Flora was only 18 when she finished high school. She grew up in a small town in northern Albania, where opportunities were scarce, and the mentality was very archaic. Her future seemed uncertain, and she had little vision for what lay ahead. In her hometown, single girls her age couldn’t go out of their homes without a male family member accompanying them.

Desperate for freedom, Flora turned on the radio and began switching between stations. She stopped when she found Radio 7 Nord, a station that felt different. There was a message there that drew her in—a message of peace and hope. Night after night, she returned to listen, feeling comforted and connected to something greater. One day, her heart opened, and she decided to accept Jesus as her Lord and Savior. But in her town, there were no other believers, so she kept this decision to herself. She felt lonely but close to God.

With excitement, Flora shared with her family her decision about God and how much He loved her. Her family considered her ideas foolish and thought she had lost her mind. But Flora refused to give up. She found a job in a large quilt factory where many women worked for a minimum wage. While the work was hard, it gave her the chance to leave her house and share her newfound faith with the women there. However, her coworkers showed little interest in her beliefs, and the flame of hope inside her began to dim.

Then one day, her father arranged a marriage for her with a man from the neighboring country of Montenegro. He promised her a new life abroad. Flora left her home and traveled to Australia with her husband, thinking it was the beginning of the life she had always dreamed of. But soon, she realized that her husband was abusive. Eventually, he abandoned her. Now, Flora was in Brisbane, Australia alone. Desperate and heartbroken, she called her mother, hoping for support. But all she received was rejection. “You can’t come back. It’s shameful. You couldn’t even keep a man for yourself.”

Isolated and without hope, Flora struggled in a foreign country where she could barely speak English. In her loneliness, she remembered the radio station that once brought her hope. From Australia, she sent a text message to Radio 7 in Albania, “Hello, can I talk to you?”

On the other side of the phone, that day was Jonida our Programming Director. She answered Flora’s message and invited her to call if she needed to talk more. As she shared her story, Jonida’s heart raced. Right away Jonida knew that Flora didn’t just need someone to listen to her to just offer sympathy—she needed practical help. Flora needed someone who could meet her where she was and guide her through her pain.

Jonida immediately reached out to our partners, and within days, a pastor in Australia was ready to connect with Flora. For the first time, Flora would be able to step into a church and experience the love of a Christian community far away from her home country. This was the moment she had been waiting for, the moment when she would finally feel accepted and supported.

All of this happened because of one blessed day when Flora tuned into Radio 7. The voice of hope, the voice of Jesus, reached her in her darkest moment. And now, that same voice of hope was guiding her toward a future full of promise, even in the unknown.

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