The phone rang. I didn’t recognize the number, but I answered. Without an introduction, he simply said, “I’d like to get baptized.” He knew Baptism was important to Christians, but he knew next to nothing about Christianity. Still, he wanted to give it a try.
I told him, “Can I teach you what Christianity is all about? Then if you still want to be baptized, I’d be honored to do it.” He couldn’t wait to start.
I got to know Omar. He was in Las Cruces completing a graduate program. He had grown up in a predominantly Muslim country but had come to believe that any truth about God was unknowable. He had never read the New Testament or attended a Christian worship service. But a Christian coworker he respected had mentioned Lutheranism once, and some especially difficult life struggles had left him searching for something more.
As we studied the Bible, Omar got to know Jesus as his God, friend, and Savior who has forgiven him at the cross. Through Jesus’ resurrection, Omar came to know his eternal life was guaranteed. Christ’s promises and unconditional love brought him peace, hope, and purpose, even during extremely trying times.
Four lessons in, Omar said, “I still don’t really know why I called you a few weeks ago or what I believed then. But I believe this. I believe in Jesus.” He attended his first worship services on Good Friday and Easter. Soon after, he was baptized into Christ. Not long after that, he joyfully became a member.
And then, just as quickly, he packed up and moved away. It’s the fastest we’ve ever “lost” a new member. But Omar wasn’t lost at all. He was finally found. Omar had accepted a job in River Falls, Wisconsin. There he continues to get to know Jesus better as a member of another WELS church, Faith. Omar’s story is a reminder that God is at work in ways we do not always see, calling people to faith through his Word and keeping them in his grace wherever they go!
From Nathanael Jensen, home missionary at Cross of Christ in Las Cruces, N.M.
