Maryam, a young artist from Iran, often wondered who God was and what the meaning of her life was. One day, in Tehran, she walked by an Armenian church with an open door. Being curious, she walked in.
“I saw pictures of Jesus. They were so beautiful, His kind eyes made me feel warm inside, but I didn’t know anything about who He was. A woman came up to me and asked me to leave. I didn’t understand why I couldn’t stay, and cried all the way home.” The night after Maryam’s visit to the church she had a strange dream.
“I dreamt I met Jesus. I recognized him from the pictures in the church. He was wearing white clothes and had fantastic eyes that looked straight at me. He took my hand and we walked to the mountains. I was cold but Jesus lit a fire that warmed me. We sat and talked, face to face. I don’t remember his words, just his beautiful deep eyes that looked at me with so much love. When I woke up I just cried. I wanted to get to know Jesus even more. Something happened in my heart and my eyes were opened. I knew God lived inside of me and it was as if I saw God everywhere. I knew God loved me and He was always with me. I changed as a person and I felt free.”
Maryam’s family had a hard time understanding her transformation, believing that she must be wrong and no one could speak to God the way she said she did. Maryam knew she was in the right place, and one day she got to experience a miracle.
“I broke my leg and three doctors said I had to undergo surgery. However, I didn’t want my family to have to pay for the surgery and take care of me afterwards, so I prayed to God and he heard me. In the middle of the night I woke up and saw two men sitting by my feet. At first I was scared and I couldn’t move but then I became calm and went back to sleep. Nobody believed my story but when the doctors took new x-rays of my leg it turned out the broken leg was fixed and there was no need for surgery anymore. The doctor was surprised but I just cried with joy and thanked God.”
Maryam married a pilot named Kamyar, but due to the political situation that developed in Iran, they were forced to flee to Sweden, where they soon had contact with several christians. Kamyar discovered that these Christians had something he was missing, and had been searching for. “I prayed to Jesus, and something new happened inside of me; I accepted Him as my personal Saviour and now I read the Bible as often as I can. It has completely changed my thoughts, my will and my lifestyle.”
Although the future is very uncertain, they are still secure in their faith. Regardless of what might happen, they know Jesus is with them. Maryam and Kamyar want all to know: “We know God has a plan for us, and we want to follow His will.”
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