The powerful witness of women in the Middle East
Following Jesus makes them outsiders but they are helping hundreds of others do the same
Photo: Muslim-background believers receive training to help them develop their faith and become more effective in sharing Jesus with others
Kiran, Rida and Farah all grew up in devout Muslim families in the Middle East. Choosing to follow Jesus made them outsiders in their communities. But today these three women find themselves on the cutting edge of mission – helping hundreds of others follow Jesus.
Meeting Jesus
Kiran, Rida and Farah all came to Lebanon as refugees from Syria with their families in recent years. As refugees, they were already pushed to the edges: outsiders living in a foreign culture, away from almost everyone they knew and loved. Little did they know, they would soon be pushed to the edges even more.
Kiran used to live in Beirut, not far from a church which has had links with CMS for several years. Kiran would often pass the church on her way to the market, and remembers seeing a Bible verse on the door: Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. “I felt like that message was meant just for me,” she says. One day, Kiran went in. As she stepped inside, a woman started apologising to her, saying the church wasn’t giving away food or other supplies that day. Kiran explained that she wanted to know what was happening in this building. Why had she seen so many people coming out with smiles on their faces? This was the beginning of Kiran’s faith journey, and not long after, she started following Jesus and became part of the church.
Farah and Rida also visited churches near where they lived and were both touched by Matthew 5:44: Love your enemies, bless those who curse you. “That really stayed with me – there’s nothing like that in the Quran,” says Farah. Rida read the entire Bible and ultimately found “no violence or hostility” in it, in stark contrast to the violence of ISIS she had witnessed in Syria. It wasn’t long before Farah and Rida gave their lives to the Lord, too.
Pushed even further to the edges
For Kiran, Rida and Farah, making the choice to follow Jesus was costly. All three women faced intense opposition to their faith.
“When I was first exploring faith, I felt that the devil was telling me that it would be better for me to keep living in darkness,” remembers Kiran. And things got worse: the day she was baptised, Kiran’s father-in-law kicked her out of the house and her entire extended family cut all contact with her.
Farah’s husband used to offer her money and more freedom if she stayed away from church and he would punish the children for singing Sunday school songs and asking questions about Jesus.
“The training strengthened me, encouraged me in my calling and made me a better servant of the Lord.”
Farah
Rida’s uncles ridiculed her and one of them declared that killing her would be permissible because she had left Islam. In his eyes, she had dishonoured the family.
But in the face of hostility, divorce, rejection from family and friends and even death threats, these women are still standing strong today.
Learning to lead
Kiran, Rida and Farah’s pastors introduced them to a CMS partner called TN, a movement of Christians helping disciples grow in Christlike character and develop their leadership skills. TN offers ministry training specially tailored to Muslim-background believers (MBBs), including in-person training in groups as well as regular one-to-one support. This helps people like Kiran, Rida and Farah to grow in their relationship with Jesus and develop spiritual practices to sustain them in their faith as well as equipping them to share their faith and disciple others.
Rida serves in southern Lebanon, a region which is 90–95 per cent Shia Muslim. She had been sharing Jesus and discipling people there for two or three years when she did some training with TN. Through the training, she was encouraged to consider how to make her ministry even more effective. Rida was supported as as she came to focus on discipling young people.
Farah found the training with TN gave her practical tools to share the gospel and make disciples. “The training strengthened me, encouraged me in my calling and made me a better servant of the Lord,” she says. Farah is now looking after two small groups and is discipling followers of Jesus from both Muslim and Christian backgrounds.
Kiran was already sharing Jesus and making disciples in six areas in southern Lebanon. Following the TN training, Kiran is now ministering in 12 areas, looking after 16 discipleship groups and over 200 families.
TN’s training has helped Kiran, Rida and Farah and many other women build a solid foundation of faith and provides the ongoing support they need when things get tough. And they know they are connected to a whole network of Christians that stretches across the Middle East and North Africa.
