English → Arabic transcript

Why do I still dress up like a Muslim? And my reaction is always this way. Are you telling me all Muslims in the world dress up like this? Because this is news to me. I've never seen a Muslim in Indonesia dress up like this,

or a Muslim in Kazakhstan dress up like this, or a Muslim in other parts of the world. So I have to really correct people and let them know this is my Saudi dress. I am from Saudi.

I'm proud of my culture, my heritage. Becoming a follower of Jesus doesn't mean I have to abandon my identity, cultural identity. I was born and raised in Saudi Arabia.

During the 70s, I became very fascinated by the idea of dying as a martyr. And one thing, of course, that is very clear in the Quran itself, that if you die for the cause of God, you are assured of your salvation,

and there is no judgment, and you are going all the way to the highest level of heaven. Folks, it is the gospel in reverse. You shed your own blood to earn your own salvation. I was still a teenager, and I was studying

a lot of the teachings of prophet about jihad, and one of it was, if you are still young, you need to go and seek the permission of your parents. So I went to my parents, and my mother can smell blood, and she said, no, you are not going anywhere

over my dead body. My father encouraged me to seek the opportunity abroad to do a graduate studies in engineering. I came to the U.S. with a deadly misunderstanding, thinking that everyone in the U.S. is a Christian,

they're misled, they are following a false teaching, their Bible has been corrupted, and therefore, it is my duty to try to help them embrace Islam. The moment that I felt was appropriate for me

to strike, a couple moved from California to where I was, and I began to share with them about why Islam is the only way now. They would hear my arguments and objections, and then gently will ask me to provide evidence

to support any of the things that I said. I could not support or defend any of my objections, and that was an awakening for me, because I lived all of my life believing in certain lies, and that took almost 12 years journey.

Finally, in the summer of 2001, I accepted to go to that church with them, and I am hearing the word speaking to me directly, and now I understand what God has done for me. I have to make a decision.

And then September 11 happened. I went and I heard a message from the Gospel of Matthew about loving your enemies and praying for those who persecuted you, and that was the nail that sealed the coffin for me.

And for a couple of months, I would get this scary dream. My dream was I died, and I'm standing before the throne of God, and I hear God telling me, why did you reject my son?

And two months later, I accepted Christ as Lord and Savior.