“Sometimes we get worried, worried about what will happen in the end and where we will end up. But when we refer to the Bible, our thinking changes and worries are separated from us. We are extremely grateful to God for this favor.”
Me and the person who is now my wife, in the heart of Afghanistan, in the midst of an extremist Muslim community, our paths were intertwined and we were destined to face the journey of transformation.
Born into Muslim families, we lived in a world shrouded in darkness, unaware of the grace that awaited us. Fate brought us to university, where the fire of curiosity ignited in our hearts and was further ignited by the words of a Christian missionary.
In 2016, guided by the divine impulse to seek the truth, we dared to challenge the shackles of our minds. As we turned each page and absorbed each word of the Bible, our thoughts were changed forever.
We bravely embraced Christianity. But to our society we were infidels, strangers to whom we no longer belonged. My wife and I got married in defiance of the Islamic rules. We felt that we were full of God. Our faith in God grew stronger with each passing day.
However, our journey was also fraught with danger as threats loomed from every corner. We lived in the shadows, hidden from the judgmental eyes of those who once called us brothers. Our faith blossomed and we found comfort in glorifying God’s name.
But when the wave of political developments swept our country, our lives hung by a thread. Fear clung to us like a relentless shadow. Not only fear, but very serious threats from those whom we would one day invite to Christianity.
In Afghanistan, the Taliban ruled, and panic spread everywhere. After 18 months, by God’s will, we left Afghanistan. We came to a foreign land, where cultural differences made us different.
We do not know anyone. We are familiar with only a few families of our faith. We visit them once a week and pray and study the Bible. Our souls carry the weight of tragedy and leave behind the land we once called home.
But in the midst of darkness, we find a glimmer of hope as we stand together, united in faith and thanking God for the precious gift of fellowship in the midst of loneliness. Through tears and heartache, we cling to the grace that has brought us this far. The journey has been difficult, but we remain steadfast, trusting that our faith will carry us through the trials ahead.
In it all, we find strength because we know we are not alone. God’s love embraces us and guides us through our darkest times. As we walk this uncertain path, we find comfort in the company of our fellow believers, bound by our unwavering devotion to the One who showed us the way out of the shadows.