Islam is the second largest religion in America. Of the world’s two billion Muslims, somewhere between four and five million live in the United States. Regardless of where you live, there is a good chance that you will go to school, work, or live near a mosque or a Muslim family—whether you live in a large city or work in a small town. This presents a unique opportunity for Christians, for there has never been a time that so many Muslims have lived in areas of the world where the speaking of the gospel is freely permitted. But before thinking about ways to speak and respond to their objections to the gospel, it is worth getting to know a bit about their worldview.

Emily came to my office one afternoon, knocking lightly on the door and asking if I had a few minutes. I was one of her professors. She was attending the Lutheran university where I taught theology. She had grown up in a faithful Lutheran family and she knew what the church taught. In a way, her question was surprising, since she should have known the answer.
The conversation began with a few comments about life, studies, and a recent topic we covered in one of my courses. Finally, Emily hesitantly broached the subject she came to talk about. Despite having dated boys in the past, she preferred girls. In fact, she was in an ongoing relationship with another girl. Her big question was, “What does God think of me?”

You discover on social media that your daughter, who is away at college, has changed her name and pronouns to they/them.
Your son is in high school. His appearance begins to change, and he withdraws from usual activities. Then, you learn that he is using a new name online and identifies as nonbinary at school.
These kinds of scenarios have become increasingly common in recent years.  Nothing may quite rise to the height of identity confusion, disorientation, and turmoil than feeling or believing that you were born in the wrong body. As we interact with those who are struggling with gender identity issues or their family and friends, Jesus would have us follow His example and lead with grace and compassion.  Questioning whether oneself is male or female, or somewhere in between, can be very isolating and put a person at odds, not only with oneself, but also with others.  This topic elicits strong feelings and reactions. Jesus first offered proximity, connection, and relationship.

“After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude.... from every nation... standing before the throne and before the Lamb”— Revelation 7:9–10.
The picture in Revelation 7 is about a time to come, but it is not the only place in the scriptures where we hear about different cultures, different ethnicities, and different tongues acknowledging, shouting out to our shared God. Sadly, though, the picture of what is to come is often not what shapes our life now. We all let fear, mistrust, suspicion, and division govern our existence. Racism, sectarianism, nationalism, and a whole host of other ‘isms’ and ideologies, speak loudly in our moment and, by all appearances, the church is not immune to the allure of those voices. This is not to suggest that all division is inherently problematic; St. Paul himself notes that sometimes division is present to show who is being faithful. However, the division that shows faithfulness cannot be a division based upon something like skin color, ethnicity, or language. When those things become the basis for division, either individually or collectively, the church is called to speak louder than any ‘ism’ or ideology, because those kinds of divisions suggest that some skin colors, ethnicities, and languages are not as beloved by God.