I was born in south Cyprus into a Muslim family and am the youngest of eight children. For us, our identity and self worth were defined by the large amounts of property, vineyards and animals we owned. Our lives changed completely when I was 6 years old because of a civil war between the Turks and Greeks. We lost everything! We were forced to leave with only the clothes that we were wearing and lived in refugee camps before being relocated to North Cyprus. We were told that the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus would be our new home. We had no hope of ever returning to the south since the United Nations had been sent to guard the border; keeping the Turks and Greeks separated.
Only after 30 years have we even been able to cross the border and visit our village; but sadly everything we had is still in ruins today!
We lost everything ...
We started at ground zero as a family in North Cyprus. My father developed a heart condition and was in the hospital many times. It was just incredibly hard for him to accept that he lost everything he ever worked for! We had many days when we had no money.
Fortunately my mother had a very strong faith! I remember my mom thanking Allah, which means God in Arabic, each day when she figured out what she was going to feed us, and she would say "God will provide for tomorrow, I am certain He will!". And, I had the opportunity to witness that He always did! Though my father's dad was an Imam (Islamic pastor), we were not practising Muslims as a family, however, I grew up witnessing strong reliance on God each and every day. This had a very big impression on me.
A new look at education ...
My dad was "the authority" in our house. Up until the war, he believed his children did not need higher education because we had plenty of property to look after and care for.
But, after the war, his views completely changed. He wanted us to go all the way! He used to say, "people can take your money, or property, but they can never take your education away". I was fifteen years old, going to a Turkish high school, when he told me that I needed to study and get selected for the foreign exchange program to go to America as an exchange student.
I was terrified of this idea! For one, I did not know English other than a few words, and secondly, I was way too attached to my mom and my siblings.
He would not accept "no" for an answer, so the next thing I knew I was on a plane to America. I lived in Alaska for a year with an American family. My host family were very nice people and they really cared for me, loved me, and were very helpful in teaching me English. They lived a very godly life and were a good example for me.
After spending one year in America, I returned to Cyprus. I told my dad I do not want to go back; it was hard for me to get used to the culture in America! He would not hear of it, he insisted that I should take all the necessary exams to go back for University on a scholarship. I did not want to go; there were lots of tears involved... but, in the end, I obeyed my dad and did what I was supposed to do.
To this day, I am the only person who got a scholarship from America, not having gone to an English high school in Cyprus (all other scholars are from English speaking schools). I think my dad knew what was best for me, and now that I am a parent, I clearly understand what a sacrifice it was for both my mom and dad to let me go so far away from home!
I went to the University of Kansas, and studied Electrical Engineering. Even though I had to take English for foreign students in addition to my classes towards my major, I still finished in 4 years with my bachelor's degree and continued on to get my masters in Telecommunications.
By this time, my parents were asking me to come home, but I was not able to get a job in Cyprus that would take advantage of my education. So, I returned back to the US, this time on my own desire! I was offered a job with a telecommunications company in Tulsa, Oklahoma where I ended-up settling and meeting my husband.
And then I was married ...
My husband, Kevin, had two children from his first marriage (Rachel and Ryan). When we got married, the ceremony included all four of us making a promise to each other that we will be a family and love one another through sickness and in health, and through good times and bad!
Being a family with my husband and our two children was very important to me. Fulfilling this promise was especially hard when Rachel and Ryan were teenagers and our youngest, Kortay, was born. Those of you who have raised teenagers know, teenage years are difficult years. It is even more difficult raising two teenagers and a toddler at the same time! Kevin and I relied on God more then ever and not a day went by without prayer.
This is when I really had the most desire/need to practice unconditional love, the kind of love that Jesus talks about!
Relying on God ...
I am thankful that throughout these times in my life, though I was not a Christian yet, I relied on God every day and felt that he was with me every step of the way.
When people ask me how I made it to Alaska from Cyprus, not speaking English, the only way that I can answer that question is that I believe "God had me in the palm of his hand and delivered me there safe and sound".
How did I pass those exams to get a scholarship with the little English that I had learned in one year, how did I finish my degree in 4 years, and all the rest of it? Well, God was in charge of my life and He made it happen!
I knew of God's power and relied on Him every day, but it was not until I met my husband that I learned about Jesus Christ and his unconditional love for us, and what he did for us (for me and you)!
What an awesome feeling it is to know that God loves us unconditionally! He sent his son Jesus Christ to show us how to love one another, unconditionally.
As Simon said in one of his sermons recently, if we stop and think about what our world would be like if we tried to do that every day... our world would be more like heaven; and I started realizing that I had an overwhelming desire to live in that world!
So where does Jesus fit in? ...
At the same time that I was experiencing such a desire, I still wanted to believe in Islam and became very confused about where Jesus fits.
I think you get the picture of how torn I had become... I remember telling my husband "I know God, I love God, I have a relationship with God, I just don't know where Jesus fits!".
Kevin, talked to me about God's plan, why Jesus came to this earth, and what he did for us. In addition, he not only explained God's unconditional love to me, but more importantly, he demonstrated it every day of our lives to the point that my desire to know more about Jesus and Christianity grew even more.
A little background …
I went to church with my husband for 10 years, but what held me back internally and initially was several issues, some of which required some growth and maturity on my part!
1 - I was taught that if I believe in anything other than "there is only one God, Allah, and his messenger is Mohammad", I would commit the biggest sin against God, and ultimately go to hell. I feared that if I believe in Jesus, I would go to hell!
2 - I was taught that all sins are not the same! As an example, if you commit adultery, or murder someone, more than likely, you are going to hell. Because, God on the judgement day, would look at all the good things you did and all your sins and decide if one out-weighs the other. Through reading the Bible and talking to my husband, I was learning that all sins are the same in Christianity. There is no list that God keeps, no weight that is applied to each sin. I was very confused!
3 - I was taught not to love my enemies, not to love those who don't love me. To me, this did not seem like what God would have us do. Once I understood what Christianity teaches in this regard, I realized that my heart is more in-line with the teachings of the Holy Bible!
Still more questions ...
I continued to have some questions about Christianity. The concept that you can be forgiven of any sin, with the exception of rejecting God, was a hard one for me!
Something inside me kept telling me that heaven would not be heaven if it was filled with murderers and people who committed adultery, or other big sins! I had to come to an understanding that when people truly have Jesus in the centre of their life, and love Him as our father in heaven wants us to, they cannot help but love one another and be kind to each other.
Yes, as humans, we would slip and do the wrong thing, but we would always come back to Him!
Afraid ...
Not too long ago, I remember telling my husband, I understand a lot more now, but I am really afraid that if I commit my life to Christ (rejecting what I was taught with Islam), I may loose the incredible relationship I have had with God! His response was "Your relationship will be even better with Jesus in the centre of it!".
Now I know ...
Now, I know that everything has been possible in my life due to God's love and mercy. The love that I am talking about is the unconditional love of Jesus Christ, nothing to do with what the Kur'an teaches.
Thanks to Julie for the study of Mark's gospel called "Christianity Explored", and thanks to a video that my son Ryan sent me, of a converted Muslim testifying how Jesus changed his life, my questions were answered and I decided to follow Jesus (converting from Islam to Christianity!). With this decision, I feel true joy and love in my heart like never before!
So, I stand before you today to let you know that I believe God loves us very much and He came to this earth as Jesus Christ to show us his character and demonstrate how we should love one another and how we should love Him, AND He died on the cross for us so that our sins can be forgiven.
Now, I don't have to wonder if I have been "good enough" to earn going to heaven, but have the assurance that my sins are forgiven and that I will spend eternity with God. What a perfect plan from a loving father! As a parent, I can relate to His love just a tiny bit.
I also believe with all my heart that it was a part of God's amazing plan for my husband and I to move from America to Ipswich.
God knew all along that Burlington Baptist Church would be the place where it would all come together for me. Thank you so much for showing me the love of Jesus.
I thank this church family for your genuine members who touched my heart with your kindness and welcoming smile. The way that we were greeted at the door on our first day, I will never forget (thank you Chris Peck for being so wonderful to us); I will never forget the way that Heather was smiling and singing when we first starting coming here in August that gave me the overwhelming desire to come back to see her face again; I will never forget Margaret Cameron's friendly voice giving me her phone number to call with any questions that we may have; I will never forget the way that Julie approached me for a study of Mark's gospel, giving of herself and her time, just the two of us, no group setting required. And, I want to thank Simon who God uses to speak to me every week through his sermons. I truly and honestly look forward to each Sunday to hear him!
I can sincerely say that I would not want to be baptized anywhere else but here at Burlington Baptist Church, and I am so honoured that I have the opportunity to become a member of this church. It is truly a blessing!
I have already mentioned the influence Kevin had on me an how much I appreciate him, but I also want to thank Ryan, my son, who sent me the video of a converted Muslim who answered my questions that were keeping me from making the leap.
Though my daughter Rachel Leann is not with us today, I would like to remember her as well. I want this day to be an encouragement to her... I want her to know that patience pays off! She is praying for her boyfriend Alex to come to Christ as well, and though I don't wish it will take Alex 10 years to accept Christ into his heart, it might take some time! I want her to know that we love them both very much and we will pray for Alex along side with her.
And, finally, I want to thank my most wonderful daughter-in-law, Rachel. Her coming into our family and showing me how a 19 year old can love God and live her life for Him, made an amazing impression on me. She and her family are truly a gift from God to us!
I mentioned several names today, but there are many other people who have touched my heart whom I have not mentioned. God knows all of them and my wish and prayer today is that God will be with all of them and bless their lives! Thank you God for all your blessings, and thank you for this incredible day!
May God bless all of you. Amen.
