Unlikely Christian - An Iranian Girl

There's a Yiddish Proverb that says "Man plans, God laughs"

In college when I told God that I didn't want to leave the United States, He must have chuckled because I ended up in the Middle East twice before I turned 22. And if I thought God's plans had expiration dates, he reminded me once again that He always follows through. After college I ended up teaching English at an International school where my students came from 50+ different countries. This was ironic because once I got this job, my mom reminded me that when I was a little girl, I was prophesied over that I would become "a voice among the nations." Yet I had told God that I would never leave America...HA! So all of this to say - God wanted to make sure that I loved His people and that I understood what my place in His plans was. 

So now whenever I see a woman covered (even eyes and fingernails) at a Walmart in Houston I don't stare, I try to make small talk in Arabic with her kids. When I find a group of Brazilians playing volleyball, I join in (if I have workout clothes of course). I LOVE different cultures, food, music, languages, mannerisms, customs, etc. Its all so fascinating and fun!

Sometimes its also a challenge. I've also felt the tension of having a Palestinian and Israeli in the same classroom. I've had the responsibility of telling a Venezuelan girl to stop exposing her body to the guys in school. I've panicked and pushed a Haitian earthquake victim out of class because his view of art was exposing us all to nude, spread eagle portraits of women. 

The most uncomfortable, and confusing, situation though has always been when a sweet, Muslim friend of mine tells me very solemnly that they must kill anyone that converts to Christianity. Let me give you a picture... 

My friend Noor (name changed) and I have been spending a weekend shopping in Galveston and now we've decided to have lunch at the Cheesecake factory. We talk about boys, tv, school, etc. And of course the topic turns to our religious differences. I, being Christ-focused, want to turn the conversation to His goodness, so I tell Noor about my friend Abdullah who was previously a Muslim but gave his life to Christ a few years ago. I tell her the whole story and how his life has changed for good, but Noor of course is quiet. And then she very seriously informs me what Islam has to say about converts. That she must kill him. I know she would never have the courage to do it, but I've never seen her be so serious.

Trust me - I still love them and have wonderful friendships with many of them, but If you think some Muslims are bluffing, google ISIS Yazidi executions.
Its 2015 and Christian persecution is happening right now. 

All of this was to tell you about my friend Maryam. Her unabashed joy and boldness are SO encouraging to me and many others. She is a convert. Not the first I've met and not the last but she is brave. She knows the risks she is taking. She could be disowned by her family or killed. But Jesus has changed everything for her. I am so proud to call her my friend.

She describes her story.

My life was transformed into a loving and caring life. The first encounter that I had was to hear that my brother became Christian. That was so strange that I had not any reaction since I was Muslim and conversion was a big deal. Through my roommate I was invited to a bible study group. I felt so strange while they were interpreting the proverbs. My heart wasn’t at the same direction of my mind. I was so attracted to the conversations. 

Next Sunday, I asked my roommate to take me to the church. I have never felt like that before. I can barely say it, but it was like the first time that I praised the lord from the bottom of my heart even though I still wasn't a believer. I was surrounded by Jesus lovers and they taught me so many things that were priceless. Unintentionally I was attracted to the Bible, I had some feeling that I couldn’t explain to myself, or I was not courageous enough to confess the light that was in my way. Grace and love without any expectation from the lord was a big deal for me. This whole fact was so unimaginable and wonderful to be true!

 In the past, I was so restricted that I couldn’t believe in the love of lord in my life. Day by day as I was seeking him, he was responding to me! So miraculous! I moved to Houston and after a week I felt like I need to go to church. I found Houston's First Baptist and I was thrilled to be there. In the third week I was sure that I wanted to be with my lord and I wanted to call myself a “believer”, and tell everyone about the love and grace of Jesus who is the way of salvation. He cares about all of us and loves us more than ourselves.

When I was Muslim I had to keep Allah happy, and this compulsion didn't seem to be right. Now I’m free and forgiven and I want to be good, because my God is good!  This is the beauty of love!It's like “You don’t have to but you so badly want to!”

I strongly encourage my brothers and sisters to talk about the love of God that surrounds everyone. Once they feel this truth in their heart, the rest will be the Lord’s grace to them and they will find the way to join the truth.I hope one day I see my whole family find out about the truth and get blessed with the love of Lord. I am pretty sure that the day is so close. I pray a lot about my country. There are so many believers that are in trouble, and still courageously trying to spread the Gospel. I ask everyone to pray for my country, Iran.

Jesus Lover,

Maryam

(Maryam also included a fun link to change your view of Iran. Enjoy)

Image source: ravenectar.com

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