West Africa, one of ABWE's most challenging fields, has an 88% Muslim population and follows a version of "folk Islam." ABWE missionary Dana Oldfield describes persecution as a major factor that contributes to the number of unreached West Africans: "In many Muslim countries, new Christian believers are persecuted. Although we have not seen any of the believers here killed for their faith, we have seen them threatened, ostracized, refused food, and expelled from their villages."

" Worse yet," Dana Oldfield continues, "prejudice towards Christianity is a great barrier to the church in Islamic West Africa. To be a Wolof [a traditional ethnic group] in rural areas is to be a Muslim. To be an American is to be a Christian. The identities don't mix. Their opinion of Christianity is based on Western television programming, non-missionary expatriates, and tourists. Bitterness lingers from slave trade and the colonial era. Christian missionaries do not begin their ministry on neutral ground—inevitably, they start in a negative position."... Read More.

What feelings did you have when you first saw images of the World Trade Center towers collapsing? Fear? Panic? Dread? Were you filled with the desire to run for cover? Did you begin to look over your shoulder? Or did you immediately begin to pray? What of those who live and minister constantly in the midst of conflict and even terror?

Some of the greatest leaders in the Bible struggled with fear. Abraham struggled with fear and almost lost his wife and the opportunity to fulfill the promise of God. Moses' struggle with fear nearly kept him from accepting one of the greatest leadership roles in history. In 2 Corinthians, Paul writes, "For, when we were come to Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side; without were conflicts, within were fears" (7:5).

Having spent years traveling into Eastern Europe both before and after communism, and more recently in the Balkans during the conflicts in Bosnia , Kosova, and Albania , I experienced life under conditions of fear. Often, national partners and fellow missionaries asked, "Do you think the Christians back home are praying for us now?"... Read More.

"The terrorist attack was shameful for me. I feel guilty. No more Qur'an, no more Islam—you have betrayed your own sons. I wore the face of Islam for many years. But no longer will I be frightened or ashamed. Yes, my friends will leave me…but my new friends will be good."

Muhammad bravely sent the above email to 200 other Muslims in his online discussion group the week after 9/11. He is but one of a growing number who question the faith of their fathers. Many others are at least rethinking what it means to be a Muslim. They are educated, independent thinkers who interact with each other using the Internet. They also welcome non-Muslims, like me. I joined that group to share Christ as a "cyber-missionary." Since 1999, I have witnessed to countless followers of Islam from all over the globe, many in countries where face-to-face evangelism is impossible... Read More.