As a lifelong Seventh-day Adventist Christian, I was raised in the blessing of prophetic knowledge that my Savior is returning soon to this deeply broken, deeply beloved planet. I can honestly say that I have never doubted this fact.
And yet, perhaps this truth is not as deeply rooted in my psyche as I think it is, because there have been times in my life when something suddenly opened my eyes, and, in awe and wonder, it was as if I was apprehending the imminence of Christ’s Second Coming for the very first time. This epiphany came to me again just last week, and recalling it raises fresh goosebumps on my arms and an upwelling of wordless praise in my chest.
I was helping my dear friend and colleague Abed Al-Masih respond to a deluge of reader comments on his website, the AFM Dream Project, which reaches out to Muslim-background seekers who have experienced dreams of Jesus. Many website readers spontaneously share their personal dream stories. Shaken to the core, they beg for help in understanding what they have seen.
As I scanned down the stories, I was transfixed. Each dream was unique, and yet they all had the same golden threads running through them—a Man in white, an invitation to worship, a call to scripture study, and the pronouncement that gripped my heart: “Get ready. I am coming soon.” In the awestruck words of these Muslim people, both secular and devout, I suddenly rediscovered the kernel of the hope that is in me—my living, loving, active, soon-coming Savior! I invite you to read some of these testimonies for yourself on page 04.
“At midnight they were roused by the shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is coming! Come out and meet him!’”
(Matt. 25:6 NLT).
