Sisterhood of undercover disciple makers in Uzbekistan

Originally published in Voice of the Martyrs

In Uzbekistan’s conservative Muslim culture, women can almost go unnoticed, leading hard lives of unending work around the home or farm.

So when visitors appear, especially during the long, cold winters, women are usually glad to take a break and drink tea with a newcomer. A team of Christian women in Uzbekistan is using this approach to quietly plant churches. They began the work prior to 2017, when government opposition to Christianity was intense, and today this method still helps them escape the notice of Muslim extremists in the community.

Olma came to faith two decades ago and immediately started several house churches with her husband. When authorities threatened to imprison them, they moved to another city, and when the police came after them again, they moved on to yet another city. Everywhere Olma went, she taught new believers and led house fellowships.

The ‘Ugly’ Sister
One of Olma’s leaders in the disciple-making group, a woman named Umida, came to faith through the witness of her older sister, whom Olma had led to Christ. Umida’s brothers treated her badly, always telling her that she was the ugliest girl they had ever seen. When she heard the Good News through her older sister, Umida joyfully placed her faith in Christ. “It was easy for me to accept the gospel,” she said, “because in those days I needed peace and freedom.”

Umida’s sister visited her once a month, and they eagerly studied the Bible together. But when Umida’s brothers learned about her new faith, they began to beat her, and her oldest brother took her Bible and buried it. Umida remained faithful, however, and soon obtained a new Bible from Olma.

Determined to discourage their sister’s newfound faith, Umida’s brothers burned the replacement Bible, continuing to destroy a total of six Bibles over the next several years by breaking into the locked box in Umida’s room where she tried to keep God’s Word safe from its despisers. Despite the frequent beatings and ridicule from her brothers, Umida continued to grow in faith.

Eventually, after discovering that her brothers planned to make her marry a 78-year-old man and become his third wife, she decided to leave home. Umida then moved in with Olma and her husband, who discipled her for two months.

When Umida returned to her hometown, she started visiting a nearby village, where she drank tea with other women and shared the gospel. “For 10 years, I didn’t laugh at all,” she said. “After coming to Christ, my heart was full of joy and I wanted to share this joy with other people.”

Because of the difficulties Umida endured in her family, she relishes the opportunity to help younger Christians in similar situations. “I know what persecution is,” she said, “and for this reason I like to pray for people who are in persecution, and I like to walk that path with them.”

From despair to peace
Another of Olma’s leaders, a woman in her 20s named Shirin, lived for years with an abusive stepfather. When Shirin had lost all hope and was contemplating suicide, a Christian shared the gospel with her and her mother. Both women soon placed their faith in Christ.

When Shirin’s stepfather found out about her faith, he forced her out of the house. Shirin then met Olma at a house church meeting and eventually joined her team of disciple-makers, sharing a home with Umida and several other believers whose families had rejected them because of their Christian faith.

Eventually Shirin’s stepfather also threatened her mother with an ultimatum: “Choose me or your daughter and Christ,” he said. “If you choose your daughter and Christ, get out of my house.” Shirin’s mother chose Christ and now lives in an apartment near Shirin.

Though it has been difficult, Shirin said her experience has taught her how to forgive others. “God has helped me work on my character,” she said. Although she would offer her stepfather forgiveness if she saw him, she said she would never live with him again. “My life and my mother’s life with Jesus Christ are very beautiful now,” she explained.

Both Umida and Shirin are key leaders in Olma’s network of female disciple-makers. They divide each village and house church between them and regularly study the Bible together. While they can share and practise their faith openly in some villages, the women still experience significant persecution in some Muslim communities.

Shirin said that she wants to see people put Christ first in their lives and “have a disciple’s heart, passionate for all the disciplines in a believer’s life”.

Umida’s prayer for the groups she leads is that they will be strong in faith and continue to “the 20th generation”. “This year I hope to see two more house churches started,” she said. She also wants family members who rejected her to come to faith in Christ.

Since no one pays them much attention, Olma, Umida, Shirin and the other women continue their work, tucking Bibles into their handbags and meeting around kitchen tables to talk about Jesus Christ, the true hope for Uzbekistan.

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