Işık Abla Ministries (IAM)
| (VIRGINIA BEACH, VA) Thursday, January 30, 2025 — Işık Abla Ministries (IAM) is a global beacon of hope and empowerment led by visionary founder President and CEO Işık Abla, who was born in Turkey and raised as a Muslim and fled to America. She was saved by grace through Jesus after years of battling PTSD from growing up in a war zone and enduring an abusive relationship. Now, she is speaking life and hope to the freed Israeli hostages after 15 months of horrific captivity by Hamas. “As someone who has personally endured years of physical, emotional and mental torture resulting in complex post-traumatic stress disorder, and having grown up in a war zone, I deeply understand the layers of trauma they now face,” Abla writes in an opinion piece for the Jewish News Syndicate. She continues: During the civil war years in Turkey in the late 1970s, I grew up amid constant gunfire, bombings, and the fear of violence. My family’s home was next to a terrorist training building, and I vividly remember the terror of living under the shadow of gunshots and explosions. One unforgettable memory is being stuck in the middle of a battlefield with my mother, helpless and fearing for our lives. Next, we were walking in a lake of blood where dead bodies were lying. I was only 7 at the time. I remember staring at the eyes of a dying young man who was bleeding after his throat had been cut. Later in life, I faced another kind of war when I married a Muslim man who was physically, emotionally, and mentally abusive. These experiences damaged and scarred me deeply. I was shaped into a survivor, but my healing journey also taught me the difference between survival and overcoming. There is a significant difference between being a survivor and an overcomer. Survival is the ability to endure and make it through horrific circumstances. It is a state of resilience, strength, and adaptability in the face of unimaginable hardship. For Emily, Romi, Doron [Karina, Daniella, Naama, and Liri] surviving their captivity was about enduring the day-to-day suffering, holding on to the hope of freedom,m and preserving their sense of self, despite the odds stacked against them. Survival, however, is only the beginning. The transition to overcomer involves reclaiming life, joy, and purpose after the trauma. Surviving is about making it through the nightmare. Overcoming is about not allowing the nightmare to define the rest of your life. It is about healing the wounds — physical, emotional, and spiritual — that captivity inflicted and finding the courage to live beyond the shadow of that experience. READ more at Jewish News Syndicate. About: IŞIK ABLAIşık Abla was born in Istanbul, Turkey, and raised in a Muslim home. While living in Turkey, Işık earned her BA in Literature and Advanced Post Study in Business Administration. She worked in high-ranking executive positions for some of Turkey’s largest corporations and traveled throughout Europe. Throughout her life, she experienced verbal and physical abuse and a highly violent, abusive marriage. In 1996, she fled to America from her violent husband. After years of struggling to rebuild her career and personal life, Işık fell into a deep depression and became suicidal. On the day she planned to end her life, she had a personal encounter with God, surrendered her life to Jesus, and received supernatural healing and redemption. Her life changed remarkably. After receiving the Lord’s call to ministry, she attended the Ambassador’s Commission School of Ministry and became an ordained minister. She furthered her education in Biblical studies and leadership training at Yale and Harvard. Today, Işık’s programs are broadcast in multiple languages in over 200 countries on six continents, reaching more than 700 million people. Her message of hope, love, and redemption continues to reach the Muslim world for Christ. As a Muslim background believer, she is uniquely positioned to authentically share the good news of Jesus Christ with Muslims. Isik Abla’s latest news features include Fox News,Counter Narrative, The Gramazin Testimony Report WEZE 590 / WROL 950 Boston, The Washington Times Higher Ground, Stacy Washington NOW, America’s Hope with Kelly Wright, and Truth and Liberty Coalition with Alex McFarland, and Newstalk 105.9 FM WMAL speaking about growing up in a tumultuous country and a Muslim home; she experienced many verbal and physical abuses. In 1996, she fled to America to escape violence.  |