Mariam* grew up in Iraq and belonged to a Shia Muslim family. At a young age she lost both her parents and went to live with her aunt.

At 15, Mariam was a very beautiful girl but she had not been able to get a good education. As often happens, she was married off to a wealthy Iraqi man.

Mariam and her husband had three children, but their marriage was not happy. Mariam’s husband had many extramarital relationships with other women. As her children were still young, there was no option for Mariam but to stay. She became severely depressed and began to think about ending her life.

The day when things began to change

One day, Mariam was searching online for the best way to kill herself. She came across our ministry website and decided to get in touch with us.

Our responder, Adel*, introduced Mariam to the possibility of a better life with Jesus. This conversation kept Mariam from taking her life, but for three months we didn’t hear from her.

A life saving phone call

One day, out of the blue, Adel woke up and felt the need to call Mariam right away. She answered the phone and asked Adel why he was calling. He told her that the Lord had wanted him to call her. Mariam then told him that she was about to end her life.

Adel suggested that Mariam talk to Jesus and ask him to speak directly, revealing himself to her. She said she would and they prayed together.

‘I want to follow him’

Every day after that conversation, Mariam prayed in the name of Jesus. A while later, she called Adel and told him, ‘Every time I pray, Jesus answers me. He is alive and I want to follow him!’

Mariam decided to follow Christ. She would not end her life and would be faithful to her husband, even though he was not faithful to her.

Please lift up Mariam and her family. Pray also for the many more Arabic-speaking women and men who are struggling with depression.

We have a range of content and apps that were designed to help individuals work through the issues surrounding depression. These draw huge numbers of visitors to our site and show that thousands of people in the Arab world are struggling. Our desire is to see more and more people come to Jesus and find peace and freedom in him. May this be so!

*Names have been changed.