When Areefa* and her husband became Christians, their relatives noticed a change in them.
“When my husband and I started to grow in our faith, everything improved,” Areefa said. “God blessed us, my husband stopped drinking, and we both worked very hard. We seemed to become more well-off than all of our relatives.
“Our relatives began getting jealous of us and started asking us to leave church, saying that it was against our tradition and culture,” Areefa said.
“My husband’s brother was jobless, heavily addicted to drinking, and used to live with us at that time. He used to very strongly oppose our faith. He started picking quarrels with us on petty things.”
Image: Street scene in India.
Breathing His Last
One night, when Areefa’s brother-in-law was arguing with her, Areefa’s husband stepped in.
“He went to defend me and scolded his brother for verbally abusing me,” Areefa remembered.
In a fit of rage, her brother-in-law picked up a knife and stabbed Areefa’s husband in the chest.
“We thought it was a minor cut, but soon he was breathing his last,” she said. “We took him to the hospital, but we had already lost him.”
After losing her husband, Areefa’s family tried to force her to move home and leave Christianity. They said if she didn’t deny Jesus, they wouldn’t help her.
“I wanted to hold on to Jesus,” Areefa said. “Even now, my relatives hate me because I chose to hold on to my faith. They never gave me any support in bringing up my children.”
Your Help Makes A Difference
Through the generous support of people like you, our local partners in India provided Areefa with an electric sewing machine and a machine for embroidery.
Image: Areefa with her electric sewing machine.
The equipment allows Areefa to earn a living to provide for her children.
“God has made all these provisions for me,” she said. “I am thankful to God and to all those who have helped me through Open Doors partners.”
Your support can help persecuted Christians like Areefa to survive and heal even in the midst of persecution.
You can also help our local partners run training seminars where believers like Areefa are taught about persecution from a biblical perspective. They learn why Christianity is opposed, and how to live faithfully in light of that.
“Jesus has promised He will be with me always, even until the end of the world. He has promised to strengthen me. I can feel Him with me, and I can feel His strength,” Areefa said.
Through training, practical support and God’s Word, you can help people follow Jesus all over the world, no matter the cost.
*Name changed for security reasons.