Ministry to cultures other than our own can sometimes seem a bit daunting. A resource from the UK has recently become available to help churches and individuals to minister more effectively to the Muslim community.

Friendship First is a six-week DVD course produced by Interserve, a Christian missionary organisation.

The Rev John Bales, senior minister at Greenacre, has years of experience working with Muslims in Pakistan and understands the complexities.

“Islam has been in opposition to Christianity since the beginning,” he said. “There are lots of things we agree on but it is the important things we disagree on. We can sometimes have a fear of Muslims… but we can’t be afraid of them. We need to get over that hurdle to share the gospel with them.”

As the title suggests, the DVD course puts a very strong emphasis on befriending our Muslim neighbours and colleagues, a crucial step in ministering to them.

“Muslims who come to Australia have generally left some terrible parts of the world,” Mr Bales said. “Often they find Australians unwelcoming. This moves them to find their identity in Islam and they can become much more Islamic here than they were back home.”

According to the 2011 census figures, about 4.7 per cent of Sydney’s population identify as Muslim. As with other races and religions, it is important for Christians to be able to present the gospel with relevance.

“All people are important,” Mr Bales said. “Part of the great commission is to reach out to them. Thinking through ways of reaching them effectively is important.”

Members of both Greenacre and Yagoona churches have used Friendship First which, among other things, encourages people to befriend a Muslim during the course.

“Our Bible study group found it very helpful,” Mr Bales said. “They found it helped them to be much more friendly to their Muslim neighbours.”

Instead of focusing on understanding Islam, Friendship First puts the emphasis on relationships.

“Relating to people is the most important thing,” Mr Bales said.

There are a variety of other resources available to help people minister to Muslims including MentAC, an apprenticeship program which mentors people into Muslim ministry and Cross and Crescent, a series which focuses on Islam and can be done online.

More information on Friendship First can be found at here.

Image credit: lachu