In the aftermath of September 11, the United States liberated Afghanistan from the Taliban regime. But a new kind of war has emerged in the struggling nation—the persecution of Afghan Christians. Once scattered by the fighting, Afganis are returning to their homeland with the Gospel.Andrew and Sarah Bunnell and the EurasiaOutreach missions team have a simple, biblical philosophy: train national evangelists to reach their own home country. The Lord has brought to their ministry men like Ammanullah to take the Gospel to Afghanistan.A decade ago in Kabul, Afghanistan, Ammanullah was forced to watch his father beheaded by Taliban agents for the “crime” of possessing English books. Resentful of how such a brutal murder could be done in the name of God, Ammanullah began to question his faith in Islam.After United States forces liberated Afghanistan, many Afghanis took advantage of the newly relaxed borders and fled the country as UN refugees. Ammanullah took his family on a tortuous journey through Pakistan in search of a better life.In Moscow, he met several Christians working with humanitarian aid organizations. For the first time, Ammanullah heard of a loving and personal God. These Christians shared how God’s Son gave His own life. This was very different from the austere, judgmental, and temperamental Allah. Ammanullah was faced with a mystery he could not solve: God is love.After several months, Ammanullah started to publicly question Islam among the Afghan community. His words were not well received, and he was physically assaulted by other Muslims. After appealing to several aid groups, he and his family were cleared to move to Saint Petersburg, Russia, to escape persecution. Providentially, he was placed in contact with the Bunnell family. After another year of searching, questioning, and confirming, Ammanullah made the decision to fully trust Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour. Soon he was baptized and began theology classes under the guidance of Andrew Bunnell.Since then, Ammanullah has learned the Scriptures very quickly. His knowledge of the Bible has grown with his love for God and his burden for his people. He said, “I never knew what love was until I met Jesus Christ. Christ has given me a love for my people. I’m glad I came to Russia, because here I found spiritual salvation, but now I want to go back, so that the Afghanis can also know this new life.”Today Ammanullah is a seminary-trained teacher, preacher, and writer. As he prepares to return home, he remains actively involved in reaching Muslims.
