From Madina To Martha : A Journey To Jesus
Some testimonies begin with joy, but others are born in the middle of pain, fear, and persecution. The story of Martha Musiya is one of them.
Once known as Madina, she was born into a deeply committed Islamic family in Mbale District, where her family's devotion to Islam was so strong that her father's family even contributed to the building of a mosque. Christianity was never part of the future anyone imagined for her.
Yet, while she was still a young girl, something began changing inside her. A quiet curiosity about Jesus Christ gradually grew into a personal encounter with the Christian faith. What began with answering Christian religious questions at school eventually led her to a crusade, a secret Bible, and ultimately a decision to confess Jesus Christ as her Lord and Saviour.
That decision came at a terrible cost. She faced severe opposition, beatings, threats, and persecution from those closest to her. There were moments when her life was in danger, yet she refused to abandon the faith she had discovered.
Today, 25 years later, Martha Musiya looks back on that painful journey from the mosque to the cross with a heart full of gratitude. She now serves in children's ministry, preaches in schools, teaches Sunday School, and shares the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
This is not merely a story about leaving one religious background for another. It is a testimony of a young girl's search for truth, the persecution she endured, the people God used to rescue her, and the life of purpose she believes she found in Christ.
THE TESTIMONY THAT HELL COULDN'T STOP
Written By Mrs Martha Musiya
My name today is Martha, but once upon a time, the world knew me as Madina.
That single name carried the weight of a long Islamic lineage and an identity shaped by generations before me. I was born into a very strong Muslim family in Mbale District, which is in eastern Uganda, where our commitment to Islam was deeply rooted.
My father's family had even contributed to the building of a mosque. That was how serious, how committed, and how deeply established our faith was.
Becoming a Christian was never supposed to be part of my story. I did not pray for it. I did not dream about it. In fact, Christianity was something I had been taught to fear and reject. Yet sometimes, God begins a work in a person's life long before that person understands what is happening.
This is my testimony of how a little girl named Madina encountered Jesus Christ, endured persecution because of her faith, escaped a situation that nearly cost her life, and eventually became Martha, a woman who has spent 25 years walking with Christ.
It is a story of faith, suffering, preservation, and transformation.
THE EARLY SIGNS OF A CHANGING HEART
When I was in Primary Five, something small but significant happened during my examinations. I quietly shifted from answering Islamic Religious Education questions to answering Christian Religious Education questions.
My reason at the time seemed simple. The Christian questions were written in English, a language I understood very well. I could read the scriptures, understand the questions, and express my answers clearly.
At the time, I did not understand the significance of what was happening. Looking back now, however, I see it as one of the earliest signs of the journey that was ahead of me.
I became curious about Christianity. Silently, secretly, and carefully, I began asking questions within myself.
What is this thing called Christianity?
Why do these stories touch my heart?
Why does the name of Jesus seem so significant?
I never told anyone about my curiosity. In my family, such questions could bring serious consequences. So I kept everything inside.
Yet what begins quietly in the heart can eventually become impossible to hide.
THE CRUSADE THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
When I reached Primary Six, a preacher came to our town for a Christian crusade. I was still a young girl, but something inside me kept telling me to go and listen.
So, after school, I quietly followed the crowd.
The first day, I simply listened. I did not raise my hand. I did not go forward for prayer. I did not tell anyone what I was feeling. I just watched and listened.
But the second day became different.
I witnessed things that deeply affected me. I saw people who had been suffering come forward for prayer. I saw people rejoicing, crying, and responding to the message. I encountered an atmosphere of faith that I had never experienced before.
For a young girl who had been raised in a completely different religious environment, the experience left a deep impression on me.
Time passed without me realizing it. Before I knew it, it was already very late, and I had to return home.
My father was waiting.
I knelt down, as tradition required, and greeted him. Then he asked where I had been.
I told him the truth.
"I was at the crusade."
The slap that landed on my face felt like a military blow.
My father shouted at me, called me names, and told me that I was behaving like a mad girl. Fear entered my heart that day. I understood that my curiosity about Christianity could have serious consequences.
I stopped attending the crusade.
But although I stopped going physically, something had already happened inside me. A seed had been planted in my heart, and no slap could remove it.
THE DAY I GAVE MY LIFE TO JESUS
One afternoon, around three or four o'clock, three Bible school students were going from house to house evangelizing.
I was inside my father's shop when I saw them approaching. Something within me told me to go and listen.
Their message was simple, but it shook me deeply.
They spoke about Jesus Christ, the love of God, forgiveness of sins, eternal life, the Holy Spirit, and the peace that comes from knowing Christ personally.
As they spoke, I felt something I could not explain. Their message touched something deep within me.
Before I knew it, I confessed Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour right there in the shop.
That moment changed everything.
I knew I was now in danger. I knew that my decision could cost me relationships, security, and possibly even my life. But something holy and powerful had entered my heart.
The Bible school students gave me a free Bible.
I could not dare read it openly during the day. If my family saw me holding a Bible, I knew that beatings and insults could follow, and I feared that the consequences could become even worse.
So I read it secretly at night, sometimes under my blanket, with fear on one side and determination on the other.
The words of Scripture became precious to me. I was discovering a new faith, and despite the danger around me, I wanted to know more about Jesus.
As the Bible says:
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth."
Romans 1:16, KJV
WHEN FAITH BROUGHT PERSECUTION
My persecution became more intense when I made the decision to attend church.
One Wednesday, the Bible school students invited me to a Bible study about the Holy Spirit. They explained that I needed to grow in my relationship with Christ and understand the work of the Holy Spirit.
I did not understand everything they taught, but I decided to attend.
That Wednesday night, I went to the Bible study and experienced what I understood to be the infilling of the Holy Spirit. I felt tremendous joy and a fire in my heart that I could not explain.
But the beautiful experience at church was followed by a terrifying experience at home.
It was past 9 p.m. when I returned.
The moment I entered the house, my situation became unbearable. My father and his brother beat me severely. I screamed, cried, and begged them to stop, but the beating continued.
The experience was so painful that I felt as though my body could no longer respond normally. Yet somehow, I survived.
The persecution did not end there.
My photographs were taken to mosques. Religious rituals and what I understood as Quranic enchantments were performed against me. I was threatened and subjected to things intended to make me abandon my new faith.
But despite everything, I continued to hold on to Jesus.
The words of Psalm 34 became meaningful to me:
"The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles."
Psalm 34:17, KJV
THE NIGHT I NEARLY LOST MY LIFE
One of the most painful experiences happened while I was staying at my grandmother's house.
My father came there and beat me for approximately five hours.
Five hours of slaps, sticks, kicks, and punches.
Eventually, I lost consciousness.
When I regained consciousness around 4 a.m., I was amazed by the strength I felt within me. I had survived another night that could easily have ended differently.
Looking back, I believe those experiences taught me something about perseverance. I had become convinced that my life was in God's hands, even when everything around me seemed determined to destroy my faith.
The Bible says:
"When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee."
Isaiah 43:2, KJV
I cannot explain every part of what happened to me, but I know that I survived.
THE RESCUE THAT SAVED MY LIFE
After approximately one year of suffering, help finally came.
A pastor from the Pentecostal Assemblies of God raised money to secretly transfer me to the city. I walked to the church, and the pastors helped arrange a way for me to leave the environment where I was being persecuted.
That was how I escaped.
A Christian family took me in. They helped me return to school and later supported me as I pursued nursery training.
What looked like the end of my childhood became the beginning of a new chapter.
God took me from a place of danger and began leading me toward a place of purpose.
Sometimes, deliverance does not come in the way we expect. Sometimes it comes through people, opportunities, courage, and doors that suddenly open at the right moment.
25 YEARS OF WALKING WITH JESUS
Today, I can look back and say that I have spent 25 years walking with Jesus Christ.
Twenty-five years of grace.
Twenty-five years of preservation.
Twenty-five years of learning.
Twenty-five years of testimony.
The little girl who once secretly read the Bible under a blanket is now living in South Africa, serving in children's ministry, preaching in schools, teaching Sunday School, and raising young people for Christ.
That transformation means more to me because I know where I came from.
I know what I survived.
I know the price I paid.
And I know that my story could have ended very differently.
Yet God preserved my life.
WHY I SERVE CHILDREN TODAY
My experiences have given me a deep burden for children.
I know that salvation is possible for a child. I know that children can encounter God. I know that destiny can begin early.
That is why I serve in children's ministry, preach in schools, and teach young people about Jesus Christ.
When I look at children today, I do not simply see young faces. I see lives that can be transformed, destinies that can be preserved, and future generations that can be reached with the Gospel.
My own story reminds me that what looks insignificant in a child today may become something powerful tomorrow.
THE PRICE I PAID FOR MY FAITH
My journey with Christ was not easy.
I suffered.
I cried.
I was beaten.
I was threatened.
I was rejected.
I nearly lost my life.
But after 25 years, I can honestly say that I have never regretted choosing Christ.
The journey taught me that faith is not always about avoiding trouble. Sometimes faith means remaining committed to what you believe even when the consequences are painful.
Jesus Himself warned His followers that following Him would sometimes involve persecution.
He said:
"If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you."
John 15:20, KJV
My testimony is not a celebration of suffering. Rather, it is a testimony of survival, faith, and what I believe God did with my life after everything I endured.
FROM MADINA TO MARTHA
There was a time when the world knew me as Madina.
Today, I am Martha.
The name changed, but the deeper transformation was in my heart and in the direction of my life.
I went from a little girl who secretly wondered about Christianity to a woman who openly preaches Jesus Christ.
I went from hiding a Bible under a blanket to teaching children the Word of God.
I went from being afraid to speak about my faith to speaking boldly about the One I believe rescued me.
My story is therefore not simply about changing religion. It is about a life that underwent a profound transformation and found a new purpose in Christ.
A SOBER REFLECTION
There is something sobering about this testimony.
It reminds us that behind every person's faith journey, there may be a story that we know nothing about. Sometimes a person is asking questions silently. Sometimes a young person is searching for truth without having the courage to tell anyone. Sometimes what appears to be rebellion may actually be a deep spiritual search that requires patient guidance and wisdom.
This testimony also reminds us that religious conflict can have devastating consequences when people respond to differences with violence, threats, or hatred. Faith should never become an excuse for cruelty.
For Christians, persecution is not a reason to hate those who disagree with us. Jesus taught His followers to love their enemies, pray for those who persecute them, and respond to hatred differently.
"But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you."
Matthew 5:44, KJV
The greatest lesson is therefore not simply that someone left one religious background and embraced another. The deeper lesson is that every human life has value, every soul matters, and our response to people who are searching for truth should be guided by love, wisdom, patience, and compassion.
A MESSAGE TO ANYONE SEARCHING FOR GOD
If you are reading this testimony and you are searching for God, do not ignore the questions in your heart.
Take time to seek truth sincerely.
Read the Bible.
Pray.
Ask questions.
Seek wise and trustworthy Christian guidance.
Most importantly, understand that following Christ is not merely about changing a religious label. It is about surrendering your life to Him and allowing Him to transform your heart.
Jesus said:
"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
Matthew 11:28, KJV
The woman who once lived as Madina believes she encountered that invitation as a little girl.
Today, as Martha, she continues to share what she believes Jesus Christ has done in her life.
CONCLUSION
From the mosque to the cross, Martha's testimony is a story of a young girl whose life took a direction she never expected. Born into a deeply committed Islamic family, she encountered Christianity as a child, secretly explored the Bible, eventually surrendered her life to Jesus Christ, and endured severe persecution because of her decision.
Her journey was marked by pain, fear, separation, and uncertainty. Yet it was also marked by courage, help from others, survival, education, ministry, and a renewed sense of purpose.
Twenty-five years later, the little girl who once feared being discovered with a Bible is now serving children, preaching in schools, teaching Sunday School, and telling her story openly.
Her testimony reminds us that a difficult beginning does not have to determine the ending of a person's life.
Sometimes, the chapter that begins with tears can eventually become a testimony.
Sometimes, the place where a person feels trapped can become the starting point of a new destiny.
And sometimes, the life that people believe is finished can become a testimony that inspires others for generations.
Martha's story is ultimately a testimony of what she believes God has done with her life: turning persecution into perseverance, pain into purpose, and a childhood marked by fear into a life dedicated to serving others.
E-books Download
For Further Inquires And Counseling Contact "Evang Paulinus Paul" Via Whatsapp @ +2348064736679 — To Join Our "WhatsApp Channel Platform {CLICK HERE} " & Have Quick Access To Our Daily Teaching And Updates
SEED SOWING/DONATION AND FINANCIAL SUPPORT
...For Financial Support; Tithe Payment; Seed Sowing/Donations To Enhanced
"Eternity Race Online Ministry" Use Below Account Detail.
Bank Name:
Guaranty Trust Bank.
Account Name: Paulinus Paul.
Account Number: 0117425458.
... A Donations Of $10 — $100 Will Get This Gospel Reach-out To Millions.
PayPal Account:
PaulinusPaul31@gmail.com.
Related Posts:
