Today’s BreakPoint from Chuck Colson explores the impact Angel Tree has had on Nation of Islam inmates who sign up their children for Angel Tree simply to give them a gift. As Colson explains, God is using this program to soften their hearts to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
When the children of Nation of Islam inmates came to visit their fathers in January, they were full of stories about their Angel Tree gifts. As Rick recalls, “They’d say, ‘Hey dad, this present came from a church – a white church.’” Nation of Islam inmates were shocked. They could scarcely believe that not only had Christian churches been willing to help children of another faith, they were also demonstrating love for children of another race.
This had a tremendous impact on some of these men — so much so that they began looking into Christianity. Family, as you know, is everything in Islamic culture. “You could see the guys in the compound talking about it,” Rick recalls. These men might have been muggers and murderers, but when it came to their kids, these hardened criminals “could get weepy at times.”
What their children told them made them think: If the faith of the folks bringing gifts to their children led them to cross racial and religious divides, maybe there was something to Christianity. Something worth investigating. And that’s just what some of them began to do. They began to seriously examine the claims of Christ.
Colson says, “You never know what God is going to do with those Angel Tree gifts.” You can be a part of it – you can become an Angel Tree Coordinator and bring Angel Tree to your church; you can get your Christian group involved; or you can send a donation to help provide these life-changing gifts.