Christmas in KSA?

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6 ESV 

Viewpoint: 

Imagine it is Christmas time: the area you live in, music is not playing, decorations aren’t on houses and buildings; you wouldn’t even know it was Christmas; celebrating is prohibited in your country people around you have no idea what Christmas is about; they have seen movies where Santa Claus brings toys to all the good little boys and girls; they know that people exchange gifts and that there are decorations and Christmas trees; for them, it is hard to understand why you celebrate; the day that Jesus came into the world to save us from our sins.  Imagine that you are only one of a handful of believers where you live.  You are afraid to gather and celebrate with other believers because you might get arrested.  You are fearful your family will find out and kick you out or even go as far as killing you. 

Celebrating Christmas in KSA as an ex-pat believer or a Saudi believer can be difficult, but it is doable.  Many things might keep ex-pat followers and Saudi believers from gathering together to celebrate; the Christmas season might be a lonely time of year, especially when you know others worldwide are gathering together to celebrate.  There are so few Saudi believers; as Saudis encounter ex-pats and secular parts of Christmas this time of year, we are praying that God will open their hearts and minds to who Jesus is and why He came to save us.   

Prayer points: 

Pray for ex-pats and Saudi believers as they celebrate Christmas in KSA this year.  Pray that this Christmas, many Saudis will have an encounter with Jesus Christ that will change their hearts and minds forever.