TUCSON, ARIZONA — When evangelist from Kenya Okongo Samson went on his first mission trip as a teenage boy he was kidnapped, tortured and raped by terrorists. But through a series of miracles he escaped.

That didn’t stop him traveling the world to preach the Gospel despite being arrested and abused by his captors in 15 countries. Despite years of pain and suffering from the abuse he encountered he returned to several of these nations to personally forgive those who persecuted him. As a result many of those he forgave accepted Christ and now serve alongside him with his charity Unite4Africa.

Okongo is hoping many will follow his bold steps to reconciliation after reading his biography Abused But Not Forsaken.

In a powerful demonstration of reconciliation a Kenyan evangelist returned to several countries where he was arrested and abused for his Christian faith to offer forgiveness to his persecutors.

Okongo Samson says many of the people he forgave ended up accepting Christ and even working alongside him in at Unite4Africa a Christian humanitarian organization he went on to establish.

There was no better news than seeing them being forgiven by God and as that was going on, I chose the path of discipling them and ultimately I was shocked when some of them said ‘I want God to use me,’ and since that was what God called me to do, I had no other option but to work with them.

As well as providing practical and spiritual support through their ministry Okongo and his wife Shyla also help many others through the process of forgiveness. She explains how many women are finding healing and wholeness.

It’s going to the core of who do you need to forgive and what do you need to seek God for for forgiveness and are you willing to forgive yourself? So that’s how on an individual basis I look for or invite them into the process of forgiveness.

And Samson’s remarkable story of reconciliation is told in his autobiography called Abducted But Not Forsaken.

Read more news on Kenya, Christian Persecution and World Missions.