THE GOSPEL IN A 'MOSLEM' SCHOOL

by Anni Davey

Follow me as I set up the sketchboard at the front of the hall. The walls are adorned with posters about Ramadan. Over 230 children file into the hall, dressed in brilliant saris and baggy trousers, big smiles on their dark faces - there are few Caucasians.

No, we are not on some far-flung mission field. This is an ordinary primary school in Bristol, where 95% of the children are from Muslim or Hindu backgrounds. I've been invited to take an assembly, to tell a story and to say "This is what Christians believe..."

They love the story of Zaccheus; even the very little ones can follow the message. My painting will be displayed for several months with its headline "Jesus is my friend". Telling the Easter story some weeks later was a moving experience; they listened in horror to what happened to Jesus. Their reaction reminded me just what took place that day - when we hear the truth so often we can forget its real significance.

On my next visit I told the story of the paralysed man, teaching that Jesus is God and has the power to forgive sins. Several of the staff, obviously Muslim by their dress, said they wished I could come every week. One thought I was a professional storyteller.

It's a tremendous privilege, responsibility and joy to present the Living Word in this way, and it cannot fail to have an effect. Please keep these assemblies in your prayers. And next time you walk past the gates of your local school, remember that you could be trained to exercise the same ministry in your area.