There is a phenomenon that I have just recently learned from Christianity Today’s (CT) story about evangelism through online outreach sites.  And at the same time I have been hearing about many Muslims in various countries, including our own, who have become disillusioned with Islam and have become self-proclaimed atheists or nominal believers. Others are outright seekers who God is speaking to in many ways, including dreams. Here is another way.

Take a look at what CT has learned from 2 organizations who do evangelism online.  The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) and Campus Crusade for Christ’s Global Media Outreach ministries have launched over 250 evangelistic sites that give people a place to find answers to questions like, “Why doesn’t God answer prayer?” or “Why does God hate me?”  On BGEA sites alone, over 20,000 people view a gospel presentation every day, essentially “a crusade a day online,” says the director.

And you may want to sit down to read some of the results. In less than 4 years, the BGEA has had more than 5 million people indicate decisions for Christ.  Global Outreach Media reports more than 30 million decisions in the 10 years they have been in existence. (And the caveat is that the numbers coming from the sites are fully trackable.)

Now of course, we all can imagine that “indicated” decisions are similar to a person raising his hand in church in response to an evangelistic appeal, and that one needs help to become a fully devoted follower of Christ. But what we can assume is that God is doing some kind of work in these lives and the Holy Spirit can use the internet.  An added fact is that most visitors to these sites spend at least 7 minutes and manage to navigate 6 pages of the good news from the Bible. It is a good beginning. Let’s pray for them to become more connected with other Christ followers.

I will encourage you to read the rest of the story in the March 2015 issue of CT, but my editorial comment is along the lines of wanting to exclaim, “And who knows how many of these anonymous internet seekers are from Islamic backgrounds!” We will never know until heaven, but I am sure the numbers of “secret believers” around the world will continue to climb.