This is just the beginning

1 March 2021

Sara is now a member of the Salvos in Melbourne.

Sara shares her journey to freedom and faith in Australia

Words Sara

I was born in Mashhad, Iran. As a woman in an Islamic society, you are nothing. Life is just difficult.

When I was born, my father was in jail because of his political views. My mother struggled with young children, the Iran-Iraq War [1980-88] was going on and she wasn’t allowed to work. She raised us and waited for my father. Despite this, I had a good childhood with my two brothers.

We moved to Tehran [capital of Iran] when I began high school. We [girls] had to wear the hijab and strictly practise Islam. We were also all trying to understand the war. I had a lot of questions about God, too. Who is he? Who am I talking to when I pray? Who is listening? Nobody had answers for me.

I went to university and studied accounting. Although my mother had strict rules for us, particularly me, as a girl, I started having a social life. Men harassed women openly, constantly. I felt very insecure.

I had a boyfriend, but we could really only go out for coffee. I didn’t tell my parents about him. We did get married when I graduated and then I started working. It was the biggest step of my life. I felt so independent and had less harassment issues as I wore a wedding ring. I still earned less than men doing my job and had to work harder. I loved it though, and the skills and experiences it brought me professionally and personally.

Over time, I realised my husband and I weren’t equal in our relationship. There was domestic violence. I couldn’t live that way. I decided to divorce, which was a huge step. I had to fight for it and my life was turned upside down.

Living as a single, divorced woman in a Muslim country was hard. Men thought they could take advantage of me. Thankfully, my parents – who didn’t agree with my divorce – said they would support me, even in the darkest places. I wanted them to trust me.

I lived in my own place, worked hard and wanted to be a better person. I became a financial manager and completed a master’s degree in finance in 2015. I was really proud of this. I also completed a course in psychology and communicating with others.

I travelled to Europe, China and other parts of Asia. I met open-minded people and wanted to know why they were so different.

My brother, Salman, came to Australia in 2011 because of political challenges in Iran. I visited him, with my parents, and found it very different from anywhere I’d been. I liked the whole environment.

In 2017, a friend of Salman’s, Sarah, came to Iran and I was her host. She came from a Catholic family and we had similar life stories. When I went again to Australia, I met up with Sarah. I wanted to improve myself and help others. Sarah showed me that I could be like Jesus, helping others without being powerful or wealthy, which was the thinking I had grown up with. Back in Iran, I started reading my father’s Bible, but it wasn’t until I returned to Australia in 2019, to help my brother and his partner who were expecting a child, that I learned more about what the Bible says.

An Iranian friend introduced me to the Salvos in Melbourne, and to Major Colin Elkington, the Salvos officer (pastor) there. My whole life changed. I believe it was God leading me to this point. Although I stopped being a Muslim at university, I felt God was there, somewhere, and he would show me the way. I never thought that praying five times a day would help me; I talked to God when I was walking or going to bed. When Colin explained how God connects with us, I knew I had been talking to Jesus in those times.

It was all a miracle, and it was all Jesus. I became a Christian and a member of the Salvos. I couldn’t go back to Iran, so I applied for a protection visa and found work at the same time as it came through. Another miracle.

My sister-in-law helped me find a place to rent. Generous Australians, my local community, helped me get the things I needed to start my new life. It was such a lovely feeling to know that I was accepted. I had heard about the difficulties some people new to Australia faced, but I just found people trying to help each other. It was all so great.

My parents came and stayed with me for three months. They are not worried about me anymore. After 10 years they trust me.

I am not the Sara I used to be. I want to care for others and share the love I have received. I look after my niece, go to the Farsi Fellowship at Brunswick Salvos, volunteer, help my family and others when I can. I try to help people in Iran, and tell them more about Jesus.

God has led me here. It ends with Jesus and yet it is just the beginning!