Dear Friends,

Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We thought you might be interested in reading this testimony from one of the students at Moscow Presbyterian Theological Academy, where we are now serving.

My name is Ilnur Akhmentavaliyev. I am 30 years old and came from Tatarstan, a part of Russia. Islam is the dominant religion in the republic. I have been raised in the Islamic tradition by my faithful Muslim parents. All my relatives are also Muslims. I used to attend Muslim worship services and festivals. Some of the prayers from the Koran I have memorized in Arabic.

I got married when I was quite young and have two sons. My in-laws are Muslims and they were living with us. In our home, the Koran was the most important and holy book. My father-in-law is a very respected person in the community. He belongs to the main mosque and serves as a Islamic minister.

I have two older sisters and a younger sister. Near the end of last year a dramatic event took place in my life. One of my older sisters, Halida, has been going to church for three years. She has often told me about Jesus Christ. In the beginning I did not pay serious attention to her, but one day I went to church with her. I was not really convinced by what they were explaining about God and His son Jesus who was crucified and resurrected. Slowly, however, I became very curious about the Christian faith and began to read the Bible. Since the Bible was not allowed in my home, I was reading it alone in the kitchen when everyone went to bed. I hid the Bible so that other family members would not see it. The hiding of the Bible lasted only about two months. When I came home from work one evening, I sensed something was very wrong. My in-laws were waiting for me showing anger in their faces. My father-in-law was holding the Bible I hid in his hand. They were threatening and cursing my behavior, and gave me two options: either stop keeping and reading the Bible or to leave home. They had already packed all of my stuff. Since I could not convince them with my new attraction to the Bible, I chose to leave my beloved family. I could hardly grasp what was really happening to me at the time. My wife and children were all crying. Coming out of the house, I was standing outside not knowing where to go and what to do. It was a very cold night and the chill of the night was searing into my bewildered heart.

My sister Halida took me to her home that night. We prayed together for our unknown future. Next morning my wife called me on the phone and asked me to divorce. I knew that it was not her own decision but her parents'. She simply told me that she could not go against her parents. Then she hung up the phone. In our tradition any couple can get divorced when one of the spouse claims it. Later I was told that I could see my children whenever I wanted. However, have not allowed me to see them since my departure. As I was missing them so much I attempted many times to call, but my in-laws hung up the phone upon hearing my voice. I could not help but having a sense of loss. All of a sudden everything has gone from me: my wife, two sons, my job and even my own parents. In my prayers, however, I began to get strongly convinced that God would keep me in His hand. I now understand what Paul meant in his letter to Phillipians: "Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord" (Phil. 3: 7-8a).

The pastor of the church my sister and I attend arranged my theological study at Moscow Presbyterian Theological Academy. Even my parents don't know my whereabouts. Yet my prayer is that I could bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to my people in the republic upon completion of my theological study here. May the Lord help me bring the new gospel of liberation to my republic!

Sincerely,

Joe and Hannah Kang

The 2001 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 91