Written by the Kyrgzstan Teen Challenge Director
Nargiza thought that she was being “stolen” for marriage as is customary in the small villages of Kyrgyzstan. She thought the nice young man who dressed well and drove an upscale car would take her to a waiting wedding party and her family would be sent for to join the celebration after she met his mother. Given Nargiza’s station in life and the circumstances of her family, it was expected that she would become a stolen bride. By all appearances, Nargiza expected a better future than most village girls could dream of!
However, Nargiza hadn’t been stolen for marriage. She had been stolen to work in a casino. The next few years of Nargiza’s life were a nightmare. She was forced into prostitution, addicted to heroin and demanded to have several abortions.
When her family wasn’t summoned to a wedding party within a few days, Nargiza’s mother knew that something was wrong. After years of searching for her daughter she found Nargiza strung out on heroin and working in a casino against her will. Nargiza was fortunate – her mother never stopped looking for her until she was found! Her mother took her home and nursed her back to health, though there is still a brokenness inside her that cries out for healing.
There are many young ladies like Nargiza who never set out to work the casinos. After they succumb to the abuse and are no longer suitable to work, the casino men will take them and drop them somewhere in the city or out in a small village. Sometimes they are pregnant or already have a small child.
The new women’s center at Kyrgyzstan Teen Challenge has been configured from the outset to accommodate women with a small child or two. These young women with children are often the last to have access to services that will restore their lives and give them hope for the future. Will you help us to share the love of Jesus with these young ladies? By drinking Eurasia Cafe tea you support the ministry at Kyrgyzstan Teen Challenge to buy clothes, food, pay the utility bills, provide basic medical treatment and more.
Through a 12 month long residential drug and alcohol rehabilitation ministry called New Beginnings, there has been a history of success as Kyrgyzstan Teen Challenge leads people to the deepest healing available– that of Jesus Christ! New Beginnings has been providing services for men for nine years, and now for the women of Central Eurasia as well!
Nestled in a small farming village in the foothills of the Tien Shan Mountains stands a center for restoration and hope called Kyrgyzstan Teen Challenge. Each day lives are being transformed. Nargiza is one life changed.
To learn more about supporting this cause, visit our website and check out Kyrgyzstan Teen Challenge and Eurasia Cafe Tea.