Batoul’s mother and sisters turned on her – but thanks to you she now ministers to women across North Africa

When Batoul became a Christian, she thought her mother and sisters wouldn’t mind. But she was wrong – they brutally turned on her, and drove Batoul to despair. But thanks to your prayers and support, she received encouragement from local Open Doors partners – and the strength to minister to more Christian women like her.

It was Batoul’s* father who introduced her to Jesus. Once a fundamentalist Muslim, who beat his wife and daughters, his transformation after becoming a Christian was evident. “After his conversion, my father changed a lot,” Batoul says. “He became kind and stopped forcing us to dress in a specific way.”

Batoul was thrilled, but her mother and sisters were not. “My mother was grateful for her new, loving husband,” she explains, “but, like my sisters, she couldn’t accept his conversion and the idea of him becoming an infidel.” 

Batoul grew close to her father and accompanied him at Bible studies. She learned about Jesus with delight and was baptised at 16. “I chose Jesus, not fully knowing what to expect, but I was convinced that life with Jesus is worth all the sacrifices,” she says. 

Closeness replaced with cruelty 

She assumed her conversion would mean little to her mother and sisters – but she was wrong. “To my misfortune, I paid the price for both my father’s conversion and my own. They didn’t dare to persecute my father, so they turned on me.” 

Before her father had become a Christian, Batoul had enjoyed a close relationship with her mother and sisters. “My sisters and I had a solid relationship,” Batoul remembers. “We talked a lot, shared a lot, everything we wanted to do, we’d do it together.”

Now, that closeness was gone. Her mother, Amina*, kept her away from church. Her sisters beat her and asked how much money she’d accepted to convert. “What price did they pay for your betrayal?” they demanded.  

At dinner times, they forced Batoul to eat by herself. “In my culture, we eat from the same plate, so I felt like an animal eating alone. That was their intention. It was very hard for me to see my own mother – who should have been tender and close to me – instead persecuting me alongside my sisters. They separated themselves from me, and I lost both motherly affection and family warmth.”

Rather than rushing to her defence, Batoul’s father distanced himself from her mistreatment. “I don’t want trouble with you or with your sisters,” he would say. “You are all my daughters.” He entrusted her care to a church leader. 

Batoul felt utterly abandoned. “I had no family, I had nothing, and my faith was shaken because I didn’t perceive that Christ was with me,” she remembers. “I only saw that the people who were with me gave up on me. I considered ending my life.” 

A new family 

Thankfully, God was not finished with Batoul and brought her to the attention of an Open Doors partner, Brother Youssef*. “He strengthened me, reminding me to look up to Christ and remember how He was persecuted, crucified, beaten and endured great suffering,” says Batoul. “As His followers, we, too, will face such trials. Brother Youssef said that I should always refer to Christ when I face a problem. And that if I needed a father, I should talk to Jesus in the first place, and to ask of Him everything that I used to ask of people. I should turn to Christ for everything I needed to do in my life, and to identify in Christ all the people I require in my life.”

She also began to attend Brother Youssef’s secret house church, which is mostly a congregation of converts from Islam: “Church is the family I was seeking since I came to believe as a child. I felt Christ changing me when I reached that period where I forgave every person that hurt me or did injustice in my life.”

Despite pressure, Batoul is prepared to keep ministering

Batoul’s relationship with her mother and sisters is better now, although they still ask her to convert back to Islam. Today, with the support of Open Doors partners, she reaches out to isolated Christian girls and women in similar situations.  

“I am preaching to the world outside, I get in contact with the girls,” she says. “A lot of girls are afraid of their families and their societies. That’s why they are afraid of believing! I pray that the Lord would strengthen them, that they would believe in Him, and that they would not be afraid but encouraged.” 

Her status as an unmarried woman adds an extra layer of difficulty. “One difficulty for Christian women is how they can attend church. A man can leave the house with no issue whatsoever, but a girl will be interrogated about where she’s going, with whom and at what hour. She’ll go through an intensive questioning. A lot of girls can’t go to church because their families don’t allow the girl to go out unless accompanied by the whole family.”

Even with the ongoing challenges, Batoul is prepared. “Because I believe in Christ, I must be ready for persecution and whatever else I might face,” she says. “I draw my strength from the Scriptures of the Lord and believe in His teachings. I must not be angry or reflect a disappointing image of Christ. Instead, I should reach out to others with His message. Even when they persecute and beat me, I still treat them with kindness.”

Batoul is also encouraged by your continued prayers. “I don’t feel lonely,” Batoul says, “but sometimes I still feel the pain! It’s through prayer that I can get through this. In all the sadness, I behold Christ in my life because when I remember that He’s with me, I feel joyous.” 

*Names changed for security reasons