What’s it like to be running in fear from the country you’re from and hoping against hope for a better future on the shores of America? Joshua Sherif author of The Stranger at Our Shore knows. He was 8 years old when he landed on our shores, and does he have a story to tell!

First, Josh was born and raised Muslim in Egypt. He remembers trying to earn Allah’s approval by fasting during Ramadan only to ruin everything by eating an olive just seconds before the fast ended.  Then, Josh and his mom moved in with his grand-parents who had become believers in Jesus and remembers hurling insults at their prayers. But Jesus began to warm his heart.

Next, believers in America loved Josh well. Like his Sunday school teacher who bought him his first bike and taught him to ride it. Then, the obstacles we may need to overcome to welcome refugees and immigrants—feeling unqualified, feeling fear, maybe even feeling hatred.

Next, welcoming strangers is so much more than inviting someone to church. It’s being part of someone’s life. Then, the Muslim who became an atheist after seeing the horrors of ISIS, who then became a follower of Jesus. Finally, the church Josh planted in Chicago with 30 nationalities and 20 languages!

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