From a horrible jail in Pakistan to an amazing faith healing in Loveland, Colorado, Hashmat Shah has been blessed with a life filled with miraculous events. As the son of a convert from Islam to Christianity, living in a predominantly Muslim country, Hashmat's experiences growing up are quite unique. This book takes you into the spiritual journeys of two men: Hashmat and his father, Rahmat Ullah Shah. Their struggles and triumphs are shared in the hopes that you might find evidence of the hand of God in your own life. Out of this spiritual journey, Hashmat has uncovered some startling parallels between Islam and Chrisitanity which bear further scrutiny. You, reader, are invited to share in these stories and revelations about Chrisitanity, Islam, and faith.
Out of Pakistan
A Testimony of the Miraculous Hand of God in My LifeBy Hashmat ShahAuthorHouse
Copyright © 2011 Hashmat Shah
All right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4634-2510-4Contents
PREFACE..............................................................................xiCHAPTER 1 THE MIRACLE OF SPIRITUAL HEALING...........................................1CHAPTER 2 A VISIT TO THE INTERNATIONAL HOUSE OF PRAYER IN KANSAS.....................9CHAPTER 3 A COUNTRY SUNDERED, 1947...................................................17CHAPTER 4 A HUNTING INCIDENT IN TAXILA, 1948.........................................28CHAPTER 5 SAVED BY THE LIGHT, 1953...................................................34CHAPTER 6 WAR OF '65 BETWEEN PAKISTAN AND INDIA......................................39CHAPTER 7 UNEXPECTED GRACE...........................................................54CHAPTER 8 THE HAND OF GOD, 1989......................................................59CHAPTER 9 A BRIEF FAMILY HISTORY.....................................................68CHAPTER 10 BIBLICAL VS ISLAMIC JESUS................................................84CHAPTER 11 CONCLUSION................................................................108
Chapter One
THE MIRACLE OF SPIRITUAL HEALING
At 4 a.m. I awoke from a sound sleep with some rather unusual chest pain. It radiated out into my left arm, one of the ominous signs of a heart attack. I could feel the painful tightness in my outer chest muscles. I left my bed and came out to sit on the sofa in the family room. Though the pain persisted, it receded a bit and so I went back to bed and prayed to the Lord, hoping that this wasn't the beginning of a cardiac episode. I kept praying to the Lord to spare my life if that was His will. What happened later will show that God Almighty can bring grace, mercy and amazing blessings into one's life despite the frightening circumstances of an immanent heart attack.
After a few panic-filled moments of deliberation, I woke my wife and asked her to dial 911. Soon the paramedics arrived and quickly took my pulse, checking blood pressure and blood sugar levels, as well as my other vital signs. The paramedics gave me nitroglycerin and aspirin before placing me on the gurney and whisking me away down the dark and empty morning streets to Penrose Hospital's E.R. in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
In the emergency room the nursing staff immediately connected me to all kinds of monitors, and a technician arrived to take my blood sample and test it for enzyme levels. I was given more aspirin as I was quickly rolled into the Cath. Lab. The cardiologist on duty was called upon to come and perform angioplasty because there was clear evidence of a heart attack with at least one of my major arteries being partially blocked.
To my great fortune Dr. Robert Cadigan, M.D., a very experienced local cardiologist was on call. I had known Dr. Cadigan professionally since 1982 because I used to work for a pharmaceutical company promoting cardiology products. He immediately injected me with a dye to determine the site of the narrowing artery. With dexterity he inserted a catheter into my femoral artery and in no time reached the site of the obstruction. Ballooning it, he placed a medicated stent at the obstruction to keep it open. A stent is a medical device made of non-corrosive material, and once it is placed it keeps the site of obstruction open, thus allowing normal blood flow.
The procedure was a complete success. My chest pain subsided after placement of the stent and I was moved to the cardiac intensive care unit with all sorts of intravenous attachments that made me feel like some strange octopus, completely out of its elements.
I stayed in Penrose Hospital for three days and was discharged to begin my cardiac rehabilitation. During the procedure, Dr. Cardigan discovered that a second artery, the right descending artery was 60% narrowed at two places ; however, he decided to deal with it at a later stage for the fear of causing arrhythmia if all three stents were placed at the same time. I spent about a month in the Penrose Cardiac Rehab. Center doing treadmill and other exercise routine. The staff was vigilant and extremely helpful.
At home I continued on a routine regiment of exercise on a treadmill and soon I was making good progress. In the follow-up visit with Dr. Cadigan, he was satisfied with my progress. My EKG stress test (which shows the health of cardiac circulation) did not show any serious danger of further damage to the cardiac muscles. My initial heart attack, however, did leave a scar tissue on the left lower area of my heart muscle. In all probability, such damage to the heart muscles is permanent and doctors always worry about it because it increases the chances of having a second attack. But in the meantime I continued my exercise regiment and faithfully took medicine prescribed by my doctor, which included a beta-blocker to control the heart rate plus aspirin to thin the blood.
In September of 2009 Randy Clark (Lord bless him abundantly), a well-known spiritual healer whose ministry is based in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, was coming to Loveland, Colorado for a four day event of sermons interspersed with spiritual healing sessions. My wife and I decided to attend the event. Healing, or impartation (as it is known in spiritual circles), would start around 6pm each day, and go on until after 9 p.m.
I had never attended such conferences, where the main emphasis is on impartation. I had always been skeptical about the fantastic claims made in such events, but the Lord Jesus had a different plan and wanted me to see His power and love for His believers. The very first day while the sermon was going on, late in the evening, I was sitting in my car in the parking lot to take some rest. Around 6 p.m., my wife came running out to get me to attend the impartation session. She insisted that I come in and attend this session, so I followed her in.
Before we all stood up to pray along with Randy for the Holy Spirit's presence and healing, I had experienced a sensation of shaking in my lower legs. As I sat there, trying to understand what I was feeling, the sensation began to fade. I had never felt any such sensation before; at that moment I felt I had been touched by the Holy Spirit and something special might happen in this session.
Randy made all of us stand and hold our hands, our palms held up towards heaven. Randy started to pray, calling upon the Lord to send His Mighty Holy Spirit to fill the place with its presence, to fill people's hearts and anoint every person in need of healing. While Randy was praying from the stage, I felt my right hand and arm again start to shake without volition. I had no idea how to interpret this feeling, or what it actually signified. All around me I could see quite a few people who looked as if they were experiencing a similar effect on their own bodies.
Then I felt a strange sensation start from the top of my head, within my skull, which passed slowly through my neck and came down into my chest cavity and stomach and stopped. It felt like a stream of water flowing through the top of my skull, down through my neck and chest, and eventually stopping in my stomach. I wish I could describe this spiritual sensation more completely, but words fail to truly express what I experienced.
By now Randy had come down from the stage and was touching, healing and praying for the people around him. My wife got hold of my arm and led me to the front where Randy was imparting the Holy Spirit upon people. In front of him there was a huge throng of people desperate to be healed. We managed to come behind him in the hope that, if it was Lord's will, He would cause Randy to turn around and touch me. To my great surprise and delight, he did turn around. He looked at me momentarily and placed his index, middle and ring fingers into my left palm.
Instantly, a sensation grew from the top of my head, shot through my neck and swept through my upper body. This is the same sensation I had felt while Randy was still on the stage praying for all the attendees. As he was touching the palm of my left hand, I felt warming heat sweeping through my entire upper body. Next, tears began gushing from both my eyes. My cheeks were literally drenched in this sudden downpour. It was not an act of crying due to an emotional response, but rather it was like a dam bursting and water flowing from my eyes. Could it have been some kind of cleansing process by the Holy Spirit, a cleansing of mind and soul? I hoped that it was just that, because I needed it. My wife and I moved back to our seats marveling at such a gift. I knew deep down something truly remarkable had happened. I had been touched and healed by the Holy Spirit. Yet I would not realize the true significance of this phenomenal event until several months later.
I had a follow-up appointment with my cardiologist in November of 2009. In this particular follow-up, the patient is given what is called a nuclear test. Radioactive isotopes are injected into the bloodstream while the patient exercises on a treadmill. Heart imaging is done before and after the treadmill exercise. This test shows the health of the arterial tree and the cardiac muscle.
The next day after my nuclear test, I got a call from my somewhat excited cardiologist. He told me that my cardiac scar tissue had completely healed and disappeared from my heart. Overall circulation had improved to the extent that I did not even have to see him again for an entire year. My EKG was normal even during the stress test. This also means that the right descending artery did not show any signs of plaque build-up which at one time had shown a narrowing of sixty percent. Clearly, something out of the ordinary had happened to me, praise the Lord.
In my soul I knew that this unexplained healing of my scar tissue and the improvement of overall circulation in my heart was nothing short of a miracle, which I believe took place during the impartation session led by Randy Clark. He was the vessel through which the Holy Spirit and the Lord God Almighty showed me His utmost love, blessings and forgiveness. Since the spiritual healing, I have received another gift from the Lord Jesus. Whenever I pray in a quiet and secluded place, I feel the presence of the Holy Spirit which manifests in the shaking of my arms, hands and the over-whelming power that surrounds me.
After one has experienced a near fatal heart attack, you feel the compulsion to look back over your life. Now, the fundamental question I have in my heart and mind is why the Lord God has given me a new heart? Is there a supreme purpose He has in my life that He wants me to fulfill? While I write of this miraculous occurrence in my life, I cannot help but turn my gaze back upon the long course of my experiences and as I do so I am awestruck by the fact that this unexplained healing of the scar tissue in my heart is but one in a tapestry of miraculous events that have occurred throughout my life.
As you read along and share these experiences with me, hopefully you will come to understand that God Almighty loves His creation beyond measure, and that if you place your complete trust and faith in Him, Jesus Christ will deliver you from evil, forgive all your sins and bless you to the utmost with His love. He will use your experiences as a testimony of His power and love in bringing you closer to Him. Salvation and the gift of eternal life are free for those who believe in Him and accept Him as their Lord and savior.
I hope and pray that this book will glorify the Lord's name and bring hope of salvation to many who feel lost without the loving, personal relationship with Him.
Inspirational Reading:
John 17:12
"'While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by the name you gave me. None has been lost, except the one doomed to destruction, so that scripture would be fulfilled,' said Jesus Christ." John 3:16
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
John 3:6 "'Flesh gives birth to flesh, but Spirit gives birth to spirit,' Jesus answered."
Chapter Two
A VISIT TO THE INTERNATIONAL HOUSE OF PRAYER IN KANSAS
December 3, 2009
My wife and I arrived safely in Kansas City, around 5 p.m. We were staying at a Korean friend's home, a few minutes drive from IHOP (International House Of Prayer) University, and about ten minutes drive from the Forerunner School of Ministry (FSM). Mr. Cyrus welcomed us into his home and excitedly told us about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at the FSM center. We were there to attend a seminar run by the Joseph Company, part of the IHOP organization.
After dinner we decided to spend the evening hours at the FSM Center and soak in the presence of the Holy Spirit. The parking lot around the center was packed long before 6 p.m. when the program was scheduled to start. There were so many attendees that we had to park in the overflow lot, but they provided shuttle buses that ran every five minutes to take you to the center.
The worship center was already packed to capacity when we arrived. The place was buzzing with excited people, mostly between the ages of sixteen and forty, with a scattering of some older folks as well. We entered the double doors and to my utter amazement, the moment I stepped across the threshold into the main hall, my legs became heavy and I could feel the effect of the Holy Spirit right away. Even though it was so packed, we were able to squeeze into a empty spot on the bleachers at the back.
We could see the manifestation of the Holy Spirit all evening. We saw people whose arms, legs, and head were shaking uncontrollably. Those giving testimony on the stage would double over and had a hard time standing up. Some people were so overcome that they fell flat on the floor and stayed there for quite some time. There were many amazing testimonies about how God had touched people's lives and about miraculous healing that had taken place. Not only physical healing but healing of broken spirits as well; many psychological problems had been resolved by the touch of the Holy Spirit.
Yoncha and I went up front to be prayed upon. A tall young man in blue attire prayed for us and prophesied that we would be engaged in the Lord's harvesting ministry, and many people would turn to Jesus to accept Him as their Lord and Savior as a result of our work.
While we were at FSM in Kansas City, the uncontrollable shaking of my limbs and body became much more intense. At times it grew so intense that I feared danger of injury. But the Holy Spirit would affect me only to a certain limit and then would cease momentarily. These manifestations were quite frequent in me all evenings.
The atmosphere in that FSM hall is something to behold firsthand. Words can not describe the charged up atmosphere and the power of the Lord what He is doing in that place. Many young people are being prepared and anointed by the power of the Spirit for the work to be done.
Thursday was our first day at the Joseph Company seminar. It began with singing and prayers, followed by talks from pastors Bob Frazer and Bob Hartley. Both are God's special people.
They were well trained and spoke from the heart.
During this morning session of singing and prayer, I found myself helpless to control my shaking. I knew it was the Holy Spirit manifesting in me. At time I felt a bit awkward about these sensations, but God's Spirit is not self-conscious about anything. He will express His will the way He pleases.
At the end of the day, there was a period in which attendees had a chance to be prayed upon by the Joseph Company's staff members. Yoncha and I took advantage of this opportunity. It was a tremendous privilege to receive the Lord's blessings through these people of prayer, all of whom had received the gift of the Holy Spirit to bless and heal as well.
Friday started as usual, but by midday it had transformed into a life-changing event for both me and Yoncha. We were going through the scheduled sessions and hearing so much about God's love for His creation, especially human beings. As Christ came down to earth to redeem us from our sinful lives, He paid the ultimate price by dying on the cross to save us from God's judgment, because God is just and always demands justice. During one of the breaks I was approached by an attendee whom I had not met before on any personal basis. He introduced himself as Todd Polysick from New Jersey. He is a CPA and also a minister at a church. He told me in no unclear terms that he had been instructed by Lord Jesus to "talk to Matt and Yoncha. They will have a message for you." He then went back to his seat.
I was awestruck by this. Why would the Lord lead this man Todd to us when He could have given him the message Himself? All afternoon I was amazed and elated at the confidence the Lord had shown in both me and Yoncha. We were still at break and I was raking my heart and soul for the Lord's message for Todd. I stood up and leaned against the wall next to our table and closed my eyes.
At once I saw the word 'healing' moving in a ticker tape fashion across my mind's eye. The Lord's message to Todd, through me, was that he would be given the power of healing in his ministry. I shared my vision for Todd, who was equally amazed because what I had to tell Todd about him healing the sick in his ministry was a confirmation of the same message he had received from the Lord twice before through different people. My prayer for him was that he would touch a great many lives, not just spiritually, but heal the sick in his church and beyond. One day I hope that I will meet him again and hear about his spiritual gift from the Lord.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Out of Pakistanby Hashmat Shah Copyright © 2011 by Hashmat Shah. Excerpted by permission of AuthorHouse. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
