Elina's testimony<\/h1>\n
My name is Elina and this is my story. I was born in a Muslim family in Kyrgyzstan.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n When I was born, my father was in prison, so my mother raised me alone. To earn enough money, she moved to Russia to work. She left me with some family in Kyrgyzstan because she couldn't take me with her. While she was in Russia, she became seriously ill. When my father got out of prison, he traveled to my mother to help during her illness. But while he was there, he found a new wife and left my mother. My mother's illness got so bad that she had to go home and be hospitalized. I was seven years old and went to the hospital to look after my mother. While I was standing at the bedside, she died in front of me. Just before she died, she called my father and asked him to take care of me. He refused. He wanted nothing to do with me because now he had a new wife and a new family. <\/span><\/p>\n I was seven years old and I was alone.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Because my father didn't want to know me, I was placed with some of his relatives. It was a hard time for me. I had to do all the household chores for the family. If they were unhappy with anything, they would beat me. They often did. While I was living there, I was allowed to go to school. It was a free space and I loved it. I did well, got good grades and was even appointed to be the class representative in the student council.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n But I couldn't handle life with my father's relatives. The beatings, taunts and humiliation were too much, so I had to leave. I fled to a friend's house and stayed there. The principal of the school found out that I had fled and called me and my father's relatives in for an interview. I was asked if I wanted to stay with them or go to an orphanage. I chose the orphanage.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The hard life with the previous family had left its mark. When I moved to the orphanage, I was very unkempt. My hair was full of lice, so I was cut bald to get rid of them.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n When I arrived at the orphanage, I hadn't seen my father for a year. In fact, I thought I would never see him again. But one day he was suddenly there - right in front of me in the orphanage. I was so angry with him and I didn't actually want to see him. It must have looked a bit comical. There I was - completely bald - staring at him furiously. He must have thought I had lost my mind. A month later, he showed up again. This time he took me from the orphanage and drove me to some of my mother's relatives.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n There were many other children in the new family, and again I had to do the household chores and be the childminder at home. My mother's relatives were practicing Muslims. They tried hard to awaken my interest in Islam and they taught me how to say Muslim prayers. Although some things were better in my new home, they also beat me and it got worse over time. I had to leave again. So I called my father and asked him to take me to an orphanage again. To my surprise, he agreed and drove me to an orphanage in the city. It was a Christian orphanage and when I arrived, all the children stood around me and asked if I was a Christian. I didn't know how to answer. The only thing I knew about religion was the Muslim prayers I had learned from my mother's relatives. Of course, all the children then thought I was Muslim. But I knew nothing about Islam. Many of the children in the orphanage were Christian, so I actually felt left out. Even though most people in Kyrgyzstan are Muslim, I was outnumbered here. But the Christians treated me well, even though I was Muslim.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n I still went to school and I did well. At the local school there was a Christian teacher who I got on really well with. One day after school, she offered me the opportunity to move in with her and stay there. I was very happy and immediately accepted. The teacher treated me very differently than I was used to. For the first time in my life, another person told me that I was unique and special. She invited me into her family and let me be a part of her life. When I moved in with her, I found it difficult to socialize and I wasn't used to expressing love or joy. But she taught me how to laugh, have fun and show love. Meeting her, I began to wonder what God she believed in. She told me about the Christian faith and I wanted more. <\/span><\/p>\n I encountered God's love through her and accepted Jesus in her home.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n When I finished primary school, I moved to Bishkek. Through someone from the church I got a place at the Oak House. Every morning I thank God for the Oak House and that I can live here. The leaders here are like our parents. They care for us and look after us. It's everything I didn't get from the relatives I lived with.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Over the past few years, my relatives have sought me out again and we are working on our relationship. I find it so incredibly difficult to forgive them for what they have done. But I ask God to give me the strength to forgive them and to forgive my father. God can give me the power to do that, and I trust him. He has led me away from my past and I can see that he has a plan for me. He has changed my life and given me a new life as a child of God.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\nSchool became my free space<\/span><\/h2>\n
Christian orphanage<\/span><\/h2>\n
Christian teacher showed me love<\/span><\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\nSupport Kyrgyzstan: The Oak House for vulnerable girls<\/h3>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t