Interrogated, fingerprinted, and threatened with deportation: How God carried us through

They took away my passport but couldn’t take away my faith

After residing in a city in China, where my husband had been teaching for two years, out of the blue I was called up to face the chief immigration officials and was subsequently intimidated and interrogated. They ravaged my phone, took my fingerprints and photographed me in a line-up. The questioning was around my connection with two missionaries from America and their involvement in the underground church (that we had been attending and supporting). I felt the Holy Spirit guide me into speaking truth in love and to “bless those who curse you” (Luke 6:28). The officials subsequently held mine and the rest of my family’s passports hostage – we were in effect ‘in exile’ until they were returned. This put our family in a tenuous position and my husband’s relationship with his employer under strain. 

While we were in exile, God intervened in various ways, reminding us that He hadn’t deserted us. He spoke to us through some text on a coffee shop cushion: “Keep calm and praise Him”, which was quite a surprise in this secular, communist country! Also, an elder at the registered church put a good word in for us to the immigration officials. A group of women in my Bible study group were praying for us, as well as friends and family back home. Weeks later we were called back but they only further questioned my husband and I, and we were told the photocopier was broken so no paperwork could be processed. Finally, several months later, we were called back. This time they asked me to write down all the details of my connection to the American missionaries and details of any work they and I had been doing. This time they gave us back our documents (free from incriminating stamps) with a warning that if we were to have any further involvement with the underground church we would be deported. I felt nudged by the Holy Spirit and the words of Ephesians 4:15 to verbally bless the immigration staff. 

By God’s grace, the American missionaries were able to continue much of their community work and my husband could stay in his job role for another year. Although the Sunday morning meetings were paused, God had indeed held and sustained us all. We were able to repatriate back to the UK in 2022.

Hannah 

God moving in our youth

In September 2025, I really felt God speaking to me about the young people in our church. I sensed Him nudging me to begin a Bible study just for them. Something simple, consistent and rooted in scripture. So we stepped out in faith and started meeting on Tuesday evenings. We decided to begin with something practical: dinner. We would feed them first, and then we would open the Bible together and study it one book at a time. When we began, there were just four young people. Within two weeks, that number had grown to 20. Every week more young people came as they were inviting friends, showing up hungry for God. Our living room is now packed out! They ask deep questions, they engage with scripture and they want to understand who God is and what His word says about their lives. God is doing something in the youth in Ilfracombe, Devon, and it’s a privilege to be part of it!

Tandy

Jesus healed what trauma and rejection tried to destroy

I grew up in a Christian home in South Africa, but because of my parents’ own insecurities I never really bonded with them. My dad worked nightshifts, so was often absent. Deep inside I was yearning for my father’s attention. My mother had a nervous breakdown, so she also couldn’t give me the attention that I needed. We developed a love-hate relationship. All this resulted in deep emotional neglect, which made me a perfect prey for sexual abusers. 

The next-door neighbours’ youngest son became my best friend, but his older brother and father were the enemy’s tools. I was molested by them from the age of five until high school. The attention that I craved made me go back again and again, even though it was wrong.  

Deep anger, fear and hatred built up in me towards men because of this abuse. Questions went round my head: Why didn’t my daddy love me? Why didn’t mummy and daddy protect me? Where was this loving God they talked about when I needed Him? These stemmed from the lies I believed; I know my mother and father loved me as best they could.  

As a result of the abuse, I had confusion in my identity. I hated my body and subconsciously severed myself from my feminine side and turned towards being masculine and tough. I was tomboy-like, headstrong and very rebellious. I made many inner vows to protect myself. I managed to get through life by adopting coping mechanisms. I discovered that I had a sport talent and made that my identity. I played indoor cricket for South Africa, and won many trophies. As a result, the praise of people became an addiction.   

As a teenager, I formed wrong friendships, started smoking, drinking and using marijuana to ease the pain deep inside. I was also yearning for a mother’s touch and fell for the enemy’s demonic lies – more sexual violation followed. I turned towards other women, and the touch of a woman started to fill so many empty places and seemed so right at the time. This resulted in same-sex relationships for over twelve years. I thought those feelings defined who I am, but none of the relationships could fill the deep loneliness in my heart.  

I came to a place where my false identity sport-idol crumbled. I had played indoor and outdoor cricket for South Africa. I made it to the top, but it all came crashing down because of relational breakdown in the team, which brought me to a place of real desperation! Nothing made sense anymore. Everything I had built my identity upon was gone and I realised there must be more to life. I yearned for eternal security and identity, as well as holiness. God saw my yearning heart and brought me to a place of healing. In 2005 I was connected to a Christian healing ministry where my journey towards wholeness started. 

I enrolled on one of their courses and came to know the love of God. Through His word He delivered and set me free of demonic lies. I learned what true submission is and the protection it brings. I learned to see myself as Jesus sees me and that He has taken all the abuse I suffered upon Himself on the cross.   

God healed my broken heart of mistrust in people and in Him, bitterness/hatred towards men and the dishonouring of my parents. He taught me to forgive myself and the abusers. He dealt with the lies, deep anger and fears, rebellion towards Him and authorities. He stripped me of all my coping mechanisms and idols. The Father brought me to a place of being rooted in His love, so that I can be secure in Him and Him alone!   

He also healed the deep self-hatred and self-rejection. He broke generational curses of sexual abuse, shame and violence over my life through the blood of Jesus. He healed the sexual wounds and the shock and trauma I went through. 

He came to fill the deep lonely places of love-deficit with His love. He also restored the male and female poles of my gender identity. I no longer crave love from a woman. My tendencies towards obsessive compulsive behaviour were replaced with contentment and peace too. 

Jesus Christ is now my identity and I receive myself as the woman God created me to be. Praise the Lord Jesus and the power of His blood that has set me free! He has done a true miracle of healing in my life! I am serving God now to help bring healing to others through the same ministry He used as a tool in my own life.  

Madelein