#Iwitness: More than Refugees in the Middle East

by Essam Nagy

Iraq is suffering, Assyria is in pain. Biblically, the Assyrian Empire was stretching all over the Middle East, including Turkey, Cyprus, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and parts of Iran, and some other regions. As the Bible talks about doom in Assyria and Iraq, we can sense strongly that the children there are resurrecting hope, peace, and forgiving those who trespass against them. They are Christ-like.

Filming in Erbil, Iraq

I only spent forty-eight hours in Erbil, Iraq. On the second day, we were filming in a mall which was still under construction and there were concrete walls and pillars—no roof. They had just put the refugees in Ainkawa Mall—the place we visited. 

When I got into the camp I found a small child dressed in orange. She grabbed my hand and she refused to let it go—only while I was filming with other kids. When I leaned in and asked her name, she said, “My name is Myriam. I have something to tell you.”

We reached our filming spot, laundry ropes as our background and sitting on upside down empty plastic painting bins. Miriam is eleven years old. She is polite while speaking, and her voice is peaceful. We talked about her life before coming to the camp. She used to be the number one student in class. She is missing school a lot and wants to get back to it… she doesn’t want to miss a year. Miriam misses her teacher, Mrs. Sanaa, who is living in another camp.

Miriam’s words about the situation she and her family live are intense, and despite the circumstances, she has nothing against Jesus whatsoever. She sees him as a father and friend. She sang a lovely song to us. After the interview, I couldn’t help but burst into tears.

Her mom and dad were there while Miriam told me: “On screen you gave us peace and hope, and it is our turn now to give you hope.” Myriam’s story, when shared on social media through SAT-7 accounts (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wsxw_x4HIC4), reached hundreds of thousands of views and tens of thousands of shares. The truth that came out of Myriam’s mouth and heart was the driving force behind the enormous numbers of shares and views. 

A Prophecy Coming to Fulfillment

Iraq is suffering, Assyria is in pain. Biblically, the Assyrian Empire was stretching all over the Middle East, including Turkey, Cyprus, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and parts of Iran, and some other regions. As the Bible talks about doom in Assyria and Iraq, we can sense strongly that the children there are resurrecting hope, peace, and forgiving those who trespass against them. They are Christ-like.

By the power vested in them by the Holy Spirit and the divine ability to forgive and pray for their enemies, they can stand with other kids in the Middle East to build the “highway” that Isaiah prophesied chapter 19. Standing with those hearts and encouraging reconciliation, we would be a part of bringing God’s word to fulfillment.

Here is what I am praying:

•  For the day when I can see the children of the Middle East get rid of inherited hatred and absorb the love of God that shall cross all the human-made barriers

•  To see the children of Israel and Palestinian territories unite in Christ

•  To see the Egyptians reaching out to Assyria and Israel

•  To see “Egypt, Assyria, and Israel” be one in Christ in order to reconcile the children of Isaac and Ishmael in God

If we can be a part of this prophecy, we will bring “a blessing in the midst of the earth” to the whole world.

Jesus, a Refugee

While we were checking into the hotel, I found Jesus’ tent just inside the gate across from my hotel. I said, “This is the Holy Spirit. God wants us to do something in this place with the kids there.”  

The next day at 7 a.m. we approached the gates and the kids grabbed us and insisted on filming in front of the tent of Jesus. I asked one of them, “Is it ok to celebrate Christmas in these circumstances? You built this thing here, the tent of Jesus? Isn’t it a little weird? You should be a bit sad, you should be a little down…” 

One of the kids answered, “No, Jesus himself was a refugee. He was kicked out of his country and he fled to Egypt with his family when he was a kid. I don’t think we can celebrate Christmas without feeling that Jesus is here with us and leading the same life as we do—a refugee in the camp.” So they took bits and pieces of all the cloth and made the Jesus Tent in the midst of the camp.  

Ikhlas’s Dream

One of the moving stories was a girl named Ikhlas (which means faithfulness in the Arabic language) who resembled Anne Frank. Ikhlas told me, “I would love to make a charity program in order for other kids not to live the same life I lived when I was a kid.” How powerful! People here are loving, generous, caring, and sensitive. It’s not always dark and bloody down here.

American Kids, Middle Eastern Kids

I went into American Sunday School classes and I asked them what they thought of when they heard the term “Middle East.” They responded with three things: war, sand, and Islam. It is powerful when you can see how God is transforming their perception when they see Myriam’s story or Ikhlas’s story. 

Of course, the Middle East has many challenges, but you cannot see the light until darkness comes out. We have many Myriams who are like pearls in the sand. We just need a shovel and some patience to dig, take these pearls out of the sand, dust them off, and show them to the world.

. . . .

Essam Nagy is producer and presenter of one of the longest running and most popular shows on the SAT-7 KIDS channel, called “Why Is That?” He has also excelled as a radio presenter, scriptwriter, drama teacher, and photographer. Essam and his wife, Magdalena, live in his hometown of Cairo, Egypt.

EMQ, Vol. 52, No. 1. Copyright  © 2016 Billy Graham Center for Evangelism.  All rights reserved. Not to be reproduced or copied in any form without written permission from EMQ editors.

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