A Jordanian woman raised as a Muslim and condemned to death by its teachings recounted how she encountered Jesus, which changed her life forever.
Aisha, born as a Muslim in Amman, Jordan, was featured in the testimonies series "Souls & Stories" of IFoundtheTruth.com and CBN News. The film series documents Muslims who share their stories of conversion to Christianity. Aisha's story is one of the five stories released for the series' Season 1.
According to the movie's description, the traditional Muslim family Aisha grew up in did not satisfy her many questions about salvation. Her absentee father--being an alcoholic--also did not satisfy her need for love. Faithwire added that this is on top of her father being verbally abusive to her. Aisha never found Islam as a source of peace during those years she suffered much pain. She even felt usually condemned by it.
Desperate for love, Aisha become pregnant at 17 after she moved to the United States with her family. She then decided to have an abortion out of fear for her life. She knew that Islam mandates her father to kill her for dishonoring their family through her pregnancy, being unwed. She was taught that in Islam that her sins are unforgivable and that Allah hated her for it.
This knowledge of Islam's punitive culture and the shame she carried in her heart for committing an abortion plunged her into depression and suicidal thoughts. Aisha relentlessly searched for forgiveness and hope and cried out for mercy to Allah one day.
Ironically, she heard the word "Jesus" instead. Aisha believed that the voice she heard was from heaven and that led her to pray to Jesus to reveal Himself to her.
"That was the first time I felt any sense of peace, was when I prayed to Jesus," Aisha said.
That encounter filled her with an unquenchable desire for the truth, which she found in the Bible's Romans 5:8. The specific scripture speaks of the forgiveness Aisha so longed for. Aisha said she finally discovered liberation from the many years of being constantly judged by Allah. Jesus' mercy and compassion for women, as well as, treatment of women was significant for Aisha in deciding to become a Christian. She said Jesus' merciful nature was in stark contrast to Islam's treatment of women.
"You saw Jesus walk up to women with an element of tenderness, and you know, the woman at the well, the woman who had a bleeding disorder, Jesus called her 'daughter,' and that was huge for me to read because in Islam women aren't regarded highly at all," Aisha pointed out.
Aisha recalled begging Allah for mercy without any certainty she would even receive it. Yet it is different with Jesus, who she discovered is truly merciful. Aisha noted how the Bible depicted Jesus' mercy in the way he gravitated towards sinners and outcasts. She said it was very interesting for her to see Jesus' tenderness towards sinners and outcasts having been exposed to the shame, condemnation, and even death Islam brings in certain circumstances.
After being a Christian for several years, Aisha revealed that she was also able to reconcile with her father whom she called through the prompting of the Holy Spirit when he was on his deathbed for alcoholism.
