Nearly a Child Bride: Zahara McCoy’s Rescue Story

After losing both of her parents during the AIDS pandemic in Uganda, Zahara McCoy became an orphan at just 10 years old. Soon after, she learned she would likely be married off when she turned 13. 

Desperate and afraid, Zahara cried out to God for rescue. 

Listen to Zahara share how God answered her prayers through a sponsor on the other side of the world—restoring her education, protecting her from becoming a child bride, and ultimately leading her to adoption in the United States. Today, she serves as CEO of Children of Grace, helping to rescue vulnerable children just like she once was.   

Connect with us through email at gps@billygraham.org or on Facebook at Billy Graham Radio.

If you’d like to know more about beginning a relationship with Jesus Christ, or deepening the faith you already have, visit FindPeacewithGod.net. 

If you’d like to pray with someone, call our Billy Graham 24/7 Prayer Line at 855-255-7729. 

Transcript

Zahara McCoy:  
[00:00:00] I was going to get married off when I turned 13. That really scared me as a young girl. I felt that, innately, something was wrong about that. I really wanted to stay in school, but at that point, education was no longer a priority; survival was. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:00:16] After Zahara McCoy’s birth parents died during the Aids pandemic in Uganda, she went to live with her aunt. And school became out of the question. Zahar begged God to rescue her from becoming a child bride. Find out how God answered her prayers on this episode of GPS: God. People. Stories. It’s an outreach of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. I’m Jim Kirkland. Zahara was able to escape a dark future because of a stranger from the other side of the world who wanted to share the love of God that they had come to know. Billy Graham often spoke about that very thing. 

Billy Graham: 
[00:00:53] Now, the Gospel of Christ has no meaning unless it is applied to our fellow man who hurts and is in need. And Jesus said, “Thou shalt love the Lord, thy God, with all thy heart, and soul, and strength and mind. And thine neighbor as thyself”. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:01:09] We’ll hear more from Billy Graham later in this episode. If you’d like to know more about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and how it can change your life right now, visit our website. It’s FindPeacewithGod.net. That’s FindPeacewithGod.net. And the fastest way to get there is always through the link in our show notes.   

Audio and Music Tag:
[00:01:31]

Jim Kirkland
[00:01:37] Zahara McCoy was born in Uganda, where, growing up, she says she experienced what she calls a very typical village life. She would gather water with her friends from the village, make little dolls out of banana fibers, and climb mango trees. She also went to church regularly with her mom. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:01:58] My mother was Christian. So, from a very early on age, we would go to church. And church, you know, in Uganda is, you know, you go, and you praise. It’s very high energy. Very … praise and worship is to dance. You shout. You’re very free with the Lord when it comes to the Ugandan church or African churches. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:02:16] At the age of eight, Zahara realized that she was ready for everyone in her village to know that she followed Jesus. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:02:24] I loved singing. I loved being part of the Sunday School program. But it never really occurred to me how serious it is that you can declare. It’s not that you don’t believe. It’s declaring it and putting it out in the open that I do follow Jesus. You know, He’s my Christ, my Savior. And so, there was a sermon that was given when I was eight. And I remember looking at my mom and saying I’m going to go give my life to Christ. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:02:48] But just a few months after Zahara made her profession of faith in Jesus Christ and was baptized, her mom became very, very ill.

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:02:56] I came home from school and found a group of people at our house. And they were carrying a body out. It was my mother. And she was … she had foam in her mouth. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:03:06] Zahara had no idea that her mother had been sick. She was rushed to a hospital where she was resuscitated. While there, Zahara’s mother tested positive for AIDS. That was the same sickness that took her father’s life years before. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:03:22] She was very afraid. Because when she received that test back, and it said it was positive, back then, it meant a death sentence. And we had seen people who … it was not the most dignified disease. You know. When you had it, it would eat you away to look like a skeleton. And someone with pride, someone who we viewed as the sole breadwinner of our household, she worked hard to sustain me and my brothers. I believe she did not want to go down that way. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:03:52] Zahara’s mother decided to fight for her life. And together, Zahara and her mom prayed for her healing at a gathering known as overnight church. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:04:04] Overnight church is when you go all night long, seven days a week, and pray from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. And I remember going there. The first few weeks were just like a child. You’re tired. You’re not quite sure why we’re doing this. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:04:19] When Zahara’s mom’s health started to deteriorate, Zahara’s attitude toward overnight church changed. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:04:26]  I was running to church. And I was weeping in church overnight. It was endless prayer. And you would take a break for maybe some water or something, but it was concrete pleading out. That’s when I started realizing my relationship to the Lord. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:04:43] During this season of uncertainty with her mom’s illness, Zahara happened to pass by a school that had a group of people outside. They were from an organization that was meeting orphans to enroll them in their child sponsorship program. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:04:57] The AIDS pandemic was sweeping sub-Saharan Africa. So, it was very common for children who were like losing parents to be in a school trying to figure out what was next. And there were many little, small, they call community-based organizations that were enlisting orphans to help them stay in school at that time. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:05:15] After seeing this, Zahara knew she needed to talk to her mom about her future. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:05:21] My mom had completely deteriorated. She was no longer moving, no longer speaking. So, it was one of those things where you saw death knocking at your front door. And you’re just waiting for when. So, I had a conversation with my mother. She was non-vocal at that point. And I just remember asking her should I enlist my name? Am I going to be an orphan? And without words, her eyes welled up with tears. And, uh, she kind of basically cried and looked away from me, which was a confirmation that, yes, Zahara, you will be an orphan. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:05:56] Zahara went back to that school the next day to ask to be on the list. When she was told the people with the list had left, Zahara was determined to find out where they were. So, she set out and walked 16 miles to their location. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:06:14] I was very, very desperate to get on that list. I got there. Spoke to the woman. I asked her, hey, where’s that list? I need to be on it. I know I don’t meet the criteria now, but if you were to come to my house and see the condition my mom is in, you would understand why I need to be on that list. She accepted and took me back home and was able to meet my mother. And the words she said to me were, okay, Zahara. I understand. We’ll be in touch. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:06:44] A few weeks later, Zahara’s mother passed away. Zahara was now an orphan at the age of 10. The shock and trauma of losing her mom caused her to completely forget about the organization and their list.  

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:06:57] Everything I knew overnight changed. I lost not only my mother, but I lost my, uh, childhood, safety, stability, and any future I had dreamed of. In my culture, when you are a child without parents, let alone a young girl without parents, you become very – or your future becomes very fragile. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:07:22] Zahara’s only option at the time was to move in with her aunt, who had six children of her own. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:07:28] I really felt that I was a burden. Not that they said that, but I felt like I was one other mouth to feed and, um, shared everything from the basic, you know, needs of underwear to choosing when you could have a meal, what kind of meal you have. Is it lunch? Is it going to be breakfast or dinner? We really lived in scarcity. And I felt like the only way I could stay in that household is by making myself of value to her. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:017:55] To help earn her keep, Zahara cared for the other children and became the house help. They all lived together in one small room. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:08:07] We shared a one-space room divided up in a curtain. And the children would sleep on one side. Adults would sleep on the other side. And I chose the far end of the wall on the mat to sleep on. Because in those evenings, that’s when I had my time with God. And it was my time to petition my case to him. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:08:24] With so much uncertainty in her life, Zahara turned to God for help. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:08:30] I was just crying out to Him, saying, God, what is my life going to be like? Is this it for me? Could you make me somebody? I felt like a complete nobody. Like no one cared. No one would come and rescue me. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:08:44] Zahara’s fears increased when she started to hear whispers about her becoming a child bride. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:08:53] When I was communicated to that I would get married off when I turned 13, that really scared me as a young girl. I felt that, innately, something was wrong about that. I really wanted to stay in school, but at that point, education was no longer a priority; survival was. 

Jim Kirkland:
[00:09:10] Zahara had to drop out of school to help her aunt’s household stay afloat. Losing the opportunity for education in her culture just upped the odds that she would become a child bride. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:09:20] This was a very common thing, um, just go and live with somebody and start bearing them children. I’ve seen what the results of that look like. It is one of the most darkest option of the future someone can have. Because I saw friends that I knew slowly just absolutely lose themselves. Become a subsidiary of somebody else’s needs and wants, and completely their confidence beat down. You have a responsibility of children that you can’t even support, provide for, you know, meals, but you continue bearing children. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:09:57] That’s not what Zahara wanted for her future. Her prayers for rescue became more urgent. Zahara needed God to answer her prayers now. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:10:07] Nine months passed. Nothing. Ten months, nothing. And one day, a group of people came and knocked on our door and asked for my name. Does Zahara live here? And my aunt said, oh, yes. She does. And they said, well, we’re here to let her know that she now has a sponsor. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:10:24] God had finally answered Zahara’s prayers for rescue. Through child sponsorship, Zahara was going to be able to go back to school. And that meant she would no longer be at risk for becoming a child bride. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:10:37] He heard my cries. Even if I was a young child, whispered cries quietly. He heard them as loud as anybody else’s. And He answered them. I just remember thinking, wow! I now have my childhood back. I can now attend school like the rest. And not only that, but it actually meant that I now have this, what do you call, a safety net around me, because I could no longer be married off as soon as I turned 13. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:11:06] Being back in school bought Zahara some time. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:11:10] Even in discussion of getting married at 13, that could be delayed because a child who’s educated in my community means that you could come back and change your whole community. It meant that you could become somebody. So, they were not willing to give you up to a marriage if you were in school. It was a lifeline for me. 
Jim Kirkland: 
[00:11:30] The day after Zahara learned of her sponsorship, she was up and ready for school at the crack of dawn, dressed in her sponsored uniform. She made sure she had done all her chores and helped dress her cousins. There was no way she was going to miss this second chance at receiving an education. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:11:50] It was the beginning of a new life for me. My prayers were answered through sponsorship. And it was through someone who didn’t even know anything about me. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:12:00] A woman had chosen to sponsor Zahara. She lived on the other side of the world from Uganda. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:12:08] Marianne McCoy chose me. And from that, I learned what it means to be chosen by God. I actually really, truly understand what that means to be chosen. To be loved. To be protected. And He used a human being to show me that. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:12:25] But God went a step further to show Zahara that she was loved. Marianne traveled to meet Zahara. She saw that Zahara was at the top of her class and asked her if she would like to be adopted and continue her higher education in the United States.  

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:12:44] I’ll never forget moving from Uganda, you know, where lights are candles or the lamp is what we use. The village life is very dark. Once it’s dark, it’s dark. To now going to the airport. Everything is big. Lights. Perfumes. People moving busy. And, um, I just remember thinking, oh, my gosh. I am not in my village anymore. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:13:09] In America, Zahara was shocked and amazed over even the simplest things, like reflectors on the roads. Everything seemed brighter and bigger. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:13:19] I couldn’t imagine trying to reconcile the two worlds. You know, my small, little village to now a grand – I’ll call it a city – because I came right into San Francisco. And, um, not only that, when we arrived home, I was introduced to our new home and introduced to my own bedroom. My own closet. I came from absolutely nothing to everything as far as material. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:13:46] Zahara felt as if she had woken up from a dream and her entire life had transformed while she was asleep.  

Zahara McCoy:
[00:13:54] I remember thinking this is-this is what it means when God says I’ll answer your prayers. It’s not in increments. It’s in its entirety, right? And so, it’s like when God blesses you, He doesn’t just kind of do it and then stop there. He just goes all out for you. And He does that to remind you how special you are to Him. And to me, coming from sharing literally everything to the basic needs, to wondering where your next meal will come from, to now a refrigerator full of stuff. Right? I was just – I was trying to reconcile those two worlds and just was blown away at how much God reassured me. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:14:37] After Zahara graduated from high school in 2013, she took friends to her home country of Uganda. And together they did community service projects. God used the trip to break Zahara’s heart for what breaks His. 

Zahara McCoy:
[00:14:52] It really confronted me in ways I had been removed from for a long time. But there was an action behind that. He did not only speak to me to break my heart, but it was a real conviction that there is something that can be done about it.  

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:15:06] Zahara and her friends visited a household made up of five children. The oldest was 15, and the youngest was just two. 

Zahara McCoy:
[00:15:14] And the youngest was very close with me, uh, was just kind of sitting around me, just tugging at me. And I just loved her so much. And I remember thinking, okay, this is really sad. Like, I just don’t understand why there is so much unfairness and brokenness in the world. And the little girl said to me, you know, Zahara, I just want to show you something. Can you come with me? 

Jim Kirkland:
[00:15:36] The little girl’s name was Mercy. She led Zahara into the yard to show her her parents’ tombstone.   

Zahara McCoy:
[00:15:43] I just broke down. Fell on my knees. And it all came back to me. I remember thinking to God, why? How does this work? She will never have a love or understand true parental love, which is the connection to you. Unconditional love. What to show us here? Our earthly parents are your true affection of how much You love us. And now, she, too, would never experience that. Why, God? 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:16:12] For a long time, Zahara had held in her feelings about orphanhood in the context of African culture. Now, she wept that Mercy would never have a chance to know the love, protection, and stability that a parent provides. 
Zahara McCoy:
[00:16:26] And once we all settled down, I remember hearing God’s voice. He said, Zahara, I did not take you out of Uganda for you to just come back. I said why her? Why now? And He said, well, I want you to be to her what Marianne McCoy was to you. 

Jim Kirkland:  
[00:16:43] From that day on, Zahara sponsored Mercy. 

Zahara McCoy:
[00:16:48] From there, I started taking on the role and understanding of being a bridge between the two cultures. Reconciling what’s broken in Africa and the generosity and work of so many people, God’s people, who want to intercept and come and speak on His behalf, who are open to their calling to be able to share and demonstrate the love of Jesus Christ to those who are broken.  

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:17:11] Zahara returned from the trip to study International Affairs and Global Health with the dream of helping alleviate the brokenness in Uganda. To that end, after graduating, she took a year-long internship in Uganda to learn about the complexities of assisting developing nations.  

Zahara McCoy:
[00:17:28] I was the cultural liaison for an organization that I was with for one year. And that’s when I was put into the same organization I was part of when I was a child. Number one, they were going through their own leadership changes at that time in Uganda. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:17:42] Eventually, Zahara became the CEO of that organization, Children of Grace, which helps rescue vulnerable children through sponsorships. Currently, there are 750 children enrolled from nursery school to university or trade school. 

Zahara McCoy:
[00:17:58] All our programs are deeply enhanced and designed to speak life into from a standpoint of Jesus Christ and what He means to you as a child. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:18:07] For Zahara, she knows just how important it is to have faith instilled in you at a young age and for people to step up and help others in need. 

Zahara McCoy:
[00:18:18] I’m here to tell people that I’m a living, breathing testimony of what God can do using ordinary people if they’re only willing to listen and open their hearts and respond. And you don’t have to be much or have much to do something. My position regards to what God has done in my life. If not you, who else? Because He used a complete stranger to absolutely turn around my entire life and give me a chance at a new one. 

Music tag:
[00:18:48] 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:18:57] If you’ve been listening to Zahara’s story today and would like to have a relationship with the same loving Savior that Zahara knows, you can. And you can right now. Visit our website, FindPeacewithGod.net. That’s FindPeacewithGod.net. When you’re there, click on begin a relationship with Jesus. That’s at FindPeacewithGod.net. There’s also a link in our show notes. In just a minute, you’ll hear a final word from Zahara about the spiritual impact she felt from her adoption. 

Audio tag:
[00:19:35] 

Billy Graham: 
[00:19:44] Now, the Gospel of Christ has no meaning unless it is applied to our fellow man who hurts and is in need. 

Announcer:
[00:19:50] Billy Graham … 

Billy Graham: 
[00:19:52] And Jesus said, “Thou shalt love the Lord, thy God, with all thy heart, and soul, and strength, and mind. And thine neighbor as thyself”. Jesus believed in the worth of the individual. And Jesus spent most of His time with individuals, not just great crowds. The Bible teaches that God loves you as an individual. Greater love hath no man than this that he lay down his life for his friends. And the Lord, Jesus Christ, died on the cross. And while He was on the cross, He was thinking about you because He was God. He could look down the centuries and call you by name on that cross and say I love you. I will forgive you if you will come to me. 

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:20:36] A question for you, have you been adopted yet? That is, have you been adopted into God’s kingdom? If you’ve never trusted Jesus with your life and you’d like to know more about who He is and the sacrifice He made for you, we have resources ready and available for you right now at our website. FindPeacewithGod.net. It is a place where you can learn what it means to begin a relationship with Jesus Christ. And if you already know Him, it is a place to grow deeper in your walk with Jesus Christ. The website again is FindPeacewithGod.net. And there’s always a link to that website in our show notes. Our guest on this episode of GPS is Zahara McCoy, who was adopted from Uganda by a childhood sponsor in the United States. Throughout her life, she has prayed, and God has answered, showing His protection and provision for her. Here’s what she had to say about the impact of her adoption beyond just a new last name. 

Zahara McCoy: 
[00:21:40] Adoption did not only change my last name, but it truly helped me learn who God is at the core, not only as my Creator but as my Father. Someone who intentionally knows my name, knows my hurt, and what scares me. Knows what my future holds. And He wants to carve that out personally, for me. And if He does that for me, I mean, who else? Who else? And so, my story has been a journey of just seeing God’s love, mercy, grace through an individual, through a sponsorship, my sponsor, who then turned my mom.

Jim Kirkland: 
[00:22:18] We’re grateful Zahara joined us on this episode. She is the CEO of Children of Grace. She’s also now a wife and mother of three. If you want to hear more powerful God stories like this one Zahara shared with us, simply subscribe to GPS through your podcast app or on YouTube. In the middle of life, GPS will show up in the middle of the week every other Wednesday. I’m Jim Kirkland. And this is GPS: God. People. Stories. It’s an outreach of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Always good news. 

Music tag:
[00:23:56] 

End of transcript