My heart was touched last year to read the story and watch the video of a little Iraqi refugee girl named Myriam.

Myriam is an Iraqi Christian whose family had to flee their home near Mosul when ISIS took control of their town in mid 2014. She lost her home, school, friends, and much more.

They fled to Irbil, in the relatively safe area of the autonomous region of Kurdistan where they live as refugees in an unfinished shopping mall. She told her story to Essam Nagy, the presenter SAT-7 KIDS most popular programs called “Why Is That?” when he visited Irbil at Christmas 2014.

When asked how she felt towards ISIS, Myriam said:

“I don’t want revenge. I don’t want to kill them. I pray for them.”

Please watch the video interview of this precious little girl – an example to us all of joy in the midst of a hard life and forgiveness for those who have wronged us. Watch her smile. Hear her sing of her love for Jesus.

Jesus “called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.'” (The Injil, the Good News according to Matthew 18:2-4)

Although ISIS continues to make international news headlines, little Myriam’s example – love over hate, forgiveness over bitterness – is truly a bit of good news.