Hi Hanaan. It’s lovely to spend time with you this morning. How are you?
“Good, though maybe a little tired from the weekend. I went to David’s Tent – it was really good.”
Tell us a bit about yourself.
“I grew up in Singapore, mostly. My family still live out there. My dad’s Lebanese and my mum’s English.
“I wasn’t born into a Christian family, wasn’t raised a Christian. Because of my dad, I’d tick the Muslim box on a form. My dad’s a Muslim still.
“People would talk to me about Jesus when I was younger, and I always thought, he was from England because only English people would tell me about him.
“I had no concept of who Jesus was until I was about 13, when I had a radical encounter and came to faith. My oldest sister as well – she was a very strong Muslim and she had a radical encounter and came to faith at the same time. So, it was a really interesting time in our family, where we shifted from one thing to another.”
With your dad being Muslim, how did he feel about all of this?
“He took it really hard. Culturally, it’s not okay. He’s warmed up a little bit and he’s on his own journey. He’s open to us praying for him and we’ve been able to share our stories and tell him about Jesus. He’s the top of my prayer list, every day. There’s maybe an opening up, but we’re not there yet.”
How are you finding being a trustee?
“So far, so good. What I have seen, I’m really encouraged by. Everyone here has a real passion for this. There’s so much experience and wisdom shared among the team and the trustees. These are serious Christians – the real deal. People who really want to see the gospel message go out.”
What excites you most of all about MEM?
“When I was younger, I would watch movies and read stories and see pictures, and I would feel this presence – and I now know it to be the presence of God…
“I wasn’t going to go into a church, nobody was telling me the gospel… God still found a way to find me through that. And still to this day, I remember some of those things that I had felt he was speaking to me through those pictures and movies and stories.
“I know the power of media and I know the power of a good story. I definitely know the power of a good story to reach a child. Having had that experience myself, I know that God will and wants to use this particular way to communicate to the people of that area. I think especially women and children. That’s what I’m excited about, because I know the power of it.
“I think I’m standing partly where I am now because of a good story.”
How can we pray for you in your role?
“Always for wisdom, to know how to do what God’s asked us to do. One of the things I feel like I’m meant to bring to MEM is just to tell people about MEM in the world that I’m in and people that I know. I would just love opportunities to share what MEM does with new people who don’t know about it. That’s a top priority for me.
“And for my dad, always my dad.”
Please pray for Hanaan and our other trustees as they guide, support and help direct MEM’s activities in the UK.