Samiha (on right) miraculously survived.
Photo: Open Doors USA
When a bomb exploded right next to Samiha Tawfiq Awad, who was attending St. Peter's Church in Cairo on December 11th, 2016, everyone thought she was dead. With half of her face gone, doctors warned her husband, Qalini, that she would not survive. Today, Samiha and Qalini joyfully share that God had other plans. No one can explain how she survived, as doctors had already listed her name as one of the deceased. But miraculously her life was sustained until the doctors finally began administering treatment.
Throughout the bombing, and later in the hospital, Samiha found her greatest strength through Christ's reassuring presence. During the bombing, she remembers little other than a vision of Jesus on the ceiling. He continued to appear to her in the hospital during her lengthy recovery. "I would have been willing to die for Jesus," Samiha testifies. "But the fact that He kept me alive so miraculously tells me that He wants me to live."
As they reflect on that day in December, Samiha and Qalini are faced with their own inner responses. Qalini confesses that it hasn't been easy to forgive the bomber for causing harm to his dear wife. However, whenever struggling with this, Qalini reads over and over in his Bible what Jesus says about forgiving our enemies. On the other hand, Samiha is able to honestly say, "If I would meet the family of the attacker, the only thing I would ask is: 'Do you know Jesus?'"
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