
The story of Kenan Araz, who lived to share the love of God in Muslim Turkey
‘I pray you will become not only a reader but also a distributor of this uniquely challenging and important book.’
George Verwer, Founder and Former Director, Operation Mobilisation
With a Christian population of only 0.2%, believers in Muslim Turkey face many challenges to their faith. Indeed, Turkey is the only European country included in Open Doors’ World Watch List top-50 of the most difficult places to be a Christian. But how did a country with such a rich Christian heritage come to be like this, and are there any signs of God growing His Church?
In this revised and updated edition of My Big Father, Dr Bruce Farnham shares the remarkable story of Kenan Araz, and gives us profound insight into the lives of individual Christians and the state and history of the wider Turkish Church. Belonging to a culturally Christian minority, Kenan always knew that coming to Christ would carry a cost. The faithful witness of persecuted believers had been part of the very foundation stones of his childhood home, his family having personally experienced the sufferings of Turkish believers in years past. But when he discovered the infinitely kind and compassionate God of the Bible – his ‘Big Father’ – nothing could stop him from sharing the wonderful news, whatever the price.
Then, suffering from acute kidney disease, he experienced God’s miraculous provision when he was enabled to travel to London in 1971 and become the first Turk to undergo a successful kidney transplant. This allowed him four more years to share the love of God before he died prematurely aged just thirty-four. Kenan’s passion for sharing the love of God in Christ is incredibly infectious, and as we learn about the history of Christianity in Turkey, we also find great encouragement in how God is still at work today. In a new epilogue, Julyan Lidstone, who has lived many years in Turkey, especially highlights the Church’s recent growth among Muslims.
Dr Farnham comments: ‘Preparing this book for its new edition has once again challenged my own heart as I read of all that Kenan went through in his short but fruitful life. At the same time, my heart rejoices to read of the recent growth of the Church in Turkey in the years since.’
My Big Father is an ideal read for anyone interested in missions and evangelism, but particularly those who have a heart to reach the Muslim community, both here and overseas.
‘Kenan modelled what it looks like for someone to follow his Saviour with all his heart.’
Greg Livingstone, Operation Mobilisation; Arab World Ministries; Frontiers
My Big Father by Dr Bruce Farnham (ISBN: 9781912726622) is published by Instant Apostle and is available on 22nd October 2022 from bookshops and online retailers. Biography, paperback, 240pp, £10.99.