presently, Hicham, and ordained LCMS minister, pastors Salam Christian Fellowship and works as a missionary to the Muslims with the Lutheran Church in Illinois.