Seated across from a friend and surrounded by the smell of cooking fish, Zeynep* perused her menu with keen eyes. She spotted a symbol, the ichthus, familiar from years of interest in the Christian church. Her friend said, “Even if my father and mother abandon me, the LORD cares for me” (Psalm 27:10).

An ancient Christian symbol, the ichthus was a code developed to help persecuted Christians identify each other. Please pray for Zeynep’s connections to Christian community. Her mentor knows of no local Christians other than Zeynep in her city of 85,000 people.

Zeynep startled awake to the sound of her phone ringing. The scene in the fish restaurant had been a dream.

A recently graduated high-school student, Zeynep has always excelled in academic endeavors. Insatiably curious, she has read the Bible as a historical document since the age of nine. Her eagerness to learn left her a fearful misfit, striving for belonging and perfection among peers. She even tried to take her own life as a young child.

According to a Christian worker, Zeynep’s childhood was characterized by feelings of being “unloved, unsafe and uncertain of her relationship to and with God.”

But Zeynep has always been precious to God. Just days after her dream, she trusted in Christ for salvation.

“It took years of pain and confusion before she settled the issue of faith in a personal Savior who loves her so much that He died for her,” said the worker who disciples her.

Pray for Zeynep’s faith to continue to flourish. Pray she will have freedom to meet with other Christians and that she will be a witness to her parents and community.

*Name changed