By Babett Horn, IWM Speaker and Prayer Intercessor
It was July 17 th , 4:45 am in Batam, Indonesia. Our first full day on the mission field. We
had our first women’s conference scheduled for that day at 9am. Of course I was a bit
jet lagged and somewhat confused as to the time of day. Those 16 hour flights can
really mess with your circadian rhythms!
I sat in the hotel bed and began to read my Lectio Davina daily devotion. Suddenly the
airspace was pierced by the loud speakers outside the window. The Salat. The Muslim
call to prayer rang out. For approximately fifteen minutes an Aramaic sing-songy wail
called out to practicing Muslims that it was the first of five times that day they would be
required to pray. Honestly the hair on my arms stood up. I have watched countless
movies or even news clips that highlighted this public call. But I had never been in the
middle of it. When the sun rose I counted 5 mosques just outside my hotel room
window!
Immediately I sensed the presence of the Holy Spirit. Here I sat reading the Living
Word of a Living God while they were being called to pray to a god who could not hear
them. I simply wept. I wept for the beautiful people with beautiful souls who want to
honor a god who can’t be honored. I wept for the burden they carried. I wept for the
misrepresentations of truth they bowed to. I wept for a way to share the invitation to The
God who invites them in.
No demands of rituals. No demands of number of times to bow. No demands of clothing or
gender prejudice. Just invitation to Come. The call to all who are weary. Come.
Matthew 11:28–30
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
Let’s pray for those who are bound in religion. Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to make us aware of
those who need the invitation to come.
It’s not only those in other countries. It’s in our own communities!
