Ex-gay Muslim man turned Christian ministry leader shares how he came to faith in Jesus

From Christian Post.com (June 16, 2023):

A formerly gay Muslim man who is now a Christian serving in ministry says Jesus radically transformed his life after he had a supernatural encounter with the Lord in a dream.

Donovan Archie shared his testimony in a June 8 episode by Delafé Testimonies, a global evangelistic project on YouTube with over 378,000 subscribers that aims to "create the world's largest archive of Jesus testimonies."

Archie spoke about growing up practicing Islam, his father's religion, while also living a homosexual lifestyle, noting that he struggled to find satisfaction in life. Islam, he added, was based on "performance" and felt he was constantly “performing” and experiencing no transforming revelations or changes in the process. 

“I could do things to try and get into the presence of God, that I could try to facilitate my way to get God to accept me and love me. And I found no avail in it; I found no satisfaction. There was no deep feeling or deep conviction about who God was, as I was practicing Islam as a gay person,” Archie continued. “There was no change in my heart. It was just me living my lifestyle and me performing for God. Oftentimes, I think of a dog that I once had. And my dog would perform to get treats.”

Same-sex attraction

Archie was born in Detroit, Michigan. His father was a practicing Muslim, which led him to adopt Islam as his religious identity. According to Archie, he was aware of his same-sex attraction from a young age and was bullied in elementary and middle school for being more effeminate.

By the time he went to college, he was already working as a professional dancer and had been hired to dance ballet and modern dance. In his junior year, however, he was invited to attend church and participate in a dance performance.

“I told them, ‘Well, you know, don't expect me to become a Christian or anything like that or pray or to do anything else that you all do at church.’ Because at that time, I identified as Muslim ... but then, I also had these struggles with my identity and sexuality,” Archie said. “I didn't want them to preach to me or to pray for me or anything. I just wanted to go there and dance.”

During the church service, Archie recalled that as he waited for his turn to dance, he heard a message the pastor was preaching that changed his perspective on Jesus.

“The message [was] ‘restoration of the gatekeepers,’" Archie recalled. "The pastor is talking about how God is calling people back to God’s Self and is beginning to restore people who have God's name. God is actively looking for people to respond to His love in the world. God is after our hearts and is calling for people who are gatekeepers in His kingdom."

"He's restoring them, and He's bringing them out of dark places. He's provided for them this lifestyle of transformation.'"

Although the sermon "intrigued" Archie, he remembers thinking that he "wasn't ready to experience Jesus yet." [read more]