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Today's Christian, March/April 2008
"I Miss Daddy So Much!"
In Turkey, 6-year-old Esther's father was martyred by Muslim extremists.
By Jerry Dykstra
One Sunday night in October 2007 on the way home from church services, a sad little voice spoke from the back seat of a car: "Mommy, I miss my daddy so much. Can't Jesus bring him back to us?"
The mother sighed, turning from the front seat to explain gently once more to her 6-year-old daughter, "Jesus decided to take Daddy to heaven to be with him, Esther. We'll have to wait until Jesus takes us to heaven to see Daddy again."
After a few seconds of thought, Esther declared, "Well, if Daddy isn't coming back, then I want to go to heaven too!"
According to Compass Direct News, that touching exchange happened five months after Esther Aydin's father was beaten, tortured, and killed with a knife in Turkey's eastern city of Malatya by five young Muslims who claimed they had done it "for our religion."
Esther and her brother Elisha, 7, are still struggling with the loss of their father, Necati Aydin, who shared his martyrdom on April 18, 2007, with another Turkish Christian, Ugur Yuksel, and German Christian Tilmann Geske. All three were bound, tortured, and their throats were cut.
Semse Aydin, who spoke last fall at a memorial service near Istanbul, says the shock of the cruel and sudden death still hits her every morning.
Turkish Protestants have reported increasing attacks and threats despite claims by President Abdullah Gul that Christians in Turkey are not targeted. Turkey is 99.6 percent Muslim and 0.3 percent Christian. Though the Turkish constitution includes freedom of religion, in reality the Christian minority often faces harassment, threats, and prison. The construction of new churches is often restricted.
Despite the personal cost of her pain, Aydin stands by her statement to the Turkish media two days after her husband's death, declaring that she has forgiven the five charged with the murders. In fact, she is actively praying for at least one of them to repent and come to faith in Christ. "That's the ultimate revenge, isn't it?" Aydin asked.
Persecution Report is presented in cooperation with Open Doors USA, which serves the Persecuted Church through training, Bible distribution, and community development. For more information, call 1-888-5-BIBLE-5 or visit www.odusa.org.
Pray for:
- The gospel to penetrate Turkey, which remains the largest unreached nation in the world.
- The minority Christian population to be allowed the freedom to live their faith without threats, arrest, and torture.
- The families of the three martyred Christians to be comforted by the Holy Spirit and Christians around the world.
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Copyright © 2008 by the author or Christianity Today International/Today's Christian magazine.
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March/April 2008, Vol. 46, No. 2, Page 16
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