Six Weeks in the Middle East

THE CALL: 2025–2026    |    2 MINUTE READ
SAM REED, MID-TERM MISSIONARY

Due to the sensitive area this global worker served in, we are using the pseudonym of Sam Reed in order to protect his identity.

It’s difficult to know how to respond to it all: excessive material wealth alongside fervent spiritual hunger, little-to-no hope, and few witnesses of Jesus. In the Middle East, many people desperately need some form of Good News, and the Lord has been at work in this region, bringing many people to Himself. One Taylor University student heard about a missions internship in the Middle East and wanted to discover his part in God’s global mission and see firsthand what God is doing in this part of the world. In the summer of 2025, he boarded a plane, left behind the familiar, and stepped into a place that was vastly different than his own. Through this experience, Sam was reminded of God’s goodness and of just how many people are desperately seeking a God who loves.

His account below shows that sometimes, all it takes is a willingness to follow God where He is calling you. And when you follow Him, you might see who God is and the need for Him in places like the Middle East.  

It’s just our duty. It’s just what we have to do in order to get into heaven.

These were the sort of statements I heard from a couple of our local friends during my media internship in the Middle East.

This summer, I got to spend six weeks in an Arab country in the heart of the Islamic world creating media content, taking Arabic lessons, and making local friends. I experienced radical hospitality, but the hospitality sometimes left me feeling uneasy. A couple of our local friends explained to us that in Islam, they are required to show hospitality. Their religion is one of earning things with God, and it made me uneasy that their hospitality was just another part of their attempts to earn God’s favor.

The spiritual hunger was obvious each day as we heard the call to prayer and witnessed the exterior religiosity of the people in various ways. One day I was working out at the gym as an Imam was leading a group of men through one of their daily prayers in an adjacent, glass-walled room. On other occasions, I would watch flows of people walk toward the mosque for prayer, and one man even went through his prayer in front of me in his home.

As we drove around the city, we saw massive building projects and many lavish houses and expensive cars. I often thought of the dissonance between the material wealth and spiritual poverty. Though this country is wealthy and is pursuing development and progress, I was struck by the emptiness and “striving after wind” (Ecclesiastes 1:14) that it all is. 

Jesus’ goodness and the great news of the Gospel landed on me in a way like it never has before. I was struck that Jesus is not only worthy of every tribe and tongue but also the only Good News we have. In contrast, Islam offers no assurance of salvation or of God’s love. Another thing I learned was the necessity of prayer. Throughout my time in the Middle East, I was told, “Prayer is the real work.” As I am now back in the United States, I want to labor in prayer, asking "the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest” (Luke 10:2) and then responding in obedience as He leads. 

ACTION STEP

GO: Are you like Sam? Do you want to see God in the Middle East and to be able to tell others about His unconditional love? See how you can bring the Good News of Jesus to your brothers and sisters in the Middle East.

Author Bio: Sam Reed is a student at Taylor University. Sam desires to be a globally minded Christian who is engaged in God’s global mission wherever the Lord places him.