A Tale of Two Cab Drivers

Phillip 8.4.8 Ministry Branches Out to Reach Other Gateway Cities Within the US

AIMS News: Posted 2/1/2006

"Wow! This is in Arabic!" A group of cab drivers stood on the corner of a busy New York City street early one Sunday morning, staring at Christian tracts written in their native language. During a recent outreach in New York City, "Philip" (AIMS Team Strategy Coordinator) began talking to the cab drivers and gave them each an Arabic tract.

"Where are you guys from?" asked Philip. "Are you Muslim or Christian?"

Although all the men were from Egypt, one professed to be a Christian. When he asked Philip for an Arabic Bible, all the cab drivers in the group wanted one.

"But you can't have one," the Christian man protested. "You are a Muslim."
When Philip gave each one a Bible in Arabic, one of the Muslim men stepped forward. He took his new Bible, looked at the Christian man, and kissed the book. Holding the New Testament close to his heart, he turned to Philip and said "Shokran" (thank you).

As a major gateway city, New York City serves as an entry point for people from many nations who choose to immigrate to the United States. More than 230,000 Arabs live in New York City, making it the third largest metropolitan Arab population in the United States after Detroit, Michigan and Los Angeles, California, respectively (1).

In November, Philip 8.4.8 sponsored an outreach to Arab communities within New York City. Thirty-three teenagers and young adults joined fifteen members of Arabic churches around the city to talk to people living in primarily Arabic neighborhoods, distribute tracts and New Testaments, and minister through dramas and a praise-and-worship concert in the park.

Throughout the weekend, the team distributed 2,000 tracts written in English and Arabic and 90 Arabic New Testaments to people just like the Egyptian cab drivers. The response they received was positive. Forty people agreed to accept further contact from a local Arabic church. Twelve specifically asked to be involved in a Bible study.

Since 2004, Philip 8.4.8 has actively assisted churches and ministries to minister to Arabs living in Dearborn, Michigan. This year, Philip plans to launch the outreach into even more gateway cities including Orlando and Washington, DC. For more information about how you can be involved in these outreaches, call our home office at (757) 495-5850 or visit the Philip 8.4.8 Web Page.

(1) Source: Arab American Institute Foundation © 2003. www.aaiusa.org

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