How The Name of Jesus Changed Grace’s Story

Grace was chosen by her husband at the age of 14. She tears up as she remembers: “I was a child. I was not old enough. But no one had any objections.”

Despite doing her best to make it work and even beginning to develop feelings for her husband, it was not long before his eyes wandered.

His affairs picked up pace with one notable long standing one. When she confronted her husband about it, he beat her with a belt. Grace took her pain to Allah and even prayed for her husband:

I prayed to Allah but I didn’t get an answer.

Finally when all hope was lost, Grace was able to obtain a divorce and walked away from her loveless marriage. But her problems only got worse. Her family cut her off. She found herself abandoned with two young children. She lived hand to mouth, taking even the most menial jobs just so she could feed her children. Isolation, stigma and hunger gripped her.

After some time, Grace met a kind man who she grew to love and eventually married. When Transform Iran invited her husband to help translate portions of the Christian Bible into their ethnic language, he knew it was dangerous work but he was excited to participate. Such recognition of their language and culture was a great honor. Aware of the harsh consequences from the government, Barat excluded Grace from the project.

“He took his laptop and went to the room and locked the door. I said, Barat, why did you close the door? Then he told me that only group members and members of the committee can attend the meeting. I was so upset.”

But curiosity gripped Grace and she began to listen in from outside. As she did, she encountered the name of Jesus. She had no idea who Jesus was but she was inexplicably drawn to Him.

Just hearing the name of Jesus Christ really touched my heart. It made me feel at ease. I really wanted to know this story about who Jesus Christ is.

She would sit outside the room where Barat met remotely with the translation team and chime in with suggestions as they debated how certain words should be translated. Her hunger for Jesus grew every day.

Eventually he allowed her to participate and as she did, she found herself drinking in the words of Jesus, allowing them to wash over all the pain and trauma from her past, healing her from deep within. She committed to follow Jesus and experienced His love in a way she knew she could not keep to herself. The pastors at Transform Iran began to disciple her. How could she keep this treasure quiet!? Her life had been totally redeemed! She had found her Savior and she needed to tell the world.

She began visiting the local park with the portions of translated Scripture in her hands. She would share the life-giving words of Jesus to her community in their own language and began to see other lives changed as they accepted Christ as Lord and Savior.

The Word of God is love, friendship and peace. We want to translate this love into our language. Now I go to the park twice a day to evangelize. When we talk to the people, they accept it with their hearts. It’s been less than a year since I accepted Jesus. I have already shared the gospel to 600 people and 80 have accepted Jesus.

One year ago, there were no known churches in this part of Iran. An unreached people group. Now armed with Scripture in their own language, Grace and her disciples are slowly seeing a shift. They meet in secret in small groups and learn about Jesus together. They are supported remotely by Transform Iran’s team who offer resources, pastoral guidance and constant prayer and encouragement. Together, they want to see Grace’s people group reached with the love of Jesus Christ.

This young girl who considered herself nameless and worthless in the eyes of the men around her, has grown to meet her Savior who calls her by name and reminds her of the high price He paid for her – He considers her worthy of the ultimate sacrifice on the cross! Grace declares:

Iran is a dangerous place for us, but we believe in Jesus Christ. I’m not afraid of anything.

Read more about our work to translate the Bible into the ethnic languages of Iran

Read more about how the persecuted church is growing in Iran