DS DISPATCH

Fatima* and her family immigrated to Germany from a Muslim country when she was just 13. Now 15 years old, she still felt isolated and alone in this strange new land. In a few days, she would be returning to school, the isolation period imposed by Covid-19 now over. She dreaded it. 

When she saw a Google ad for our Issues I Face site in her mother tongue, she wrote in to talk with an online mentor, Anna*. In the next two days, more than 80 messages would go back and forth between them.

That mentor, an immigrant herself, manifested compassion by talking about the hurdles this young teen was overcoming: a new country, a new language, and new beliefs and customs. She encouraged Fatima to discover the positive aspects in the situation, mentioning that God had created her with unique gifts, talents, and interests that she could draw on to find topics of conversation. Anna also shared that love is like a light that shines in the darkness and brings people close. When we choose to love others, they often respond in kind.

At that point in the conversation, Fatima asked, “How can I have this light, this love, this motivation?” She wanted to change, but really had no idea how.

Anna decided to start talking about spiritual things by sharing that God invites us to change and become a new person, to be born again.

She recognized that she had two feelings fighting for supremacy in her heart: love and hate. Her emotions were not constant or stable. How could she change by tomorrow?

The mentor responded that this change does not occur overnight. After talking with her about God, generally, she decided to tell Fatima she was a Christian, and sent her links to Christian music videos. An hour later, Fatima wrote back to say that she was listening to the worship videos, she was praying, and it was giving her comfort and peace. She asked to learn more about this religion, Christianity.

Anna seized this opportunity to share the story of her own faith and send a link to an explanation of the Gospel in her own language. When Fatima indicated making a commitment, Anna replied, saying she was there for her to help her grow. She prayed for her and talked about how the Holy Spirit would help her and strengthen her. They are continuing to correspond with one another, and Fatima is experiencing the joy of seeing God answer her prayers about school life. 

Please pray that Fatima’s parents will not object to her desire to know more about Jesus, and that she and Anna will continue to develop a fruitful mentoring relationship as Fatima discovers more about her new life in Jesus.

*names changed to protect privacy

Originally posted on P2CDigital.com