From the depths of abandonment to the heights of faith—this is the extraordinary journey of Zahra, an Iranian woman whose search for belonging led her from an orphanage to persecution, and ultimately to freedom...and how you played a role in her story!
A Painful Childhood
Zahra’s story begins with heart-wrenching abandonment. Just tapping into her teenage years, she was cast aside by her parents and sent to a state-run orphanage in Iran.
"These years in the orphanage left a deep scar on my heart," Zahra recalls of her time there. The wounds of rejection and abandonment would follow her long into adulthood, creating a reservoir of bitterness that seemed impossible to drain.
Searching for Belonging
When she became an adult, Zahra moved in with a new family, hoping to find the sense of belonging that had eluded her. But even there, she felt unwanted and alone. Her only source of comfort was Mina, a member of the family who showed her genuine care and befriended her.
Then Mina moved to Germany...and Zahra's world crumbled once again. The familiar pain of abandonment returned with crushing force. In her desperation and rage, she turned her anger toward God, blaming Him for her pain.
She tried to heal through earning an associate degree in translation and finding work at a charity helping widowed and abandoned women, but she still felt trapped in a cycle of depression and anger, finding no peace for her own tormented heart.
The Beginning of Zahra’s Transformation
A few years later, an unexpected invitation arrived. Mina wanted Zahra to visit her. There in Germany, Mina took Zahra to church. Surrounded by unfamiliar faces singing unfamiliar songs, something extraordinary happened:
"At church for the first time, I felt a deep sense of peace—such as I had never experienced before."
The director of the charity where Zahra worked, Rima, noticed the change. She felt like she was witnessing decades of accumulated pain suddenly be lifted up, unfurled, and replaced by inexplicable tranquility.
Eventually, Rima connected Zahra's experience of peace in Germany to her visit to the church. She then introduced her to Maria, a Christian in the United States, who began sharing the message of Jesus Christ with Zahra through online conversations. Soon, Zahra’s heart softened, and one day she surrendered her life to Jesus Christ! She said:
"At that moment, everything changed. For the first time in my life, I experienced true peace. God healed my mind, calmed my heart, and took away my anger. The pain of growing up without parents, the deep wounds of rejection, and all the brokenness I carried were lifted off me by my Heavenly Father."
Newfound Faith under Persecution
Zahra couldn’t keep her newfound faith to herself. She began actively participating in online church meetings, and started sharing the gospel with the women she served at the charity—women who, like her, had been abandoned and forgotten by society.
Her work took on new meaning as she combined practical support with spiritual hope, offering these women not just temporary relief, but the possibility of lasting transformation.
But one day, the Iranian intelligence services began targeting Zahra’s workplace. What started as pressure on the director escalated into a full raid that shut down the organization. During the searches, authorities discovered Zahra's Bible.
Three times she was summoned for interrogation. After a year of torment, Zahra was threatened with arrest unless she ceased all Christian activity. To secure her release, she was forced to sign a commitment renouncing her faith activities. Even then, Zahra's ordeal wasn't over. For two months, she found herself under constant surveillance.
The woman who had finally found peace was now living in fear, unable to worship freely or share the message that had transformed her life.
The surveillance made her daily existence unbearable. She faced an impossible choice: suppress the faith that had healed her deepest wounds or risk imprisonment (or worse) for following Jesus.
A New Chapter
Finally, Zahra was forced to make the heart-wrenching decision to flee her homeland. She sought asylum in Türkiye, leaving behind everything familiar to preserve her freedom to worship and serve God. Her journey to Türkiye wasn't just a physical relocation—it was a declaration that her faith was worth more than her comfort, her security, or her homeland.
Zahra soon found work and joined a church in a secret location led by our Field Minister, Qasem. He was moved by her testimony; the angry, bitter woman who once blamed God for her suffering had become a testament to the power of faith to transform even the most wounded hearts—even when she had lost everything for her faith.
And, because of your faithful support, our field ministers Qasem and Laith came alongside Zahra as she began to rebuild her life in a new country. They are helping her with critical rent expenses, and daily necessities like groceries. Because of you, she has time to heal from all that she has lost for the sake of Christ. In time, and as we continue to offer her pastoral care and minister to her, we will help Zahra carve a path to independence and dignity living in Türkiye!