The international attention brought both opportunities for ministry and increased dangers as it made our location more visible to those who might wish us harm or want to silence our testimony permanently.

The Saudi government has never stopped trying to discredit our testimony through diplomatic channels or pressure the German government to revoke our asylum status and return us for trial.

They claim that we are mentally unstable, that our conversion is fraudulent, that we are being manipulated by Christian organizations for anti-Islamic propaganda purposes.

But the documentation of our slavery contract, and the testimony of Captain Omar, who was publicly executed eight months after our escape, provide evidence that our story is authentic and our danger is ongoing and real.

Both of our families have made their positions clear through intermediaries, social media statements, and official family declarations.

As far as they are concerned, we died on August 7th, 2019, and the couple living in Germany under our names are imposters who deserve whatever punishment Allah sees fit to deliver through faithful servants.

The death threats arrive sporadically but consistently, usually around the anniversaries of our escape or after we have spoken at particularly public events that generate media coverage.

Despite the ongoing security concerns and the financial struggles that come with refugee ministry work, Amamira and I believe that God has called us to continue this work until he directs us elsewhere or calls us home to be with him.

We are currently writing a book together that will tell the complete story of our journey from palace to slavery to freedom in Christ as a married couple.

The manuscript includes details that we have never shared publicly before, testimonies from other couples who have escaped similar situations, and practical guidance for Christians who want to help refugee families rebuild their lives.

We live on modest salaries from the resettlement organization supplemented by occasional speaking fees and donations from churches that support our work with Muslim converts.

We drive a 15-year-old car, buy our children’s clothes from charity shops, and plan our grocery shopping around weekly sales and seasonal discounts.

But we have never lacked for anything we truly needed.

and the richness of our relationships and ministry opportunities far exceeds any material wealth we might have had as Saudi royalty.

Our children are growing up triilingual, learning German, English, and Arabic so they can communicate with the diverse families who stay in her home and work alongside us in ministry.

Emanuel already asks thoughtful questions about why some people hurt others for believing in Jesus.

and we have begun age appropriate conversations about the cost of faith and the privilege of religious freedom that many people around the world don’t enjoy.

Grace has announced that she wants to help refugee children when she grows up and Khalil shows remarkable empathy for people who are sad or afraid.

The most difficult aspect of our current life remains the complete separation from our birth families and the homeland where we spent our entire lives before following Christ.

My mother who once held me as a baby and taught me my first prayers will never meet her grandchildren or know that her son is happy and whole in his marriage.

Amamira’s father, who walked her down the aisle at our wedding, has convinced himself that honoring Allah required him to discard his daughter when she chose loyalty to her husband over obedience to family expectations.

But the pain of that loss has been transformed into compassion for other families torn apart by religious conflicts and cultural expectations.

Every couple who finds refuge in our home carries similar grief over parents and siblings who chose religious law over family love.

Together we have learned that Jesus creates new families from the fragments of old ones.

That spiritual bonds can be stronger and more lasting than biological ones.

What is keeping you both from complete surrender to Christ as a couple? What fear is preventing you from trusting him together with the most precious aspects of your shared life? We traded earthly royalty for eternal family membership, and it was the best decision we ever made together.

Look inside your own hearts right now.

Jesus is calling both your names, just like he called ours in that palace room 5 years ago.

He sees your relationship.

He knows your struggles as a couple.

and he has a plan for your lives together that is more beautiful than anything you could design for yourselves.

Our worth as a married couple isn’t measured by what we produce or achieve, but by whose we are together.

We are children of the King of Kings, a couple redeemed from slavery and set free to serve in his kingdom side by side.

If Jesus can save a Saudi prince and princess destined for slavery, he can save any couple who calls upon his name together.

Our children will never know the bondage we escaped, but they will grow up understanding the price of freedom and the value of faith that costs everything, but gives back infinitely more when shared between husband and wife.

Trading earthly royalty for eternal partnership in God’s kingdom was the greatest decision two people could ever make

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