As a young girl, Zamira* stumbled upon a Christian cartoon and was instantly captivated. She wanted to know more about this Jesus character who was so kind and gentle and loving. Her mom, hearing about her daughter’s fascination and desire to learn more, laughed at her. “Oh, silly girl,” she told Zamira. “Jesus is not for us.”
As time passed, Zamira sometimes wondered about Jesus. But, living in a country where there are very few Christians, she never met anyone who knew him – not until she met her English teacher, one of our workers from the United States.
Again, Zamira was fascinated. This teacher, and her friends, lived very differently than anyone she had ever met. Much like the character she remembered from the TV program, they were kind and gentle and loving. And, Zamira noticed, they treated one another like true brothers and sisters – something she had never seen between men and women before. But Zamira remembered her mom’s words. Jesus, she thought, was not for her people.
A few years later, Zamira went to a women’s event and met two ladies from a nearby country. They looked like her and spoke like her, but she discovered that they had come to know Jesus. Apparently, she realized, Jesus was for her people, too.
It was a moment that changed everything. Seeds that had been planted and watered long ago suddenly sprouted into something vibrant and beautiful in Zamira’s life. However, it didn’t come without a cost. Since, Zamira has experienced great hardship and difficult trials, but she walks forward with a deep, unshakeable hope.
Reflecting on her journey, Zamira was speaking with her former English teacher one day and said, “Have you thought about how my life might look so different if you never moved here to teach all those years ago?” Her teacher smiled. “Yes, Zamira. Of course I have.”