VOMOz Radio: Recent Episodes
Voice of the Martyrs Australia
The pastor told Brother Daniel that the book could change his life. Daniel will share how reading God's Word changed him and, eventually, also his family.Seeing such dramatic changes gave Daniel a desire to see more people have Bibles. Since then, he's helped deliver thousands of Bibles all over his country. He's never lost his love for God's Word and continues to find creative ways to get Bibles to the people of Vietnam.Listen to hear what Christian persecution looks like in villages around the country – and what they can do to appeal for the religious freedom promised by the government. Today, Brother Daniel's number one priority is training more leaders to know and love the Lord, strengthening new leaders in the church to overcome persecution and encouraging them to help one another.
Joe and Janelle will share challenges they face in ministry, how they work under the radar in places where Christian teaching is not welcome and how A3 provides resilience training to leaders in countries where there is intense persecution. These leaders also experience fellowship within the Body of Christ, knowing they are not alone in their suffering.One tool A3 uses to help build resiliency in the leaders is a book published by VOM titled In the Shadow of the Cross: https://vom.com.au/product/in-the-shadow-of-the-cross/
Since her husband's death from illness in 2024, Maya continues serving as a gospel worker among women in Turkmenistan. Please pray for her ministry and her health.You can encourage persecuted Christians in prison – just like Ilmurad and Maya were encouraged –when you write letters through Write to a Christian Prisoner - Voice of the Martyrs: https://vom.com.au/get-involved/write-to-a-christian-prisoner/
the younger of the two men told him.In places like Northern Mozambique, South Sudan, Malawi, Tanzania and other East African countries, Muslim-background believers face persecution from their families and communities. Even those who have grown up in Christian families are likely to face persecution from Muslim communities – especially if they are involved in evangelism or outreach to Muslims.Brother Paulo will share more stories from our persecuted Christian brothers and sisters in East Africa, tell how God called him into missions and describe the endurance of churches in the region amid persecution.He will also share how believers prepare to face persecution and how Christians in free nations can pray for our brothers and sisters in East Africa.
He'll also share the story of his calling by God to return to Congo – leaving behind an education ministry he truly loved in Kenya – to serve and strengthen the persecuted church in DRC. Finally, he'll equip listeners to pray specifically for the needs of persecuted Christians in the Congo. Please note, there is no FLR reel this week (because we skipped the one for China).Would you add a post to social media like you used to?FLR32 Congo .mp3
Pray for Putumandi's health, for his family to come to know the Lord, and for his continued witness to unbelievers around him, especially the people in his own family.
How do you discern God's calling to be a missionary?John Easter, Executive Director of Assemblies of God World Missions (AGWM), says the first question might be: if God did call you to serve overseas, would you say yes? Before accepting his current role, John and his wife served the church in Africa, providing theological training to pastors and leaders. In an effort to develop more leaders for the growing church, they oversaw 380+ schools with 25,000+ students. Serving on missions front lines brought many challenges. They faced an abduction, medical issues, hijacking and other criminal activity while in Africa. Yet the Lord surrounded them with community and resources as they learned how to abide in Christ and rely on the Holy Spirit during every hardship. Today, John is focused on vision casting, fundraising, and care for missionaries and missionary kids as they work to spread the gospel in unreached areas. You'll hear John share why the church in northern India is growing rapidly and what the Lord is instilling in His people in Nigeria—despite intense and violent Christian persecution in both nations.
Alicia's book Strong to the End: The Simple Service and Sudden Sacrifice of the Martyrs in Haiti
Little did he know how soon his desire would be fulfilled. Davy and Natalie were killed, along with Haitian co-worker Judes Montis, during a gang attack at the mission compound in May 2024.David and Alicia Lloyd, Davy's parents and longtime missionaries to Haiti, tell the story of that difficult day and share how God has sustained and comforted them in the two years since. They take comfort knowing Davy wanted to see Jesus more than anything else. The Lloyds share the details of what happened during the attack and how they learned of it from a distance during a trip to the US. They'll talk about serving in Haiti for 20 years, through the ups and downs of stability and security in the country, including the day their young children were kidnapped. You will hear David and Alicia share honestly about their grief and the questions they've asked the Lord; they'll also tell how God comforted and renewed their faith as they walked forward in obedience, even in grief. David and Alicia have written a powerful book, Strong to the End: The Simple Service and Sudden Sacrifice of the Martyrs in Haiti, available on Kindle through our online shop [https://vom.com.au/product/strong-to-the-end-the-simple-service-and-sudden-sacrifice-of-the-martyrs-in-haiti/] that tells the story of Davy and Natalie and their mission work in Haiti.
. Listen as Chico explains government efforts to influence and control churches, and why every believer in Nicaragua needs a Bible in their hands.To read more about Nicaragua and other restricted and hostile nations, see our Global Prayer Guide here: https://vom.com.au/news/weekly-prayer-updates/
Christians in Laos know they will face persecution when they follow Jesus. Brother Sionh, founder and president of Khmu Christian Connection, says he doesn't have to make a special effort to prepare Christians for persecution because they already know it will come. He says some Khmu follow Jesus privately and secretly because they fear the loss of opportunity that comes with being known as a Christian. Brother Sionh remembers how his parents and many others came to faith before World War II, when an American missionary walked to their village and told them Jesus has power over evil spirits and that if you believe in Him, He will protect you. Today, Sionh reaches Khmu people all over the world through his work as a Bible teacher for Khmu Gospel Radio Broadcast. The largest populations of Khmu people are in Laos, Vietnam and China. In Laos, Christians are often seen as troublemakers and agents of Western influence. Most Khmu are animists, worshipping spirits of their ancestors or of things in nature. When they are sick or have trouble, they call on witchdoctors and perform ritualistic practices. They constantly live in a spirit of fear, afraid of offending the spirits and bringing trouble.
I don't think the church has a lack of calling. We have a lack of response. We have to respond!
Brother Matthew was a worldly teenager when his mother decided she and her son needed to go to church. By the end of that first service, both of them had committed their lives to following Christ.As Matthew grew in faith, he was convicted and inspired by the Acts accounts of Paul's missionary travels. Studying Paul's efforts to take the gospel to the Gentiles, Matthew began to ponder who the Gentiles were in his generation, living far from the truth of Christ? As he began to ask that question in prayer, God laid on his heart the nation of Afghanistan. Matthew began taking steps towards service in that war-torn country, and repeatedly God confirmed His calling. Months later, Matthew was in Uzbekistan, serving with a church-planting effort and getting on-the-ground education in Central Asia ministry and culture.Listen as Matthew tells the stories of the people he met who experienced supernatural visions and encounters with Jesus. He'll also talk about the risks of sharing the gospel among Muslims, and the miraculous story of how God helped him get approval for an Afghan visa from the Taliban consulate!Matthew will recount what it looked like when he arrived in Kabul – just a few years after Soviet tanks withdrew – and how the Lord led him to serve in a village as God faithfully guided, one step at a time. Pray this week for our persecuted Christian brothers and sisters in Afghanistan and throughout Central Asia.
In this episode of the Release International Voice podcast, Tom Hardy continues his conversation with Sharif, a former radicalised Muslim from a family of imams who encountered Christ while in prison.Release International UK is a sister office of VOM Australia
In this episode, Tom Hardy of the Release International Voice podcast speaks with Sharif, a former radicalised Muslim from a family of imams who encountered Christ while in prison.Born into a family of imams and radicalised in the Muslim Brotherhood, Sharif never imagined he would meet Jesus in a solitary prison cell. In Part One of this two-part conversation, he shares how jihad, political activism, and imprisonment led him to a series of mysterious encounters and a long, painful journey through the Koran that ended at the feet of Christ.Release International UK is a sister office of VOM Australia
Brother Wybo served persecuted Christians for decades through Open Doors alongside Brother Andrew, author of God’s Smuggler. Andrew was known for his passion for distributing Bibles and his willingness to take risks to bring God’s Word into hostile and restricted nations. During his time with Open Doors, Wybo developed the World Watch List, which tracks the countries where Christians experience the most persecution. He has now helped create the Bible Access List [Home | Bible Access List], a new initiative measuring how difficult it is for Christians worldwide to obtain Bibles. The list highlights both nations where governments restrict Bible distribution, such as Afghanistan, and places like India where Bibles are legal but scarce due to economic barriers, supply issues, or other challenges. Wybo hopes the list will inspire Christians to pray and support Bible access efforts. Drawing on decades of experience, he also shares lessons learned from persecuted believers and the encouragement he witnessed while distributing Bibles in Ethiopia.
In this episode, Tom Hardy of Release International speaks with Lazarus Yeghnazar of the organisation of Transform Iran.Inside Iran, protests are met with brutal crackdowns, yet something extraordinary is happening beneath the surface. In this powerful episode, Lazarus shares stories of courage, persecution, and a growing underground church, with over a million turning to Christ – many through dreams. As fear of famine and further devastation looms, he calls for prayer, hope, and attention. Release International UK is a sister office of VOM Australia
God Answers Prayer that a Fellow Pastor Would be ArrestedAfter spending months in prison for sharing the gospel with Hindus, Pastor Paul’s health began to deteriorate. In desperation, he prayed that God would allow another pastor to be arrested and sent to the same prison so they could encourage one another. Four days later, Paul read in the newspaper that a pastor had been arrested. Two weeks after that, the pastor arrived at the prison and brought Paul great encouragement, telling him that his church had been praying for him.With renewed faith, the two pastors prayed together regularly. Other prisoners soon began asking them for prayer, and even prison guards noticed their devotion. When asked what they were doing, the pastors replied that they were praying for the guards as well. Eventually, around 70 prisoners came to them seeking prayer and wanting to learn about Jesus.Go to www.PrisonerAlert.com to learn how you can pray for other persecuted Christians still imprisoned for their faith.Write to and encourage Christians imprisoned for their faith and their families.
Pastor Paul was doing gospel outreach in northern India when police arrested him and accused him of forcing Hindus to convert, even though he was only sharing with people who wanted to hear the truth. When officers arrived, Paul and his co-workers were simply eating a meal, but they were still taken into custody.Paul and three fellow Christians suffered greatly in detention. Police repeatedly threatened them and promised freedom if they renounced their faith in Jesus. They were placed in a filthy cell used as a latrine and even allowed a mob of radical Hindus to beat them.Despite the suffering, Paul prayed for courage and asked God to help him not fear. During his imprisonment, he found opportunities to share the gospel with other prisoners, demonstrating the hope he had in Christ even as some of his co-workers eventually renounced their faith.
Isaac Santiago, Regional Leader for The Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) in Latin America, describes the growing challenges Christians face in countries such as Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Colombia. Since 2018, Nicaragua has introduced laws and government pressure that heavily restrict the church, similar to persecution seen in communist countries like Cuba and China. As a result, Nicaragua is now listed as a “Restricted Nation” in VOM’s 2026 Global Prayer Guide.Many Nicaraguan Christians are struggling to adjust to these new restrictions, while believers in Cuba have lived with similar limitations for more than 60 years. Santiago also discusses Venezuela, where recent leadership changes have coincided with a spiritual revival, and in the past two years, he has seen the gospel spreading and churches growing in many parts of the country.Click here [https://vom.com.au/about/persecuted-christians/] to view VOM's Global Prayer Guide.
, John says, and shares how the Lord is mobilising prayer for the unreached in restricted nations and hostile areas.Listen for the amazing story of a former Boko Haram member in West Africa who came to Christ while spying on a Christian leadership training session. The former terrorist is now advancing the gospel among the people he used to work with.
he says. Pastor Hassan recounted how fellow members of the Body of Christ in Sudan encouraged him in prison with faith that the Lord would release him. His prayer life also grew in prison, as he became a prayer warrior, quoting Bible verses as he prayed with tears.
Click here [https://soundcloud.com/vom-oz/petr-jasek-10th-anniversary-of] to listen to Petr's interview on the Front Line Report
Mona share what it looks like to be a Christian in North Africa, where they are often treated as second-class citizens. Yet Mona says she loves the Muslim people who are victims of a false religion.- Kevin works among people trapped in fear-based animistic practices in Southeast Asia. He'll share how gospel workers combat that fear with the love of Christ.
Sara minister to Muslim refugees in the Middle East who are open to the gospel. They see the hunger to know Jesus, and the Lord is revealing Himself to these refugees through dreams, visions, and the love of Christ, as seen in the example of Abraham, Sara, and their team.
Ten years ago, Petr Jasek travelled to Sudan on behalf of Voice of the Martyrs to meet with and encourage Sudanese Christians. At the airport on his way out of the country, Petr was arrested and later sentenced to life in prison. His first prison cellmates were ISIS fighters – men who hated Christians and quickly began to persecute Petr.Petr Jasek spent 445 days in Sudanese custody. Listen as Petr shares about his first night in a jail cell, how God uniquely prepared him with a dream and how he discovered that his cellmates were radical Muslim ISIS fighters. In prison, Petr felt the Lord's presence very near, as once he received a Bible – he spent hours every day reading the Bible and praying.In Petr's lowest moments, God brought to his mind the names and faces of other persecuted Christians – men and women Petr had met during his years overseeing VOM's work in Africa. He began to pray for other persecuted believers, and his spirit lifted as his focus changed from his own difficulties to praying for other Christians. The story of Petr's imprisonment – and the ministry God allowed him inside – is told in his book, Imprisoned with ISIS: Faith in the Face of Evil (https://vom.com.au/product/imprisoned-with-isis-faith-in-the-face-of-evil-petr-jasek-with-rebecca-george/)
There are more mobile phones in the world than cars, toilets, or people. What if each of those phones could be turned into a Bible? Using their backgrounds in electrical engineering and software development, David and Josiah Palusky have developed technology tools to help Christian workers spread the gospel in places where people are unreached, and there is often Christian persecution.David is the founder and president of Renew Outreach. He will share how the ministry began and the tools they've developed to help provide unreached people in remote places with access to God's Word. Josiah, Director of Strategic Initiatives at Renew, explains efforts to help persecuted Christians around the world share the gospel using emerging technology.
A nationwide crackdown on urban house churches in China has drawn worldwide attention after nearly 30 members of the Zion Protestant Church were arrested in seven cities, including Beijing and Shanghai.In this episode of the Front Line Report, VOM Canada’s Greg Musselman is joined by Dr Bob Fu, founder and president of ChinaAid, to explain the reasons behind these recent arrests and why the international media is finally paying attention.During the interview, Dr Fu also discusses the Chinese Communist Party’s escalating campaign against Christians – and why this wave of persecution is considered the most severe crackdown since the beginning of the Cultural Revolution.
she says.Listen as Huldah shares how God has cared for her since her husband's death, often using members of Christ's body to serve and support her in times of need.She'll also talk about the process of forgiveness. Huldah still sees the people who killed her husband, yet she doesn't hold a grudge in her heart but instead has forgiven them.Hear what Huldah's ministry looks like today in the village, and how she lives out Matthew 25:40's call to serve the Lord by caring for the least of these.
I think it's a real witness that this faith is so much bigger than what is happening to me in this world.
“I just want the Bible. How much does it cost?”First, the young Druze woman tried to access and read her own religion’s holy book. But she wasn’t allowed to read it. Then she tried to find a Koran. Finally, she came to a church and asked to purchase a Bible, worried she wouldn’t have enough money to pay for it. The pastor told her that God’s Word is priceless, but that he would give it to her without cost. Shocked, she took the Bible and began to read, eventually giving her life to Jesus.Brother Michael, a gospel worker in the Middle East, will share more of this young woman’s powerful story and the Christian persecution she faced from her family while standing firm in Christ. In spite of persecution, even locked in a room, she continued to share the gospel.Learn what it’s like to live as a Christian in the Middle East, and what believers face after leaving Muslim or Druze backgrounds to follow Christ. As believers engage in conversations with family and friends, they carefully plant spiritual seeds while testing their listeners’ hearts to see if they are ready to go deeper.Brother Michael also shares how he trains and leads discipleship through Discovery Bible Study groups, which are multiplying as new believers share their personal testimonies with family and friends. One group started with nine believers but today has multiplied into more than twenty groups with 150 believers!Hear how you can pray specifically for Brother Michael and our persecuted Christian family in the Middle East.
Churches in Algeria have been closed by the government. Pastors have been threatened. But the ministry continues. Pastor Abraham and Sara are back this week to continue our conversation about God’s work in the Middle East and North Africa—and the Christian persecution that Christ’s followers face.Hear the story of one pastor who has repeatedly changed his phone number because of constant threats. Yet he remains in his country and continues to share the gospel with Muslims.They will also offer an update on the situation for Christians in Syria as we near the one-year anniversary of the fall of the Assad regime.Abraham and Sara will also share how Christians fleeing violence and danger in the region are going as missionaries to their new homelands—sometimes reaching their countrymen even in far-off lands!
Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced from their homes and their countries amidst war and upheaval in the Middle East. Pastor Abraham and Sara are living as representatives of God’s love to displaced people in the Middle East. The ministry can be messy and difficult, yet they persist in demonstrating love in practical ways. And they are seeing great fruit for their ministry.Abraham and Sara will share how one woman—the widow of an imam—had heard all kinds of negative things about Christians. But when she came to the church, she found something very different: people who loved her and helped her. Listen to hear the story of how God answered the woman’s prayer within 24 hours, and how a dream led her to commit her life to Jesus.Leaving Islam behind to follow Jesus comes with a cost, though. Abraham and Sara will also share what Christian persecution looks like in the region, including pressure from families or tribes as well as Islamists or government authorities.“We are planting seeds,” Sara says, “we are the tools for His Kingdom.”
In Malaysia, every citizen carries an ID card that includes religion; every person is classified as either ‘Muslim’ or ‘Non-Muslim’. The Malaysian constitution promises religious freedom and the right to choose one’s religion. So, what happens if a citizen changes their faith?Brother ‘Samuel’ was born into a Muslim family, but he chose to leave Islam behind to follow Christ. At first, he kept his newfound faith quiet, knowing that being publicly identified as a follower of Jesus could bring all kinds of trouble.But as he grew in faith, he felt convicted about his silence. Jesus had died for him. How could he be unwilling even to acknowledge Christ?Learning of his conversion, Samuel’s family encouraged him to dive more deeply into Islamic training and activities. Wanting to honour his father and his family, Samuel agreed to attend Islamic classes. But instead of bringing him back to Mohammed, the training forced him to become more rooted in Biblical truth and more capable of explaining and defending Christian doctrines.In 2018, Samuel began the process of applying for a new national ID card, changing his religion from “Muslim” to “non-Muslim”. Seven years later, his court case is still dragging on.
Listen to part two of Noah and Patrick’s conversation as they highlight what life is like in a Muslim dominated country of Southeast Asia [name of country withheld for security]. Being a Christian convert from Islam presents life-altering legal challenges to individuals who wish to marry the person of their choice! Hear about VOM Australia’s work in this country to send the small yet faithful church.Listen also about the nation of Brunei, where Muslim background believers are offered bribes from the government to return to Islam.
This week on VOMAus Radio, hear from our partners in Nigeria, Kent and Ruth of Christian Faith Ministries (CFM). As they choose to love their enemies, God continues to work powerfully through CFM. CFM is a valued long-term ministry partner of VOM Australia, equipping the church for evangelism in dangerous regions and caring for those affected by religious violence. Interview courtesy of our friends at Vision Christian Radio.
Australians are keen travellers to many Southeast Asian countries, but day-to-day life for small populations of local Christians can be a struggle.This week on VOMAus Radio, Patrick and Noah discuss Christian life in a Muslim-dominant Asian nation [name of country withheld for security], including a special education outreach project for children without identification documents, and much sought-after leadership training for local pastors.
This week on VOMAus Radio, Noah and Patrick discuss the persecution of Christians in the extensive and hugely populous nation of India.While India’s constitution guarantees religious freedom, in reality, anti-conversion laws are commonly used against pastors and evangelists, and attacks on pastors have become more common.In the north of the country, where it’s a Hindu stronghold, anti-Christian sentiment is strong. In the south, persecution is most likely to occur in rural areas. Hear about how VOM Australia is at work in supporting pastors, providing training, Bible distribution and a safehouse for new converts who have been abandoned by family. Through this work, Christians are reminded that they are not alone.
This week on VOMAus Radio, Dr Yousaf Sadiq returns to continue his conversation with Todd Nettleton. After dozens of churches and Christians’ homes in Jaranwala, Pakistan, were attacked, looted and burned by a mob, Christians gathered in and around the ruins of their former church buildings to sing and worship the Lord. The words they sang were directly from Scripture: Psalms of lament; reminders that even in times of suffering, we can come to the Lord and trust in His sovereignty. “I want the world to know this fascinating story and what it means for the church in Pakistan.” Yousaf says, “It’s such a precious heritage.” Dr Yousaf will also share about his work to support and include the ministry of persecuted Christians in the work of the Lausanne Movement.
This week on VOM Aus Radio, here from Dr Yousaf Sadiq. He was born into a Christian family in Pakistan. His mother worked as a cleaner at a local school so that Yousaf and some of his ten siblings would have an opportunity to be educated. In the evenings, he would help his mother clean the school where he was a student during the day. Despite their deep poverty, Yousaf gratefully recounts how his family’s needs were always met.Today Yousaf is a professor at Wheaton College and co-leader of the Lausanne Persecuted Church Initiative. He remembers how his parents invested time and energy in training their children to walk with the Lord, and how they led by example.Yousaf also shares what it looks like to live in Pakistan as a Christian. There are many pressures within the society, but Yousaf understood at a young age that Christian persecution is part of following Christ.“I felt not only strengthened but also privileged that this was happening,” he says.
This week on VOMAus Radio, we hear from Brother ‘Enfu’, the pastor of an illegal house church in China. Listen as he shares why and how he prepares his wife and children for the day he may eventually be arrested and sent to prison.He will give an update on Christian persecution in China and how believers there are responding faithfully despite increasing government pressure.Instead of large church events, the gospel is spreading through one-on-one conversations with co-workers or neighbours as Christians share what Jesus has done in their lives.Brother Enfu encourages pastors and church leaders he trains to stay in China and serve Christians there, rather than leaving China for a more comfortable position in the West. He says that when he hears of a brother or sister imprisoned for their faith, it’s an encouragement to him, even as he acknowledges the suffering they are enduring.
Bayram is back to finish the conversation from last week. Hear stories of people in Türkiye leaving Islam and embracing Jesus Christ – and the persecution they’ve endured for making that decision. Bayram will tell the story of a young atheist who, after talking with Bayram for an entire evening, saw Jesus in two dreams. This young man embraced the gospel and became a follower of Jesus. It was a costly decision: as soon as he became a Christian, everyone around him became an enemy.Bayram also equips us to pray for Türkiye and for our Christian brothers and sisters there.
This week on VOMAus Radio, hear from Brother Bayram, who came to the US from Türkiye to further his education. He started a business, where one day a Christian customer gave him a New Testament. He began to read it, the beginning of a path that would lead him to faith in Jesus Christ as Saviour and the Son of God.It was a costly decision: his devout Muslim wife divorced him and wouldn’t allow him to see their daughter. His brother had Bayram committed to a mental hospital, thinking anyone who would leave Islam was mentally unstable.It has been a difficult road, but Bayram’s faith has only grown stronger as he has seen God work in his life and his country. Bayram will encourage and instruct listeners on how we can help lead Muslims toward Christ, wherever they are.You can connect online with Brother Bayram and his ministry at www.albtci.org.
This week on VOMAus Radio, Patrick and Noah continue the conversation on what it’s like to worship and gather as Christians in Vietnam – sometimes the consequences are severe. Yet the church is making a bold stand for Christ.In the coming weeks, we will hear more from Patrick as he explains further about the persecuted church in Southeast Asia and how VOM Australia is coming alongside our persecuted brothers and sisters to equip and aid them when opposition comes.
This week on VOMAus Radio, we hear once again from Patrick, who oversees VOM Australia’s field work in Southeast Asia, sharing about Vietnam.This country has a long and complex history, and it remains one of the few communist countries in the world. Life here can be difficult for Christians. Yet, praise God, the church continues to grow.Patrick outlines the various forms of persecution in Vietnam, including the consequences faced by a couple who gave their daughter a biblical name.
This week on VOMAus Radio, listen as Bob Fu, former prisoner for Christ in China and the founder and president of China Aid Association, shares updates from persecuted Christians in China, including Pastor John Cao, Pastor Wang Yi, and other Chinese Christians. The Chinese Communist Party continues to pursue absolute government control of churches and other religious institutions in China. Pastors and church leaders face lengthy prison sentences for 'fraud' when their church collects tithes and offerings, or 'illegal border crossing' if they travel to meet with fellow believers outside China.Bob Fu, author of God's Double Agent https://vom.com.au/product/gods-double-agent/ , reports on recent church raids in China, including arrests of children attending Vacation Bible School. The Communist Party forbids any religious outreach or training for children under age 18.
This week on VOMAus Radio, Hana Menghisteab returns to share how speaking publicly about her father and her family’s suffering was painful, but how God used it to open a door for healing in her life.Before his arrest in 2004, Dr Tecleab Menghisteab was a medical doctor and a leader in the Eritrean Orthodox Church. He is one of more than 300 Christians currently in prison in Eritrea. Hana was six years old when her father was arrested. Hana will tell how growing up without her father left her wounded in many areas of her life. However, Hana says, “God does not waste pain; He doesn’t waste the years of tears.” Instead, the Lord uses suffering to display His glory.Listen to Hana’s previous interviews with VOMAus Radio: https://soundcloud.com/vom-oz/sets/interviews-with-hana?si=67b6d15a70f44c14bdd08507fdba3bc6
This week on VOMAus Radio, hear part two from Patrick as he shares remarkable stories from the field, of persecution, forgiveness and overcoming, with God’s help and strength.You will be amazed and strengthened by the testimonies of Rachana, whose husband tried to kill her after she became a Christian, and Nanda, once a devout Buddhist priest who lost his prominence and reputation for Jesus.Be encouraged as you hear how God is at work in this ‘Hostile’ nation. We hope it spurs you on to pray for believers in this nation and pray for VOM Australia too, as we seek to minister for those who suffer for His name.
This week on VOMAus Radio, hear from VOM Australia staff member Patrick as he provides us with insights on his recent trip to Nepal.Though officially a secular republic, Nepal remains a predominantly Hindu nation, and the government is taking a strong stand against religious conversion. This nation is classified as ‘Hostile’ towards the gospel, but there is a small, vibrant and bold church in Nepal faithfully following Christ, sometimes at great cost.Listen to understand what persecution is like in the diverse and complex nation of Nepal. And hear how our Bibles Plus project is blessing believers.
This week on VOMAus Radio, we hear from Kevin, a gospel worker and church planter in Asia.Kevin shares how the Lord called him to serve unreached people groups in Asia, and explains what a new believer is likely to face when they come to Christ in a Buddhist and animistic culture, where persecution usually begins at the family or village level.Because of fear-based animistic practices and the communal culture, the entire community feels like they are at risk when a member of their community becomes a Christian. Kevin has walked with friends who’ve been put in prison or forced out of their villages. Some are living in tents because they refused to recant their commitment to Christ. Yet they meet these hardships with joy, responding in faith and perseverance to their persecution. Learn more about the church in Asia and how to pray for Christians there and around the world who face persecution for the name of Christ.
This week on VOMAus Radio, we hear part two of the interview with Carter Gates, leader of VOM USA’s work in the Asia/Pacific Region.Some Christians in Malaysia—ethnically Chinese or Indian believers—have freedom to practise their faith. But if an ethnic Malay person becomes a believer in Jesus, he or she will face intense Christian persecution.As Carter meets with VOM’s ministry partners, one shared key hindrances that keep Malays from following Christ and the questions he uses as he engages them in gospel conversation. One of those questions: are you ready to die for Jesus?We’ll also share an update on the court case over the forced disappearance of Pastor Raymond Koh in 2017. A verdict is expected in the case in November.
This week, Carter Gates, leader of VOM USA’s work in the Asia/Pacific Region, shares about a recent gathering of VOM front-line workers, where they spent time in fellowship, sharing stories and encouraging one another to continue serving persecuted Christians. These men and women minister in some of the most dangerous places to follow Christ and are often the first responders when Christian persecution happens.You will hear updates from Myanmar, Laos, and North Korea, places where following Jesus can mean losing everything. Between political unrest, spiritual oppression, pressure from local leaders, economic retaliation and rejection from family, believers in this region are squeezed on every side. Yet, as Carter shares, Christians in these nations remain steadfast and faithful, unshaken despite immense pressure.
This week on VOMOz Radio. Vicky Hartzler, the current chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), shares about her role in reporting on and seeking religious freedom for our brothers and sisters in restricted areas and hostile nations. She also shares her own experiences of advocating on behalf of persecuted Christians directly to leaders of other nations.Listen for ways you can pray for USCIRF’s work and for followers of Christ working in government to advance religious freedom around the world.
This week on VOMOz Radio, hear from Neda, who was born in Iran to a Muslim family. As a young woman, she felt broken and empty. Neda’s heart searched for God, and she came to faith in Christ through her relative’s witness, and her life was radically transformed. Neda’s husband also found faith in Jesus. Over the next 13 years, Neda and her husband faced persecution from the Islamic government. In one incident, officials raided their home and threatened her husband at gunpoint. She and her husband ultimately decided to leave Iran, yet they continue to serve from abroad through Iran Alive Ministries. Neda encourages every Christian to lay down their own desires and fully surrender to God's will, even when it means enduring suffering. Iran Alive MinistriesA post from Farzin Tarat on Iran Alive Ministries provided by: https://iranalive.org
Last week on VOMOz radio (https://soundcloud.com/vom-oz/mongolia-was-i-called-was-i-chosen-and-did-i-obey), Brian and Louise Hogan, trainers to church planters and former missionaries to Mongolia, shared about their efforts to plant a church in Mongolia – and the high cost they paid for serving there when their infant son died. This week, listen as they unwrap some of the principles they learned in that process, lessons they are now teaching to pastors and church leaders around the world, including hostile areas and restricted nations where VOM works. Listen also for a special testimony from a former prisoner for Christ in Uzbekistan, Dmitry ‘David’ Shestakov. Hear the difference it made when Christians around the world wrote letters to him in prison. To write to Christians in prison, please visit https://vom.com.au/write-to-a-christian-prisoner/
For the Hogans, that terrible price was the sudden death of their newborn son, who passed away on Christmas Eve due to sudden infant death syndrome.In the depths of grief and isolation, Brian and Louise felt God's closeness. They were aware that Christians around the world were praying for them. Louise found strength through a question inspired by Elisabeth Elliot: “Was I called? Was I chosen? And did I obey?”She says it should not matter what God does with our obedience; we are simply called to obey.Despite their loss, the Hogans chose to remain in Mongolia, grieving alongside their Mongolian Christian family. Their suffering became a powerful testimony of hope and resurrection in a culture unfamiliar with such concepts. In their loss, they were able to share unshakable Christian hope: “We are going to see our son again.”Brian is the author of There’s a Sheep in My Bathtub and An A to Z of Near-Death Adventures.
Muslims who choose to follow Jesus often face severe persecution from family and community, and at times from the government. They may also face severe pressure from a Muslim spouse.Mona reminds us, though, that Muslims around them are not their enemies. They know that the real enemy is the devil and emphasize that we are called to love others in the same way Christ loved us.Michael and Mona actively support refugees from war-torn countries, including Sudan, providing food and resources regardless of religious background. These acts of care and service often open doors for conversations about faith.Please pray for followers of Jesus in Egypt to remain strong and to be equipped to help those in need.
“I have claimed this land for God.” The words were written by John G. Paton and adorn the grave of his wife and child. It was a declaration of faith that God would bring the people of the New Hebrides, now Vanuatu, to Himself. The islanders were thought of as savages; in fact Paton slept on the grave to prevent the bodies of his wife and child from being eaten by cannibals. Paton famously said, “If I can but live and die serving and honoring the Lord Jesus, it will make no difference whether I am eaten by cannibals or by worms.” Today the islands are full of churches—even some very close to the site of Mrs. Paton’s grave. is the producer and director of a six-part video series called Missionary, which includes an episode about Paton, as well as others which tell the stories of famous missionaries. Listen as he tells why the church today needs the example of men and women sent by God and obedient to the Great Commission. Watch this of Stephen and the team tracking down Paton’s legacy in Vanuatu. He'll also share about filming in England on the path of William Tyndale, as well as stories of David Livingston, Amy Carmichael, Hudson Taylor and William Carey.
After working in South Asia and living in Nepal for 18 years, Matthew Hanson has taken on leadership of The Voice of the Martyrs international ministry efforts on a new region: West and Central Africa (WACA). Listen as he tells how the persecution of Christians looks different in Africa from South Asia.The church in Africa is large; attacks on Christians there often affect a larger scale. Radical Islamist groups are the main persecutors in his region, and Matthew will share how it’s affecting believers in his region, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Burkina Faso, Benin, Nigeria and Togo.Just in the DRC, there are 100+ active rebel groups. Church attacks and the displacement of followers of Christ has become sadly common. How does The Voice of the Martyrs respond to the intense persecution Christians in his region are facing? Listen as Matthew explains how he and his team evaluate needs and work through partnerships and local believers to help meet those needs and encourage believers.Matthew will share about the ministry of presence and how it plays such a key part of helping with trauma recovery for persecuted Christians. As Islamist groups move into places like northern Togo, a new addition to VOM’s Global Prayer Map, Matthew and his team are hearing new reports of persecution and needs that VOM can help to meet.“The church does an incredible job of serving one another,” Matthew says, “it’s a community of believers coming together, and it’s really exciting.”Hear stories from Matthew about a woman’s joy when she received a Bible provided by VOM, the holy moment when eight new believers from Muslim backgrounds took the step of baptism, and the story of a kidnapped Christian miraculously saved from a jihadist group. Please pray for persecuted Christians in West and Central Africa.
Miguel Angel Angeles, executive director of Bethel Radio & TV, shares the history of a ministry that started with one Christian asking a radio station to play audio cassettes of his sermons on the air. As the radio ministry encouraged and built up the church, it expanded into Venezuela, Colombia, and other areas. Today, Bethel is a network of hundreds of radio and television stations, based in Peru and reaching Spanish speakers all over Latin America and the world. Miguel will share about his own start serving in IT with Bethel TV, and how he came to understand the importance of bringing awareness of the persecuted body of Christ through Bethel programming. “My first time listening about the persecuted church was when Petr Jasek came to a conference in Peru to share his testimony,” Miguel said, “and it created a hunger for me to learn more.” After hearing speak at a conference about his own arrest in Sudan, Miguel’s church began to meet every Monday to pray for the persecuted church and to learn more about fellow believers facing Christian persecution. Week after week, God prepared Miguel’s heart as it was continuously stretched by the stories of bold faith in the face of hostility and persecution. After reading Tortured for Christ, by Richard Wurmbrand, the founder of The Voice of the Martyrs, Miguel knew he needed to share about persecuted Christians with the broader church in Latin America and with his radio audience. Listen as Miguel shares the heart of his church for missions. Churches dedicate one Sunday a month to focus on missions and missionaries. You and your church will be encouraged to make missions and praying for persecuted Christians a regular part of your worship gatherings as well. Pray this week for Miguel, his family, and Bethel Radio & TV as they continue serving the Lord and sharing the voice of persecuted Christians with Spanish-speaking people around the world.
Nik Ripken and his wife, Ruth, spent decades sitting down with hundreds of persecuted Christians in restricted nations and hostile areas around the world. They didn’t go to instruct these bold believers. They went to learn from them.The lessons they learned were published in The Insanity of God, Nik’s book, and now he and Ruth have created a video series called Insanity Unleashed. In this series, they share lessons from believers in persecution to help Christians everywhere know how to live as sheep among wolves (Matthew 10:16). The lessons come from more than 650 interviews with persecuted Christians in more than 70 countries.Listen this week to hear stories from Nik and Ruth about their travels and what they’ve learned from persecuted Christians. They’ll share how meeting believers in other countries gave them a better understanding of the Biblical truth that we are all part of one global Body of Christ. Nik and Ruth have been humbled by the fervent prayers of brothers and sisters around the world as they pray for Christians in free nations.Nik will explain how this video series has the aim of raising up evangelists and church planters who will go to the unreached, rather than only pastors and teachers who are trained to minister to those who’ve already heard the gospel.“[Many American seminaries and Bible colleges] train you up to be sheep among sheep,” Nik says. “We are teaching [Christians] how to be sheep among wolves.”Ruth and Nik also share advice on succeeding in the marathon of ministry, including the importance of daily time in God’s Word and memorizing scripture—just as our persecuted family does as they prepare for persecution.
In April, we asked VOM Radio listeners to to Christians living in restricted nations and hostile areas. This week, Ty Scott, VOM’s Regional Leader for East and Southern Africa, tells us about the work and effort involved in actually placing Bibles into the hands of Christians living in cities and villages in Sudan, Tanzania, or the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Statistically, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, and Tanzania are majority-Christian nations. Yet each has communities where almost every person is a Muslim. How is the gospel spreading in such places? And how are new followers of Christ treated by their families and the wider Islamic community? Ty will share about family persecution in Comoros, a country we’ve never discussed on VOM Radio, where Christians comprise only tenths of a percent of the population. Listen as Ty and VOM Radio Host, Todd Nettleton, discuss places where ethnic identity and Islam are completely intertwined. As gospel workers share the hope of Christ in those places, they don’t ask people to leave their ethnicity but to fulfill what God would have them be. Hear the amazing testimony of a young man who brought his father, an imam (Islamic prayer leader), to faith in Christ, and how the gospel brought many into Christ’s kingdom through his father’s witness. Ty will also share specific ways you can pray for Christians in eastern and southern Africa.
In a community-based culture like Afghanistan, it’s difficult to hide one’s faith. When an Afghan commits to following Christ, it’s not long until those around him or her notice a difference. This creates an opportunity for gospel witness. Or for Christian persecution. Author John Weaver, long-time gospel worker in Afghanistan, joins VOM Radio this week to update listeners on that nation and how Christians are faring since the Taliban retook control of the government in 2021. John explains how a new Christian’s family and tribal background often influence what type of persecution they face, and how their persecutors may come from multiple levels: their own family members, tribal leaders and/or the Taliban government. Despite these challenges for believers, ministry, evangelism and discipleship are still happening in Afghanistan—and among Afghans all around the world. Through careful, prayerful conversations Afghan Christians are planting gospel seeds, always aware that every person they share with could become their brother in Christ, or their persecutor. Pray Afghan Christians have wisdom and discernment about these conversations and whom they can trust to share their love for Jesus. You can learn about John Weaver’s work in Afghanistan by reading his books, and . Listen for ways you can pray specifically for Afghan Christians and their persecutors. Hear John Weaver’s previous conversations with VOM Radio by visiting. John also wrote a book about meeting his wife in Afghanistan and their Afghan Christian wedding in.
After three churches were burned and 5,000 Christian books destroyed in a nation where Christians are persecuted, the local pastor’s response was unexpected. “They burned it. That means we are going to have new pastors!” he said. “Now, will you send us more books?” Dr. Gary Seevers, President of , leads a worldwide ministry that offers training focused on evangelism, discipleship, graduate and doctoral study programs, serving more than 3,000,000 people worldwide in 140 languages. Included in those numbers are persecuted pastors and other Christians in restricted nations and hostile areas. Sometimes instruction must be kept secret in places where persecution comes from the government, radical groups or even a Christian’s own family members. Seevers says the goal of GU is not only book knowledge, but the ability to use that knowledge in practical ministry. A vital part of the coursework involves students taking a principle from the course and applying it within their community to serve the church and spread the gospel. Global University students and graduates have been martyred for their ministry work, standing firm in their faith in Christ despite threats and violence. Persecution has accelerated the growth of the church globally and will continue to do so, Dr. Seevers says. Pray for the ministry of Global University to continue to train and serve pastors and Christian leaders worldwide and for Christians persecuted for their faith to be bold witnesses who reach their communities—and even their persecutors—for Jesus.
Richard Wurmbrand, author of Tortured for Christ and cofounder of The Voice of the Martyrs, said, “When I was beaten on the bottom of my feet, my tongue cried out.” His words echo those of the Apostle Paul: “If one member suffers, all suffer together” (1 Corinthians 12:26). Listen this week as Jonathan Ekman, VOM’s Director of Global Partnerships, shares what it means to remember those who are persecuted and to tangibly assist brothers and sisters in more than 70 countries around the world. Jonathan will talk about developing and strengthening partnerships with church groups and mission organizations to enable VOM to come alongside the body of Christ in their times of suffering. Jonathan will also talk about his own crisis management experience and lessons he’s learned—lessons he now uses to bless other ministries who may face the kidnapping of a missionary or the murder of a gospel worker. Last year, VOM provided tangible help to more than 4,000,000 Christians around the world. Much of that help was delivered through partnerships with local church leaders, international mission organizations and other groups. These partnerships are a key part of VOM serving persecuted Christians—and reflect what it means to be part of the Body of Christ. Jonathan will also share specific ways you can pray. You are invited to stand with persecuted Christians by supporting the work of The Voice of the Martyrs.
With a passion for serving and growing the local church, particularly in areas where it’s difficult to train and raise up leaders, Dr. Michael Reeves, President of explains how UST trains pastors and leaders in the church worldwide—including pastors for churches in hostile areas and restricted nations. Listen as Dr. Reeves explains the importance of the education to equip church leaders to know God, love and adore Him and His ways, and know the gospel so they may effectively preach it. This training, and the deep knowledge of God is fosters, helps pastors withstand persecution when it comes. Dr. Reeves will also share about his own missions experience living on the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan, and the lessons he learned living in a Muslim culture and seeing how Christians were treated—and how they responded. “You become like the God you worship,” Reeves says. “When believers only have Christ—and not other substitutes for Him—it seems that they’re able to taste of that joy more deeply. He’ll also share thoughts on how each of us can nurture our own prayer life. Pray for believers to have a deeper knowledge of God and be inspired by the testimonies of persecuted Christians, which display beautiful evidence of the power of the gospel.
Doug Clay and Sam Brownback work in very different arenas. But both have a heart to serve Christians around the world. Doug Clay, general superintendent of the Assemblies of God - USA, shares about the genesis of the AG church and their current goal to put a church within walking distance of all humanity—including people living in hostile areas and restricted nations. “The finishing of the Great Commission is doable in our lifetime,” Clay says. Clay will share three ways to pray for your pastor and how he works to help the church equip the saints to have a biblical worldview and to endure. Seeing the church as the expansion of God’s Kingdom, Doug knows it’s crucial to encourage and pray for your pastor and for church leaders around the world. Sam Brownback served as United States Ambassador for International Religious Freedom during the first Trump administration. He has worked for decades to defend religious liberty in nations hostile to Christian teaching. Brownback will share from his experiences meeting with leaders of foreign nations, including one conversation that led directly to the release of a Christian pastor from prison. He’ll also share how a formerly imprisoned Christian in Saudi Arabia encouraged him to continue in the work God called him to, and how raising religious freedom issues with your elected officials can be a practical way to serve persecuted brothers and sisters. Currently, Brownback is working on a book about persecution in China.
How is God at work amid ongoing fighting since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine? Eric Mock, from the Slavic Gospel Association, wants to remind us that the gospel is going forth as Christians stay faithful to serve the Lord in spite of difficulties and hardship. He’ll share stories of Ukrainian pastors who kept up their ministries, even with Russian tanks outside their homes. The (SGA) started in 1934, built on a foundation of prayer with a heart to reach those behind the Iron Curtain with the gospel. One of the ministry’s early effort was a dictation-speed recitation of the Bible broadcast over shortwave radio—allowing believers in Russia and other Soviet nations to create their own hand-written Bibles. (The Voice of the Martyrs has a similar broadcast reaching into North Korea today.) Hear more about SGA’s history and how the Lord brought Eric to serve there in 2002 to support local churches and other ministries in 13 countries. He will describe how the fall of the Iron Curtain led to revival but then how consumerism later lessened revival fires. Eric challenges all of us to see the examples of our brothers and sisters in Ukraine who are ministering and risking their lives for the sake of the gospel. Pray that the gospel would continue to go forth in Russia, Ukraine and other nations in the region, and that Christians would stay faithful through hardship.
Last week, Brother Nathan, a gospel worker in the Middle East, shared his testimony and how his gospel work in the Middle East led to his arrest. This week on VOM Radio, we’ll hear more about his time in prison and how the Lord opened the prison doors for release. Listen to hear how Nathan’s wife left the country—with their two young children—not knowing when or if she would see her husband again. Nathan will also share what a powerful difference it made for him to have fellow Christian believers by his side in prison. Nathan says it was such a gift to go through this suffering with other believers rather than alone and shares how one of those believers encouraged him not to let prison quench the evangelistic fire that burned inside him to share the gospel with Muslims. He also tells the story of how God revealed the exact number of days he and his friends would be in prison—and how he’s seen seeds planted in prison produce gospel fruit in a very closed country since his release. Learn how you can pray specifically for Nathan and his family, as well as Christians in the Middle East, as they face persecution.
Brother Nathan had a ministry sharing the gospel and praying with Muslims in the Middle East. He and other believers had been evangelizing for more than eight years. The responses were almost completely positive. Then, as he was ministering with two others last year, they ran into a very different response. Nathan and his two friends found themselves in a police office, their hands behind their backs, facing a serious charge of “heralding Christianity.” Nathan’s missionary journey started long before his arrest. At 19, Nathan joined YWAM to experience short-term mission work after deciding to give his entire life to be used by the Lord—wherever He asked Nathan to go. Nathan will share how Peter’s choice to step out of the boat on the water with Jesus inspired him to be all in with Christ. As a young man and zealous missionary, Nathan didn’t think much about the risk of Christian persecution—until it happened. Nathan will share advice and encouragement to future missionaries and describe his missionary work each day in the Middle East. “Muslims are hungry for prayer,” Nathan shares. “They are real people with real issues who long for prayer.” Nathan had many opportunities to pray healing over Muslims and see the Lord at work. Listen as he tells the story of his arrest and what he felt when as he realized he could be facing years in prison. Nathan will also share how the Lord relieved fear and anxiety when they took their prison bread and the water and turned it into a remembrance of Christ’s suffering. Since they didn’t have a Bible, the scripture they knew in their heart was all they had to hold onto during their worship and prayers to the Lord in prison. Join us next week to hear more of Nathan’s experience in prison and how it became their mission field for Christ!
Nik and Ruth Ripken went to Africa as missionaries. They experienced great works of God, but also great hardship and loss. Malaria almost killed them. Four Christian friends in Somalia were killed in one day. Their 16-year-old son died suddenly. Out of their wrestling with grief and loss God gave them a new mission: meet with persecuted Christians all over the world and learn from them. For Nik, it was a very personal quest. “I don’t know if Jesus is trustworthy anymore. Somali believers are dead. Our son is dead. Our dreams are dead. And we want to know, Is Jesus for the tough places?” Out of their quest was born. Nik shared the lessons persecuted Christians had taught him in a book, . The book eventually became a , released shortly after this interview was recorded. Today, Nik and Ruth host their own podcast, , and have recently launched a video-based group study, . Listen as Nik and Ruth share their stories of God calling them to missions from very different backgrounds, and the hardship and loss they experienced on the field in Africa as missionaries.
Andrew Ginsberg has been the president of Operation Mobilization USA for the last six months, stepping into the role and following in the footsteps of George Verwer, founder of OM (and past ). Coming from a Jewish upbringing, Andrew tells the story of the nine-year path that led him to following Jesus—and then his eventual route into full-time ministry. Andrew shares three things the Lord taught him in the 18 months before he took over the presidency of OM-USA, preparing him to lead OM through this season. He also talks about the weight of leadership when sending gospel workers to places where their lives are at risk due to Christian persecution. Andrew is reminded that it’s his job to inform, not to stop people from being a witness for Christ. “It’s very easy to give up control, hold my hands up, and let the Lord do the work,” Andrew says, “The gospel moves in our presence but not because of our presence.” Andrew will also share the story of one witness in Sudan, and how OM-USA is using social media to reach individuals willing to be disciple-makers. His greatest joy is to see others called to go and spread the gospel to the unreached parts of the world. Pray that the Lord would call more laborers into the harvest and that the gospel wildfire would continue to spread in closed nations.
Do you believe the Lord brought them to us so they can hear the gospel?” The question was asked by a pastor in Aleppo, the war-torn city in Syria. Members of the Islamist group that would soon control the country were standing in front of his home, machine guns in hand. “That’s a Kingdom-minded church!” says John Samara, a Christian from Syria and the founder and leader of , a ministry reaching people with the love of Christ in Syria, the Middle East and North Africa. Samara has seen God answer prayers for revival during the last 12 years of civil war in Syria. Yet he also sees more Christian persecution coming as more Muslims come to know Jesus—and as the new regime in Syria tightens it’s control over the country. While the new government—which overthrew the longstanding Assad regime late last year—publicly says they want more religious freedom and will make a place for religious minority groups, what’s happening on the ground isn’t matching their lofty words. “We’re looking at potential genocide against Christians in Syria,” says John. The new government grew out of a group that formerly claimed allegiance to Al Qaeda and ISIS. John will also discuss his new book, , living as a persecuted Christian in the Middle East, and seeing his father deal courageously with constant interrogation and interference from the secret police. Order a copy of today to read amazing stories of God at work and learn how the Spirit of God speaks through us, even in times of great fear! John spoke during The Voice of the Martyrs’ . You can still access this powerful event online to hear stories of faith and courage in the shadow of radical Islam. Pray for our Christian brothers and sisters in Syria to stand firm in their faith amidst rising Christian persecution.
Dozens of foreign Christians have been quietly forced out of Türkiye in recent years. After moving his family to Türkiye (formerly Turkey) in 2001, Jerry Mattix served in aid ministry and as a pastor. Last month he was told he is no longer allowed to enter the country—even for short visits. Jerry and his wife grew up in missionary families with hearts for missions. During his first semester in Bible school, God grabbed Jerry’s heart for the Kurdish people in Türkiye, one of the largest unreached people groups in the world. Listen to hear how Jerry and his wife started ministry together in Türkiye, and the story of Jerry’s first expulsion from the country in 2013, when he was labeled a “threat to national security.” Türkiye was founded as a secular republic, but in recent years government leaders have grown more open about favoring Islam. Jerry fought his first expulsion in court, and judges ruled in his favor, allowing him to reenter the country in 2016—but not to live there. Jerry and his family planted new roots in North Cyprus. They have seen the Lord’s hand at work despite their family’s upheaval. Following the massive earthquake on February 6th, 2023, Jerry made repeated trips to Türkiye to partner with local pastors and lead international Christians in to serve in relief work. Listen as Jerry explains the government’s decision to remove foreign Christians from Türkiye and hear how the local church has “grown legs” to carry forward the ministry as foreign workers are being forced out of the country. “We’re not praying for peace and prosperity, or for Christian persecution;” Jerry says, “We are praying for the kingdom of Christ to grow and thrive—whatever it takes.” Pray for Jerry and other foreign Christians who have been kicked out of Türkiye and for believers in Türkiye to continue in the ministry God has called them to.
Four in 10 people on earth have never heard the name of Jesus. Brother Harold, a gospel worker for 15 years among Muslims in Central Asia, joins VOM Radio this week to share what he’s seen and learned during seven years mobilizing missionaries to go into all the world. Harold will share how his own daughter was called to full-time missions and offer advice and encouragement to parents sending out their sons and daughters to be gospel workers, knowing that some will never come back. “There are about 450,000 Christian missionaries worldwide,” Harold says, “but only 15,000 go to the unreached, to the 3.4 billion unreached people.” Today Latin American and African churches are on fire for Christ, sending out the greatest number of missionaries to the world. How can the church in North America come alongside these willing workers? Listen as Brother Harold encourages local pastors to be involved and supportive of missions in their congregations, including practical advice to pastors. He will also encourage those of every age to be involved in missions and share the benefits of attending the course that helps all believers understand their roles in the Great Commission. Harold also shares a recent experience where he was convicted by God in a taxicab. Pray for unreached people groups to hear the gospel and for missionaries to be sent into the harvest fields.
“And he said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.’” – Luke 10:2 Nathan and Kari have served as gospel workers in South Asia through different seasons of life. Today they serve as leaders there with the ). Listen as they share how they arrived on the mission field from two very different upbringings. Nathan grew up in a family with generations in missionary service. Kari didn’t find Jesus until her 20s—after exploring Hindu and Buddhist teachings and spirituality. Nathan and Kari understand the great need in South Asia for gospel seed planting, harvest and discipleship. The IMB reports that every year there are an average of 106 people groups engaged with the gospel for the first time. “The gospel fire is burning,” Nathan says, “and it’s not waiting for foreign workers but in the hands of locals.” Nathan and Kari will share how they equip both Western gospel workers and local believers to focus on the missionary task. In South Asia, Christian persecution continues, at times propelled by government decrees (like anti-conversion laws in India) and at other times coming from close family members of the believer. Listen as Nathan and Kari share advice to those who are pursuing missions as the Lord calls and how personal spiritual disciplines help sustain us in the tasks the Lord has for us. Pray God will provide more laborers into the unstoppable gospel wildfires around the world.
With the call to invest his life in ways that will outlive him for eternity, Pastor Bennie, a ministry leader working in ten different nations in Asia and Africa, desires to finish well—just as he saw his parents do. His passion is discipleship for young people to raise up Daniels and Timothys who will use their voices for Christ. Pastor Bennie has his own story of watching his father praising God while being beaten by militants. At the age of six, Bennie asked, “Why can’t my dad protect me?” Working with young people today, he hears similar questions like, “Why is my father serving God in prison? What was his crime?” Listen as Bennie shares about gospel work in Sierra Leone, bringing medical teams to serve people who have never seen a doctor, and discipling the hearts of former Muslims growing into evangelists, pastors and church leaders. “Our job is to saturate them with the gospel,” Bennie said. He even distributes Bibles to Muslim students, knowing that God’s Word will produce fruit. You’ll learn more about discipleship program for young people and what happened when Bennie asked, “How many of you have gone through persecution?” He will talk about serving and praying for persecuted Christians in Myanmar, India, Bangladesh and other nations. As Bennie meets with young, persecuted Christians, he is challenged as he hears their stories of persecution and suffering, yet encouraged by the faithfulness they exemplify despite imprisonment, rejection, and other abuse. Never miss an episode! or download the or tablet.
In the eyes of the Chinese Communist Party, loving Jesus makes Christians “unpatriotic.” Bob Fu, founder and president of , explains: “[The communists believe] you cannot love your country and love Jesus.” Absolute government control of churches and other religious institutions continues to tighten in China as persecuted Christians are unwilling to comply with the doctrines of the Communist Party, which is expanding efforts to “Sinicize” the church. Listen to hear how pastors and church leaders are now being charged with fraud or other financial crimes, rather than charges relating to religion. Bob Fu, author of God’s Double Agent, will also share an update on John Cao, who was released from prison last year but still is not free. The CCP continues to watch Cao’s every move, yet he continues to serve the Lord through a house church, daily prayer meetings, and a small Bible school — even baptizing new believers despite constant surveillance! is now six years into his nine-year prison sentence. Like Richard Wurmbrand, who founded The Voice of the Martyrs and wrote hundreds of sermons in his head during his 14 years in prison, Wang Yi has written three books in prison. Wang also continues to pray daily through more than a thousand items on his prayer list. If you’d like to write letters of encouragement to Christian prisoners or petition their governments, go to . Listen as Bob Fu shares how he stays personally encouraged despite constantly hearing of the sufferings of our spiritual family in China. He also suggests specific ways to pray for our Chinese Christian brothers and sisters. The Voice of the Martyrs recently launched a new, daily podcast; Extreme Devotion is available on , or wherever you listen to podcasts. for your smartphone or tablet will help you pray daily for persecuted Christians throughout the year, as well as giving free access to e-books, audio books, video content and feature films.
Last week we began a look back on some of the most moving moments on The Voice of the Martyrs Radio in 2024. This week, we continue to remember: A Central Asian pastor, Brother Silas, tells how quickly new believers in Jesus there expect persecution. Dr. David Kasali, founder and president of Congo Initiative, on making disciples in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as churches are targeted by Islamists and terrorist groups. As conflict in the Middle East unfolded this year, Ben Barrett, who served as a leader in VOM’s ministry in Israel, including Gaza and the West Bank, was reminded that our brothers and sisters there are people God has called us to serve. Brother Joshua, a pastor in Cuba, shares the price he and his family pay to share the gospel and serve the church even in the face of risks. Brother David, whose father is a pastor in Cuba, knew from a young age there was a price to pay for following Christ. Pastor “AZ,” from Kazakhstan, says the church there grew fastest during a wave of intense persecution. Sister Sara grew up in a Muslim family in Central Asia. She shares how God drew her to stories about Jesus then called her to make a decision to follow him. Hana shares thoughts about being reunited with her father, a pastor imprisoned in Eritrea for the past 20 years. Shino and Shania, ethnic Somalis and devout Muslims, came to faith in Christ after Shania had a dream. They became bold witnesses for Christ. After hearing these brief excerpts, you’ll want to listen to the entire conversations with these guests. Click the links below or listen in the . We thank the Lord for allowing VOM Radio to encourage and challenge listeners all over the world this year. Thank you for listening and praying for our persecuted family in restricted nations and hostile areas around the world! We’d love to hear from you! what conversation in 2024 most inspired your faith or equipped you to pray. You can also to support persecuted Christians through the work of The Voice of the Martyrs. NEW PODCAST BEGINS JANUARY 1!
When Hope first mentioned to her husband the idea of moving their family to the Arabian Peninsula to continue their gospel work, Nagy’s reply was direct: “Never! Don’t mention that country to me again!” It was a dangerous place for persecuted Christians. There were many questions and worries about moving there. But then God began to answer their questions, sooth their fears and confirm His call on Nagy and Hope, and their sons. Last week, Nagy and Hope told the story of , including after ISIS took over parts of the country. They also shared that the day when God told them to leave Libya—immediately. The family returned to their home country, asking the Lord, “Where would You have us serve next?” Nagy and Hope expected a quick answer; they still had their bags packed, ready to serve when the Lord revealed where He wanted them to go. But God didn’t call them to another place for six years. At that time they wondered why; today it’s clear God was preparing their family for what was to come. Listen to hear how God revealed to Hope the country in the Arabian Peninsula where He was sending them, a country that was “not on our radar.” She’ll also share how she wrote down all the fears and worries she had about moving to that country—and how God answered her fears one-by-one, in the same order she’d written them down! Then God confirmed their call by revealing their destination to their sons, giving them also a clear sense of His calling. Listen as Nagy and Hope share the openness they’ve found among Muslims on the Arabian Peninsula, and the persecution faced by new Christian believers there. They’ll also share specific ways you can pray for gospel workers in Libya and across the Middle East. The Voice of the Martyrs recently launched a new, daily podcast; Extreme Devotion is available on, or wherever you listen to podcasts. for your smartphone or tablet will help you pray daily for persecuted Christians throughout the year, as well as giving free access to e-books, audio books, video content and feature films. Download the VOM App for your or device today.
Nagy and Hope grew up in the Middle East in families that followed Christ and encouraged them to serve God and be people of His Word. They were serving the Lord doing good work in their home country when they felt God’s call to go to another county in the region: Libya. The transition was difficult and discouraging. They were forced to navigate a different community and expectations, and to learn a different Arabic dialect. With no fruit to be seen, Nagy and Hope were at times discouraged and disappointed. Yet God was working. After months of gospel work, one lady came to Hope asking questions about the gospel. Nagy and Hope were excited! They felt it was worth it to be in Libya if only one person came to Christ! Then their new friend was detained and interrogated. She cut off all contact with Hope. “It was hard,” Hope says, “but at the same time there was hope. Maybe the Lord would give us more opportunities.” The Lord did bring about more opportunities, but they didn’t come without disappoints and hardship. Nagy and Hope will share more opportunities they had to disciple new believers and the obstacles they faced. When war broke out across Libya, the Lord still called them to stay, promising protection for their family and even their neighbors. God opened the hearts of many as they saw the Lord provide in their time of need. Listen as Nagy and Hope share when the Lord clearly told them their time in Libya was over and they had to leave. Please pray for Libya and for the continued ministry of gospel workers in that country. The first day of the new year marked the launch of a new, daily podcast from VOM. Extreme Devotion is available on , or wherever you listen to podcasts. for your smartphone or tablet will help you pray daily for persecuted Christians throughout the year, as well as giving free access to e-books, audio books, video content and feature films. Download the VOM App for your or device today.
Aaron Miller, Vice President of International Ministry at The Voice of the Martyrs, joins VOM Radio this week to look back at some of God’s blessings he and his team experienced during 2024 and to look ahead at nations where VOM’s work may change or expand in 2025. Listen as Aaron recounts a visit to meet Christian widows in Nigeria. These women endured losing their husbands in violent attacks, yet they gathered to worship together and even prayed boldly for their persecutors to come to know Christ. He’ll also share the story of a God-ordained encounter with a persecuted pastor’s son in southeast Asia—and the sadness of an unmet need when that pastor was imprisoned. Aaron also tells us of meeting with a martyr’s widow who still boldly goes out to minister each week in the same area where her husband was murdered. Looking ahead to 2025, Aaron will advise listeners how to pray for Christians facing persecution in Benin, Burkina Faso, Bangladesh and Syria. He’ll also tell how Christian persecution has changed in India, which led VOM to reclassify India as a restricted nation in the . Yet Indian Christians still boldly witness for Christ—even inside prison! Finally, Aaron challenges listeners to continue to pay attention to the members of Christ’s body facing persecution in this new year—even though it can be painful to witness their suffering and loss. Aaron will suggest some specific ways to pray in these opening weeks of 2025. The first day of the new year marked the launch of a new, daily podcast from VOM: Extreme Devotion is available on , or wherever you listen to podcasts. for your smartphone or tablet helps users pray daily for persecuted Christians throughout the year, as well as giving free access to e-books, audio books, video content and feature films.
Today The Voice of the Martyrs launched a brand-new podcast: Extreme Devotion. Six days a week, Extreme Devotion will share a Scripture, a short story from a persecuted Christian, and an application thought. It’s a great way to spend a little time each day being inspired by the testimonies of our persecuted brothers and sisters. Every seventh day, the Extreme Devotion podcast will share one inspiring quote. Enjoy this very first episode of Extreme Devotion, and subscribe today via , or wherever you listen to podcasts
On January First, The Voice of the Martyrs will launch a brand-new podcast: Extreme Devotion. Six days a week, Extreme Devotion will share a Scripture, a short story from a persecuted Christian, and an application thought. It’s a great way to spend a little time each day being inspired by the testimonies of our persecuted brothers and sisters. Every seventh day, the Extreme Devotion podcast will share one inspiring quote. Enjoy this trailer episode for Extreme Devotion, and subscribe today via , or wherever you listen to podcasts so that you’ll be ready to begin on Day 1 as VOM launches the Extreme Devotion podcast on January 1. Here’s the trailer episode for Extreme Devotion.
This week, we look back on some of the most moving moments shared on The Voice of the Martyrs Radio in 2024: Aaron Miller, VOM’s Vice President of International Ministry, gives a glimpse of his time with an African ministry partner and an African word that describes how VOM serves persecuted Christians. Paul Dangtoumba, leader for YWAM’s work in Nigeria, shares his own story of persecution even before he was born and scars he bears today. An expert in trauma care, Brother Philip serves as a field minister in Africa, helping VOM respond to the spiritual and emotional needs of persecuted Christians. Jeff Woodke served as a gospel and humanitarian worker in Niger until terrorists took him hostage. Jeff and his wife, Els, share their experiences during Jeff’s six and a half years in captivity. On a visit to China, Brother Kevin and his family were told of the Hui people who had never heard of the gospel. God called them to go to the Hui, but as the Chinese government imposed more restrictions, their missionary work in China was forcibly ended. Luke and Kate served as medical gospel workers in Myanmar but were also forced to leave. They continue, from a distance, to see God bringing forth fruit. Hearing the gospel on a TV program, Brother Job came to faith. He was boldly sharing the good news via social media when he was kidnapped and threatened by terrorists. As a child, Pastor Nouh Yattara in Mali was drawn to the gospel by a simple gift of a ballpoint pen. He heard the gospel and decades later he still shares the hope he found as a child. After hearing these brief excerpts, you’ll want to listen to the entire conversations with guests from 2024. We thank the Lord for allowing VOM Radio to encourage and challenge listeners all over the world this year. Thank you for faithfully listening and praying for our persecuted family in restricted nations and hostile areas around the world! We’d love to hear from you! what conversation in 2024 most inspired your faith or equipped you to pray. You can also to support persecuted Christians through the work of The Voice of the Martyrs. NEW PODCAST BEGINS JANUARY 1!
With Prime Minister Modi’s reelection, has continued on the path to more restrictions against Christian ministry and gospel work. Christian persecution has moved from the village or community level to the national-government level under Modi’s direction. Because of these changes, earlier this year The Voice of the Martyrs changed how India is classified, from hostile area to restricted nation, a place where the government is the driver of persecution against Christians. Despite increasing persecution for Christians in India, our faithful brothers and sisters there serve the Lord—no matter the circumstances. Brother Vijay, a gospel worker from India, joins VOM Radio this week to share how Indian Christians are responding to stricter anti-conversion laws and other increasing persecution. Thousands of Christian ministries have been closed and/or had bank accounts frozen, forcing persecuted Christians to develop creative ways to continue ministry. By staying the course, they demonstrate, “Our ministry is not dependent on money, but on God.” Currently, at least 11 Indian states are enforcing strict anti-conversion laws. Some of those laws carry the threat of life sentences and hefty fines. Vijay will share stories of bold pastors persisting in their ministry after experiencing imprisonment — and one even after being thrown off a moving train! With all these pressures, Brother Vijay explains the preparation to prepare pastors should they end up in prison, and how learning the Bible is the greatest tool for Christians facing trials. Pray for Christians in India that they would be encouraged and remain hopeful amidst increasing persecution.
It didn’t take long. When Shino and Shania began showing their faces in their Somali-language Christian videos on the internet and using their real names, the response was immediate. Their videos were shown all over the world, and the persecuted Christian couple were called apostates and enemies of Islam. Their lives were repeatedly threatened. Since they went public about their faith in 2016, Shino and Shania have had to move from house to house and country to country. Threats are constant, but God’s protection has been constant as well. By God’s grace, they are still broadcasting and sharing their faith with Somalis. “Look around.” Shania sensed God telling her early on in their ministry, “I am building my church among the Somalis. No one can stop it, and now is the time.” Today, thousands of Somali people know their number and follow them on social media at . Shania shared how the Lord drew her to himself and about the four years she prayed for her Muslim husband, who eventually came to Christ as well. This week the couple shares how their online ministry encourages Somalis all over the world, especially in Somalia where Christians are isolated due to Christian persecution, lack of churches and the difficulty of getting Bibles. Listen as Shino & Shania share feedback from former Muslims who used to hate and threaten them. They will also share how they continue to train new leaders and prepare others for persecution when it comes. Pray for the nation of Somalia this week and for Shino and Shania’s continued ministry.
Shino and Shania left Mogadishu, Somalia, as Muslims and refugees. They settled in Europe, where they became more devout in their practice of Islam. Then Shania saw a video of radical Muslims in Iraq beheading a hostage in an orange jumpsuit. As they committed this horrific act they shouted praise to the god of Islam. Watching the video, Shania was horrified; she began questioning everything she’d been taught about Islam and Allah. That night she had a powerful dream—a dream that ultimately led her to leave Islam behind and follow Jesus Christ. It was a dangerous decision, yet Shania began immediately to tell others of her new faith and encourage them also to follow Jesus. Four years later, after seeing Shania’s faithfulness and love even in the face of intense Christian persecution, Shino also chose to follow Jesus. United in faith, the couple became even more bold in their witness, putting their names and faces in online videos encouraging other Muslims to follow Jesus. The videos have produced lots of response response: on one side are Muslims wanting to hear more about Jesus, while on the other are Muslims promising to violently punish Shino and Shania for their apostasy. Listen as share their testimony of coming to faith, and please pray for more Somali people—in Somalia and spread through other nations around the world—to meet Jesus Christ.
“Every time I doubt, ‘What’s the purpose of this suffering?’ I like to reread this and say, ‘My father actually chose the right cup.’” As of November 19, Dr. Tekleab Mengisteab, both a medical doctor and pastor, has been imprisoned in Eritrea for twenty years. This week his daughter, Hana, is back on VOM Radio to share her father’s own words, which show clearly that he had counted the cost of serving Christ and knew he was likely to be arrested and imprisoned. Dr. Tekleab’s words, through his writings, books, and sermons, still inspire and encourage believers in Eritrea and around the world. Listen as Hana shares how her father began a Christian magazine—not out of a desire to be a publisher but by simply writing letters to a young woman from his church who was going through a difficult season. That young woman began to hand-copy Dr. Tekleab’s letters and share them with other Christians where she was. Hearing how much those letters had encouraged believers, Dr. Tekleab launched The Bread of Life magazine in January 2000. He specifically formatted the magazine in a size that would fit in readers’ pockets. Hana says her father had prepared to go to prison—including making sure his wife and daughters would be cared for. Hana also shares how the Lord has been with her family as she, her mother, and her sisters fled Eritrea. God protected them and helped them to find a new home. Hana and her family harbor no hate for their persecutors but pray for them with love and forgiveness. The same week Dr. Mengisteab was arrested, two other pastors from the Orthodox Church in Eritrea were also taken into custody. All three marked 20 years in prison this month. Please pray for , , and , along with more than 300 other Christians currently imprisoned in . Pray also for God’s comfort to be close to Hana, her mother and her sisters.
Dr. Tekleab Mengisteab was a medical doctor and a leader in the World Health Organization for the nation of Eritrea. He was also an ordained minister in the Orthodox Church of Eritrea. Since November 19, 2004—20 years ago this week—Dr. Mengisteab has been a prisoner for Christ, imprisoned without charge or trial by the government of Eritrea. Today he is one of more than 300 imprisoned Christians there. This week on VOM Radio Mengisteab’s daughter, Hana, shares the story of her father’s arrest and of God’s faithfulness to her and her family through the past 20 years. She will tell us how she has found joy amidst suffering, but also how she’s come to know that the Lord “welcomes my grief.” In 2002, the government of President Isaias Afwerki outlawed evangelical churches. The Eritrean Orthodox Church was permitted to continue holding services. While Hana’s father was leading a legal church congregation, his ministry looked different than some others within that church structure. “My father was a very faithful preacher of the gospel,” Hana says. “In his writing and teachings, he was calling for a transformation of the heart.” Dr. Mengisteab wanted Eritreans to have the gospel preached—and have the Bible—in their own, everyday language. Hana was just six years old when her father was arrested. She remembers her mother and church elders at their home talking about her father being gone. “What did it mean that my father is in prison?” Hana wondered. Even after Dr. Mengisteab’s arrest, the church continued to meet and minister. Hana’s mom continued her church activities, risking her own arrest. Only months after her father’s arrest, Hana found herself in police custody when authorities raided a children’s Sunday School meeting. Children as young as 12 were put in handcuffs, yet these young believers had been prepared for Christian persecution. They began to loudly sing praises to God. The same week that Dr. Mengisteab was arrested, two other pastors were also taken into custody. All three will mark 20 years in prison this week. Please pray for , , and along with more than 300 other Christians currently imprisoned in Eritrea. Pray also for Hana and her family as they continue to learn how to grieve her father’s absence while also finding joy in serving the Lord.
“Pastor Joe” was drawn to North Africa not by a call to gospel work but by his own dreams and interests. However, once he was there the Lord opened his eyes to the needs of the people and gave Joe a deep love for them. Ministry in North Africa is difficult, but as Pastor Joe and his family read the Bible, they see that it’s not about them. Rather it’s all about Christ. “We are just the instruments,” says Joe. “We don’t count on ourselves; we count on God.” As Muslims seek spiritual truth and come to Christ, they encounter challenges with unbelieving family and friends. Pastor Joe says that’s why the church is so important to help make up for the family and community new believers have lost by connecting them with new brothers and sisters in Christ. One young lady had a difficult time approaching her family with the gospel message. Joe encouraged her to focus on living out Jesus’ love in front of her family members. Soon, her mother became curious: who was behind the changes she saw in her daughter’s life? Pastor Joe also tells the story of a brother who never misses church gatherings. He says, “I lost so much time not knowing Jesus! Now I want to learn as much as possible.” Joe’s wife always says, “There’s no mission without sacrifice.” The couple are ready to answer questions about Jesus and Christianity from anyone who is seeking, although proselytizing is illegal in the restricted nation where they live. Hear more stories from Pastor Joe and how he prepares new believers to face Christian persecution. He will also share the joy and hope that come as faithful believers live their lives for Christ on display to the people around them. Pray for Christians in North Africa and for Pastor Joe and his family as they continue their gospel work.
Fred and Karen, long-time gospel workers in Asia, share this week about the church in Brunei and the challenges they face daily to live boldly for Christ. Christians there can live comfortably—if they don’t share the gospel or attempt to witness to ethnic Malay people. Ethnically, the church there is primarily made up of Chinese, Indians and other expats. It is illegal for ethnic Malay people to be present in a church, and many Christians are hesitant to speak about Christianity to a Malay person for fear of Christian persecution. With such strong repercussions for a Malay person following Christ, and for those who shared the gospel with that person, some Christians in Brunei have the mentality that the Malay will never choose Jesus. The government, which censors information through every medium, always displays Islam in an attractive light—even publishing the names of Christians or people of other faiths who convert to Islam. There are financial and other enticements for non-Muslims to convert—and for Muslims to continue following Islam. Listen as Fred and Karen share the story of a Muslim entering the house of a friend and seeing a Bible; the story illustrates the strong resistance Malay Muslims have toward anything Christian. Pray for God to move in the hearts of Malay Muslims, revealing himself in dreams and visions to them. Pray against the spirit of fear that has fallen on many within the church in Brunei. You may even want to book a plane ticket to go personally to pray on the ground in Brunei. Never miss an episode! .
was founded in 1991, in response to needs expressed by Christian leaders in the Middle East and North Africa. Through a network of ministry partners, Middle East Concern seeks to help Christians facing persecution across the Middle East and North Africa. They work to come up with strategies to improve conditions and protect rights of Christians with a goal of seeing Christians able to live out their faith in Christ freely. Brother Rob, a researcher for MEC, shares with VOM Radio this week about his work and about persecution faced by Christians in the MENA region. One of Rob’s areas of interest is Iran, and he will tell us about recent large-scale research that shows how many Iranians are questioning and even rejecting Islam since the Islamic Revolution. Many of those have become followers of Jesus Christ—despite the risk of persecution. Rob also tells how God is bringing good out of Christian persecution in Türkiye (formerly Turkey) as Turkish Christian leaders are stepping up to shepherd the church after the expulsions of numerous foreign Christians. The Turkish government’s strategy since 2019 has been to designate Christians from other countries living in turkey as a “threat to national security” and force them to leave, causing upheaval to many families who’ve lived there for decades. was one of those pushed out of Türkiye after fighting the expulsion order through the court system. Israel is another country where Rob monitors religious freedom and you’ll hear about challenges to gospel outreach there. Brother Rob will also share how we can pray for Israel, including Palestinian Christians in the West Bank and Gaza, as there is so much conflict there. “The Christian community in this part of the world,” says Rob, “are the light and salt in these lands.” Prayer is the central part of the ministry at Middle East Concern as they continue to seek God’s wisdom in each sensitive situation. Learn how you can pray specifically for Christians in Israel, Iran and Türkiye as Rob shares the needs of the church in these nations.
J.D. Bridges, Vice President of Global Outreach for , tells us this week about Ligonier’s efforts to produce content and teaching materials to defend and teach the holiness of God—not only to American Christians but to Christians around the world, including persecuted Christians in hostile areas and restricted nations. Since 1971, when R.C. Sproul founded the ministry in the Ligonier Valley of western Pennsylvania, Ligonier has continued to produce more and more Biblical content. As people from other nations discovered the work and requested resources in their own languages, Ligonier’s international efforts have grown. Creating a strategy for translation and dubbing, Bridges and his team are focusing on the top twenty languages around the world—which creates the potential to access 80% of the world’s population with gospel materials and theology training. God has opened doors to provide resources in Chinese, Urdu, Hindi, Indonesian, Farsi and many other languages. Out of 5,000,000 pastors around the world, only 5-10% have any theological education. Listen as J.D. shares his heart to create more opportunities for more people to freely engage with Biblical content and how Ligonier works to equip pastors and churches. “For us the first impulse is to equip the pastor…because we know that the church will benefit,” he says. Bridges tells of the difficulties in translating theological concepts into a new language for the first time and the most important thing he gets to do as he builds relationships with persecuted Christians and how Ligonier uses many different and creative angles to provide these tools to Christians in places like China, Iran, Pakistan and other restricted nations. Pray for God’s blessings on continued translation work and distribution efforts. Also, check out the from Ligonier for thoughtful reflections on the Christian life and our relationship with God. Never miss an episode! .
Sister Sara wrestled with faith questions as she studied Christianity, Islam and other religions in a years-long quest for truth. Last week, Sara shared her struggle to understand and believe how Jesus could be God—a common stumbling block for Muslims hearing the gospel message. Listen this week to hear what happened after she received forgiveness of sin through Christ—and how you can pray for her and other Christians living and ministering in Central Asia. As soon as Sara read Matthew 28:18-19, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,” she gathered her words to tell others the gospel. Her first effort was sharing the hope of Christ with her family. Sara tells how her family responded and explains the importance of discipleship resources, written in local heart languages, to train up new Christians in the former Soviet republics of Central Asia. Sara worked to learn how to share the gospel in her own language—and then began learning to explain Jesus’ love in other languages as well. “People need God, but they just didn’t know it.” Sara says. It was only a short time into her outreach ministry when Sara first experienced pushback. God reminded her that Jesus faced persecution with humility and that is the model Sara tries to follow when opposition arises. Her own family’s responses to her Christian faith reminded her that she couldn’t save anyone herself but had to trust God to do the work, and to trust his timing. When Sara reads of historic missionaries who went to the difficult places, she asks, “Why don’t we go there sooner? The harvest is plenty and ready!” Pray the Lord will raise up gospel workers and evangelists to preach the gospel in Central Asia. Pray that, as these workers face Christian persecution, they would be faithful to Jesus even in difficulty and suffering. Never miss an episode! .
As a young woman in an Islamic culture in Central Asia, Sara was drawn to stories of Jesus. He was a good man, she thought, one whose life matched his teachings. But how could Jesus be God? Sara wrestled deeply with this question in her search for truth. Intellectually, she found the Bible to be true, but she couldn’t commit to everything it said. Eternal life was attractive, but the idea that Jesus was God was confusing to her. Sara poured herself into studying different religions, desperate to figure out how she could be confident she’d go to heaven when she died. She prayed, “God, there should be only one way to you.” Sara loved the Bible study she joined at a local church. She was attracted by the love Christians had for each other, even being willing to share their weaknesses and struggles. Everything about Jesus and his followers was attractive to Sara. After so much study and so many questions, Sara heard God’s voice—speaking to her in her own language. “You need to make a decision.” She knew it was God himself speaking with love, authority, gentleness, and power. Sara remembered reading John 14:6 where Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and they life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Listen to hear how Sara came to understand Jesus as the perfect sacrifice for her sin and the peace he gave to overcome her anxieties. Join us next week to hear the price Sara paid for her faith in Christ.
This month we are commemorating the 10th Anniversary of The Voice of the Martyrs Radio. This week we look back on one of the most powerful conversations ever shared on VOM Radio airwaves. Sister Amber spent more than a decade in Tibet providing vocational training to local people and sharing the gospel. She felt God’s call especially to work among Tibet’s nomadic tribal people. Amber watched as God brought about a great ministry breakthrough: people who’d been completely closed to her message were now asking to learn more about Jesus! But just days after the breakthrough Amber experienced persecution. Chinese police came pounding on her door. Listen as she tells how the Holy Spirit strengthened and spoke to her and how God brought Amber from a place of terror to the point of expressing Christ’s love, even to the men violently persecuting her. “I never felt Jesus so close,” she says. God laid on the hearts of people around the world to pray for Amber, including one who drew a picture of Amber surrounded by five policemen in a room. Months later, when Amber saw the picture, it matched exactly the setting of her interrogation! It also contained a ray of spiritual hope. Your faith will be challenged as you hear Amber’s thoughts on how the New Testament speaks of the “honor” of being persecuted; she’ll also give first-hand advice on how to pray for Christians in prison right now. Learn how you can for persecuted Christians like Amber who are imprisoned in hostile and restricted nations. And never miss an episode of VOM Radio!
Over the last decade, God has allowed VOM Radio the opportunity to bring you into fellowship with persecuted Christians and tell the stories of what God is doing around the world even amid suffering and persecution. This week we’ll look back on some of the most moving moments of the first decade of VOM Radio. It was September of 2014 when The Voice of the Martyrs began releasing new VOM Radio episodes weekly. The first episode introduced listeners to members of our persecuted family in China. , a gospel worker with YWAM Frontier Missions and , serving with Operation Mobilization, told in 2015 how God was drawing Muslims to himself – even ISIS fighters were coming to faith in Christ! By watching the JESUS Film in his Turkmen heart language, life was forever changed. Several guests over the years have told of being imprisoned for Christ just as the founders of The Voice of the Martyrs, Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, were imprisoned for their faith. , who spent many months locked in a shipping container in Eritrea, reminds us that everything—including following Jesus—will cost us. Listen to how and , both imprisoned for Christ, saw God’s purpose for them in prison as they shared the gospel, and how was reminded that God could still change people’s hearts, even in prison in Iran. You’ll hear these stories of heroic faith and also stories of faith overcoming fear, like praying God would remove her fear after Cuban authorities issued an arrest warrant for her husband. God has inspired thousands with the testimonies of martyrs’ widows who publicly forgave their husband’s killers, like and . shares how she learned that her husband and teen-aged children had been killed by the Taliban in Afghanistan. Also remembers how God ministered to him after his wife, Bonnie, was killed for her faith in Lebanon. More than seven years after his abduction, still doesn’t know what happened to her husband, Pastor Raymond Koh. After a season of great loss, chose to sit at the feet of persecuted Christians to learn from them about following Christ in difficulty and suffering.
Working together, a Canadian with a vision, a businessman from Tampa, Florida, and tentmaking missionaries in Israel launched a ministry that today is making a gospel impact in more than 140 countries. Listen this week as Tim Whitehead, Executive director for in Canada, tells the story of how Galcom started in 1989 producing solar powered radios that could be locked into specific frequencies where listeners in a given location would hear Christian broadcasts. He’ll also share how Galcom has moved forward as technology advanced in the last 35 years—including helping launch more than 200 radio stations to provide gospel broadcast content in places where none previously had been available. Galcom continues toward the goal of reaching remote villages across the world to share Jesus Christ with more and more people, especially among unreached people groups (UPGs). “When they receive these radios,” Tim says, “it shows them they are not forgotten.” Listen for four barriers that can be overcome by gospel radio broadcasts, and how each year for distribution all over the world. Tim will also share how Galcom and The Voice of the Martyrs started partnering together to serve Christians in Colombia and how that partnership expanded into West Africa and other parts of the globe.
Pastor “AZ” saw his church in Kazakhstan grow the fastest during a season of intense Christian persecution. The church began with AZ, his wife and one other believer. Two years later there were 250 believers! AZ knew that reaching Kazakh people required communicating and demonstrating the gospel in their heart language. The church also needs to be ready to assist new believers when persecution comes. AZ became a believer in 1992, just as the Soviet Union was collapsing. Soon after repenting of sin and believing in Christ for salvation, AZ experienced persecution from his family. His own experiences help him prepare church members to face persecution, which he teaches them to expect. AZ will share three things needed to prepare a church to advance the gospel no matter the cost. The biggest challenge for church planting in Kazakhstan—the 9th largest country in the world by territory—is distance. The greatest encouragement for AZ is discipling new believers. “Disciples are our crowns;” AZ says, “that’s the greatest reward.” Pray for unity in the Kazakh church and for pastors to be strengthened and encouraged to endure for Christ despite persecution. Pastor AZ encourages us to pray for the next generation of believers as they take on leadership in the Kazakh church.
How do we start gospel conversations with Hindu or Buddhist friends, neighbors and coworkers? Tim and Dawn have a simple answer: ask questions! Tim and Dawn serve as gospel workers in South Asia, leading an effort to plant gospel seeds in countries like India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and the Maldives—countries where Christian persecution is a common occurrence. Listen as Tim shares about Buddhism and Hinduism—including how followers of those religions may respond to or resist the message of Christ and the gospel. Tim encourages each of us that the best foundation for sharing the gospel is narrowing the gap between the scripture we read and the life we live. You’ll hear how God is at work in the Maldives and Bhutan as gospel workers begin to see the first fruits from those who’ve gone before and Bible translation efforts. Tim will share just how difficult Bible translation has been in getting the gospel to the Maldivian people, and how sections of scripture are now available in the islands. Tim and Dawn ask that we pray for thousands of gospel workers to be raised up to heed the call to go to difficult nations to reach the unreached or least reached there. “Just because a place is difficult,” says Tim, “it does not negate God’s call to go.” to past conversations with Tim & Dawn on VOM Radio and learn how you can pray for Buddhists and Hindus.
Brooks Buser, President of , says the best missionaries smell like the local people they have gone to serve. They focus not just on learning a language but understanding and living the culture, eating local food and joining in the things that fuel human interaction in that place. Buser says just as Christ came as a human baby into this world, missionaries that last become like those they are trying to reach for the sake of the gospel. Before leading Radius, Brooks was a missionary kid in Papua New Guinea. As an adult he went back to PNG as a missionary to the YembiYembi people with New Tribes Mission (now Ethnos360). Listen as he shares the hardest challenges of missions and his own experience immersing himself in the culture of the Yembi people. With the goal of teaching them the Bible, his team first had to learn their language, culture, and integrate into their new clan families. that tells the story of Brooks and his family’s mission work in Papua New Guinea. One of the things new YembiYembi Christians faced early in their faith journey was persecution. But Brooks sees that Christian persecution as a blessing rather than a curse. Today, Brooks leads Radius International as they train mission workers—in multiple languages, to be sent by multiple mission agencies—to go with the gospel to the ends of the earth. Part of that training is a language learning methodology that immerses future missionaries in a local language like Spanish, giving them tools and training to quickly learn the language of the place where God will call them to serve as missionaries. Brooks will also describe the qualities he looks for that point to successful long-term mission service and how he prays for those who commit to gospel work. Pray for future missionaries and Radius International’s training schools as they prepare students to share the gospel in the heart language of the people God calls them to serve. Brooks will be one of the speakers for , to be held October 16-18th in Jacksonville, Florida.
The government views Cuba’s people as sheep who will blindly follow rules and restrictions communist leaders force on them. There is another group the Bible compares to sheep: followers of Jesus. Romans 8:36 says, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” This week on VOM Radio we’ll hear from two Cuban Christians, each with different experiences of Christian persecution. David faced persecution as the son of a pastor in Cuba; authorities even demanded that he secretly report to them his father’s ministry activities. Eventually the pressure and persecution forced David to leave the island. Brother Joshua is still serving as a church leader in Cuba. He will share about the different ways Cuba’s government has put pressure on him to stop his ministry. They’ve shut his electricity off. They’ve denied him permission to hold services or events. They’ve put pressure on his children and kept them from academic and extracurricular opportunities. They’ve mockingly reminded Joshua he could die in a car “accident” at any time. Despite the pressure and threats, Joshua continues gospel outreach to children and young people, reaching and discipling the next generation for Christ. One of the tools he uses is sports ministry. Pray for Brother Joshua and Brother David and for the church in Cuba this week. Pray for boldness and encouragement for persecuted Christians there. Pray for pastors and their families who face so much pressure to stop their ministry activities. September 2024 will mark the ten-year anniversary of VOM Radio. by the testimonies and stories of our persecuted Christian family over the past 10 years. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or listen each week—and receive daily reminders and specific ways to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
Jesus told his followers, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). As a leader involved in discipleship in the Middle East, Mamdouh Lawendy sees many Muslims repenting of sin and putting their faith in Christ. Often this is happening through the witness and example of believers around them. Muslims ask questions. They are curious why Christians can serve them when they hate Christians. They want to know how Christians can still show love, even when Muslims persecute them. Local churches have an influential role in reaching the community for Christ. Mamdouh says that godly, biblical leaders need to be raised up in order for the church to stand amidst Christian persecution. Pastor Mamdouh, who was born in Egypt, is the founder and CEO of . Listen as he tells how he came to faith in Christ and how God called him to gospel work. He will also explain how his group works to disciple new believers. Mamdouh will encourage listeners to pursue gospel conversations with Muslims even when they can’t answer every question. “Muslim background believers are sincerely searching,” he says. “Jesus himself will replace us in answering their questions.” Pray for Pastor Mamdouh, his family and the ministry of Together Network training disciples in the Middle East. September 2024 will mark the ten-year anniversary of VOM Radio. by the testimonies and stories of our persecuted Christian family over the past 10 years. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or you can listen each week—and get daily reminders to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
“You can help persecuted Christians, but they can help you more.” Richard Wurmbrand, the founder of The Voice of the Martyrs, shared this truth with Steve Cleary and it changed forever his perspective about being in fellowship with our persecuted family. Cleary, founder and president of , was an early staff member at The Voice of the Martyrs, including traveling to churches and other events with Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand. Today, Steve is following God’s call to develop to share Gods Word in animated video form with people all over the world. The iBible app and content is designed to present the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. It’s already impacted people all over the world. “I want to make iBible and give it to the church. So, we’re asking the church to help us,” Cleary says. By 2033, Steve and his team hope to have the whole Bible completed in 300 animated episodes. Listen as Steve shares memories from serving with Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand and what he learned from them about our persecuted family. “Richard taught me that [persecuted Christians] are not victims, but that they are strong in Christ. And they can strengthen us.” Steve will also tell about his role helping bring Wurmbrand’s story to life on film through . You can watch completed episodes of the Bible—in multiple languages—on the , and you can watch Tortured for Christ and the prequel, SABINA: Tortured For Chris, the Nazi Years, on the . Pray for Steve and the iBible team as they work with the global church to develop partnerships to build and distribute Biblical content throughout the world. Never miss an episode of VOM Oz Radio!
Ben Barrett and his wife were open to go wherever God wanted them to go. Ultimately, God called them to go on mission to one of the world’s most concentrated areas of lost people – North India and Nepal. It wasn’t always an easy transition, but God instilled a deep love for the people in their heart and a desire to reach them with the gospel. Ben is VOM’s new Regional Leader for work with persecuted Christians in South Asia. Listen as he shares how the rise of Hindu nationalism and Hindutva ideology have affected the church in India. President Narendra Modi’s recent reelection has emboldened radical groups across that country to continue and even expand their Christian persecution efforts. Ben will share specifics of how our brothers and sisters have been persecuted for their faith by Hindu radicals. Ben recently met with a front-line worker who has served 800 pastors in recent years who’ve been arrested or detained for their Christian faith. Listen as Ben shares how the hope of the gospel drove him and his wife forward in their own mission service and Ben’s advice to those considering cross-cultural gospel work. Pray for God to raise up new leaders in the church and bold courage for persecuted Christians in India, Nepal, and throughout South Asia. Also of this conversation with Ben Barrett where he discussed persecution in Israel and how Christians have been affected by the conflict in Israel, including Gaza and the West Bank, since October 7. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or listen each week—and receive daily reminders and specific ways to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
October 7th, 2023 is one of those dates that will always be remembered. On that terrible morning, Ben Barrett was working for VOM with persecuted Christians in the Middle East and leading the ministry’s work in Israel, including Gaza and the West Bank. His phone began to light up with messages from both Messianic Jewish believers and Arab Christians—even before the terrible attacks were announced in international news. The messages had a consistent request: “Please pray for us!” Families and individuals like Pauline Ayyad, , asked for prayer as contact with relatives in Gaza was cut off. A messianic Rabbi asked prayers for his daughter who was ordered back to her military base, not knowing when she might return home. Video footage from a pastor in Sderot, the closest settlement to the Gaza Strip, showed him barricaded and lying flat on the floor as trucks full of terrorists shouting “Allahu Akbar!” passed by his home. Listen as Ben shares about his last trip to the Middle East, where he met with pastors from both Jewish and Muslim backgrounds who are taking the gospel to radical areas despite the risk. He’ll also tell the stories of Jewish-background believers in Orthodox or Ethiopian communities who face Christian persecution through shame, excommunication, and job loss. Pray for unity amongst believers in the Middle East. Pray for boldness in the spread of the gospel in spite of the risks. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or listen each week—and receive daily reminders and specific ways to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
After serving many years as a gospel worker in Turkey (now called Türkiye), Pastor Andrew Brunson spent two years in Turkish prison. He was accused, among other “crimes,” of helping plot a coup against President Erdogan’s government and being a leader in the CIA. The reality is that Andrew was in Turkey as a missionary and pastor, working to spread the gospel.Brunson recounts how God was teaching him to stand during dark days of isolation in prison and wondering why God seemed silent in his time of suffering. Listen as he shares how he poured out his frustrations to God, but ultimately chose to lean into God—even though he didn’t feel God’s presence.Through those dark days, Andrew's wife, Norine served as his pastor and encourager, the only Christian he was allowed contact with. She pointed Andrew to truth and sought to give Godly perspective as he was surrounded by constant pressure from Muslim cellmates. Brunson shares how she was “heroic” in standing with him in spite of risks to her own freedom. You can listen to Norine on VOM Radio as she shares her side to this story.Pastor Brunson also drew strength from the stories of other Christians who suffered persecution. One of those was Richard Wurmbrand, founder of The Voice of the Martyrs and the author of Tortured for Christ and other books. Andrew says he “spent a lot of time with Richard Wurmbrand in prison,” through Richard’s writings.Andrew tells the entire story in his book, God’s Hostage, which you can order here (affiliate link). Brunson has also released a teaching series helping Christians Prepare to Stand in the midst of difficulties and Christian persecution. In the eight-session video series, Brunson shares practical insights from his own time in prison.Listen as Andrew expresses his thanks to those who prayed for him while he was in prison – some even waking up in the middle of the night to pray. “It was hard for me to grasp,” Brunson said. “It was a supernatural move of God.” Pray this week for Christians in prison in restricted areas and hostile nations around the world.Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast. Or listen each week—and receive daily reminders of specific ways to pray for persecuted Christians—in the VOM App for your smartphone or tablet.
Pastor Andrew Brunson, author of the book God’s Hostage, was imprisoned two years for his Christian work in Turkey (now called Türkiye). He says every single day was a battle to overcome fear, grief and anxiety. One who inspired him in these battles was Pastor Richard Wurmbrand, the founder of The Voice of the Martyrs. Brunson explains how Wurmbrand inspired him to dance inside his prison cell before the Lord. He says he didn’t feel joy or happiness, but he set his will to act joyfully, in spite of his feelings. Brunson was also inspired by another former prisoner for Christ (and ), Dan Baumann, to lock away doubts and questions and choose to leave those in God’s hand. Brunson says he told God from his prison cell, “I don’t need answers to have a relationship with You.” Listen as Andrew shares how he came to “embrace my assignment” of being in prison for Christ. “I came out of prison with a deeper intimacy,” says Brunson, “I had the privilege to suffer for Christ.” God birthed a song in Andrew’s soul while locked in prison. He’ll share how his heart changed over the long months of his incarceration to a posture of faithfulness and trust; a change that happened despite not seeing his outward circumstances change at all. That heart change, he says, was his victory over the terrible circumstances and the injustice of Christian persecution he faced in prison. Finally, Brunson will tell the story of a letter he wrote to Norine that clearly demonstrated his changed heart. In the letter he expressed his commitment to drink every drop from “the cup of suffering” that the Lord had ordained for him. Andrew tells the entire story in his book, God’s Hostage, which you can (affiliate link). Brunson has also released a teaching series helping Christians in the midst of difficulties and suffering. In the eight-session video series, Brunson shares practical insights from his own time in prison. You can also of our conversation with Andrew Brunson, and listen to his wife, as she shares her side to this story. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or listen each week—and receive daily reminders of specific ways to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
Pastor Matthew is a long-time pastor in the communist nation of Vietnam. Since coming to faith in Christ he’s been persecuted by family, neighbors and by police. Matthew came to Christ through the witness of an American missionary mentor. He heard the gospel message, but he also saw the life she lived and the love she showed to the people around her. He couldn’t know, at the time, the high cost he would pay to follow Christ in Vietnam. “I didn’t know how hard it was to be a Christian in the beginning,” Matthew said, “I chose to become a Christian because God is good.” Pastor Matthew started a church in his home, but police locked the door, cut the power, and told everyone to leave. They accused Matthew of being a spy for the Americans, and said Christianity was a religion only for Westerners. “They are afraid of Christians,” says Matthew. “The power of the authorities is taken away by Jesus.” Ancestor worship is common in Vietnam, and Vietnamese parents and grandparents worry their children who become Christians wont revere them properly after they have died. “The family wants ancestor worship,” Matthew explains, “but we teach young people Who is worthy to be worshiped – Jesus.” Pastor Matthew still encourages young people to respect and love their families. They pray that, as they live out their faith, family members will see a difference in them and be drawn to the truth of Christ. Listen as Pastor Matthew shares about persecution of Hmong Christians and the Vietnamese government’s crackdown on pastors. He’ll share the most effective ways persecuted Christians are encouraged as they continue to train and equip leaders to stand firm in their faith. He’ll also share how you can pray specifically for the church in Vietnam and those who don’t yet know Christ. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or listen each week—and receive daily reminders of specific ways to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
“When people are not discipled, they are frail. Their faith is not strong.” Dr. David Kasali, founder and president of , is determined to disciple more Christians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a place where they are being specifically targeted for persecution by terrorist groups and radical Islamists. Listen as David tells about recent attacks by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), including one where a Christian man was murdered on the spot just for acknowledging his faith in Christ and another where a nearby church was bombed during services. Such attacks are becoming more and more common in DRC. Born into a pastor’s family, David shares about his heritage and his father’s love for the Lord and for his people. He’ll tell of his father’s efforts to win an entire village to Christ and plant a church there. David shares how he helps prepare Congolese Christians for persecution and the importance of standing strong in Christ during hardship and suffering. Desiring to see the next generation equipped for spiritual victory, David disciples Christians to read the Bible and pray everyday. He says when we take the Bible and apply it into the context of where we are living, then we can face any challenges of the culture around us. When you do that, David says, “You’re creating disciples and creating people to know what they believe and why they believe it.” Hear David share how the ADF knew a Christian pastor was praying against the activities of their forces, and learn how you can pray for the church in the Congo and how The Voice of the Martyrs is helping provide Bibles and serve persecuted Christians there. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or listen each week—and receive daily reminders and specific ways to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
Seventy percent of Sri Lanka’s people are Buddhists, and Buddhism is given “foremost place” in the nation’s constitution and laws. Officially, there is religious freedom for people of other faiths, including Christians. Yet new believers in Christ often face pressure and persecution from family members or their local community. Mayukha Perera, managing director of , joins VOM Radio this week to share about the challenges facing persecuted Christians in Sri Lanka and about his work sharing the gospel with Buddhists and preparing new Christians to face persecution. Mayukha encourages Christians to be deeply rooted in Scripture and to know that persecution for following Christ has been commonly endured by believers for centuries. Their response to that persecution is key: Perera has seen Buddhists drawn to know more about Jesus after seeing Christians stand firm in their faith despite persecution. Mayukha explains the work he and others do with Back to the Bible in Sri Lanka, including sharing the biblical gospel through radio broadcasts and resources, equipping believers to understand and apply scripture, and training church leaders in a country where 85-95% of pastors have no training in biblical leadership. “We want to get the people into the Word,” says Mayukha, “and get the Word into the people.” Learn how Back to the Bible prepares pastors and leaders for persecution and how they share the gospel lovingly with people of other faiths. Listen as Mayukha explains stumbling blocks in the Buddhist religion to the gospel and offers advice as you share Jesus with Buddhists you know. He’ll also share specific ways to pray for Sri Lanka this week. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or listen each week—and receive daily reminders and specific ways to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
astor Nouh Yattara was born into a nomadic Muslim family. He became a believer through the work of missionaries in his home country of Mali—and through his desire to own a ball-point pen. After living in fear of superstitions, demons and death, Nouh found new life, and an end to fear, in Christ. “I knew if I accepted Jesus that he has the power against all of that,” Pastor Nouh says. It wasn’t an easy path. Nouh experienced Christian persecution from family members, teachers, kids at school, and his community. In spite of the pressure against him, Nouh stood firm in God’s grace and moved forward in faith. Today, Nouh is the pastor of a church and leader in Mali’s . He uses his own story—and the stories of other persecuted Christians—to prepare new believers to endure in their faith despite pressure and persecution. Listen to hear what Christians in Mali are facing and learn how you can pray for them. You’ll also hear Pastor Nouh’s encouragement to be in fellowship with other believers, encouraging each other on in faith. He’ll also give advice on how you can share the gospel with Muslims in your community. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or listen each week—and receive daily reminders of specific ways to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
“By God’s grace, I endured a few years in prison in exchange for an eternity with Him.” Ebrahim Firouzi, a Christian convert from Islam, spent seven years in prison in Iran. Now he is enjoying eternity with the Lord, experiencing the fulfillment of that promise following his death in February. This interview was recorded about four years ago—after Ebrahim’s release from prison while he was serving out two years of “internal exile,” living in a remote area along the border of Iran and Pakistan. We’ve chose to re-air it on VOM Radio to commemorate our brother’s faithfulness and honor his memory. With the recent death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian in a helicopter crash, this is a particularly strategic time to pray for the nation of Iran. Ebrahim Firouzi was first arrested in 2011 and given a ten-month sentence. After his release, he continued boldly sharing the gospel at every opportunity. He was always looking to bring hope to the people of Iran through sharing the gospel. “My only priority was that people would be able to hear and receive the Word of God.” Firouzi said. He was arrested again in 2013, ultimately serving a total of seven years in prison, followed by two years internal exile, during which time he was required to regularly check in with local police. While he was in prison, the stories and examples of persecuted Iranian Christians before him encouraged and impacted Ebrahim to remain faithful. This interview was originally conducted in Farsi by Joseph Hovsepian, the son of martyred Iranian church leader Haik Hovsepian. We are thankful to Joseph and our friends at for allowing VOM Radio to broadcast this interview and share Ebrahim’s testimony. Please pray for pastors and other Christians imprisoned in Iran and other nations. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or you can listen each week—and get reminders to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
Luke and Kate, medical gospel workers who’ve served in Myanmar, shared how God called them to Myanmar to share the hope of Christ. This week, in Part 2 of our conversation, they reveal the loss and devastation their family experienced as they were forced to leave the place God had so clearly called them to. “It was devastating,” Kate says, “and we still sometimes have to process through that again.” While returning to their village home is not an option right now, Luke and Kate are clear that the Lord has not released them from their calling to the people of Myanmar. Listen as they talk about wrestling with what God’s will is, and how they have walked through this disappointment and displacement alongside their children. They’ll also offer advice for others feeling a call to serve as missionaries or other overseas ministry service. Though there has been deep grief in leaving their home, there has also been joy. Since Luke and Kate left Myanmar, three people in their village have been baptized as new believers. They are thrilled to see local believers taking the reigns of ministry and leading others to Christ. Please pray for Luke, Kate and their family as they consider two opportunities—outside the country—where they could continue to serve the people of Myanmar. The Bible commands us to remember those in prison as if we were with them (Hebrews 13:3). Please pray for freedom for Dr. Kiflu Gebremeskel and Pastor Haile Nayzgi, two pastors in prison in Eritrea. May 23rd, 2024, marks the 20th anniversary of their arrest in Asmara. Pray also for the release of 350+ other Christians imprisoned in Eritrea right now—including more than 80 arrested so far in 2024. with others who will stand with these persecuted Christians in prayer. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or you can listen each week—and get reminders to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
Luke and Kate had both felt God’s call to missions. But they were still waiting to know where that call would take them. They went through training. They travelled to serve in different countries. And all the while, they asked God where he wanted to send them long-term. His answer finally arrived after a 12-hour bus ride to a rural village in Myanmar where there were no other foreigners. Kate and Luke both felt it clearly: “This is it. This is home. This is where I want you.” God put a deep love for the local people in their hearts. Their calling was confirmed when a village elder asked them to stay and serve with their medical skills. That clear sense of God’s calling would prove vital in helping them stand firm in serving through challenges, Christian persecution and even the 2021 coup. In Myanmar (formerly Burma), each person’s religion is printed on their ID card, and it is illegal to change one’s religion. It’s illegal for a Buddhist woman to marry a man from another religion. Ethnic divisions are baked into everyday life as each person is expected to look out primarily for their own people. In the midst of that challenging environment, listen to how Luke and Kate shared the gospel and how Jesus brought people from different ethnic and tribal groups together as fellow members of the Body of Christ as their house church includes four different ethnic groups unified in Christ. Luke and Kate also share the story of a Buddhist background believer who was severely persecuted by her own mother, but endured faithfully and eventually led her mother to Christ. They’ll also share how they talk about persecution while sharing the gospel so that those who respond and become new believers are ready to count the cost of following Christ. Pray for followers of Jesus in Myanmar and for Luke, Kate and their family. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or you can listen each week—and get reminders to pray for persecuted Christians—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
Brother Job thought it would be just another day. He was walking to work at a church in North Africa when he was accosted by four men with knives. The terrorists forced him into a vehicle and drove him away. “It’s my last day on this earth,” Job thought to himself. Growing up in a Muslim family in North Africa, Job knew there would be persecution when he left Islam to follow Jesus. He came to faith—along with other members of his family—after seeing a satellite TV program where a former Muslim from Morocco named Brother Rachid answers the questions of Muslims and points them to Jesus. (Hear more about Brother Rachid’s testimony and ministry in .) After coming to Christ, Job felt a passion and calling to tell others about Jesus. He became involved in church ministry, including media ministry. He knew there were risks, yet he boldly put his own face and testimony online. Angry Muslims saw him as a traitor and an apostate. Kidnapped by terrorists, held at knife point with a hood over his head, Job believed he would soon be killed. He was at peace with losing his own life, but was concerned about his wife and young children who would be left behind. Who would care for them? Thankfully, the terrorists did not kill Brother Job, but released him. But his trials were not over. Reporting his kidnapping to local police, Job was treated as a criminal instead of a true crime victim. He was interrogated repeatedly about why he’d left Islam and become a Christian. He took advantage of the opportunity to boldly share his testimony and explain the gospel message—right in the police station, with 20 officers listening. Whether kidnapped by terrorists or interrogated by angry police officers, Job says, “I never felt alone.” Listen to Brother Job recount his kidnapping and the lessons God taught him through his first-hand Christian persecution experience. Today Job prepares new believers with the understanding that persecution is to be expected in the life of a Christian. He will also help us pray for persecuted Christians in North Africa. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or you can listen each week—and get daily prayer reminders—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
There are 500,000 evangelical churches in Latin America, but only 6% of Latino congregations are involved in missions. As executive director of , and in his previous work with Operation Mobilization Latin America, Brother Julio wants to increase that percentage! He desires to bring about collaboration between churches and missionary organizations to equip and send out Latino missionaries. Listen for the story of Julio’s own call to missions while living and working in Japan, and how he returned to Brazil and ended up working with and training workers for OM. Hear also how God eventually called Julio and his family to the United States to inspire and commission Spanish-speakers for international cross cultural gospel work through COMHINA, a network of churches and mission organizations. He says that as Latinos are trained and informed about unreached people groups who’ve never heard about Christ, they encounter God and ready to go on mission for Him. Julio has sent many to be witnesses in restricted nations and hostile areas. Listen for the story of how one man used soccer to open doors for ministry in Afghanistan, and how a church leader in Iran told Julio not to feel sorry for persecuted Christians. As Julio sends workers to the harvest, persecution is a reality. “If people pass through those situations,” he says, “they will experience God’s grace in ways that we cannot even train someone on.” Living for Christ in restricted and hostile nations comes with risks, yet the grace of God is ever present with the persecuted church. You can learn more about Julio’s work sending out Spanish-speaking mission workers at the web sites for and . Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or you can listen each week—and get daily prayer reminders—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
A Christian and pastor from Central Asia, Brother Silas constantly interacts with Muslims. He says many are seeking truth and looking for answers to their deepest spiritual questions. Brother Silas and Tom Houser, executive director for , share this week what new Christians in Central Asian nations—including Muslim background believers—experience when they become followers of Jesus. “The moment you make that decision,” says Silas, “you will be oppressed on every side.” Persecution follows those who come to Christ in Central Asian nations like Türkiye, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Azerbaijan. The persecution may come from different sources: the government, their parents, relatives, neighbors, or the broader community. Persecuted Christians face isolation, broken friendships and being targeted by police or other authorities. Silas shares some of his own experience as a persecuted Christian, and the encouragement he found in knowing other Christians were praying for him and that he was not alone. Organizations like People International and The Voice of the Martyrs, which take time to sit with persecuted Christians and know what they really need, bring encouragement as they share that others around the world—like VOM Radio listeners—are praying for our persecuted brothers and sisters. Hear how we can reach our Muslim neighbors, coworkers, and friends for Christ. Tom will also share more about People International’s mission to be present where there is no church presence and what leaders of the group have learned in more than forty years of ministry. Also hear how social media, broadcasting and other evangelism tools are reaching people in Central Asia. And learn how you can pray for the people of Central Asia to know Christ, and for the persecuted church in these nations. to Silas’ testimony of coming to faith and the persecution he faced as a new Christian. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or listen each week—and get daily prayer reminders—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
Many Muslims are ready to hear the gospel and experience the love of Jesus Christ. For more than two decades Peter Smith has prayed for the nation of Iran and connected with ministries reaching people and supporting persecuted Christians in the nation he and his wife “adopted.” Seeing the gospel go forth in the Middle East reminds Peter of the good soil that produced 30, 60 and 100-fold harvests in Jesus’ Matthew 13 parable. Persecution is rising in restricted nations across the Middle East; despite that risk, more Muslims are becoming followers of Christ. Listen as Peter shares the stories of how God worked in the heart of an Uber driver and a divorced woman. “When you adopt a country,” Peter says, “sooner or later you get to adopt the people.” Peter’s wife also has an international ministry—from their home in the United States. She asks the Lord each day for divine appointments and looks for gospel opportunities at the grocery store, in her neighborhood and wherever else the day takes her. Hear how she’s had gospel conversations with women from 54 different countries. Learn how you can pray specifically for Christians in Iran and across the Middle East as Peter shares what current events mean for Christians there and how to pray for what God is already doing. Go to to see one resource people are using to share the gospel in the Middle East—a resource also available in English. Hear the story of Peter “adopting” the nation of Iran during . Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or you can listen each week—and get daily prayer reminders—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
Within two months of Brother Kevin and his wife beginning gospel work in India, more than a thousand people had come to Christ! The fruit of the gospel was immediate. Local missions leaders asked them to stay on and help disciple these new believers. They saw the opportunity, and the incredible growth of the ministry. But Kevin couldn’t dismiss an urge to visit China before agreeing to stay and minister in India. It was on that first visit to China that Kevin was asked a question which would change his life and guide his mission efforts going forward: “Have you heard of the Hui people?” Kevin and his wife had not heard of the Hui, and they began to ask questions about this mostly-Muslim unreached people group of 13 million people. They were told that, in the area they were passing through, the Hui people had no church, no missionaries, and that there was no church or organization committed to sharing the gospel with them. “That’s when we felt the call.” Kevin says now. Today Kevin and his wife have spent more than a decade living among and serving the Hui people. Listen as Kevin shares his testimony of coming to Christ as a young adult, and about his calling to be a missionary in a restricted nation where Christian persecution is common and fierce. Kevin opens up about some of the struggles they faced as cross cultural gospel workers, and how their clear calling from God kept them in obedience to Him. Be sure to listen next week as Kevin shares more about their work in China and how they experienced a sudden forced ending to that chapter of their ministry. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or you can listen each week—and get daily reminders to pray for the persecuted church—in the for your smartphone or tablet.
Last week, Brother Kevin shared how he came to Christ and how God gave him a passion to reach the 13 million Hui people in China. For members of this people group, to be Hui is to be Muslim. Those who become Christians are considered traitors, bringing shame to their family. Hui Christians face social, psychological, and sometimes financial persecution, typically enforced by members of their own family. They may lose their job, be kicked out of the family home, and even renounced as a member of the family. Kevin came to see the communist authorities as ordinary people doing their jobs and providing for their families. He intentionally chose to see police and other authorities as worthy of his respect and compassion. When Xi Jinping ascended to the leadership of the Communist Party and the Chinese nation, things changed. By 2017, most foreigners were having a hard time renewing visas. By 2018, hardly any foreign gospel workers were able to remain in China. Members of Muslim minorities—including the Hui and the Uyghurs—received “reeducation” enforced by the government. Listen as Kevin shares how his family’s ministry in China ended and how tension grew during their final weeks in country as authorities searched for legal reasons to detain or deport Kevin and his family, including a late-night drive to the airport. Choosing to focus on God’s sovereignty allowed Kevin to shepherd his family and others struggling with their forced departure. Gospel outreach to the Hui did not end with foreign missionaries being kicked out of China. Today they are reached through social media gospel outreach and multifaceted church planting by local Han Chinese believers as well as Christians from non-Western countries. Pray for the Lord to continue moving among the Hui through dreams, visions and divine appointments with followers of Christ. Pray for Chinese brothers and sisters to boldly preach the cross and to prepare new Christians for persecution. Richard and Jeannette had a similar experience in China as Kevin’s family, yet Richard found himself detained by the authorities. to their story. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! . Or you can listen each week—and get daily prayer reminders—in the for your smartphone or tablet. April is Bible month at VOM! Please consider to Christians living in restricted nations and hostile areas.
When Jeff Woodke said those words, he didn’t know that he would be taken hostage from his home in Niger in 2016. But Woodke, a long-term relief and gospel worker in West Africa, did know there were risks.Risk wasn’t such a big issue in the early years of the ministry of Jeff and his wife, Els, in Niger with Youth With a Mission (YWAM). They worked in church planting, discipleship, and evangelism among the Wodaabe people. Niger was an open country, with churches throughout. What Christian persecution there was came from family members or neighbors who opposed following Jesus. However, over time the rise of Salafist Islam changed Niger—and increased their risk.Listen as Jeff recalls the night he was kidnapped and how the image of orange flashes from the guns which killed his guards are seared into his memory.Naked and bloody, Jeff was forced into the back seat of a truck and driven away, not knowing who his captors were or how long his captivity might last. Over the years, Jeff was transferred into the custody of multiple terror groups, beaten and mistreated. As a Christian who refused to embrace Islam, Jeff was seen as an animal. Some of his guards were only 12 years old.Yet Jeff says renouncing his faith in Christ and becoming a Muslim to get better treatment was never an option. Jeff shares what helped him during those difficult days and how he knew the Lord was with him. Listen as he tells why forgiveness was key and how he took opportunity daily to express it to his captors.Please pray for Jeff and Els as they continue to recover from the more than six years of Jeff’s captivity and come back next week as Jeff continues to share more of his experience being a hostage and his eventual release and freedom.
David Paul fell in love with Muslims as a college student visiting Turkey (now Türkiye) to share the gospel. After getting married, he and his wife thought they’d go where Muslims are — the Middle East. God changed their plans, reminding them that millions of Muslims live in South Asia, yet very few mission workers go there. They knew God was calling them, and without ever visiting, they moved to South Asia more than a decade ago. Their focus is on reaching Urdu speaking Muslims with the gospel message.Listen as David shares difficulties from those early years of ministry and how we can encourage and pray for missionaries to push forward through their early challenges to reach maximum fruitfulness. Today David’s challenges are different; one is the great need to develop more Muslim background believers (MBBs) to be leaders in the Urdu church.Listen to David tell stories of Urdu speaking Muslims who have come to faith in Christ and how different understandings of Islam can affect how much Christian persecution believers face for leaving Islam. David is also training Hindu background believers to reach their Muslim neighbors.“Every time I encourage a believer to go into the face of persecution, I lose a lot of sleep.” David says, “It’s not an easy calling to ask people to do that.” Yet, Davd knows it’s what Jesus would do.Pray for Urdu speaking believers—especially those facing persecution right now—and for God to raise up Christian leaders and mentors among them.
Last week, Brother Philip, a field minister for The Voice of the Martyrs in West Africa, shared how witnessing stories of trauma from persecuted Christians and addressing their spiritual needs is a gift. He shared the characteristics of resilient individuals who coped well after persecution and how scripture can bring healing to their hearts and minds. This week, you’ll hear how Christians may exhibit more resilience than non-believers, stories of persecuted Christians and how The Voice of the Martyrs empowers pastors in Africa to help persecuted Christians find healing after trauma.Listen as Philip explains the need for believers—in Africa and elsewhere—to have a good theology of suffering to thrive in a broken world where persecution is promised. You’ll also hear how the fruit of the Spirit is central in providing trauma care for persecuted Christians, and the vital role forgiveness plays. “Forgiveness is absolutely indispensable for healing,” Philip says.You’ll hear the story of a pastor in Africa who suffered incredible loss when Islamists attacked his village. The pastor ran from the invading rebels to hide in the church. However, they followed him. When the attack was over, the pastor’s wife, his brother and his two children had all been killed. Yet after attending a trauma care workshop sponsored by VOM, the pastor said: “I have begun to forgive those perpetrators totally.”Philip and his team train pastors and other Christian leaders to care for persecuted Christians dealing with trauma in their communities. Partnering with pastors in Africa and other parts of the world—people who already understand the culture and know the language—creates greater impact as they share the training further and reach out to more persecuted Christians.Pray for Philip and his team as they train pastors to care for persecuted Christians. Pray for persecuted church members in restricted nations and hostile areas to hold fast to their faith—even in suffering.
This episode will be a little different than most as we have two conversations instead of one. First, we’ll hear from Steve Lisby about a group of pastors and church leaders imprisoned in Nicaragua after being part of a large-scale evangelism effort. Next we’ll hear from Brother Philip, who helps The Voice of the Martyrs provide trauma care for persecuted Christians in Africa.Steve Lisby is the risk management director with Mountain Gateway, a ministry helping train and send gospel workers. Last year, with the approval of the Nicaraguan government, Mountain Gateway held evangelistic events in multiple locations around the country. More than one million people attended these events, including 300,000 at the final event in the capitol city. After the success of these events, it was a shock when one of the Mountain Gateway national directors was imprisoned in December. Days later, his wife and nine more pastors were taken to prison. Since their arrest they have not been allowed to see their families or have contact with the outside world.For persecuted Christians and others who have gone through trauma, that trauma can affect all aspects of their life. Brother Philip is a field minister in Africa for The Voice of the Martyrs, specifically focused on training Christian leaders to provide trauma care for Christians who have endured persecution.Listen as Philip shares how trauma rewires the brains of victims. For persecuted Christians, that affects how they relate to God and experience faith. As a trained trauma-care provider and brother in Christ, Philip believes it’s a gift to listen to the stories of our persecuted brothers and sisters and bear witness to the pain they’ve experienced. It is important to address physical, emotional and mental needs. But the great blessing of VOM’s work is to be able to address spiritual needs for trauma survivors as well. Hear how Philip and his coworkers structure trauma care efforts for persecuted Christians and the benefit of designing this care around the truth of God’s Word.
Paul Dangtoumda, a part of the global eldership counsel for Youth With a Mission (YWAM) and the leader for YWAM’s work in Nigeria, comes from a family with a history of Christian persecution. In fact, he bears the scar of persecution his parents faced even before he was born. Listen as he shares the amazing testimony of God’s protection over him and his parents—and how their example inspires his ministry even today.Hear how Paul began working in Nigeria and how today he and YWAM are helping widows—Women of Honor—to persevere in life and faith despite the loss of their husbands. “We had to teach the [women] how to go to the cross,” he says. “Because when they realize that it is God who can save them, then this is the beginning of true counseling.”Paul will also share about a Bible translation effort called Oral Mother Tongue, an effort that YWAM founder Loren Cunningham focused on in the final days of his earthly life. Listen as Paul describes the process from start to finish—and the reaction of people hearing the Bible in their own language for the first time.Paul will suggest ways listeners can pray for this translation effort.
ASIA PACIFIC: The Value of Knowing ChristCarter Gates, The Voice of the Martyrs’ Asia Pacific Regional Leader, says he is always humbled as he observes and fellowships with persecuted Christians who regularly take up their cross joyfully despite that risk. They know walking with Christ is worth the risk.Listen this week as Carter shares what the church is experiencing in Brunei, China, Laos, and Myanmar, including looking ahead to serving our Christian brothers and sisters in these restricted and hostile nations in 2024.Brunei is now requiring one hour of Islamic instruction per day for children in public and private schools. In China, the Communist Party has intensified efforts to restrict children from attending church. Biblical children’s resources—including Bibles—are needed, and Carter’s team have a passion to inspire the next generation toward gospel boldness.Carter asked one Chinese brother how he was preparing to faithfully stand strong under Christian persecution. The answer he received was challenging: “When I was little, my mother taught me three preparations,” our Chinese brother responded. “Always be ready to preach. Always be ready to pray. Always be ready for martyrdom.”One young teenager, who came to faith in Laos through the ministry of a missionary couple, literally had to hide her Bible by burying it in the ground. She would dig it up late at night to read it without her family’s knowledge. Today she has grown in her faith and is involved in church planting.Pray for our brothers and sisters in Asia Pacific as they experience different forms of persecution for their faith. Pray for Carter and his team as they use creative means to serve our persecuted family in China, Myanmar, Laos, Brunei and other nations in the region.
Helping Muslims Find and Follow Jesus Moving to a new place can be difficult, especially if you don’t know anyone in your new community. Muslims from across the world have moved to America for work or school yet they are often ignored by those around them—even Christians. Fouad Masri, president of the Crescent Project, says our job as believers is not to convert anyone, but to shine the light of Jesus and rely on him to draw our Muslim friends to himself. Masri is the author of a new book, Sharing Jesus with Muslims: A Step-By-Step Guide (affiliate link). Listen in as he talks about conversational apologetics, thought-provoking questions to ask a Muslim friend, and myths still circulating within the Muslim world about the Christian faith. You’ll also hear Fouad’s joy as he shares about his ministry and stories of Muslims coming to Christ. With over 30 years of sharing the gospel with Muslims, Fouad reminds us we are not called to bring anything new, but to pray for sincere hearts ready to receive the gospel. He emphasizes that we should pray for the leading of the Holy Spirit to help answer Muslims who are seeking spiritual truth, and to ask questions that provoke self-examination.
“Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.”Loren Cunningham, with his wife Darlene, founded Youth With a Mission (YWAM) in 1960 with a vision to equip and send young people out all over the world to fulfill this God-given command to go and proclaim. Loren passionately continued God’s work even into his final days on earth, preaching and discipling even with lung cancer. When he died last October, he left an amazing, inspired legacy for YWAM.Paul Childers, a long time YWAM worker and member of the ministry’s global eldership team, returns to VOM Radio this week to share how Loren’s legacy is propelling YWAM forward, especially with an emphasis on providing God’s Word to as many as possible through a Bible translation effort called Oral Mother Tongue. He will share the process to rapidly translate the Bible, through spoken word, into many more languages using the local people to help with the process.Paul, founder of Word by Heart, shares the amazing work of Oral Mother Tongue and how they translated the entire New Testament for 30 languages in six months! Even local non-Christians are included in this work, excited by the stories they are helping to translate and the effort to maintain their heart languages.Even a Hindu priest suggested, “The government needs to pay for this translation work! It’s so important to encapsulate our language going forward.” The process also adds credibility to the work in each community as people want to listen to a project to which their family members and friends contributed.Please also pray for YWAM in this season of transition as they continue Loren’s legacy impacting the world for Christ and his kingdom.
“I’ve been with you, and I have to leave now, but as I go I am still with you.”Aaron Miller, Vice President of International Ministry at The Voice of the Martyrs, learned this concept from brothers and sisters in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). They have a word for the concept in their language: tukopamuja. As Aaron and his team sit with persecuted Christians across the world, the stories they hear and prayers they pray together stay with them forever.As 2024 begins, we pray that the stories of Christian persecution—and the faithfulness of Christ’s followers who endure it—will stay with you as you pray for the persecuted church. Changes in the status of Christians and the level of persecution in various nations are reflected in VOM’s 2024 Prayer Guide, and Aaron will bring those to light as he shares stories from his own travel and how his staff continue to serve persecuted Christians despite increased challenges.Malawi and Mauritania, two countries in Africa have been added as daily persecution is a reality. One for Mauritania includes several men imprisoned for a baptism video released on social media. In India, prime minister Modi has diminished government protection for Christianity and increasing violent acts against Christians have made this region now restricted.Learn from Aaron how you can pray for VOM’s International Ministry team and for Christians in restricted and hostile nations this year.UPDATE: After the recording of this interview we learned the Christians arrested in Mauritania had been released. We thank God for this answer to prayer! Please continue to pray for their protection and their peace.
“We are ready and prepared to be imprisoned. We are not afraid of being imprisoned. But we are afraid of losing the fear of the Lord.” —House Church leaders in ChinaBob Fu, founder, and president of ChinaAid, is regularly in contact with Christians all over China. He says that, in an era of harsh government restrictions and a complete lack of religious freedom, churches are still being planted and leaders continue to baptize new believers in China.Author of God’s Double Agent, Bob sheds light China’s new “patriotic education” law instigated earlier this year by Xi Jinping and the Communist Party – including its mandate for Chinese living overseas. He will also discuss protests that broke out across Chinese universities early in 2023 as young people displayed their discontent with the government.Communist Party leaders continue to sweep their Christian persecution under the rug, categorizing the arrest of pastors and Christians as “illegal business activity” or financial fraud rather than violating religious regulations. As the government continues its tight reign over technology, they have removed Bible apps to eliminate access to God’s Word. In spite of these efforts, ministries including The Voice of the Martyrs continue to deliver Bibles into the hands of Chinese believers.Listen as Bob shares updates on Pastor Wang Yi, serving a 9-year prison sentence, and Pastor Pan, who recently moved to America with his Mayflower Church congregation. Bob will also share a letter from Pastor John Cao, serving a 7-year sentence in prison, in which he writes, “Please rejoice for me. Jesus has died on the cross for me. It is my utter joy to be imprisoned for my Lord.”As you pray for Chinese Christians like Pastor Wang Yi, John Cao, and others who are imprisoned, ask the Lord to sustain them through the Holy Spirit. Pray for their persecutors to find hope in Jesus. As they go through intense persecution, pray they would continue to fear the Lord above everything.
As Christian persecution increases across China, Myanmar and other hostile and restricted nations around the world, Christian brothers and sisters are finding new ways to gather for worship, fellowship and Bible study under the radar of police or hostile government authorities.Dr. Joe Handley, president and CEO of A3, shares just how unique some of these new church meetings are, from pop-up coffee carts to whole congregations working out together in a public park. A3, formerly Asian Access, was established 56 years ago in Japan; today the ministry is training Christian leaders all over the world, including hostile and restricted nations in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.One of A3’s current efforts is a training program preparing Christian leaders for persecution. Included are materials from The Voice of the Martyrs and other persecuted church ministries.Listen as Joe shares more about the church in China, Japan, and Myanmar. He’ll share the story of a young Christian in Myanmar who was imprisoned, tortured and accused of insurrection. Today, this man and his family desire to go back to their people and continue sharing the gospel.Joe will also equip listeners to pray for the next generation of Christian leaders to be prepared to stand firm in Christ, and to pray for A3 as the ministry grows to meet the current abundance of opportunities to serve.
For ten years, Shakir heard his Christian friend and his Muslim friend discuss, debate and argue about their different faiths. Shakir tried to ignore their discussion; he didn’t want to get involved. After all those years, Shakir was shocked when his Muslim friend told him that he had become a Christian. Shakir urged him to reconsider and return to Islam—but as his friend shared about the things that led him to follow Christ, Shakir himself began to consider that Jesus might indeed be the Way, the Truth and the Light.Brother Shakir struggled to grasp the idea that God would come in flesh, show himself and save from sin. Comparing the principles of Islam against the Bible revealed the character of God to Shakir and the truth of God’s Word. Seeing in the Bible Christ’s personal display of God’s love ultimately led Shakir to follow Christ.“That day I was saved,” Shakir said, “I was free, and I was really happy and filled with the Holy Spirit.”Just like Shakir tried to sway his Muslim friend back to Islam, friends and family tried to convince him to renounce his faith. The most difficult pressure came from Shakir’s own mother. Shakir remembers her demanding, “Me or Christ. You have to choose.” Shakir did not deny Jesus.Today, Shakir knows those he witnesses to and leads to Christ will face trials. New believers are encouraged by hearing the experiences of persecuted Christians like Shakir; their stories prepare young-in-faith Christians to stand up under pressure and persecution.Shakir also shares how we can pray for the church in North Africa, and for his family and ministry.
Pastor Raymond Koh was forcibly abducted on February 13th, 2017 in a military-style operation that took less than 40 seconds. Almost seven years later, he’s still missing. His car has never been located.Raymond’s wife, Susanna, has filed a lawsuit to force the Malaysian government and leaders of the police to release all information about what happened, and hopefully hold the kidnappers accountable for their actions.Listen this week to an interview with Susanna recorded two years after Raymond’s abduction. Hear how she found out her husband was missing, and how the police turned her missing person report into an opportunity to interrogate her about the Christian work and gospel outreach she and Raymond were involved in.Raymond had been threatened before for his faith and gospel work, yet he continued to follow God’s plan for him. Susanna says in the months before the abduction she saw a deepening of Pastor Raymond’s spiritual walk. He memorized large sections of God’s Word, went on long prayer walks and preached the gospel with renewed passion and intensity.Susanna is very honest as she shares raw emotion, grief and pain. But she also says God’s promises have uplifted her—as have Christian songs. She and her family have even been able to forgive those who kidnapped her husband.Pray for Susanna and the Koh family as they await the next hearing date in her lawsuit. Pray for wisdom for the judge, and that the truth of who was behind Raymond’s abduction is revealed.
Susi Childers has served with Youth With A Mission (YWAM) for more than two decades, using her photography skills to open doors to communicate the love of Christ to people all over the world.Listen this week as Susi describes the impact of Loren Cunningham, YWAM’s founder who recently graduated to heaven, on her life and on encouraging her to use her gifts more fully to further the gospel. She’ll also share some of the personal qualities that made Loren such an impactful and visionary leader.Susi will also share highlights from a recent trip to Nigeria, where she ministered to widows of Christians killed in northern Nigeria by Boko Haram or by Islamist militants from within the Fulani tribe. With more than 223 million people, Nigeria is the most populous country on the African continent. It is also a young country: 70% of the people are under 30. Susi believes that reaching the people of Nigeria with the gospel can be a key to reaching millions more all across the African continent.A YWAM training school in southern Nigeria is a refuge for widows and orphans, providing them with a place to heal, as well as six months of training and discipleship. Many of the widows desire to go back to northern Nigeria, in spite of the loss they suffered there, to advance the gospel and live out their faith in Christ.With her camera in hand, Susi went to visit and meet the widows and their children. Night after night, she awakened to hear singing and found, in the wee hours of the morning, these women gathered to read the Bible and pray for their persecutors.“It was a holy place,” Susi said. “God hears the suffering of each individual day and night. He’s challenging us to carry a little piece of His heart.”Listen as Susi shares how God led her to take donated jewelry with her on this visit to Nigeria, and how God used that jewelry to remind these widows of His abiding love for them.
Listen as Pastor Joe shares the struggles many new Christians in North Africa face when they believe in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. Yet, people in the region are coming to Christ like never before!Christians in North Africa often pay a huge price for following Christ. They are rejected by family, lose jobs and face other forms of persecution when they tell others of their faith in Jesus. Many of these persecuted Christians don’t know how each day will end. They rely on the Lord for strength and hope, despite their fear.Listen as Pastor Joe shares the story of a young woman in his congregation who was overjoyed to share her new faith with her family. But when she did, she was beaten and thrown into the streets. Her own mother told her, “I would rather know that my daughter became a prostitute than a Christian.”Pastor Joe encourages listeners to not flee from danger and potentially miss blessings and service that God has planned for us. He reminds us that Jesus came to earth knowing He would suffer. He says that, as a Christian, we should also know that persecution will come.Hear the story of one young man who encouraged other believers until the final moments of his life. In addition, Joe shares of a married couple who kept their faith a secret from each other—until they ran into each other at a Christian meeting!Pray God would call believers in North Africa to stay in their communities and serve. Pray Pastor Joe and his family will remain faithful to the Lord and His calling on their lives and for continued protection over their ministry.
Today Hanna Massad, former pastor of Gaza Baptist Church, assists persecuted Christians and refugees across the Middle East. He knows what they are facing. He’s had his own first-hand experiences of Christian persecution, living and pastoring a church in a Muslim context. His wife led the Gaza Bible Society during a time when it was bombed twice. Their coworker and friend, Rami Ayyad, was kidnapped and murdered. In these difficult moments, Hanna and his family had to completely rely on God’s Word. When Gaza police told him they couldn’t protect his family, Hanna thought of Psalm 46:1, “The Lord is my refuge.” He and his family knew God could protect them, even if local authorities could not or would not. In the face of threats of further attacks, they decided to leave Gaza, at least temporarily. They planned to be away for a few weeks, long enough that the situation could settle down again. Instead, their departure became long-term. While the doors have never re-opened for the Massad family to return permanently to Gaza, that doesn’t mean their ministry in Gaza ceased. Massad, author of the book Pastor From Gaza (affiliate link), continues ministering to Christians in Gaza through the church, online connections, the Bible Society library and regular visits back to his homeland. Listen as he shares an update on the current ministry of Pauline Ayyad, Rami’s widow and a recent guest on VOM Oz Radio. He’ll also share what it means to be a true disciple and he’ll challenge every listener to keep our eyes on Jesus.
Pastor Hanna Massad served the Lord in the face of intense Christian persecution. He’s been threatened. The Bible Society where his wife worked was bombed. He buried a martyred coworker. Yet he calls it an honor and a privilege to serve the Lord in such circumstances.Hanna Massad is the former pastor of Gaza Baptist Church. His wife, Suhad, led the Bible Society in Gaza. He still gets emotional thinking back to the day when Rami Ayyad, who worked for the Bible Society, was kidnapped and later killed. Speaking of his martyred friend, Hanna says, “Rami had a wonderful heart, he loved the Lord, and his dedication to the Lord, his family, and the community are wonderful memories, despite the pain and suffering.”Listen as Hanna shares his own story of coming to faith in Christ, and how he faced pressure—even as a boy—for being identified as a Christian in Gaza. He says Christians in Gaza live “between two fires,” and explains some of the challenges of church ministry in such a setting.“Our faith will not be tested when everything is going fine.” Hanna explained. God allows us to go through the fire to reflect His love to those who don’t know Him.
“I could’ve lived and worked in that country my whole life and not seen the fruit that we are seeing now.” That fruit was planted in sacrifice.From the time she was a little girl, Jane wanted to live overseas to spread the gospel. When she met her husband, he had the same missions mindset and a heart for Muslims after he was impacted by 9/11. Jane says her husband enjoyed living in the Middle East, immersing himself in the culture and, most importantly, living his dream of witnessing to people who’d never heard about Jesus.Listen as Jane remembers the day her husband was killed, and how she prayed immediately afterwards. “God used His grace to sustain me through that time,” she says. “He really brought me through those initial days.”Jane will share how they worked to disciple Muslims even before they became believers in Jesus—demonstrating with their lives what it looks like to follow Him. Jane sees how God used their family’s sacrifice to advance His kingdom.“God used my husband’s death to catapult His plans and purposes for that nation and the people there.”As ordinary people who loved the Lord and lived out God’s calling for their life, Jane says being obedient and knowing you’re in God’s will is the greatest joy you can experience. She’s had times of wrestling with her loss and asking God why but says one way she works through those times is to focus, with her children, on things they can be thankful for.
Brother Bob has been connected to gospel work in North Africa for more than 20 years. He says government persecution of Christians in the region tends to come in cycles, but pressure and persecution of Christians by their own family members is common.But even in the midst of family persecution, Christians have a chance to demonstrate the reality of the gospel. “If believers persevere and continue to be a light,” Bob says, “most of the time their family eventually accepts them. And in many cases, others in the family come to know Christ.”Listen for the story of how a Muslim wife showed great displeasure after her husband accepted Christ—but was eventually won over by the consistent, Christ-like love he showed her.Local people in North Africa have many fears: bad omens, the fear of spirits, or fear of the future. The absence of fear is one of the marks of Christians in the region and often draws others to learn more about Christ.After working among Muslims for more than two decades, Bob says Christians who love and listen are more effective in sharing the gospel than those who criticize Islam or start a religious debate. He points to the model of Jesus’ interaction with the woman at the well.Bob will share how he prepares new believers to spread the truth of Christ, to walk alongside others in their difficulties and to withstand persecution when it comes. Listen as Bob gives practical ways we can be like Christ and tells how our persecuted brothers and sisters are living that out. Bob will also equip us to pray for Christians in North Africa.
When a radical-Muslim mob of 6000 attacked the Christian colony of Jaranwala in August, Christians could only flee. Some hid in sugarcane fields; others fled the area. The attack lasted the whole day; churches were destroyed and persecuted Christians’ homes were looted and burned.Brother Johanna joins us this week on VOM Radio to share what led to the uproar in Jaranwala, and the response from other Christians in Pakistan to brothers and sisters affected by the violence. We will also look more broadly at the persecution of Pakistani Christians.Listen as Johanna explains what the blasphemy laws in Pakistan are and how they are used against Christians—and against Muslims and members of other faiths, too. He will also unpack how the challenges are different for Christians in Pakistan depending whether they were born into a Muslim family or born into a traditional Christian family.Brother Johanna will also give us an update on Asia Bibi, who still faces pressure and death threats even years after being found innocent of blasphemy by Pakistan’s Supreme Court and released from prison.
Ben and Kimberly, gospel workers in South Asia, join VOM Radio again this week to share more about how the Lord is working in remote villages of South Asia. Struck by the boldness of local believers, Ben and Kimberly see the fearlessness persecuted Christians there have in preaching the gospel. The threat of jail doesn’t stop them from preaching; they will preach in jail if necessary.With the rise of anti-conversion laws in South Asia, in many places it is illegal for people to change their religion or to lead others to change their faith. Yet Christians there continue to evangelize and reach people for Christ.Ben and Kimberly will share how persecution is part of the DNA of believers there, and how they are equipping locals with training and discipleship tools. They will also share a story of how God opened one of the darkest villages in this region—a place that had been completely closed to the gospel. Listen to how God planted a church in that village—on the very spot where Christians had prayed God would build His church.Ben and Kimberly love sharing what the Lord did in that village. Kim says, “it’s incredibly exciting to see fruit like that.” But they also remind us that even though we may not see immediate fruit we must keep being faithful; God is working whether we see it or not.Pray for Christians in South Asian nations like India, Nepal, Bhutan, Burma and Bangladesh to stand firm and find their identity in Christ, Pray for Ben and Kimberly to receive wisdom from the Lord as they continue in ministry.
A Christian for less than two months, a 15-year-old girl shared this with Ben and Kimberly when she came to their church for discipleship. Her father, one of the most powerful witch doctors in the village, kicked her out of the house and out of their village after she chose to follow Christ.Ben and Kimberly are gospel workers in South Asia, involved in outreach, pastor training and discipleship of new believers. Listen as they share their testimonies, including how Ben rebelled against the Lord, got involved in drugs, eventually facing 35 felony charges and landing in prison. Yet, in prison, he gave his life to the Lord and miraculously the Lord allowed him to be released. Ben and Kimberly will also share how the Lord called them out of a comfortable life in America to go to the mission field.Listen as they share the dedication they see in new Christians, sometimes even immediately after they hear the gospel. “One of the amazing things has been to see the wholeheartedness. The way Christians in our village are fully sold out to Christ from the very beginning. Most people we talk with can’t even consider walking away,” Kimberly says.Christian persecution in South Asian nations like India, Nepal, Bhutan or Bangladesh often involves being ostracized and kicked out of homes and communities. Kim says that’s why church is so important as the Body of Christ becomes a new family for the persecuted Christians.Ben’s story of coming to faith calls to mind a previous guest on VOM Radio, who also came to faith in an American prison and is now involved in Bible distribution in the Middle East. Listen to Joe share his testimony of coming to faith and experience God’s call to overseas ministry.
Young, married, and with a baby on the way, Cynthia Anderson and her husband set out for Nepal to “take new ground for the gospel,” bringing Jesus to the unreached. But God was already working in Nepal. “We weren’t taking Him there,” Cynthia says, “He was [already] there!”Today, decades later, Cynthia is a longtime gospel worker in multiple nations and a trainer of pastors, mission agency and other Kingdom-minded leaders in how to multiply disciples and catalyze Jesus movements in their areas. She is a leader in YWAM Frontier Missions.Listen as Cynthia shares what it truly looks like to make disciples and train others to continue making disciples, launching Disciple Making Movements (DMM). Her new book, The Multiplier’s Mindset: Thinking Differently About Discipleship, examines the mindset shifts that need to take place in order for multiplication of the gospel to happen.As a young missionary, Cynthia was drawn to examples from the gospels and the book of Acts. “I was so convinced by scripture. Wow! God uses ordinary, broken people; people who don’t have their act together. Faith rose up in my heart to believe: ‘God can do it here; God can do it through us!’”The harvest fields are ripe, even in Western nations. Research shows that only 3 out of 10 unchurched people in America have had a Christian explain the gospel to them.Listen to Cynthia share stories of persecuted Christians who have become obedient disciples of Christ passionate to reach their people with the gospel. “Keep disciple making easy and actionable,” Cynthia advises. “When we have a simple repeatable pattern and people are like, ‘I can do that,’ it is reproducible, even by a brand-new believer.”As you listen, you’ll also learn how you can pray for our persecuted family who are making disciples among their own people.
The nation is called The Islamic Republic of Iran, but a recent study shows less than a third of Iranians still believe in Islam! Iranians are looking elsewhere to find answers to their spiritual questions. Dr. Hormoz Shariat tells us why, sharing from his own experiences ministering to people in Iran, evangelizing and answering their questions. “More and more I see people of Iran say, ‘To have a future for Iran, we have to get rid of Islam,’” Hormoz explains.Hormoz is the president of Iran Alive Ministries and the author of Iran’s Great Awakening. He has broadcast the gospel into Iran via satellite television for 23 years.Iran has been led by Islamic clergy for more than forty years, imposing Islamic laws that control every area of life. The last few years, the numbers of Iranians finding salvation through Jesus have surged. Iran’s people desire change. They find Christian TV programs or online information, see changed lives and actions among Christian friends or hear the gospel in another way.Recently the battle in Iran has been over women’s head coverings following the death of Mahsa Amini. But Hormoz says the real issue is much deeper than clothing choices. As protestors on the streets of Iran chanted, “Women! Life! Freedom!” Dr. Hormoz broadcasts a series of sermons showing how Christ valued women, how He came to bring eternal life, and how true freedom is found only in Him. Hormoz encourages Iranians that if they want their nation to be transformed, individual people must be willing to be transformed first.Listen as Hormoz shares how our Christian brothers and sisters are being salt and light even amidst recent protests. “The greatest weapon we have against Islam is love,” he says. Hormoz shares testimonies from Iranians transformed by the gospel message, including one family reached through their son, who didn’t say a word but became a different person after finding Christ.“I didn’t get in television to be famous, to be admired. I wanted to love people and have influence in their lives and by God’s grace, He has given me that.”
Gospel workers in restricted and hostile nations risk their lives to spread the gospel. One worker in the Middle East, Jacob, was kidnapped last month and held by a terrorist group. He was kept blindfolded, not knowing if it was day or night. The group threatened to hang him. Even in captivity, this young newlywed pastor’s heart was to share the good news and help build God’s church by spreading his Word.Thankfully, Jacob has been rescued from captivity and reunited with his wife and baby. Listen as John Samara, founder and executive director of Ananias House, shares how Jacob had memorized Scripture before being taken captive, and how he held onto several passages during his time in darkness.With the scripture indelibly written on his heart and mind, Jacob was encouraged by the promises of God despite persecution for his faith. One verse that encouraged Jacob was Psalm 27:14, “Wait for the Lord, be strong and let your heart take courage. Wait on the Lord.”John also shares about a new book, Through the Eyes of a Child: Encounters with God in the Middle East. Ananias House is working in schools, sharing the gospel as they provide an education to children who might otherwise not receive one.John will share stories from the book of a teen imprisoned and violated for her faith, yet praising and glorifying the Lord in the midst of it; and of a young child who prayed with his classmates over their small amount of food and saw God perform a miracle.You’ll also hear how John and his team are training up women, who often face disrespect in that culture. Now many are reaching other women with the gospel and even leading their husbands to Christ!John will equip listeners to pray for Ananias House and for the Body of Christ in the Middle East and North Africa.
There had been reports of a pending terrorist attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, when Hannelie Groenewald went in work as a medical doctor on November 29, 2014. Hannelie didn’t know that the Taliban attack would target her own home and family.
When she arrived home that evening, a sea of police and military personnel were all around the smoking ruins of her house. Reporters were already there, asking her for comment. She still didn’t know what had happened; that her husband, Werner, and two teen aged children, Jean-Pierre and Rode, had been killed in a Taliban attack on their home. She was taken to a neighbor’s house, where she read, over and over, Psalm 91, praying through its promises of help and divine covering. God’s overwhelming peace washed over her.
As a mother, she wished to have been with her children, to comfort them during the attack. But Hannelie is reminded that God is sovereign. Listen as she shares how God carried her through the days following the attack, and how Afghan people were impacted by her peace and spirit of forgiveness. Hannelie also tells of God’s blessings to her even as flames engulfed her home.
Pray for new believers in Afghanistan, that God would use the martyrs blood that has flowed there to bring forth a spiritual harvest, and that God’s church will be built up, even after the Taliban takeover of that nation in 2021.
It’s been two years since the Taliban retook control in Afghanistan. Pressure and persecution against Christians in the country continues to rise. Hannelie Groenewald, a former gospel medical worker there, paid a high price for her faith when her husband and children were martyred in their home in Kabul in 2014.When the 9/11 attacks happened in New York, Hannelie Groenewald was living a comfortable life in South Africa with her family. Werner, her husband, took a short-term mission trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan and came home with a burden for Afghans to have a relationship with Christ. Werner shared his heart with Hannelie. After agreeing to go on a short-term outreach herself, she experienced the Holy Spirit in a new way and felt a shared desire to serve the Afghan people.There was still a wrestling within her as she thought about her children and their safety in a war-torn land. Listen as Hannelie shares the small ways she knew the Lord was encouraging their family to go and serve in Afghanistan.Hannelie describes Werner as “fearless,” and tells of his continuous preaching on having faith rather than fear. One month before Werner was martyred, he said in a sermon, “We only die once. It might as well be for Jesus.”
Isaac Santiago, VOM’s Regional Leader for Latin America, and his team are standing with Christians suffering for their faith in Mexico, Colombia and other nations. They are also reaching out to Christians in Latin America who aren’t currently facing persecution, telling them the stories of heroic faith and inviting them into fellowship with persecuted Christians.
Listen as Isaac shares his excitement for VOM’s Spanish resources. These include tools for pastors to share stories with their congregation and next year will also include The Voice of the Martyrs Radio in Espanol. Last month, people all across Latin America also joined in the Hearts of Fire Virtual Event.
In addition to telling the stories of persecuted Christians in Spanish, Isaac is also walking alongside brothers and sisters directly facing persecution.
Listen to hear the story of Mateo and Elena, husband and wife church planters in the “Circle of Silence,” an area of Central Mexico where less than 1% of the people are Biblical disciples. Mateo and Elena boldly moved to the area to answer Christ’s call; they faced pushback and persecution almost from the first day they arrived. Read more about how God continues to work in Mateo and Elena’s lives and pray for their continued ministry.
Ten years ago, there were 3,000 unengaged, unreached people groups around the world--peoples who had never had a witness to share the gospel with them. Today, that number is less than 500 unreached, unengaged people groups. God is moving and His church is growing!
David Bogosian shares this week how Christian Aid Mission, where he is CEO, is training and equipping indigenous gospel workers to go and serve among those remaining unreached peoples. David formerly served as a missionary in the Philippines. He is amazed at the difference of each testimony, how God is uniquely revealing Himself to people all around the world.
David will share stories of places where missions leaders have seen the last remaining unreached people groups in a region reached for the gospel – even amidst difficult times for the church. He says 90% of the recently unreached are being served by local or near-culture Christians.
Listen as David shares about a persecuted Christian who was beaten and threatened by Muslims in his community—but forgave them and later invited them to partner in his thriving business. Today he is praying and reading the Bible with them, and now being he is defended in the community by his former persecutors!
“That’s the amazing thing about persecution,” David says. “It allows us to demonstrate the gospel in a way that nothing else could.”
In the next ten years, David says we could see the final groups on earth reached with the gospel, a prelude to the fulfillment of Revelations 7:9, which promises that in eternity there will be people “from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb…” Yet many Christians are unaware of these exciting times we are living in.
Listen for David to share the one question people ask when they hear the gospel for the first time.
Pray for boldness and courage for front line workers reaching those around them. Pray for spiritual protection as the enemy tries to thwart the efforts of their gospel work.
Pastor Mele was detained in Laos after police found copies of God’s Word. Now, police attend his church services every week, looking for reasons to detain him or close the church. “As a human,” he says, “I have fear. But I trust the Lord to protect me and guide me.”
Pastor Mele became a Christian in 2003 when a school friend shared the gospel with him and his classmates. Everyone ignored his Christian friend but Mele, trying to escape constant spiritual oppression, prayed and accepted Christ. From that day on, the spirits no longer tormented him.
Mele immediately felt a burden to share the gospel with others. Within two months his bold witness brought Christian persecution. Teachers ordered him to renounce his newfound faith in the “foreign religion” of Christianity or lose all opportunities for further education.
Their threat didn’t discourage Mele but actually it encouraged him! He had read in the Bible that all Christians will face persecution for their faith (2 Timothy 3:12), and he was encouraged to know that what the Bible says is true. Mele says he was never tempted to renounce his faith. “I was so focused on my soul, my salvation, because I need to be with the Lord. Nothing is solid or permanent in this world…but my salvation in Christ, that’s what is firm and solid.”
Mele was accepted to Bible college and there he met his wife. Mele went on to be an associate pastor at his home church and began to evangelize other villages. As his ministry expanded, God gave Mele a heart to share the love of Christ with everyone, not just his own tribal people.
His ministry hasn’t been easy, and the pressure against him is constant. Listen as Mele shares about a time when three police officers sat right next to him as he was getting ready to preach.
Pray for Pastor Mele’s safety as he continues to be active in ministry and pray for 14 new churches that they may faithfully endure persecution, and for Christians facing pressure and trials in Southeast Asia.
Imagine worshipping the Lord while the walls of your church building are being torn down. It can be hard to fathom what our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ go through in restricted and hostile nations. How do Christians in free nations understand the Bible’s promise that “all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim. 3:12)?
Floyd Brobbel, CEO of VOM Canada and author of Trouble on the Way: Persecution in the Christian Life, explains that persecution is not about the amount of pain inflicted, but about the goal of silencing the church. For many in free nations, the threat of ridicule is enough to prevent Christians from evangelizing their neighbors. Yet, the church continues to grow in places where Christians are kicked out of their families, beaten, imprisoned and even killed.
Recently, Floyd was able to sit down with a pastor from Burma who started a ministry and was part of leading many Buddhists to faith Christ. He was arrested seven times and tortured in ways he didn’t want to talk about. The pastor’s wife was also arrested. Both were sustained by God’s Word in the midst of their suffering.
Floyd shares how this couple reminded him of a modern-day Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, the founders of The Voice of the Martyrs.
Listen for an update on Christian persecution in India, where pressure against the church has increased dramatically during the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Brother James followed the Lord’s leading to serve in the Middle East. He arrived for what he expected to be one year of service knowing almost nothing about Islam or the culture in which he would be serving. He remembers being startled awake the very first morning by the Muslim call to prayer, wondering who was screaming at 4:30 in the morning!
Soon he would understand that he was serving in a culture where choosing to follow Christ could cost one’s life. He would also come to understand that God’s call would last much longer than one year.
He acknowledges that there are times when fear rises up in him but says as Christians, we must not let fear drown out the call God has placed on us. His prayer in times of fear is a simple one: “Lord, don’t let them see me shake.”
During years living among Muslims, the Lord clearly confirmed James’ calling to serve in the Middle East through several Bible verses – Isaiah 40:28-31, Isaiah 41: 10-13, and John 14:13-14. And he has experienced God’s protection and covering, sometimes in miraculous ways. Listen for the story of James asking Jesus to be “the Great Mechanic”—and how God answered his prayer.
Christian persecution for our brothers and sisters in places like Afghanistan, Iraq, Jordan or Lebanon often comes first from members of their own family. Many Muslims there have an incorrect view of Christianity and are often surprised when they meet a follower of Jesus and understand what the Bible really teaches. James says Muslims are often open to conversation about religion, and shares stories from his time in the region.
James encourages listeners to pray for persecuted Christians in the Middles East as they face attacks from family members and governments. And he offers advice for those seeking to reach out with the gospel to Muslims here at home.
On September 11, 2012, Islamist fighters attacked a United States diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya. Four Americans were killed in that attack. Just a few months later Ronnie and Anita Smith, a young American couple, moved to Benghazi with their infant son. Their goal was to live out their faith in Christ and have opportunities to introduce Libyan people to Christ.
“We wanted to live our lives out in a place that didn’t know Jesus,” Anita Smith says.
Anita acknowledges that there was fear moving to a dangerous place, especially so soon after a deadly attack on Americans. But Anita shares how God gave both her and Ronnie peace about residing in Libya to further God’s Kingdom. Days after Ronnie’s death in December of 2013, Anita was on national TV in the United States and on Arabic-language TV all over the Middle East, forgiving her husband’s killers and expressing her love for the Libyan people.
Listen as Anita remembers the day she found out her husband had been martyred and how she received comfort from the Lord through her family, church and Christian friends—the Body of Christ in action.
Ronnie Smith taught chemistry to high school students at the Benghazi International School and was admired for his knowledge and chemistry skill, but even more for his warm personality and love for his students. Listen as Anita shares how their Libyan neighbors looked out for them and really welcomed them into their families, spending time together, drinking tea and talking about life and faith. Such conversations gave Ronnie and Anita many opportunities to share how Christianity is different from Islam and Jesus is different from Mohammed.
Listen as Anita shares how she was able to forgive the ones who murdered her husband—expressing her forgiveness to a national audience on CNN and CBS This Morning. When Anita hears of Libyans who started following Christ after hearing the testimony of her and Ronnie, it’s a powerful reminder of how Christ is using their sacrifice. Listen also as she shares how we can pray for the widows of persecuted Christian martyrs all over the world today.
Highly restrictive religious laws. Surveillance cameras lurking around every corner. Police knocking on doors and raiding church gatherings. These are a few among the many challenges our persecuted family in China face each week.
Yet despite the communist government’s many attempts to control Christians, the church in China is still growing! Brother Enfu, pastor of an unregistered church, shares on VOM Radio this week the excitement of a growing Body of Christ and the challenges of leading an illegal church congregation.
As communist efforts to control and close down churches have escalated, large church gatherings have become almost impossible. This has led to many more meetings with smaller numbers of Christians, raising the need for trained leaders. Brother Enfu will share how Chinese Christians are meeting that need and help us pray specifically for God to raise up leaders within Chinese churches.
Brother Enfu serves as a leader in an underground Chinese seminary, training and encouraging pastors and their spouses to take on the challenges of leading a congregation. Graduates need to be equipped to lead their flock well and prepared for persecution, ready to face police questioning and even arrest. You’ll be encouraged as Enfu shares the story of five imprisoned church elders and the surprising report he received back of their sweet fellowship together and the spread of the gospel in the jail.
Listen as Brother Enfu shares how house church Christians work together in managing the risks of Christian ministry in a communist nation.
Pray men would be raised up to be godly leaders in their home and the church. Pray pastors in China would glorify God through their marriage and families. Pray our persecuted brothers and sisters in China will continue to fix their eyes on Jesus Christ, even in times of tribulation and suffering.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was recently welcomed to the White House by US President Joe Biden. In addition to a State Dinner held in his honor, Modi was given opportunity to address a joint session of Congress. Noticeably absent from American leaders’ public remarks surrounding Modi’s visit: the rapid rise of Christian persecution and other religious freedom violations in India since Modi and his Hindu nationalist party came to power in 2014.
Christians in India face harassment, physical assault and arrest from radical Hindus who believe all Indians should be Hindu. Multiple Indian states have passed anti-conversion laws which make it a crime to tell a Hindu about Jesus’ love. This week on VOM Radio, Brother Raj, a ministry leader from India, shares his own experience with Christian persecution, including friends that turned their backs on him after he came to faith and repeated encounters with Indian police.
He’ll also tell how he grew up in a Hindu family but became depressed and attempted suicide before a friend—a Hindu—encouraged him to seek baptism at a Christian church. A pastor at the church gave Raj a Bible, and his journey to finding Jesus began. Listen as Raj shares how his life changed from that moment on and what his parents’ reaction was to his newfound Christian faith, how God called him to ministry and what his gospel work looks like today.
As persecution has grown in India, Raj’s ministry work has changed, too. Listen to learn how he and other Christian leaders train and encourage new believers to be ready to face persecution by trusting in God’s promises in the Bible, understanding pressure tactics they may face and learning how to confront these tactics wisely. Raj will also tell how God used his own time of persecution to eliminate fear of sharing his faith with others. Now, he shares Christ with anyone – even the police.
Pray fellow believers in India will share their faith with wisdom and courage. Pray they would even be able to see opportunities to share Christ’s love even during interrogation or imprisonment.
The first time he went to a Christian church, during the time of the Islamic revolution in Iran, Mansour Khajehpour was a teenager. He went only to determine the best way to burn down the church building. But the woman who opened to door was caring and kind—and her Christlike kindness altered the direction of Mansour’s life.
The woman pointed Mansour to a Farsi-speaking pastor. Over the months to come, that pastor answered Mansour’s many questions—but only one question per week—and gave him a Bible. At first, Mansour’s heart was hard, but over time God softened him until the day he found himself closing his eyes, praying in a loud voice and committing his life to Christ.
Today, Mansour is the pastor of a church in Seattle and a leader in the Iranian Bible Society, working to get God’s Word into the Islamic Republic of Iran and to Farsi-speaking people in other nations as well.
Listen as Mansour shares how three older missionaries made an impact on his life for the Lord and how he became involved—through his future wife, Nahid, who is now the Executive Director—in the Iranian Bible Society. Together they both experienced persecution for their Christian faith.
Friends and pastors Mansour and Nahid knew well were martyred. Listen to Mansour tell how their examples were an inspiration, especially Pastor Hossein Soodmand’s deep love and respect for God’s Word.
Mansour will encourage listeners to memorize scripture and spiritual songs—which provided him great help and hope in prison for his faith. Pray for Mansour and Nahid’s continued work providing Bibles for our Iranian brothers and sisters, and for the persecuted church inside Iran.
Islamist jihadists are moving southward across the continent of Africa. Their goal: the eradication Christianity. In the Central African Republic (CAR) and Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a new addition to VOM’s 2023 Global Prayer map, persecuted Christians have been deeply affected. Believers have been forced to flee their villages. Pastors have been killed. Many Christians have lost family members in violent attacks.
Aaron Miller, Vice President of International Ministry for The Voice of the Martyrs, recently visited traumatized believers in multiple African nations.
Aaron was stunned as he witnessed Christians worshipping and praising God after returning to the same village where they’d faced intense persecution for their faith. Psalm 138 resonated in Aaron’s heart throughout his trip: “Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you revive me. You saved me from my enemies.” God sent Aaron and the team from VOM into the midst of trouble to minister and encourage our persecuted brothers and sisters on behalf of the global body of Christ.
Listen as Aaron tells of meeting one woman who couldn’t continue telling the story of losing her husband; she simply buried her face in her hands and wept. Being able to listen, minister, pray, laugh, and cry with believers in the midst of their trouble is a powerful encouragement to them. Aaron talks about “the ministry of presence” as VOM workers go to fellowship and serve.
God has uniquely prepared Aaron for this role, including giving him a small personal taste of Christian persecution in India. Pray for our brothers and sisters to be encouraged in their faith and for the church to be unified in Central Africa.
Children develop attitudes and opinions about the Bible from an early age. Awana has been discipling children for more than 70 years. Today Awana is active in more than 130 countries—including places where Christian persecution is common—helping 5.6 million children to know Jesus as Savior, belong to a church that supports them and become all that God wants them to be. Steve Cahoon is a leader at Awana. Listen this week as he shares how their discipleship program may look different in India, Pakistan or the Middle East than it looks at an American church. He’ll also discuss the focus on leader development, raising up future leaders who will teach more kids about Christ.
Steve will share how Awana finds local volunteers and gives curriculum and training to these leaders to equip them to go and train up others. He also will tell how God opens doors for Awana workers to reach children who aren’t growing up in Christian homes—Hindus and Muslims and those of other faiths.
“Our goal is to see every child everywhere reached and discipled for the Lord Jesus Christ.” It takes only one willing person to start an AWANA program.
Listen as Steve shares testimonies from Awana alumni and more about how their program is adapted for use in other countries, including being welcomed into public schools in Africa.
Pray for the work of Awana, especially inside hostile and restricted nations. Pray God would allow continued ministry in underground church situations, training leaders and seeing the gospel flourish.
In 1997, Warren and Donna Pett sold their 96-year-old family farm in Mukwonago, Wisconsin, after sensing God’s call to the mission field. In 2002, they moved to serve in Uganda’s Yumbe district, one of Uganda’s poorest districts and the only majority-Muslim district in the country. Warren and Donna provided agricultural training and spiritual discipleship at the Evangelical School of Technology in Aringa (ESTA).
On March 18, 2004, ESTA was attacked by masked men with guns. Warren and Donna, along with a Ugandan student, were killed.
Ezra and Saul Pett are the sons of Warren and Donna. Listen this week as they share on The Voice of the Martyrs Radio about their parents’ ministry and how Saul and Ezra wrestled with God and their own faith after their parents’ murder.
“My faith basically evaporated,” says Saul. “This event devastated me.”
But in the years since, God has gently and faithfully ministered to Saul and Ezra. He has comforted them in their loss and helped them address the anger they felt at their parents’ death. Today, they see His plan to produce eternal fruit, even when we may not understand what He is doing.
Listen as Saul and Ezra talk about renewing their faith, accepting God’s plan and even going to minister in the very place in Uganda where their parents were killed—and seeing the legacy Warren and Donna left even in their short time of missionary service.
It’s been more than a month since fighting broke out in the capital city of Sudan. Christians and non-Christians alike are dealing with extreme hardship, difficulty, and terror as the battle between two warring Islamist factions continues.
For our Christian brothers and sisters in Sudan, war has made life even more difficult than usual as they try to survive the fighting, find food and shelter and still face persecution for their faith in Christ. Brad Phillips, founder and president of Persecution Project Foundation (PPF), began working in Sudan in 1997 and has partnered with The Voice of the Martyrs to serve Sudanese Christians since 2002. Listen as he explains the current fighting and tells how our Christian family members are being affected.
Brad and the PPF team are daily hearing stories of tremendous loss in the church, yet also stories of heroism as persecuted Christians risk their lives to serve others in this season of upheaval and need. Others are trying to flee major cities for the Nuba Mountains—which previously was a site of great persecution and repeated bombings by the Sudanese military.
Listen as Brad shares how to pray for persecuted Christians in Sudan, and invite a Christian friend to pray with you for followers of Jesus caught in the crossfire there.
As the Taliban retook control of Afghanistan in 2021, many Afghan Christians—especially those widely known to be followers of Christ—had to flee the country. Today, many of those Christians grieve the loss of their homeland, especially as they watch the suffering of their countrymen under Taliban rule. Some desire to return but while they wait are still faithfully reaching Afghans through a variety of digital means.In Part 2 of our conversation with author John Weaver (Part 1), he calls us to pray God will bless Afghan people—including both persecuted Christians and the governing Taliban—and that God will draw many to Himself.Listen as Weaver, the author of Najiba: A Love Story from Afghanistan, shares what life is like for Afghans now under Taliban rule. He will also tell what life is like for those who’ve fled the country and deal with the culture shock of navigating healthcare, education, work and relationships in a completely new environment and culture. As Christians, John gives us advice on first steps in welcoming Afghans into our communities and churches.Christians in Afghanistan are seeing increased response to the gospel as they discern hearts that are hungry and seeking truth. Once they become followers of Jesus, new Afghan Christians hunger for like-minded fellowship.Pray for the Taliban to lead with peace and focus on what’s best for Afghanistan’s people. Most importantly, pray for their salvation. Pray for our brothers and sisters in Afghanistan to know God is with them and for endurance in their faith. Pray for Afghans sharing the gospel through social media as they continue in their ministry.
While in prison the Apostle Paul wrote to the Colossian Christians, “pray for us, that God may open a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ.” In this edition of Release International’s Voice podcast, we continue our current focus on Nigeria. We speak to Mark Mukan, who oversees one of the projects Release International is supporting in that country – a project which seeks to take the gospel back to those areas ravaged by violent persecution.
Twenty months into the second Taliban rule of Afghanistan, all Afghans—but especially Afghan Christians—face great challenges. What pressures do our persecuted brothers and sisters face living in Afghanistan today, and how has their life changed under the strict Islamic rule of the Taliban?Listen as John Weaver, author of Inside Afghanistan, A Flame on the Frontline, and Najiba: A Love Story from Afghanistan (affiliate links), explains what life is like for Muslims and Christians in Afghanistan as they experience economic crisis and lack of assistance from the outside world.Many of the Taliban fighters come from the Pashtun people group, one of the largest unreached people groups in the world with 50 million people primarily in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Persecution against Afghan Christians has always come from local mosques, communities, and families. With the Taliban takeover, the nation’s government is now also openly opposed to the gospel.Amid isolation and economic hardship, many Afghans are desperate and dissatisfied with Islam. That dissatisfaction means they are more open to the gospel. Christian brothers and sisters in Afghanistan continue boldly witness in conversations with Muslims. Listen as John tells how Christians are carefully sharing the gospel and finding “people of peace” in their communities.Pray for Afghan Christians outside the country who are reaching their people through digital tools and pray for wider distribution of the Pashtun Bible. Pray the Holy Spirit will draw more Afghan people to become followers of Jesus Christ.
It is illegal to bring a Bible into North Korea, and illegal to possess one inside the country. But VOM continues to find ways to get God’s Word into the hands of North Koreans. Dr. Eric Foley, CEO of VOM Korea in Seoul, says everything changes every day in North Korea, bringing new challenges and requiring new responses to continue bringing the gospel to desperate people in “the hermit kingdom.”Listen to hear how persecuted Christians in North Korea practice biblical obedience in spite of a brutal regime that demands utter loyalty. How can Christians follow the first commandment, “You shall have no other gods before me,” while living in a country that deifies members of the Kim family? Dr. Foley shares how, despite the consequences for even the slightest hint of Christian behavior, our brothers and sisters continue to boldly take risks and exercise wisdom to follow Christ inside North Korea.One way members of the persecuted church in the DPRK are encouraged and discipled is through VOM radio broadcasts sharing passages from the Bible or sermons delivered in the North Korean dialect. With five broadcast times throughout the day, Dr. Foley asks us to pray that the Lord would continue thwarting efforts of the North Korean government to jam these Christian radio broadcasts. Dr. Foley will also share his own story of persecution for spreading the gospel to North Korea. He reminds us that getting God’s Word out, even just one copy, is worth it.
Born and raised in a Muslim family, Brother Maksud says it’s a miracle he is now a follower of Jesus Christ.Maksud’s first years of life were under communist rule as his country was part of the Soviet Union, but it became independent, and more Islamic, after the fall of the USSR. As different factions battled for post-Soviet control, civil war broke out, a difficult time for Maksud and all of his countrymen. Yet good news was coming.Listen as Maksud tells how he was impacted by seeing the JESUS Film and hearing Jesus speak Maksud’s own language. He’ll share how a Christian stepped into his family’s life, becoming a faithful friend and sharing stories from the Bible about God. Years later Maksud heard those same stories at a free Taekwondo lesson, another step on his pathway to following Jesus.When Maksud first stepped into a church, he was shocked. It was a completely different atmosphere from anything he’d known. It was full of love; people greeted him by name with hugs. He was floored when believers at the church told him they had been praying for him for more than a year.At age 18, Maksud made the decision to follow Jesus. His younger brother wasn’t far behind. When they shared their Christian faith with their mom, she cried, knowing their family would be shamed and face persecution in their Muslim culture. Maksud’s father was not home when they announced their newfound faith to their mother. When he heard of their decision, he asked both brothers to confirm their decision to follow Jesus. Expecting their father to be angry, both young men said that yes, they had become Christians. Their father’s response shocked them:“Thanks to God. Two years ago, I gave my life to Christ. I didn’t know how to tell you, but I was praying for you guys.”Many people in Central Asia, upon sharing their faith in Christ with family members, face beatings, rejection, and being kicked out of their home. Even though Maksud didn’t experience persecution from inside his home, he knew that he and his brothers would be persecuted by others.Today Maksud is a pastor, and his brother also pastors a church. Listen as he tells how we can pray for his people in Central Asia, including praying that whole families will come to Christ together.
One night, TK, extremely sick, found himself in his room praying, “I am ill and if you are the one true God then I will commit my life to you.”TK slept through the night and woke up completely healed! From that moment, he was committed to following Christ. His father—a former drug dealer who met Christ in prison for his crimes—encouraged TK to learn more about the one true God.With passion for following Christ after he had experienced God’s power over disease, TK went to Bible school in Thailand. Returning to Laos with Christian materials to help his ministry, TK was arrested at the border and imprisoned for three months before God ordained his release from prison.Today TK serves persecuted Christians inside Laos and holds a leadership position within Laos’s registered church organization. He says at the time of his arrest it was common for Christians in Laos to endure physical suffering for being a Christian—arrests, beatings and other pressure. Today, he says, mental and spiritual pressure for following Christ is more common, including being ostracized by family members, cut off from work or educational opportunities and even being kicked out of your village.Listen as TK shares what our persecuted church family faces in Laos today. TK will also explain how he is serving persecuted brothers and sisters there. Pray for communist authorities in Laos and for wisdom and discernment for TK as he assists persecuted Christians.
For the past two decades, northern and central Nigeria Christians have endured horrendous violent persecution. Thousands have been killed and many more forced to flee, in the face of Islamist extremist attacks. This month, Release International has launched a three-month campaign called Out of these Ashes to focus on Nigeria's situation and call Christians to committed prayer. In this edition of Release International’s Voice Podcast, we speak to Mark Lipdo, a Release International partner in Nigeria, about one particular response to the suffering of Christians in that country. Hear about the Trauma Healing Workshops his organisation runs and some powerful testimonies of the positive impact those workshops have had on Christians who have suffered persecution.
This week we complete our conversation with Richard and Jeanette, an American couple who had served 10 years in China when police came knocking on their apartment door and they knew their gospel service in China was over.When we left off last week, Richard was being interrogated at a Chinese police station while Jeanette, his wife, prayed and was ministered to by their local church pastor and other Christian friends. Richard’s interrogation continued the next day before police let him return home but warned him not to tell anyone—even his wife—about the questioning. He knew the interrogation wasn’t over. In the ensuing weeks he was repeatedly called back to the police station.When he arrived home, Jeanette watched her husband closely, looking for signs of beatings or torture. The stress of each day—and not knowing when authorities would demand another trip to the police station—left Richard, at times, barely able to function. Some days he couldn’t even get out of bed. He couldn’t tell his wife what happened with the police, fearing anything he said would put her in danger of also being arrested or interrogated.Chinese police mockingly asked why he would follow Christ. They thought Jesus selfish to ask His followers give up family, jobs, money and success just to end up being locked in a police station. Yet even as they questioned him, Richard felt guidance from the Holy Spirit in how to answer their questions and even tried to plant seeds of the gospel in their conversations.Finally, Richard and Jeanette learned that they would be allowed to leave China but would likely never be allowed to return to the land and people they love deeply. Listen to hear how they were finally set free, and when they finally had the chance to talk to each other about all they’d gone through at the hands of communist Chinese police.You’ll also hear how they are both thankful for the persecution they endured—and the fruit they’ve seen in their own lives and their family that grew directly out of their time of trial. They’ll also help listeners pray for Christians in China as they endure persecution and suffering for their faith—without the opportunity to leave the country or the protection of a foreign passport.
We left off last week as Richard and Jeanette’s apartment was raided by 25 Chinese policemen. The couple knew that their time in China was over after 10 years of ministry, but they didn’t know how long it might be before they were allowed to leave. Listen now as Jeanette recalls exactly what happened when she returned to their apartment to find police searching through their bookshelves and closets and questioning her husband.Despite the chaos of the raid, Jeanette continued relying on the sovereignty and goodness of God, reminding herself often that He is trustworthy no matter our circumstances. She prayed fervently for Richard as he was taken away by the police.Richard experienced God’s sovereignty and the Holy Spirit at work as he sat in the police station interrogation room, living in the truth of Luke 12:11-12. In spite of police threats, Richard relied on scripture God brought to his mind and four things he knew he had to stand firm in as he tried to answer the police accusations.Listen also for how Chinese Christians supported Richard and Jeanette during their ordeal, including a local church pastor who knocked on their door and offered a bold prayer for Richard. Their local Christian community brought Jeanette great comfort, providing practical proof that the Lord was with them.Pray persecuted Chinese Christians will stand firm in faith and be encouraged by the Body of Christ.
Richard and Jeanette had served in China for several years when—around 2018—they began hearing stories of foreign Christians forced to leave the country. “Everyone knows it happens, but no one thinks it’s going to happen to them,” Richard says.The couple decided to stay in China as long as God kept the door open—even when Covid put the entire country under lockdown. They were prepared to be kicked out; they’d even begun to think about when it would happen instead of if it would happen. The threat gave them a sense of urgency in their ministry as they continued shepherding and teaching God’s Word to Chinese people.Richard and Jeannette felt the Lord work in their hearts during their college years, and both knew that overseas gospel work was God’s call for them. They met after Jeanette returned from two years working in China, married, and then received an invitation to serve in China. Listen as Richard and Jeanette share how they thought about risk and danger of serving in a Communist country, and the joys and challenges of their first years of missions service, including learning Chinese.You’ll also hear about the day Richard opened the door of their apartment to find 25 uniformed Chinese national police and knew their time of serving the Lord in China was coming to an end. Richard and Jeanette will return to VOM Radio next week to continue their story.
One million to one. One million lost people for every one gospel worker.When Brother David heard the million-to-one ratio of population to gospel workers in the Arab world, he and his wife knew that was where God needed them to serve in missions.Today, Muslims in North Africa and the Middle East are more open to asking questions and seeking information about Jesus, the Bible and Christianity—especially through the internet. Brother David leads Operation Mobilization’s North African and Middle Eastern work and emphasizes the need to have more workers reaching Muslims for Christ.David’s leads OM workers across 20 countries as they reach out to Muslims and disciple new believers. His teams also work to train Muslim background believers to reach, disciple and lead their own people and churches. He knows there will be Christian persecution as the church grows; he’s seen persecution directly on members of his team and his own family. But, from his own experience, he’s also seen how God uses persecution of His followers for His glory and purpose.David will advise listeners who want to reach out to Muslim friends and coworkers with gospel conversations. He has seen the insecurity many Christians have engaging with Muslims, but encourages us to jump into conversations about faith and beliefs. He says stories from the Bible and our witness to God’s hand in our own experiences are powerful ways to plant gospel seeds with our Muslim friends.He’ll also help us know how to pray for gospel work in the Middle East and North Africa.
On this episode, hear Pastor Jihad, who is the leader of the True Vine Baptist Church in Zahle, Lebanon, share his personal testimony and how God prepared him to help those fleeing the war in Syria. As a child, he was himself displaced from his home by the Syrian army, but God is now using him to reach Syrian refugees – those who were once seen as his enemy. We'll hear how the church is overcoming daily challenges – to live the best and ‘most satisfying’ life for Christ. Listen to the VOM Podcast anywhere, anytime on the VOM App - https://cutt.ly/H3IdMiu
Moving to a new place can be difficult, especially if you don’t know anyone in your new community. Muslims from across the world have moved to America for work or school yet they are often ignored by those around them—even Christians. Fouad Masri, president of the Crescent Project, says our job as believers is not to convert anyone, but to shine the light of Jesus and rely on him to draw our Muslim friends to himself.Masri is the author of a new book, Sharing Jesus with Muslims: A Step-By-Step Guide (affiliate link). Listen in as he talks about conversational apologetics, thought-provoking questions to ask a Muslim friend, and myths still circulating within the Muslim world about the Christian faith. You’ll also hear Fouad’s joy as he shares about his ministry and stories of Muslims coming to Christ.With over 30 years of sharing the gospel with Muslims, Fouad reminds us we are not called to bring anything new, but to pray for sincere hearts ready to receive the gospel. He emphasizes that we should pray for the leading of the Holy Spirit to help answer Muslims who are seeking spiritual truth, and to ask questions that provoke self-examination.
Twen had been a Christian for only 2 years when she was arrested and imprisoned in Eritrea at the age of 21. She had no idea she would spend the next 16 years locked away in the Eritrean prison system for choosing to follow Jesus. Over the years she suffered intense persecution, but by the grace of God, she survived violent beatings, isolation in scorching-hot shipping containers, deprivation of water and food, and even being thrown into a pit of poisonous snakes.There’s more of her story. Hear from her now on this episode of the VOM podcast as we had the privilege of speaking to Twen after she was released from prison.To get easy access to the VOM Australia podcasts, news, bible readings, and Heroic faith series on your phone, download the VOM App - https://cutt.ly/H3IdMiu
Iran is a country with a long history going back to the Old Testament. Oppression, frustration and a lack of hope have characterised life for many of its citizens since the establishment of an Islamic Republic in 1979. Christians, there have faced persecution for their faith but the church has continued to grow.This episode is from our sister mission Release International UK. Hear from Simon from Transform Iran. He speaks about life in Iran and about how God has been at work, even as his people have suffered. To know more about VOM ministry, visit: https://vom.com.au/
How can I share Christ with Muslims when I don’t know more about Islam? What if I can’t answer all their questions? What can I do to overcome my fear of sharing the gospel?Fouad Masri, founder and president of Crescent Project, answers these questions and more in his new book Sharing Jesus with Muslims: A Step-By-Step Guide (affiliate link). For more than 30 years, Masri has been training Christians how to share Jesus with Muslims. He says Muslims are more open today than ever to hearing the gospel, and many are actively searching for Christian books or information online.Yet many Christians are still fearful to reach out to Muslims. Fouad says his goal is to move believers from fear and fascination to compassion, and it is that passion that led to this new book.Fouad encourages us to pray for God to open the door for friendships and conversation with the Muslims we meet in our work, school or community. He says one of the first challenges is to learn to listen. Listen to what our Muslim friends are telling us and listen for God to open the door for a spiritual conversation. Listen as Fouad shares an example from his own life when he really didn’t want to have a deep conversation but realized the Lord had already been at work preparing his new friend to hear the gospel.He will also discuss Christian persecution of Muslim-background believers in the context of western nations. Do MBB’s face pressure and persecution in the United States as they do in Middle Eastern nations like Egypt, Saudi Arabia or Yemen?
Just before Covid shut down the Peoples Republic of China, Pastor Pan Yongguang and members of his congregation, known today as the Mayflower Church, made the difficult decision to leave their country. After 16 families from the congregation arrived in South Korea in 2019, relatives and other family members still in China faced increasing pressure from the communist government, especially when members of the church went public about the persecution they’d faced and their decision to leave China.Listen as Pastor Pan shares about his life before he became and believer, how he came to faith in Christ, and how the Lord raised him up to be the pastor of the church he was baptized in. Before Pastor Pan considered personally following Christ, he knew people in China must pay a price for being a Christian. He says, “That’s a special part of Chinese Christians. They know they have to pay a price.”The roots of the decision to leave China trace back to a day in 2018 when Pastor Pan had lunch with Pastor Wang Yi, who is now serving a nine-year sentence as a prisoner for Christ. Christian persecution was rising in China. Wang Yi knew he faced imprisonment for his faith; he challenged Pastor Pan to prepare himself to go to prison as well. Pan will share about the regular visits he received from police after Wang Yi’s arrest.Pastor Pan and his church members had a decision to make. Should they leave China, or should they stay? Many had good jobs in China, but they worried about raising their children in Godly truth amidst communist pressure and indoctrination. After a year of discussions, knowing each Sunday could be their last one together, they felt unified in the decision to leave China.Today, Pastor Pan and the Mayflower church are educating their children to follow Christ as they wait to receive refugee status from the United Nations and resettlement in a free nation. Pray for favor for them in the UN refugee application process. Pray also for family members still in China, who constantly face threats and intimidation.
Come with us to the Middle East as VOM Radio host, Todd Nettleton, and his wife, Char, share stories from a recent visit to persecuted Christians in the region. Listen as they share updates on Iraqi refugees who fled from ISIS more than five years ago and what the Lord is currently doing in the lives of persecuted Christians – even one who has only been a believer one week! You’ll hear about an Iranian woman who, in just two years as a believer, has planted almost 40 churches! She uses every opportunity to pray for others in Jesus’ name. When those prayers are answered, they instantly want to know more about the Lord she serves. Learn about Christians in the Middle East sacrificially staying with Muslim family members—in spite of persecution—in the hope of seeing their relatives know Christ. Listen also to hear about a service where former Muslims were baptized into new life in Christ—and the joy radiating from the new believers’ faces. As ISIS drove across the Nineveh plains, many Iraqi Christians fled to surrounding countries as refugees. More than five years later, many are still waiting for a new beginning in another country. They are unable to work, and their children can’t attend school. But the church is welcoming them—both Muslim and Christian refugees. VOM continues to partner with churches to help meet Christian refugees’ needs and encourage them in this discouraging season. Learn how you can pray for them and for the church in the Middle East.
Last week we heard Gary Witherall talk about how God called him and his wife, Bonnie, to evangelize Muslims in the Middle East. In this second part of our conversation, Gary describes the day Christian persecution hit home as his wife, Bonnie, was martyred in the clinic where she served Palestinian refugees in Lebanon.Gary talks about hearing God’s voice in that time of grief as he sat on the floor; in the next room was the body of his martyred wife. Faced with the choice of bitterness and hatred or forgiveness and love, Gary chose forgiveness. In that moment, Gary prayed, “Lord, you have forgiven me of all things. Today I forgive whoever killed my wife.” Gary calls that forgiveness the greatest gift he’s ever given anybody.Listen as he shares the responses of friends and neighbors when they saw that forgiveness in action; his wife had just been martyred for her faith yet Gary still loved the Lebanese people.You’ll also hear about how God has brought fruit from Gary and Bonnie’s sacrifice, and how God is still using Gary today to share His love around the world as he continues to serve with Operation Mobilization.
Gary Witherall and his wife, Bonnie, heard God’s call to share the gospel in the Middle East. They answered that call by moving to Lebanon, where they served with Operation Mobilization, building relationships with Lebanese people and Palestinian refugees—until the day Bonnie was martyred in the clinic where she served refugee women.Listen as Gary shares about how God called them to the Middle East, what their work there was like and how each day of their ministry was unique. Gary also explains how things changed on 9-11, when he and Bonnie witnessed people all around them celebrating the murder of more than 3,000 Americans.After the attacks, their life and ministry became more difficult, but they never considered leaving. In fact, it was after 9-11 that Gary and Bonnie determined they would stay and serve the Lord—no matter the cost. “I think we were martyred on that day,” Gary says. You’ll be challenged as Gary asks the question that persecuted Christians around the world must often ask: what do you love so much you’d be willing to die for it?“If life is a limited period of hours, I want to invest it well. And if it’s cut short, I want it to be cut short in the full joy of doing something worthwhile.”
The electricity was shut off in the homes of new Christians. Their rice fields were taken away. Some were beaten by local authorities—in front of loved ones who witnessed their suffering. Listen as Carter Gates shares about meeting these faithful believers, the first in their village to follow Christ. Carter leads VOM’s work in Asia/Pacific, overseeing VOM project work to help persecuted Christians in countries like China, Vietnam, Laos, Indonesia, Myanmar, and North Korea.Carter shares about a unique situation in Laos, where a pastor who was martyred last year. It’s unusual for a Christian to be killed in Laos, where persecution typically occurs at the hands of family members or village authorities. He’ll also tell the story of a pastor accused of putting a curse on a policeman. The policeman suspected a curse following a string of hardships he suffered after confiscating Bibles from the pastor and burning them.Listen as Carter gives an update on Christians in China after “Zero Covid” policies were finally dropped. As the Communist Party continues attempts to control the Chinese people, Party leaders understand that children are one key to maintaining their control. Carter shares the penalties our Christian brothers and sisters endure when they teach Biblical truth to young people—a crime in China.Pray for persecuted Christian family members in prison across the Asia/Pacific region. Pray they know the Lord is with them in their persecution, and that they would be strengthened and encouraged to stand firm despite fear and anxiety.
Today Hanna Massad, former pastor of Gaza Baptist Church, assists persecuted Christians and refugees across the Middle East.He knows what they are facing. He’s had his own first-hand experiences of Christian persecution, living and pastoring a church in a Muslim context. His wife led the Gaza Bible Society during a time when it was bombed twice. Their coworker and friend, Rami Ayyad, was kidnapped and murdered.In these difficult moments, Hanna and his family had to completely rely on God’s Word. When Gaza police told him they couldn’t protect his family, Hanna thought of Psalm 46:1, “The Lord is my refuge.” He and his family knew God could protect them, even if local authorities could not or would not.In the face of threats of further attacks, they decided to leave Gaza, at least temporarily. They planned to be away for a few weeks, long enough that the situation could settle down again. Instead, their departure became long-term.While the doors have never re-opened for the Massad family to return permanently to Gaza, that doesn’t mean their ministry in Gaza ceased. Massad, author of the book Pastor From Gaza (affiliate link), continues ministering to Christians in Gaza through the church, online connections, the Bible Society library and regular visits back to his homeland.Listen as he shares an update on the current ministry of Pauline Ayyad, Rami’s widow and a recent guest on VOM Oz Radio. He’ll also share what it means to be a true disciple and he’ll challenge every listener to keep our eyes on Jesus.
Pastor Hanna Massad served the Lord in the face of intense Christian persecution. He’s been threatened. The Bible Society where his wife worked was bombed. He buried a martyred coworker. Yet he calls it an honor and a privilege to serve the Lord in such circumstances.Hanna Massad is the former pastor of Gaza Baptist Church. His wife, Suhad, led the Bible Society in Gaza. He still gets emotional thinking back to the day when Rami Ayyad, who worked for the Bible Society, was kidnapped and later killed. Speaking of his martyred friend, Hanna says, “Rami had a wonderful heart, he loved the Lord, and his dedication to the Lord, his family, and the community are wonderful memories, despite the pain and suffering.”Listen as Hanna shares his own story of coming to faith in Christ, and how he faced pressure—even as a boy—for being identified as a Christian in Gaza. He says Christians in Gaza live “between two fires,” and explains some of the challenges of church ministry in such a setting.“Our faith will not be tested when everything is going fine.” Hanna explained. God allows us to go through the fire to reflect His love to those who don’t know Him.Last year we met Rami Ayyad’s widow, Pauline. Listen to Pauline Ayyad’s interview on VOM Radio to hear her journey from deep grief and anger to forgiving Rami’s persecutors.
Brother Harold served 15 years as a gospel worker among Muslims in Central Asia—where persecution of new Christian believers is common. For the past five years he has worked in the US to recruit, train and mobilize more workers into the world’s spiritual harvest fields. Harold reminds us that four out of every ten people around the world have never heard the name of Jesus. What are we, as Christians, doing to shrink that number? Harold reminds us that God’s Word clearly states that followers of Jesus are to be involved in the spreading of the gospel. He challenges every listener: Are you sending laborers into the harvest? Praying for the gospel to go out? Are you going?Harold will share a recent story where God allowed him to see the fruit of his family’s labor in Central Asia—but also reminds us that we won’t always see the fruit of our work, especially in the early years of gospel planting.He’ll also encourage listeners that they can reach unreached nations right here in the US through immigrant communities. He’ll share how he and his family have been able to bless Central Asian immigrants in their city—and how that has led to gospel opportunities. He says when Muslims come to faith in the US, it is almost always the result of encountering Christ’s love in His people.Listen as Harold suggests ways we can pray for more opportunities for the gospel, for our persecuted church family, and for current and future missionaries.
When Susanne Geske heard the answer to that question—that her husband, Tilmann, had been murdered along with two Turkish Christians, Necati Aydin and Ugur Yüksel—she was overwhelmed with shock. The Geskes had been in Turkey (now called Türkiye) for 10 years. It’s a Muslim country, and they knew there was some risk for Christians. But she never thought their family would be affected.The five murderers—ages 19 and 20—were arrested at the scene of the crime. Turkish media members rushed to Malatya to report on the “missionary massacre,” and they wanted to interview Susanne. She didn’t know what to say when they came to her door the day after her husband had been martyred.Praying, she asked, “Lord what should I say?”The Holy Spirit answered with the words of Christ on the cross: “Forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing.” Though Turkish media often paint Christians as an enemy, with the Lord’s help Susanne used this opportunity to share the gospel of forgiveness and the love of Jesus, the reason she could forgive men who killed her husband. Her living example of forgiveness was broadcast all over Turkey.Listen as Susanne shares how God has become a father to her children and looked after her needs in the 15 years since Tilmann was killed. She’ll also give an update on the killers’ trial, the search for justice and how her church family and neighbors enveloped her with prayers and love in the days after the murder.She says that in Turkey, and other Muslim nations, people are rejecting Islam and seeking hope and truth. Many Muslims are searching privately online to learn more about Jesus and Christianity. Pray for Christians in Turkey, for those who are seeking truth, and for Susanne and her family.
When terrorists invaded the church service and pointed guns at his head, the pastor could have said many things to his congregation. Led by the Holy Spirit, he told them simply, “Be at peace. Soon we will be with Jesus.” Instead of committing murder, the attackers put their guns down and left the church, leaving the pastor and his flock alive and well.This true story, from persecuted Christians on the Arabian Peninsula, is just one of those you’ll hear this week from Jonathan Ekman, VOM’s Vice President of International Ministry. Join the conversation as Jonathan looks back on VOM’s work in 2022 and looks ahead to challenges and opportunities for persecuted church ministry in 2023.Listen as Jonathan discusses regions where persecution is changing, and what the next year may look like for Christians in restricted and hostile nations. He’ll also suggest some less-well-known countries, such as Northern Mozambique, Malaysia and Brunei, where persecuted Christians need your prayer.Are there nations where VOM’s work is likely to change in 2023? Jonathan will talk about the spread of radical Islam across Africa, and what it means for churches and Christian leaders in Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Central African Republic and other African nations. He’ll also look at some of the many unknowns faced this year, including intensified Christian persecution in China and upcoming elections in Nigeria and India. Your prayer list will grow as you consider the persecution being faced by Christians around the globe.
The nation of China has been on the front pages of newspapers and the top of newscasts in recent weeks with widespread protests and a significant shift in the “zero covid” policy. But how will these developments—and the recent elevation of President Xi Jinping to what is essentially a permanent presidency—mean for our Christian brothers and sisters?Bob Fu, founder, and president of China Aid, will explain how Chinese Christians are affected by these things, and how they are responding. In Xi’s first 10 years in power, religious freedom has been under constant assault—including within China’s state-sanctioned, registered churches. Christians in China know there will be more persecution in the years to come. Our Christian family in China, both young and old, face the decision to either renounce faith in Jesus or have their future taken away from them. How are they preparing themselves, and especially young believers, to withstand that persecution?Listen for the story of one Chinese Christian woman in prison who said, “I only began loving the Lord when you arrested me.”Bob will also give listeners an update on two pastors in jail, Pastors Wang Yi and John Cao, and how they are continuing to serve the Lord and grow in faith—even through their incarceration. Pray for rulers and authorities in China, imprisoned believers, the millions of people in China, and for God’s Word to be available to those in this restricted nation.
If there was no spiritual power when believers gather together to worship Christ, then Christians in hostile and restricted nations wouldn’t be attacked. If their worship wasn’t a threat, why would enemies of the gospel try to prevent it?Jeremy Malkin, who oversees VOM’s international ministry work in west and central Africa, explains that animistic and Muslim communities’ sense that power of Christians gathering together, and they often respond with violence and persecution towards our brothers and sisters in Christ.Jeremy will share the story of one of our brothers in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Matendo, who was abducted by an armed group of Muslims targeting Christians. He was beaten and threatened for his witness, causing long-term damage to his body, yet he is praising God for miraculously sparing his life.As Christian persecution increases across Africa, there is great need for prayer and support for brothers and sisters who are being driven from their homes and seeing their churches destroyed. On one trip, Jeremy and his team met 300 believers at a church, all wanting to share their story. When Jeremy asked how many had family members who’d been killed by the Islamist rebels, almost everyone in the room raised their hands.Listen to hear an update on Christians in Niger, Nigeria, Togo, Burkina Faso, Benin and other African nations, and learn how you can be in prayer for the persecuted church there.
Under the brutal control of the Khmer Rouge, Cambodia became known for the killing fields where more than a million people were executed. But today, the country is a field ripe for gospel harvest!Garth and Caroline Gustafson, who lead the work of Youth With a Mission (YWAM) in Cambodia, see seeds being planted and gospel workers sent out to impact generations to come. From the mid 1960s to early 2000s, Cambodia experienced war and political turmoil, the legacy of which still impacts its people. But God is changing a country that was known for killing to be known for His life-giving power, and now for training and sending out workers to restricted nations all over southeast Asia—nations where Christian persecution is common.Garth and Caroline serve in a YWAM training center in Cambodia focused on training local leaders to serve in their own country and into surrounding nations. Listen to hear about their work, and about how God is opening doors to impact people around them—even Buddhist monks.Garth and Caroline will also describe how God led them to serve full time with YWAM and how they train gospel workers who may face persecution for their witness. Garth tells the story of a close friend’s time in jail for his Christian faith—and the surprising reason for his release!They will help listeners pray for Cambodia and describe how it boosts their faith to hear the stories of persecuted Christians and their faithfulness to Jesus.
What might God do if you made the commitment to pray every day for a specific country? What doors might He open to connect with the people and even walk in the land? Two decades ago, Peter Smith and his wife were challenged to “adopt a country” and specifically pray every day for God’s Spirit to move in that place. The country God laid on their hearts was the Islamic Republic of Iran, a place where Christian persecution is common and missionaries are banned. Listen to learn how Peter and his wife began to pray; hear how God opened the door for him to visit Iran, “to go on site to gain God’s insights” about the Iranian people and ways to pray for them. He will also share how his whole family has made a conscious effort to reach out to Persian people living in the United States—and found amazing openness to the gospel. Just as Jesus had compassion on the multitudes, we can ask God for that same heart of compassion towards those around us. As you listen to VOM Radio this week, you’ll be challenged to make the same decision Peter and his family made all those years ago: adopt a country and consistently pray for the people there and specifically for God to work in that nation. Who knows the doors God will open in your life to minister to the people you’re praying for?
Lawrence Tong wakes up each morning excited to pursue this goal: vibrant communities of Jesus followers among the least reached. As the International Director for Operation Mobilization, he oversees the ministry of 5000 gospel workers—including many serving in places where Christians face intense persecution, like Afghanistan, China, Iraq and India. Lawrence’s first taste of missions—and of the work of OM—came aboard a ship, docking at different ports to share the gospel and train up local Christians. Witnessing a spiritual fire among the young people on the boat, Lawrence committed two years to serving with OM. That commitment has now grown into more than 40 years of gospel work amongst the least reached! Listen as Lawrence shares about his six years of ministry work in China, and an update on the current challenges faced by persecuted Christians there. OM workers were able to return to Afghanistan and continue to serve Afghan people, even after the Taliban takeover. These bold believers understand the danger, but their commitment to Christ and the Great Commission is stronger than their fear. God is still calling people to go to dangerous places to share about Jesus. If you feel called to global gospel work, Lawrence will offer advice about how to think about, pray about and prepare for that calling. He’ll also equip listeners to pray for the persecuted church in Afghanistan, Nepal, and China to stay firm in faith, and help us pray for the work of OM around the world.
Malik knew the missionary was a kind man. He felt badly that this kind man was going to hell. Malik, a member of the Fulani tribe and the son of a Quranic scholar, decided he would convince the Christian missionary to become a Muslim, so that he could go to paradise.The missionary refused to convert, and told Malik that there were mistakes in the Quran. Malik set out to prove him wrong. He began to carefully study and compare the Bible with the Quran. Malik never did convince the missionary to accept Islam. Instead, Malik read through the Bible ten times, found truth in Jesus Christ, and made the decision to follow Him.It was not a decision his Fulani family would easily accept. Family members told Malik he had shamed the family, and that if he didn’t return to Islam within three days, they had the right to kill him. Malik says he was ready to die rather than renounce his new faith. Thankfully, his life was spared.Listen as Malik shares his amazing testimony, and talks about his work with Spirit of Martyrdom, who train pastors and evangelists to work in many parts of Africa. Part of that training is preparing new Christians to stand up under persecution. Malik will also share specific ways to pray for God’s work among the Fulani people in Nigeria and other nations of west Africa.To find out more about our ministry, please visit vom.com.au
210 million people in Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, and the Maldives have yet to hear who Jesus is. Almost all the major world religions — including Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam — compete for the hearts and minds of people in these countries. Christian persecution is a regular part of following Christ. Pastors have been martyred for their faith, believers beaten and imprisoned, missionaries expelled, and churches burned or bombed.Tim and Dawn are ministry workers in the region, helping guide gospel efforts and workers. Listen as they unpack what it looks like to follow Christ in South Asia, and how we can pray for gospel advance in the region.What has God put on your heart to do? Has he stirred up your heart for missions work in another country? Tim and Dawn say there’s a reason the Lord places a particular people group or place on your heart. They will share practical next steps to explore God’s leading into missions. To find out more about our ministry, please visit vom.com.au
Only 1.4% of people in Nepal are Christians. Hundreds of thousands of Nepali people live their entire lifetime without ever meeting anyone who follows Jesus. Hundreds of thousands of people in Sri Lanka (1.4% Christian), Bangladesh (0.4%), Bhutan (0.3%) and the Maldives (0.03%) also live and die without ever hearing the gospel message—or even the name of Jesus.God broke the hearts of Tim and Dawn for the lost people of South Asia. and called them to go and live in the region as ambassadors for Christ. Listen as they share their backgrounds, how that call came, and some of the challenges of adjusting to life and raising a family in South Asia.Tim and Dawn will also share how they witness for Christ in hostile and restricted nations where Christians are persecuted for speaking Biblical truth into peoples’ lives. To find out more about our ministry, please visit vom.com.au
The anxious mother in India had tried everything. Her son was very sick, and it seemed he would soon die. She’d been to the Hindu temples and made offerings to many Hindu gods. Nothing had worked. Her son only became sicker. Then, a travelling salesman suggested that she pray to Jesus. She did — and her son was healed! Amazed and awe-struck, the mother and son hunted down the salesman to find out more about this Jesus who answers prayers. Today, her son is a pastor and evangelist who’s travelled more than 65,000kms sharing the gospel. God is at work in hostile and restricted nations!That’s just one of the stories you’ll hear this week from David Witt, CEO of Spirit of Martyrdom and a former staff member at Voice of the Martyrs. David will share stories from his encounters with Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, VOM’s founders, and the “holy experience” of visiting one of the prison cells where Richard was held in communist Romania.David will also tell us how he became aware of and involved in ministry to persecuted Christians, and how God used the attacks of 9-11 to draw the attention of American Christians to radical Islam and the scriptural call to love our enemies.Today, the ministry David leads is training up church planters and leaders in multiple countries — with an eye on training that’s easily reproducible to other potential leaders. Listen as he shares how those being trained immediately put their learning into action, and how we can pray for these front-line workers.To find out more about our ministry, visit www.vom.com.au
Last week, Brother Max shared his testimony of seeking God through following Islam then, when he met Jesus, finding a peace he’d never experienced before. After finding that peace, Max wanted to tell everyone he knew, but he was not prepared for how his community would react with anger and persecution.
Max found it very natural to talk about Jesus with people who had known him before his salvation. They could see his life was drastically different, and they wanted an explanation. Brother Max was eager to share God’s Word with those who asked. He told them he’d found the ‘passport to heaven.’ But leaving Islam is not permitted, and his family and community persecuted him for his faith in Christ.
His father could see how Max’s life had changed for the better—but still urged him to return to Islam. Max explained, “If I take Jesus from my heart, I will become the old Max again.” He challenged his father to read the New Testament.
Persecuted first by those he knew, Max and his witness for Christ soon drew the attention of the government. He was arrested and interrogated by several police. It was a frightening experience; his legs shook with fear as the police questioned him and forced him to write a “confession” that would be used against him, dictating the words he was supposed to write.
Christians gathered outside the police station, praying for Max during the interrogation. The presence and prayers of his Christian brothers and sisters encouraged Max, and a holy boldness came over him. He turned the table on the police, asking them questions instead of answering theirs.
Listen as Brother Max shares how the Lord worked through that situation and later brought Max face to face with the one who prosecuted him—now a follower of Christ! He’ll also share about training new believers in Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Azerbaijan to withstand Christian persecution after they leave Islam to follow Jesus. “Our time is short,” he says, “so we should be ready to meet Jesus.”
Max will also equip listeners to pray for Christians in the region—including those facing persecution.
As a boy in Uzbekistan, Brother Max couldn’t imagine a God that cared about his life or had a plan for him.
Max's biological parents didn’t want him, and in his Islamic culture, he felt shame because he was adopted. He was consumed with the idea of getting revenge against his birth parents, who had abandoned him. Every day was dark. He felt hopeless, and prayed every night that he would not wake up the next morning.
When the Soviet Union collapsed, radical Muslim missionaries entered Uzbekistan to encourage young people raised under communism to pursue Islam. Max began training under an imam, learning the history of Islam and how to pray to Allah.
Those lessons, despite increasing his knowledge, never brought the peace he craved. Max had many questions about Islam. Why couldn’t Allah understand his native language? Did the Prophet Mohammed’s life match his teachings? Max was told to just accept the teachings, that his questions had no answers, and he should stop asking.
Max first learned about the God who loved him from a friend whose life had been changed. Max wrestled with this new idea. How could God love me if my biological parents didn’t? If God loves me, why didn’t he help me achieve all the goals I had for my future?
After wrestling spiritually for several months, Max came to fully trust Christ and seek forgiveness for his sin. Instantly, he felt different. He finally felt peace in his heart, and from that moment, his life changed completely.
Max started sharing his testimony with people who remembered how angry he had been before Christ, explaining that he was a new creation. He even forgave his biological parents. As a new Christian, Max wasn’t worried about Christian persecution; he simply wanted to share what Jesus had done for him.
Today, Max is serving the Lord with Global Teams, where he helps train others to evangelise to Muslims and plant churches in hostile and restricted nations.
To find out more about our ministry, please visit www.vom.com.au.
Dr Mike Fullingim felt the specific call to mission service while hearing a sermon from Jeremiah 5:19: “…you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.”
As he looks back, Mike can see that even as a young boy God was drawing his heart toward missions and people different from him. Twelve years after hearing that sermon, Mike and his family went as missionaries to Papua New Guinea.
Mike and his wife, Barbara, served eight years on the field, with a break between terms for him to pursue further linguistics education. In 1987, Mike was finishing his PhD in linguistics and anthropology. After completing his doctoral program, offers for teaching jobs flooded in. As he sought God’s will and considered his children’s educational needs, Mike took a one-year teaching job at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.
As he wrestled with what direction God was leading, Mike read a quote from Dwight L. Moody: “It’s better to train ten people than to do the work of ten people.”
Today, 35 years after signing that 'one-year contract', Mike is still training future missionaries at Oklahoma Wesleyan University. His former students — more than 200 — are serving today as gospel workers around the world, including hostile and restricted nations where Christians are persecuted. One of Mike's passions is helping students develop tools to learn language — a key factor in long-term fruitful service on the mission field.
Listen as Mike shares about his missionary calling, how he wrestled with the painful decision not to return to PNG, and how we can pray for missionaries currently serving around the world.
To find out more about our ministry, please visit www.vom.com.au.
It’s a Bible verse all of us have quoted, one we’ve likely shared with a Christian friend in the midst of a difficult season: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:28
After her husband Rami, a leader of the Bible Society in Gaza, was murdered, Pauline Ayyad wrestled deeply with this verse. What good would come of her husband being killed? What good could come from raising her two children—and the one about to be born—without their father? Pauline asked God why He even allowed her to marry Rami if he was chosen to die a martyr’s death?
When Rami decided to leave a good, safe job at a bank, Pauline questioned the decision. The couple went into ministry serving kids through Awana, and Rami at the Bible Society, in 2005. Rami had peace about the transition, and eventually Pauline also felt at peace. They settled into what became normal life. Rami faced repeated threats, but refused to be afraid.
“What can they do?” he asked. “The only thing they can do is kill me, and then it would be for Christ.”
Then one day Rami didn’t arrive home from work. The next morning, Pauline learned that her husband’s body had been found. Pauline struggled and questioned God. She did not want to forgive Rami’s killer. She wanted the murderer to pay for his crime.
Listen as Pauline shares how the Holy Spirit was at work, and the five-year journey that brought her to forgive her husband’s killer. She didn’t only quietly forgive in her heart, but posted a message of forgiveness on Facebook. That post has blessed many Christians and challenged many Muslims as it’s been read thousands of times—an incredible witness for the gospel and the power of God’s grace in the face of Christian persecution.
Pauline will also share specific prayer requests for her family and for the church in Israel, including Gaza and the West Bank.
People all over the world are searching for the truth. Longing for desires and needs to be fulfilled–not by food or entertainment but in a deeper, more lasting way. Brother Dan and Brother Hayel share God’s Word with Druze people, posting short videos on social media. They don’t know who is going to receive the gospel—or who is going to oppose their work—but they know that some will.
Last week Dan and Hayel shared about the hostility of the Druze community to Christians and the persecution Hayel has faced personally as a Druze-background believer in Christ. The high cost of following and proclaiming Christ is known to all who grow up in a Druze community. Many Druze are watching videos shared through Dan and Hayel’s social media ministry, but they fear what may happen if community leaders or even their families were to find out. Brother Dan shares one story about how he found out how closely people are watching their posts—both those interested and those opposed to their work—within five minutes of one post going live!
The spiritual battle in the Middle East continues. Druze voiceover actors involved in the gospel videos are threatened by community leaders. Despite push back and threats, God provides, and the video production is ongoing. And many Druze are watching, often in secret, seeking answers. They ask questions, opening the door for Hayel to further witness, disciple and encourage seekers across Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan.
As Druze people find Christ, it is often almost impossible for them to meet with other believers for worship and teaching. Pray with Dan and Hayel that Jesus will build His church among the Druze. Pray for walls to fall as the gospel saturates the hearts of many Druze, and that they will know Christ and make Him known.
“If you read the Bible, He can change you and God will be with you.”
Brother Hayel learned that truth first-hand when he started reading the Bible. In its pages, he knew he’d found the one true God. He couldn’t stop reading God’s Word, and hungrily opened it each day. Having found truth, Hayel couldn’t keep himself from sharing the Good News with his fellow Druze—even knowing he would be persecuted for doing so.
Hayel desires to see his people, the Druze, changed by the gospel. This people group includes about 1.5 million individuals across Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria; they are distinct ethnically and religiously from the Muslims and others around them.
Druze who choose to become Christians face intense persecution. Hayel was forbidden to share his Christian faith, but he refused to stop. He was forced from his home and ostracised, but he regards that sacrifice as nothing compared to knowing Jesus.
Today, Hayel is working with Brother Dan to share the gospel with Druze. Dan never planned on living in the Middle East. He was a businessman serving on his local church missions committee when God put Syria on his mind, even though he admits that deep down in his heart he had a hatred for Arabs and Muslims. Yet Dan chose obedience and ended up on a missions trip to Syria before the war there.
Through that experience and the people he met, God scrubbed Dan’s heart clean of hatred and gave him a passion to see people in the region reached for Christ — a passion so strong that he and his wife moved to the region.
Today, Hayel and Dan serve Druze people through social media ministry. They speak to the Druze in their homes and their heart language with the gospel —through their phones.
Listen as they share more about how God brought them together, how their hearts were transformed, and what their ministry to the Druze looks like. Join in prayer for God to open the hearts of the Druze people to receive the message of the gospel!
To find out more about our ministry, please visit www.vom.com.au.
Cade Jefferson was called to missions as a young adult. Soon after university, he went to one of the most restricted countries in the world: Afghanistan.
Despite difficult images he still remembers from the war-torn nation, etched in Cade’s heart are memories of fellowship with believers who welcomed Cade and his wife with warm hospitality.
After leaving Afghanistan, Cade went to North Africa to serve the Lord; service that turned out to be more difficult than he expected. Cade says he was at a very difficult point mentally and emotionally when God was merciful to open doors for him to serve with The Voice of the Martyrs.
Sean Paton, who was part of opening those doors, had been a pastor at the church that first sent Cade to the mission field many years before. Today, Cade has stepped into a leadership role overseeing VOM’s work serving persecuted Christians in North and East Africa.
Listen to hear the story of a young teenager in North Africa, Nathan, who exemplifies what often happens when a person there chooses to follow Christ. In North African culture, everything is tied to family. Family connections provide home, education opportunities, career openings and even daily needs like food.
When a Moroccan, Libyan, Tunisian, or Algerian person accepts Christ, that new Christian is cut off from those privileges. Yet brothers and sisters like Nathan persevere, in spite of persecution, because Jesus is everything to them.
Cade will also equip listeners to pray. Pray for front-line workers who live in North and East Africa to trust in the Lord to provide for the overwhelming needs of our brothers and sisters. Ask God to encourage and uplift their spiritual health, so they may flourish. Pray they will continue to reach out with the love of Christ to Muslims in their communities, in spite of difficulties.
To find out more about our ministry, please visit www.vom.com.au.
Muslims in the Middle East are hungry for the gospel! Jerry and Stacy, founders of Love for the Least, say they sometimes repeat the gospel message even after the person they’re witnessing to says they’re ready to accept Christ—just to be sure they understand the decision and the risk of persecution they face.
Last week, in the first part of our conversation with Jerry and Stacy, they shared how God drew them out of the American suburbs to minister in Africa, then called them to Iraq just as the ISIS caliphate was born. This week we’ll hear stories of how God is changing lives in Iraq, Iran, Syria and among Kurds throughout the region.
Jerry and Stacy are working to see healthy house churches multiplying along what they call “The Highway of Holiness,” where 35 million Muslims are still unreached by the gospel. Training local believers is 90% of their effort, using simple tools and practical, easy-to-learn ways to study the Bible and share God’s love.
What powers disciple-making movements, they say, is prayer and fasting. Listen as Jerry and Stacy share amazing ways God’s truth has spread from one individual to larger groups of believers and how He is using miracles to show His power and grow His church. You’ll also hear about a sister in Christ who has become known as “The Magic Prayer” in the prison where she is incarcerated for her ministry work—because other prisoners have seen that her prayers actually get answered.
Jerry and Stacy will also equip you to pray for persecuted Christians, gospel workers and believers throughout the Middle East.
“Jesus is here already; He’s just waiting for us.”
In 2014, just as ISIS was declaring an Islamic caliphate in Iraq and Syria, God called Jerry and Stacy to go to Iraq. “It was a clear word from the Lord,” Stacy says. Others—including their mission board—told them NOT to go, that it wasn’t safe or smart. But they obeyed God, landing in northern Iraq days later.
Years before, they’d answered God’s call to Tanzania—leaving behind an “American Dream” life to serve in east Africa, where they saw the overwhelming need of the people and learned how to focus on serving the person in front of them. The hospitality of the African people, despite their overwhelming needs, and the sweet sound of Swahili hymns struck a chord in the hearts of Jerry and Stacy.
Jerry and Stacy will challenge listeners to serve the Lord, not with busy work but with lives committed to prayer and fasting, seeking the Lord and His plan and will for each situation. Stacy, who had never read her Bible or finished a Bible study before moving to East Africa, reminds us that God qualifies those He calls. The couple saw God open doors for impactful ministry in Africa, and so they went to Iraq with complete trust in what He was going to do.
Founders of Love for the Least, Jerry and Stacy help refugees in Iraq and serve them through providing education and job training. They provide trauma care for girls sold into ISIS slavery, young widows and children who have witnessed the dark side of Islam.
When God called Dr. Leanna Cinquanta to serve as a missionary, she was a young woman fresh out of college. Then God specifically called her to a part of South Asia known as “the graveyard of missionaries.” He led her down a different path from most foreign gospel workers at the time; Leanna lived in a village drinking dirty water, sleeping on a grass mat, subsisting on lentils and rice and contracting the same diseases the local people endure.
As she lived through the hardships of village life, she was able to introduce people to a God greater and more powerful than the millions of gods in their Hindu faith: Jesus Christ. Leanna prayed for the sick and the demon possessed in His name, and she saw people healed and giving glory to the one true God. Listen as Leanna shares about how Jesus is reaching people in South Asia with displays of His power, and how Christians persevere in spite of persecution and hardship.
She’ll also advise American believers how to reach out to those we know with the gospel, including Hindus and Muslims, and equip you and your church to pray for more than a billion people who live in South Asia.
William Cameron Townsend said, "The greatest missionary is the Bible in the mother tongue. It needs no furlough and is never considered a foreigner." But what if the “mother tongue” is no longer easily understood? That can often be the case with the Bible in Israel.
Listen as Brother Victor, the director of Israel Bible Society shares what God has done through their organization’s effort to spread God’s Word. It can still be difficult to find complete Hebrew Bibles in Israel. And the majority of the population in Israel cannot easily understand the original Hebrew text, which is now 2700 years old. That’s why the Israel Bible Society has created resources to help Hebrew speakers understand the original text with explanations in today’s Hebrew language.
Sharing about Jesus or the Christian faith is often received negatively by Jews in Israel. Many think becoming a Christian means losing or even betraying their Jewish identity. But as more people in Israel choose to follow Christ, more Jews are acquainted with their own people who have believed in Christ as Messiah while keeping their Jewish roots.
Bible work in Israel is not without opposition, and Victor will share stories of challenges he and the Bible Society have faced. He will also encourage us to pray for God’s Word to go forth in Israel and for God to open hearts to the gospel and increase a hunger for His Word across the Holy Land.
Sean Paton enrolled in university to study pastoral ministry. But on the first day of his first class, the professor challenged students to think more broadly, to consider if God was calling them to take His love to people who hadn’t yet heard the name of Christ. Sean left class that day and changed his major to missions—and ever since he’s seen and lived a direct link between pastoral and missionary work.
In recent years Sean has led VOM’s work serving Christians on the continent of Africa. Now he’s transitioning back into a pastoral role with an American congregation. Listen as he shares some of the stories he’ll take with him—like the story of meeting the wife and children of a long-imprisoned Eritrean pastor and being inspired by their faithfulness. Sean will tell how persecuted Christians like these impacted his own faith and understanding of the gospel.
He will also encourage listeners to pray—with specific ideas on how to pray for VOM’s international staff that travel extensively and deal often with suffering and pain. Sean encourages pastors to incorporate our persecuted brothers and sister’s stories within their church services, such as during communion or prayer time, as weekly reminders that we are one body in Christ.
Born and raised in Israel, Dr. Erez Soref knew well many of the places mentioned in the Bible and prominent in the story of the life of Christ. But he didn’t know about Jesus! Traveling outside his country, he met a group of Christians. Through their witness and by reading the New Testament for the first time, Soref was convinced in his heart that Jesus Christ was the Messiah for all–Jews and Gentiles.
Returning to Israel, he was anxious to tell his family and others about his newfound faith. But when he did, he found that they weren’t nearly as excited about it as he was.
Listen as he explains the situation today for Christians in Israel—a democracy where religious freedom is protected by law, but also a place where many don’t want to see the gospel spread. What does it mean to follow Christ? What sacrifices must new believers make? What does persecution look like? Why is it easier to find a Quran printed in Hebrew than a New Testament? And how can Christians in other nations pray for and support Israeli believers?
Today, Dr. Soref is the president of One For Israel Bible College, which provides quality Biblical training to pastors and Christians leaders, as well as other Christians who want to deepen their Biblical understanding. He will share specific ways to pray for our brothers and sisters in Israel, including that they will continue to have open doors, legally, to share their faith.
For almost 20 years, Brother David was a gospel worker in Turkey—until he was deported from the country and told he’d been permanently banned from re-entry. His legal appeals to stay—to Turkey’s Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights—have, so far, failed.
In a holding cell, awaiting his final flight out of the country, David’s biggest disappointment was that he didn’t have cell mates with whom he could share Jesus!
David and his family are currently doing gospel work in Muslim neighbourhoods and on busy street corners in Germany. God continues to show why He brought David and his family to Europe through each ministry opportunity He sets before them. Living and working in a free country, David is shocked at busy street corners where no believers are taking advantage of their freedoms to witness to the lost. He challenges listeners to be more engaged in reaching the lost—wherever they are.
David will give an update on the situation for persecuted Christians in Turkey and help us pray for the many gospel workers who’ve been forced to leave the country, and for Turkish Christians still serving Christ there.
An imam (Muslim leader) in Bangladesh was reading the Quran when he came across the name of a person he didn’t know much about: Isa (Jesus). As a local mosque leader, he felt he should learn more about this person mentioned in the Quran, so he asked around his village for a book about Jesus. He was given a New Testament and began to read—and soon recognized that Isa is far more than a prophet. He’s the Son of God and the only way of salvation! But following Jesus can be dangerous in a place where Christians are persecuted, as this now-former imam learned.
That’s just one of the stories you’ll hear this week from Matthew Hanson, VOM’s regional leader for South and Central Asia.
Matthew will also share what Christians in India are facing in the face of a Hindu nationalist government and a nationwide network of radical Hindus infiltrating churches, persecuting pastors or instilling fear in the local people to persecute their own neighbors because of their faith. In spite of that persecution, though, he says Indian Christians—including children—are responding with grace and boldness to their persecutors.
You’ll also hear the story of a Nepali missionary working in a difficult place—and how God miraculously helped her learn the language in only six months!
Matthew will equip listeners to pray for our brothers and sisters in South Asia who are being disowned and threatened by family members because of the gospel. One Christian woman whose entire family rejected her said, “Jesus has given me life. He is real. He is the only God.” Pray believers in South Asia will continue to hold their confidence in Christ.
In 2021, as the US prepared to withdraw its military presence from the country, radical Islamist Taliban forces swept across Afghanistan. Many Christians—especially those publicly known to follow Jesus—needed to flee the country or risk immediate execution.
Charmaine Hedding, president of The Shai Fund, has worked to help persecuted believers around the world since 2014. When Christians needed help getting out of Afghanistan, she and a committed team quickly stepped forward to help. They arranged flights, helped Afghan Christians hide and get to the airport, and helped find nations willing to accept them as refugees. They worked around the clock to help Afghan believers.
Listen as Charmaine shares how she became involved in helping persecuted Christians, first-hand stories of the hardships Afghans faced, and God’s faithfulness to answer prayer amidst the chaos and upheaval of the Taliban takeover.
She will also share specific ways we can continue to pray for our Afghan brothers and sisters in Christ—both those still living in Afghanistan and those who have relocated to surrounding Islamic Nations.
Helen Berhane, worship leader and former prisoner in Eritrea, joined us last week to share the first part of her story: how she was persecuted for her faith and yet encouraged all believers to count the cost of following Christ. Helen is back this week for the second half of that conversation.
Thankfully, she had access to the Bible while imprisoned, and the Lord revealed new wisdom and understanding of Him to her as she read from Genesis to Revelations 15 times!
Her knowledge of Jesus increased, and the Holy Spirit gave her overwhelming love and forgiveness towards the ones persecuting her. Supernaturally, she knew when people were praying for her while she was in prison. Many letters were sent, from around the world, to encourage her in prison, and even though she was never able to read the letters, she knows they made a difference.
Helen Berhane was tortured then imprisoned in a metal shipping container in the African nation of Eritrea. But in spite of terrible persecution, she kept singing praises to God!
In 2002, the Eritrean government banned evangelical churches from holding public worship services – forcing Christians to meet illegally, in secret. Helen and other believers did not stop meeting, and it wasn’t long until she and many other persecuted Christians were imprisoned. Helen had intentionally prepared herself; she was ready to stand firm in her faith for Christ even in the face of the persecution she knew was coming. Everything, she says, has a price, including following Jesus.
Listen as Helen shares how she prepared for her trials and the Bible verses that encouraged her even as she was held in the harshest of prison conditions. God’s presence continued to strengthen her to deny herself, stay disciplined and even gain a better understanding of Jesus’ suffering.
Helen would cry – not because of the situation, but because of her experience of the unconditional love of God. And through it all, Helen chose joy and kept on singing. Instead of worshipping in the front of the church or in the spotlight, she worshipped simply in the presence of God.
Dr. Pam Arlund, Global Training and Research Leader for All Nations International, joins The Voice of the Martyrs Radio this week to share about John Chau’s mission to North Sentinel Island, where he was killed in 2018. Arlund was part of screening John for mission service and training him to go and serve.
As a teenager, John sensed God calling him to take the gospel to the Sentinelese people. For nine years, he prepared to go to the island, live among the people, learn their language and share Christ with them. John’s story and legacy are being commemorated this year on Day of the Christian Martyr.
Listen as Arlund shares her memories of John, including his hunger for training and knowledge and his in-depth preparation and planning for life on the island. She’ll also talk about the days after John’s murder, the extreme pressure All Nations leaders experienced from media and others, and the surprising response from some North American Christians.
Pam also shares how we can pray for North Sentinel Island and for God to raise up individuals willing to heed His call to missions and to take the gospel to the ends of the earth—even to places where Christian persecution is common.
The Bible promises Christians will be persecuted (John 15:18-20; II Timothy 3:12), yet most Christians in the United States and other Western nations have not experienced persecution for their faith. But what if that’s changing? How should Christians in free nations prepare for possible future persecution?
VOM Radio host, Todd Nettleton, shares specific lessons from Christians who have already faced persecution and victoriously endured. Todd will also share how followers of Christ in free nations can put these lessons into practice in our own spiritual walk, starting right now.
Listen also for the blessings found in the midst of suffering for Christ and ways God uses persecution to grow and strengthen His church.
“Benesh” has been a believer in Christ less than five years, but in that short time she’s already planted more than 30 house churches in The Islamic Republic of Iran!
Benesh grew up in a Muslim home, but over time she began to question many aspects of Islamic teaching. As a teenager, she overheard some women talking about the fact that Christian women—without the oppressive restrictions of Islam—were more free than Muslim women. Benesh was curious to know more about Christianity and the peace and love Jesus offers.
While she was in college, Benesh’s father became very sick. Her mother prayed repeatedly to Allah to heal him, but it didn’t work. Her father died. Shortly after, her mother died also. Her grief at the loss of her parents pushed Benesh further to seek answers about Christ. First, she looked on the Internet. When she moved to a bigger city for employment, a co-worker there invited her to a church meeting. Experiencing Christian worship and fellowship for the first time, she knew Jesus wanted her to put her faith and trust in Him.
In spite of her parents’ death Benesh had peace from God, which shocked her sister and other family members. Many were curious why she was different, which gave her open doors to share Jesus. At first, Benesh feared what her family or others would say or do if she shared Christ with them, but she quickly overcame that fear when she realized how hungry Iranians are for the truth.
Sharing your faith can be a dangerous task in Islamic countries, but Benesh was so focused on sharing the joy she’d found in Christ that she almost forgot about the threat of the Islamic regime! Listen as Benesh shares how we can pray for her ministry, for the Iranian regime, and for bold witnesses for Christ in the Middle East—and as she challenges every Christian to tell others about Jesus.
As a missionary kid, Brother John was raised by parents focused on bringing glory to God’s Kingdom. His father taught theology in the Bahamas and eventually moved the family to an unreached area –British Guiana – so people there could know that true freedom is only in Jesus. As a grown man, John took his own family to serve among Muslims.
Brother John is now the Vice President of Global Engagement for the International Mission Board, helping send missionaries and plant churches all over the world, with a special focus on unreached peoples and areas.
Listen as Brother John shares the story of Dr. Martha Myers and other Christians who served in Yemen before being martyred for their faith in Christ. Yet even in that loss and heartache, the Lord moved to further His Word. With an emphasis on the authority of scripture in missions work, Brother John loves distributing audio Bibles since many unreached people are illiterate or prefer listening to the scriptures rather than reading. He’ll also tell of hearts transformed in the deaf community as they reach out with God’s Word.
More than 90% of the IMB efforts are focused on reaching the unreached for Christ. Pray unreached peoples will encounter the gospel and that the Lord would open doors in restricted nations for Bibles to be distributed.
With a heart to share the gospel, Kenneth Charles has experienced the different forms of persecution Christians in Pakistan face. Kenneth experienced the reality of being persecuted for Christ even as a young boy. He first learned of The Voice of the Martyrs through Tortured for Christ; the book was translated into Urdu by Kenneth’s brother.
Growing up in a Christian family living in an Islamic context, Kenneth knew persecution would come. When he was a young boy, a peer attacked him with a knife. He still bears the scar.
Kenneth came to know Christ through a miraculous healing; a pastor then helped deepen his understanding of Biblical truth. The very next day, Kenneth was accompanying that pastor in ministry – sharing the gospel in villages around the country.
Now, through God’s Vision Ministries, which he founded, Kenneth is distributing audio Bibles in the Urdu language, conducting street ministry, and giving seminary training to church leaders throughout Pakistan—and even in other nations. Listen as Kenneth discusses the great need for leadership training in Pakistan and equipping believers there to answer questions from their Muslim neighbors—many of whom are curious about Christianity.
Throughout the Middle East, Muslims are surrendering their lives to Christ—in spite of family pressure and overt persecution. VOM’s Middle East regional leader, Aaron Miller, shares stories from the region, and how we can pray for Christian brothers and sisters there.
Join as Aaron discusses the situation for church planting in Turkey and the persecution in a place where being Muslim is seen as part of one’s national identity. You’ll also hear about a young husband who was training to be an Imam, qualified to teach the Quran, but has become a devoted follower of Christ. Facing persecution from their family, he and his wife have found a new family through fellow believers.
Aaron will also share the intensity of persecution in Iraq, where lawlessness runs rampant. He will equip us to pray for the believers there. There are many individual cases of persecution—often coming from one’s own family. Aaron shares the heartbreaking story of a young daughter persecuted by her own father—all to punish her mother for leaving Islam to follow Jesus.
Aaron reminds us that as God’s Kingdom advances, the enemy will fight back. Yet we see God’s kingdom prevailing and spreading throughout the Middle East.
Pray for these dear families and churches living for Christ in spite of the cost. Pray for gospel workers in the region, and for VOM international ministry staff, that they would be renewed in their faith as they see and hear stories of persecution and seek to encourage believers living through it.
Joe and Dawn are back on VOM Radio share what the Lord has been doing through their discipleship training and Bible smuggling ministry in the Middle East. They will also share how God opened a new door to ministry among women trapped in prostitution.
Joe and Dawn are involved in Bible delivery to persecuted Christians in Iran. Believers targeted by the Iranian regime face the challenging choice to flee the country or stay, knowing they could be imprisoned for their faith. A Christian sister has recently begun a two-year prison sentence, yet she reported to prison excited about the ministry opportunities God had prepared for her in prison.
In spite of so much Christian persecution, thousands of Iranians are choosing to follow Christ. Joe says that for many of them, “Islam is getting old.” It is exciting for Joe and Dawn to be involved in the great harvest of church growth happening among people of the Middle East.
There are also burdens Joe and Dawn carry as they labour in this ministry work. Listen to hear how they choose to give their anxieties to the Lord each day, and how they think about raising their children in a “dangerous” part of the world. They will share some of the key lessons they want their children to notice in their lives and in God’s work around them.
Last time they visited VOM Radio, Joe shared his testimony of how he met Jesus as a prisoner through God’s Word, and how his life was completely changed. Listen here as he tells how God transformed him from a prisoner and criminal into a committed follower of Christ.
Joe and Dawn will also encourage you to pray for open doors to deliver Bibles across all parts of Iran, and for their family during a season of rest and Sabbath with the Lord.
Muslims around the world are commemorating the holiest month on the Islamic calendar: Ramadan. Muslims fast from sunup to sundown as a way to dedicate themselves to Allah and earn his approval. It is a strategic time for Christians to pray fervently for the Holy Spirit to reveal Jesus and the truth of the gospel during Muslims’ heightened spiritual interest.
Listen as guests explain the significance of Ramadan, then lead in praying for Muslims to encounter Christ during this month. They will also help listeners pray for persecuted Christians serving amongst Muslims. Our guests, who work in Muslim nations and among Muslims, will provide specific ways we can pray during this Ramadan month and especially the “Night of Power.”
Set a reminder to pray each day during this pivotal time for the Holy Spirit to reveal Christ to Muslims during Ramadan--through dreams and visions, a Christian friend, a Bible, gospel broadcast, social media post or in some other way.
Guests leading us in prayer include:
Susanna Koh, the wife of kidnapped Pastor Raymond Koh, from Malaysia.
“Soher” from Yemen
Tom Doyle, Uncharted Ministries
JoAnn Doyle, Not Forgotten Ministries
Mehrdad Fatehi, PARS Theological Centre
“Shawki” from Bahrain
Lucy, Global Catalytic Ministries
Amir Bazmjou, Torch Ministries
Dick Brogden, Live Dead Ministries
David from Egypt
Mike Ansari, Heart 4 Iran Ministries
Hormoz Shariat, Iran Alive Ministries
After serving as a gospel worker in western China for ten years, Dr. Pam Arlund now serves on the International Leadership Team for All Nations International, training and sending the next generation of missionaries. God called her to the unreached in China through examples of great missionaries like Hudson Taylor and Robert Morrison. Pam had never left the U.S. before she moved to China. She trusted the Lord would protect her and guide her in building relationships with local people. Like many missionaries, she went through different emotions and difficulties. Yet, her obedience in difficult seasons allowed her to develop a deeper relationship with Jesus.
Listen as Pam shares some of her experience on the field, and how that influenced the way she trains gospel workers today. She will also introduce her new book, Stick Figures Save the World, which explains how simple drawings can help anyone be a witness for Christ.
Pam will also talk about the responsibility of sending missionaries to hard and dangerous places—places where Christian persecution is intense. Finally, Pam shares how we can pray for missionaries we know and encourage them as they persevere in the Lord’s call on their life.
Last year the world witnessed thousands of Afghans fleeing their country as the Taliban took control of Afghanistan. This week John Weaver, who lived for years in Afghanistan and speaks daily with people still inside the country, shares what is happening now under the Taliban government—especially with regard to our Christian brothers and sisters.
Although many Afghans fled, many have stayed—including Afghan believers in Jesus. Everyone in Afghanistan is dealing with a disrupted economy, with some losing jobs, and others losing family and friends and all dealing with lack of available resources. Amidst Islamist oppression, there are opportunities for Christians to serve and be a witness. The church is underground, a persecuted minority, meeting in small groups yet still quietly finding ways to share the gospel.
Afghans are also being reached in the countries to which they have fled—including via social media. Refugees have gone through trauma and stress. Yet, they have been welcomed into other countries—often more welcomed by Christians than fellow Muslims, which gives new opportunities to share the gospel.
John will share stories of prayers that have been answered since the Taliban takeover—and give listeners current needs to lift in prayer on behalf of Afghan Christians—our brothers and sisters in faith.
Soner Tufan says many Muslims in Turkey no longer believe Islam can answer the needs of their heart—or their country. Soner leads Radio Shema, broadcasting the gospel message, encouraging persecuted Christians and reaching curious Muslims all over Turkey.
And God is multiplying the reach of His message. During Covid quarantine, Radio Shema used digital platforms like Instagram to reach millions of people, seeing ten times more feedback from listeners and twenty times more responses from people coming to faith!
Soner also shares memories of his three friends, martyred 15 years ago this month in the offices of a Christian publishing house in the city of Malatya. Soon after the killings, four teenagers came to the radio station where one threatened Soner: “If you say anything, I will kill you.”
Soner will also help us pray for Christians in Turkey, and for the ministry of Radio Shema. Pray for protection and courage for Christians in Turkey as they face strong opposition. Pray for effective discipleship to raise up more pastors and leaders for the persecuted church, and pray many more Muslims in Turkey will hear the gospel.
Soner is also praying for more radio stations—he estimates that 95% of the people in Turkey have not yet heard the gospel message. Last week, Soner shared how he came to faith in Christ after growing up Muslim, the opposition from his family and friends, and how the ministry of Radio Shema came to be.
“I’m proud of being Turkish and, at the same time, I am a follower of Jesus Christ.”
Soner Tufan’s words may not seem remarkable to people in Western nations. But in Turkey, where people consider being Muslim an inherent part of their identity and culture, his words immediately capture attention. Radio Shema, the ministry Soner leads, is broadcasting the gospel message all over Turkey, along with the testimony that a person can be a patriotic Turk and also a follower of Jesus.
His message is being received—by Turks curious about Jesus and by those opposed to the gospel. Soner received a 14-page threat letter from ISIS. He’s lived under 24-hour police protection. He says more threats come every week. But he’s seen the Turkish church grow from a handful of believers to thousands, and he refuses to turn away from the work God has called him to.
Soner became a Christian in 1985 through the witness of his Taekwondo instructor. At that time, there were perhaps fifty Christians in Turkey. Today, there are 7,000, and one of the key ways God is reaching Turks is through radio and TV broadcasting. Listen as Soner shares how God opened the door for Christian radio broadcasts in an Islamic nation—even while constructing a church building was impossible!
Soner will share more details of his life as a Christian, the amazing transformation of his brother—who persecuted Soner when he became a Christian—turning to Jesus, and how God has made the impossible happen with Radio Shema in Turkey.
Tony Benjamin traveled to meet persecuted Christians long before he was the president of a ministry serving such believers. In fact, he wasn’t even an employee when he joined a mission’s trip to Vietnam. But meeting and ministering alongside persecuted Christians there left a permanent mark on Tony’s life and faith—and today he leads The Voice of the Martyrs Australia.
Tony says more and more Christians in Australia desire to be part of “the fellowship of Christ’s suffering,” and the ministry is growing dramatically each year. He and the staff are finding ways to speak directly to Australia’s Christians—including airing VOM Radio broadcasts. They also are reaching outside Australia’s borders and inviting Christians across the South Pacific into fellowship with persecuted believers.
Listen as Tony shares about witnessing the start of a flourishing ministry in Egypt that today reaches Muslims all over the Middle East and North Africa. As the difficulties Christians face intensify, Tony encourages each of us to enhance our relationship with God, the ultimate source of our strength. Tony will also equip listeners to pray for VOM Australia and its ongoing work to serve and bless persecuted Christians.
Merv Knight, the co-founder of VOM Australia, has previously been a guest on VOM Radio, including remarks he shared on his retirement from the board of VOM-USA and memories of serving with Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, the founders of The Voice of the Martyrs.
Carter Gates leads VOM’s work in the Asia Pacific Region. This week he shares how he came to be involved in ministry, some travel and ministry experiences, and updates on the persecution of Christians in China, Myanmar, and Vietnam. Carter’s first spark of interest in missions came after reading a VOM book, Jesus Freaks, where he first read about Christians being persecuted for their faith. The stories, including one from North Korea, stirred in him a passion to know more about what his brothers and sisters in Christ are facing.
Carter joined YWAM as a sophomore in college, and what he thought would be a few months of service turned into seven years ministering throughout East Asia!
China continues to enforce drastic religious restrictions, including expelling many Christian foreigners, some of whom have lived and worked in China for decades. Local believers say they are ready to take the lead and continue God’s work—even as they face suffering and persecution. Carter will also discuss restrictions and persecution in Myanmar and Vietnam, including how Covid has affected ministry and travel in the past two years.
Carter will also share an opportunity VOM workers had to help Christians obtain ground to bury their dead—something that’s been a blessing to Christians and a powerful testimony to Buddhists living in the surrounding area.
Listen this week as we share Part 2 of Silas’s story. He will tell of the darkest moments in his life, suffering intense persecution for his Christian faith. Silas and his family continued in obedience to Christ despite threats from the KGB. Silas’s refusal to bow to their agenda angered them.
Silas was arrested and tortured in ways that, as a lawyer, he found unbelievable. He says his doubts, shame, and moments of weakness reminded him to lean into God’s power. By remembering the suffering of Christ, Silas was overwhelmed with comfort.
As Silas trusted the Lord in his suffering, he saw God working on the hearts of others—including his torturers! The head KGB officer who tortured Silas and his Christian friend later asked Silas’s forgiveness and prayer for his family. He was even welcomed into the home of one of the Christians he’d tortured.
Today Silas is involved in ministry through radio/TV broadcasting and various internet platforms to share the gospel in the Turkmen language, knowing how it impacted him to see on film Jesus speaking his own language. Pray for the good news to continue to spread throughout Turkmenistan and to Turkmen people all over the world!
Brother Silas, raised in the former Soviet republic of Turkmenistan, says that as a young man he was an atheist in his head but a Muslim in his heart. When a family member shared his faith in Jesus Christ, Silas angrily rejected such talk. In his mind, Christianity was foreign to the Turkmen people, the faith of the invading Russians.
Yet, as Silas heard the stories and teachings of Jesus, he found himself attracted by who Jesus is. Through a VHS copy of the Jesus Film in the Turkmen language and the divine opportunity to watch it, Silas committed his life to following Christ. Listen as Silas shares how hearing Jesus speak in Turkmen, his own heart’s tongue, made the gospel real and personal to him.
Immediately, Silas experienced overwhelming joy and peace. All his questions had been answered. He began to share Christ with others in his village. But as his obedient actions for Christ became known, Silas got his first taste of Christian persecution.
Government agents, focused on keeping control of Turkmenistan’s people, raided church meetings and even Silas’s home. Be sure to listen next week to hear part two of Silas’s testimony and the intense persecution he faced.
Across the Middle East, Muslims have questions about their faith. But Islamic teaching doesn’t encourage or allow such questions. As a young man in Morocco, Brother Rachid had questions also; he found answers through a Christian radio broadcast and chose to follow Christ.
Today he hosts an Arabic-language TV program airing all over the Middle East. On the first broadcast, he asked Muslims to call in with questions about Islam and Christianity. In the first half hour of the program more than 800 people called with questions!
Listen to hear how Rachid learned to see outside his own worldview and break down Islamic ideologies he was taught. Over time, his actions and ideas changed; others noticed that his entire life had been transformed.
Persecution came swiftly. When his family found out he was a Christian, they kicked him out of the house. Rachid connected with other Christians, which gave him joy and excitement knowing he had a new family, but also fear he could be imprisoned or persecuted for his faith.
Rachid will advise how we can help Muslim friends find answers to their questions in Christ. Pray for breakthroughs in the hearts of Muslims as the gospel is shared through TV and radio broadcasts all over the Middle East.
Among tribal groups in East Asia, new believers in Christ can be forcibly removed from their homes and villages. Animistic tribesmen desire to please and appease the spirits they worship; those who come to faith in Jesus are seen as angering the spirits. However, those who follow Jesus are part of a new community as brothers and sisters come alongside to encourage one another amidst persecution.
Matt and Linda are working with people from one of these tribes. They’ll explain how the gospel is spreading and what Christian persecution looks like in that setting.
Linda helps run a Sunday school program which is serving children from believing and unbelieving homes alike. Even parents who don’t know Christ are encouraging their kids to go! Listen as Matt and Linda share the importance of teaching Bible stories in these tribal communities, and how younger generations point their parents toward the Lord. As villagers see the power of God and His love for them, hearts are touched and transformed.
Pray for gospel workers in tribal communities in Asia, and for the safe distribution of God’s Word into hostile areas and restricted nations in the region.
Ten or 20 years ago, persecution of Christians in China varied greatly across China’s 31 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions. Bob Fu—a former teacher at the Communist Party School in Beijing and prisoner for Christ in China—says things are much different today. Chinese Christian persecution is driven by the national government in Beijing; every province is expected to control religious expression.
Fu is the Founder and President of China Aid Association and author of God’s Double Agent. Listen as he shares how the communist government has cracked down on Christians in recent years and how Christians have suffered ahead of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games.
Bob says persecution of Christians in China today is the worst it’s been since the 1960s and 70s Cultural Revolution. Xi Jinping and other officials are increasing efforts to imprison and detain unregistered church leaders and members—but leaders in state-sanctioned TSPM churches are also persecuted.
Communist ideology is also enforced through digital surveillance. Every Chinese person is required to install a “health app” on their phone, and surveillance cameras throughout the country monitor movement. Online meetings with any religious purpose are now required to register and be approved by provincial authorities, and Bible apps have been forbidden.
As the eyes of the world turn toward China during the Games, join Christians around the world to pray for Chinese Christians—and for their persecutors.
As a young adult, John sensed the call to surrender his life to bring glory to God and reach Tibetan Buddhists in the Himalayan region for Christ. Listen as John shares how he started in full-time ministry among Tibetan people, their culture, and encouraging stories of persecuted Christians in the region.
Tibetan Buddhists’ beliefs often mix traditional Buddhism with existing shamanistic beliefs of the region. In tightly knit communities, those who come to faith in Jesus face persecution from families and the broader community.
John connects established Tibetan Christians with new believers to share their experiences of persecution and faith, preparing the new believers for what may come. Listen as John shares encouraging stories of young people finding hope in Jesus.
Come with us to the Middle East as VOM Radio host, Todd Nettleton, and his wife, Char, share stories from a recent visit to persecuted Christians in the region. Listen as they share updates on Iraqi refugees who fled from ISIS more than five years ago and what the Lord is currently doing in the lives of persecuted Christians – even one who has only been a believer one week!
You’ll hear about an Iranian woman who, in just two years as a believer, has planted almost 40 churches! She uses every opportunity to pray for others in Jesus’ name. When those prayers are answered, they instantly want to know more about the Lord she serves.
Learn about Christians in the Middle East sacrificially staying with Muslim family members—in spite of persecution—in the hope of seeing their relatives know Christ. Listen also to hear about a service where former Muslims were baptized into new life in Christ—and the joy radiating from the new believers’ faces.
As ISIS drove across the Nineveh plains, many Iraqi Christians fled to surrounding countries as refugees. More than five years later, many are still waiting for a new beginning in another country. They are unable to work, and their children can’t attend school. But the church is welcoming them—both Muslim and Christian refugees. VOM continues to partner with churches to help meet Christian refugees’ needs and encourage them in this discouraging season. Learn how you can pray for them and for the church in the Middle East.
Across Africa, the church is undergoing attacks on its members and their meeting places. Yet despite the destruction, our Christian brothers and sisters exhibit an overwhelming joy in Christ.
Sean Paton and Jeremy Malkin continue the conversation from last week on VOM’s efforts to help our persecuted brothers in Burkina Faso, Benin, Sudan, and Mozambique. Listen as Jeremy and Sean share how Christians are responding to the persecution in these regions—and share encouraging stories of God’s work in Africa during the past year.
Animistic ideology and belief in the spirits of their ancestors is prevalent in Benin. Christianity is often seen as destroying that culture. New believers are rejecting the rituals and practices of animism and holding fast to their faith in Christ, and therefore being targeted.
In Burkina Faso, thirteen churches were destroyed within a week last year by mobs who wanted to rid the area of Christianity. Yet our brothers and sisters gathered to worship the Lord amidst the destruction because of their hope in Him. Listen as Jeremy shares their stories and how we can pray for them.
In Mozambique, there has been horrific persecution of Christians by Islamic extremist groups who have pledged allegiance to ISIS. This has forced many Christians to flee and VOM is helping to meet physical needs and spiritual hunger for God’s Word. In Sudan, political tension continues to grow, which has given a window to provide spiritual encouragement and support to Christians through Bibles and other evangelistic resources.
Pray for our brothers and sisters to be bold and courageous for Christ in Africa as they face animistic and Islamist persecution, and to be reminded that what men intend for evil, God can use for good
Across Africa, instability and the growing influence of radical Islamist ideology mean more persecution for our Christian brothers and sisters.
Sean Paton and Jeremy Malkin oversee VOM’s efforts to serve persecuted Christians across Africa. Listen as they share updates on how Christians are responding—especially in the Central African Republic and Ethiopia.
Thousands of Christians have been displaced in CAR by a civil war in which Christians have at times found themselves specifically targeted and at other times been caught in the crossfire between different factions. Listen as Jeremy gives an update on their situation, tells of meeting them first hand and describes specific ways we can pray for them.
Ethiopia has also experienced upheaval in the past year, which provided cover for targeting Christians by those opposed to the gospel in the region. Sean will tell us what Christians there are facing, and give ways to pray.
Jonathan Ekman leads The Voice of the Martyrs’ international work, overseeing a team serving persecuted Christians in more than 70 nations around the world.
As we look back on VOM’s international efforts in 2021, listen to hear how God used Covid-19 to facilitate delivery of 50,000 Bibles into an extremely closed nation, how persecution has increased in Africa and how God may use the Taliban to further the gospel advance in Afghanistan.
Jonathan will also talk about what Christmas looks like in hostile and restricted nations, and encourage us with specific ways that we can pray for our persecuted family members.
Brother ‘Joshua’ is a church leader in Cuba. He says for Christians on the island, persecution is expected. Police regularly call Joshua in for interrogation; every time they call, he feels intimidation and fear about what might happen. However, as the questioning begins, he says he can feel God’s presence and God’s provision of an answer for each question. As he senses God’s power taking over, he says his fear shrinks and disappears.
Joshua will give an update on the persecution of the church in Cuba, including one church which recently had its building demolished by the government. Have things changed for the church since the death of Fidel Castro? How difficult is it for Christians to obtain Bibles? How do pastors deal with the knowledge that every time they preach, government spies are present to watch, listen and cause problems?
As a college student in San Francisco, Brother Kevin explored many avenues of spirituality, including pursuing Zen Buddhism and Transcendental Meditation. But an experience of darkness caused him to call out for Jesus, and Christ revealed himself to Kevin as both real and powerful.
Since that day, Kevin has wanted to tell people about Jesus, including Muslims, Hindus and people of other faiths. Today he helps lead YWAM Frontier Missions, sending workers to share the gospel in places where Jesus’ name is completely unknown.
It’s not an easy work. Kevin will share stories of gospel workers he’s sent out who have been arrested, beaten, kidnapped and even killed. Kevin says he’s seen blessing come out of even very difficult circumstances—and he’s thankful for the unique role that VOM plays in helping Christians enduring persecution.
He will also share how he prays on certain days each week for Muslims and Hindus to come to Christ.
Cheng Jie, whose English name is “Esther,” was the wife of a pastor in China. She and her husband had discussed the idea that he could be arrested and go to prison for his Christian work. They hadn’t believed that she would be targeted by the communist government. But in 2014 she was called to the police station for a “meeting” about the school Esther was running. The meeting with police turned into Esther’s arrest and two years in a Chinese prison.
At the time of her arrest, Esther’s sons were aged 3 and 1. Listen to her share how they were affected by her arrest and imprisonment—and even the challenges after she was released and returned home.
She’ll also talk about how God enabled her to have a ministry in the prison—and even the prison guards saw the difference her ministry made.
Listen to hear her speak directly to those that prayed for her and wrote letters to her while she was in prison and advise how we can pray for Christians in prison today.
“Pastor Chitria” has been arrested multiple times for his ministry work in Nepal. He says such treatment is an honor and a privilege!
Pastor Chitria talks about preparing believers to stand strong in the face of Christian persecution. He says new Christians preparing for baptism must answer seven questions, including whether they are willing to lose their family, friends and even their freedom to stand for Christ.
Hindus believe there are more than 330 million gods—yet radical Hindus in Nepal see Jesus as a great threat to their life and culture. Pastor Chitria shares one unique challenge Nepali Christians face when one of their fellow believers dies, and how it is used to pressure new believers to renounce their faith in Christ.
On December 5, 2013, Ronnie Smith was shot and killed in the Libyan city of Benghazi. In this second half of our interview with Anita Smith, Ronnie’s widow, she talks about the legacy her husband left and the faith she continues to exercise in raising their son without his earthly father around.
Shortly after Ronnie’s death, Anita spoke in media interviews about her love for the Libyan people and about forgiving her husband’s murderers—including interviews in Arabic with Middle East broadcasters.
Anita will share some of the things she wants their son to know about his earthly father, and ways God has encouraged and sustained her in the eight years since Ronnie’s murder. She’ll also talk about how the testimonies of other Christians facing persecution and hardship encouraged her faith.
On December 5, 2013, Ronnie Smith was shot and killed in the Libyan city of Benghazi. Within days, Ronnie’s wife, Anita, spoke on national TV in the US about her love for the Libyan people and about forgiving her husband’s murderers. She also did interviews—in Arabic—that were broadcast all over the Middle East.
Listen to Anita Smith share the story—the story of her grief, but also the story of how God was present in those days, and in the years since.
She’ll talk about how God inspired her and Ronnie to pursue overseas gospel work—and how they prayed as they moved to Benghazi just months after the US consulate was overrun by Islamist fighters. She’ll tell how their neighbours welcomed and adopted them—and about the day she received the terrible phone call that Ronnie had been killed.
Listen next week for Part 2 of our conversation with Anita Smith.
Aaron Miller leads VOM’s work in the Middle East. Recently he spoke in a college chapel, including telling the story of an experience of persecution he endured in India.
Aaron says even though the Bible promises Christians will face persecution, in that moment of suffering as he was punched and kicked he was surprised. But something else happened as well: he experienced God’s presence and grace in a significant and sacred way.
“In a way that I never dreamed of, I had a fellowship with Christ that I did not have before,” he says of that day.
Aaron also shares stories of persecuted Christians in Colombia, Bangladesh and the Middle East.
Join us this week for a podcast concert of prayer on behalf of persecuted Christians around the world in commemoration of the International Day of Prayer for Persecuted Christians (IDOP).
Leaders from among VOM’s international ministry regions will talk about specific prayer needs in their region of the world, then lead in prayer for persecuted brothers and sisters in those regions. Author John Weaver will lead a special time of prayer for Afghanistan and Christians there in light of the upheaval and transition that took place in that nation this year. Former prisoner for Christ Petr Jasek will lead in prayer specifically for Sudan in light of the recent coup.
John Grooters is the director of a new movie portraying the marriage, choice to become Christians and early persecution of VOM's founders, Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand—told through the eyes of Sabina. SABINA: Tortured For Christ, The Nazi Years will screen in more than 800 theaters in the US for three days only – November 8, 9 and 10. Buy tickets here.
Grooters also directed Tortured For Christ – The Movie, which portrayed how the Wurmbrands were persecuted under communists in Romania. SABINA is a prequel to the first film, telling an earlier part of the Wurmbrands’ story, including their persecution—and how they blessed—Nazi forces that occupied their nation.
Listen as John talks about the challenge of making a film in the Wurmbrands’ native Romania in the midst of a worldwide Covid-19 pandemic. John will also share how God’s hand was on the production, including filming the scene of Richard’s baptism in the very room where it happened!
Jonathan Ekman and Matthew Hanson recently visited persecuted Christians in Central Asia—Christians caught between a growing wave of radical Islam and governments with a communist-style distrust of all religion.
Matthew and Jonathan will share stories from believers they met.
They’ll also share the story of a woman who faced intense persecution from her own family yet has seen God take her suffering and create something “beautiful.”
Christians in Central Asia don’t have protection from their governments or from families. Yet the church is growing across the region as more and more people experience the spiritual family of followers of Jesus.
How long was it from the time you heard Jesus died, until you knew that He rose again? What did you feel in that interim? Grief? Loss? Defeat? And what did it mean when you knew that He did rise again?
“Brother Stephen” has worked with Operation Mobilization for many years sharing the gospel among Muslims, including nomadic peoples in the Middle East. He has told the story of Jesus to people who had never heard it before! Listen for the story of how one woman responded to Jesus’ death.
Brother Stephen will share how God called him to missions, and advise those feeling a call to missionary service today. He challenges us to see Muslims not as an enemy to be defeated, but as a prize to be won for Christ. He’ll also share about Muslims making the decision to follow Christ and the price they often pay for that decision. How can Christians living in free nations reach out to Muslims they know or work with? How can we pray for gospel work among Muslims?
Rashin Soodmand was 13 years old when Iran’s government executed her father, Pastor Hossein Soodmand, and buried him in an unmarked grave in a part of the cemetery reserved for “the cursed.” But killing this faithful pastor didn’t erase his legacy or stop the growth of the church in Iran.
Her father wasn’t the only martyr of the persecuted Iranian church that Rashin knew well. In this second part of our conversation, Rashin shares things she remembers about other martyrs she knew personally: Haik Hovsepian, who preached at her father’s funeral; Mehdi Dibaj, who encouraged her to attend Bible school; and Pastor Mohammad “Ravanbakhsh” Yusefi.
Rashin Soodmand was 13 years old when her father, Pastor Hossein Soodmand, was executed in Iran for the crime of apostasy.
Rashin remembers that day as a strange mix of sadness and joy as she, her family and members of their church dealt with the loss of Pastor Soodmand while at the same time celebrating his life and the fact that he had stood boldly in the face of Christian persecution and threats.
Rashin will tell how church leaders encouraged Pastor Hossein to leave Iran and go somewhere safer. He refused; he knew that for him to flee would discourage the hearts of his congregation. She’ll describe the man she knew—a man who genuinely loved people, both Christians and Muslims—and tell of the last time she saw her dad.
Joe Handley leads Asian Access, a ministry to train and equip church leaders—including many working in countries where Christians face persecution for their faith.
Listen as Joe shares the story of an imprisoned Christian in Myanmar who found a way to be a blessing, even from inside prison. Joe will also talk about training up leaders in hostile and restricted nations—and especially helping them learn to abide in and rely on Christ.
Hear how Christians in Sri Lanka reached out to those opposing them, and the way it opened a door for the gospel in a formerly-closed village. And learn how the gospel is advancing in India, in spite of persecution.
Semse Aydin and her husband, Necati, were expecting a baby. Necati had been arrested for gospel work in Turkey, and now the couple had a decision to make. Would they continue advancing the gospel among their countrymen, in spite of the risk of more persecution? Or would they choose a safer path for their now-growing family? Together, Necati and Semse made the decision: they would continue boldly in their Christian work. The decision led them to Malatya, where Necati was murdered in 2007.
This week we continue our conversation with Semse and Gracia Burnham. Both women are widows whose husbands were killed serving in front-line ministry work. Both have experienced God’s faithfulness in the years since, and both consider their suffering for Christ an honor.
Listen as they discuss their husbands’ legacies and what their ministry looks like today.
Gracia Burnham was serving as a missionary in the Philippines with her husband, Martin, when they were taken hostage by a radical Islamist group. Martin was killed in a rescue attempt, leaving Gracia to raise their three children alone. But she was not alone; God has been with her. “I’ve seen God be faithful…He takes special care of the widows,” Gracia says.
Semse Aydin also experienced the loss of a husband when Necati was murdered with two other Christian men in Malatya, Turkey in 2007. The couple had two young children.
Listen this week as these two women share the stories of their pain and loss, but also how God has written a different story, one of joy and forgiveness and provision
Tom and JoAnn Doyle are back to finish our conversation about how Jesus is reaching women across the Middle East—including amazing stories of God’s work in Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Syria and other nations.
Tom and JoAnn say these Christian women are committed to following Christ no matter what persecution they face, even the risk of their lives. They are also bold witnesses for Christ; often the greatest initial impact their witness has is on their husbands.
The Doyles help American Christians learn to reach out to Muslims through their work with Uncharted Ministries—and they say Muslims are incredibly open to hearing the Good News!
Author John Weaver lived in Afghanistan, speaks the language and is in daily contact with people still in the country. He’ll give listeners an update on how the Taliban’s takeover is affecting our Christian brothers and sisters and share specific requests to help us pray for our Afghan family members.
John will also tell us how God is working through current events and even among members of the Taliban. One thing we know He is doing is raising up an army of prayer warriors to intercede on behalf of Afghanistan and pray for the advance of Christ’s kingdom among unreached people there.
Tom and JoAnn Doyle share the stories of Jesus reaching women across the Middle East—amazing stories of God’s work in Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Syria and other nations.
Their new book, Women Who Risk: Secret Agents for Jesus in the Muslim World, shares exciting stories of Muslim women coming to faith in Christ, then becoming "secret agents" for Christ and His Kingdom—transforming their own lives, their families, friends and even entire nations.
They will share how the Bible's teachings about women are vastly different from the teachings of Islam—and how Muslim women respond when they learn how the God of the Bible loves women.
Dr. Mike Ansari is the President of Heart 4 Iran, which partners with multiple Christian ministries to reach Iranian people with the gospel of Jesus Christ. He’ll explain what the inauguration of Ebrahim Raisi as the new president of Iran means for persecuted Christians and religious freedom.
One of the greatest needs of the church in Iran is Bibles. Mike will tell how VOM is helping meet that need—and thank our listeners for giving to deliver Bibles into Iran. He’ll also talk about the benefits of delivering Bibles in digital form—which are much easier to hide and also to share with friends.
You’ll learn about the need to train leaders for Iran’s growing church—and how Heart 4 Iran is encouraging new believers to share Christ and even plant their own house churches.
Finally, Dr. Mike will equip us to pray for the nation of Iran and our Christian family members there.
A 16-year-old persecuted Christian girl in the Himalayas would crawl to gather with other believers for worship and Bible study. In spite of suffering and persecution, she would not stop sharing the gospel!
That’s just one story you’ll hear this week in the second half of our conversation with Andy Byrd. He’s part of the leadership team of Youth With a Mission in Kona, Hawaii, and also leads The Send, an international event to motivate Christians to share the gospel.
Byrd has spent significant time in the Himalayas—“the roof of the world”—and says the impact of the Word of God is beyond what we could imagine in countries like Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet.
He’ll also tell how COVID opened doors for the gospel and helped people—both Christian and non-believers—focus on what really matters, and what sources truly give hope.
Finally, Andy will advise people—at any age—feeling called to missions, and equip listeners to pray for God’s work overseas.
The first time Andy Byrd went on a missions trip, he wasn’t really living a sold-out life for Jesus. But something happened on that trip: the seed of gospel service was planted in his life. After high school, he signed up to train and serve for six months through Youth With a Mission.
That six-month stint has now lasted 23 years as Andy has dedicated his life to spiritual awakening in a generation. Today he serves on the leadership team of YWAM in Kona, Hawaii, and also heads up The Send, an international event to bring about a new Great Awakening and motivate Christians to get involved in sharing the gospel—to those around them and to the ends of the earth.
Listen as Andy shares about his own call to missions, how God has used The Send, and about his time in places where Christians are persecuted, including North Korea.
Aaron Miller is just back from visiting persecuted Christians in the Middle East, including one of our Christian brothers who was formerly a Sunni Muslim, then became a Shia Muslim and ultimately found love, hope and truth in Jesus Christ.
Aaron also met the family of a man who gave his life delivering Bibles to Iran. Rather than pull back, the family continues to be involved in secret Bible deliveries—in spite of the risk.
Aaron will discuss Christians displaced in recent years by ISIS, by the situation in Syria and other persecution—and how VOM is encouraging and equipping Christians to reach out with the gospel in some of these difficult situations.
Australian John Short was detained inside North Korea after leaving gospel tracts near a Buddhist temple. He was facing years in prison—but he wasn’t afraid.
“Fear and faith cannot exist within my heart at the same time,” he says. In this second part of our conversation with Mr. Short, he shares how he prayed—out loud—throughout his captivity, how his captors responded to his faith and how his “letter of confession” and eventual release came about.
He’ll also share how, upon landing back in China, he learned for the first time that his captivity was international news. He was deeply moved to learn that Christians in many nations were praying for him during his trial, including a group of Chinese house churches that prayed around the clock during his detention.
Finally, Mr. Short shares specific ways we can pray for the “hermit kingdom” of North Korea.
Australian John Short was detained in North Korea. He was repeatedly interrogated. He was forced to write a “confession” of his “crimes,” including the offense of wanting more North Koreans to follow Jesus.
But if God asked him today, Short would happily go back to the "Hermit Kingdom." Short shares with VOM Radio how God strengthened him during his captivity, Scriptures and earthly examples of persecuted Christians that most encouraged him, and how he managed to take a measure of control back from his captors — and even make them nervous.
Floyd Brobbel has been involved in ministry to persecuted Christians since birth! Today he leads the work of VOM – Canada, the ministry founded by his parents 50 years ago.
Listen as Floyd tells the story of his first trip for VOM, and a Christian woman in Ethiopia that permanently changed the way Floyd thinks about Christian persecution and what it means to be part of the Body of Christ.
Floyd will also tell of his experiences as a child and young man with Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, VOM’s founders who were both imprisoned for their faith in communist Romania. Floyd knew the Wurmbrands were spiritual heroes, but he also saw their playful side as people and friends.
Christians—especially pastors—are being targeted by an Islamist insurgent group in Northern Mozambique, a group that already pledged allegiance to ISIS. A VOM worker recently visited the area and met with Christians who are among 800,000 displaced people. He heard horrible stories of violence and persecution, but also saw persecuted Christians continuing to serve and advance the gospel in spite of their suffering and loss.
Sean Paton will tell us how the church in Mozambique is responding, as well as give an update to listeners on current persecution in Ethiopia and Uganda. Paton is Africa Regional Director for VOM.
Sean will also encourage prayer for Eritrean Christians who fled for refuge into Ethiopia, but now face Eritrean troops who crossed the border during conflict in the Tigray region. He’ll share specific ways to pray for Christians in each nation discussed.
Just a few days before government-mandated “celebrations” of the 100th Anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party, we finish a conversation with Bob Fu, former prisoner for Christ and the founder of China Aid Association. Bob points out the terrible cost of decades of control in China by a philosophy that places zero value on human life.
Bob will talk about the choice some Chinese Christians are making to stay in their country in spite of the constant threat of persecution. He’ll also tell how some Christians are choosing to leave, seeing no future under President Xi Jinping.
China’s pressure and persecution efforts also reach outside their borders—including harassing Bob and his family in the United States.
Bob will help us pray for Christians in China; he also says Chinese Christians are praying right now for the United States and believers here.
Bob Fu is the author of two books: God’s Double Agent, which tells the story of Bob’s coming to faith in China and eventually being forced to flee the country; and The Politics of Inclusive Pluralism: A Proposed Foundation for Religious Freedom in a Post-Communist, Democratic China.
Bob Fu is a former prisoner for Christ and the founder of China Aid Association, serving and sharing the stories of persecuted Christians in China. He says persecution of Christians in communist China is the worst it has been in 40 years—since the days of the Cultural Revolution.
Bob will share a recent case of persecution and the story of how our brother Chen Wensheng—a former mafia leader—thought of ten days in prison as a “spiritual retreat.” Brother Chen went right back to publicly witnessing for Christ the moment he was released.
Pastor Bob says Chinese Christians understand they are in a spiritual battle, rather than a physical one. Listen to hear how they gain strength to face opposition and persecution, and how the church prepares believers—even youth—to stand strong.
Bob Fu is the author of two books: God’s Double Agent, which tells the story of Bob’s coming to faith in China and eventually being forced to flee the country; and The Politics of Inclusive Pluralism: A Proposed Foundation for Religious Freedom in a Post-Communist, Democratic China.
Paul wrote to the Corinthian church that, “a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many adversaries” (I Cor. 16:9). “Brother Aaron” says Paul’s ministry description could have been written about Christians in the restricted nation of Pakistan in 2021.
Listen as Aaron shares how Christian persecution is “like the air” in Pakistan—something that’s always present and almost taken for granted by people there. He’ll also explain how the church prepares believers—especially young people—to be strong in their faith and ready to withstand societal pressure and persecution.
Aaron will also talk about the types of persecution faced by former Muslims who leave Islam behind to follow Christ.
“Uncle Monnie” has worked alongside Chinese Christians for decades. He says the pressure and persecution Christians face there today is even worse than during the Cultural Revolution.
Listen as Monnie shares about the changes he’s seen in China and the response of believers he’s trained to face persecution and continue to advance the gospel. Some of those Monnie helped train now serve Jesus in restricted Muslim nations in the Middle East and around the world.
Learn how you can pray for Chinese Christians, and how persecution is teaching Christians from different backgrounds to work and minister side-by-side. Finally, Monnie will provide an update on current events in Myanmar.
Tune in this week for the second half of our conversation with Pastor Tat Stewart, who lived and ministered in Tehran as the Islamic Revolution swept through Iran. Listen to how he was encouraged by his final conversation on Iranian soil before he and his family were expelled from the country. You’ll also hear how God showed him he could have a more far-reaching ministry to Iranians outside the country than he could ever have living inside the Islamic Republic.
“I could not stay away from what God was doing with Iranians,” he says.
Tat also shares how hungry the Iranian people were for the gospel—even teenagers craved deep teaching and were willing to invest long stretches of time in Bible study and prayer.
Tat continues to minister to Iranian Christians through Talim Ministries, including publishing and mentoring Iranian pastors.
It was November 4, 1979 when Tat Stewart said those words to his wife as they drove home from church in Tehran, Iran. Iranian students had overrun the US Embassy that day. They would go on to hold 52 embassy staff members and others hostage for 444 days.
Stewart, his wife and their children moved to Tehran earlier that year, just months after Ayatollah Khomeini arrived back in Iran and the Islamic Revolution took control of the country. Tat went to serve as the pastor of a church for expatriate Christians. But his experiences in Iran began many years earlier, when his parents moved there to serve as medical missionaries.
Listen as Tat shares how he continued to minister as the Islamic revolution went on all around him, how he became a contact person for American citizens needing help amidst the chaos and how God protected and provided through that dangerous season—and ultimately led them to leave Iran.
Tat Stewart continues to serve and train Iranian church leaders today through Talim Ministries
“Brother Bennie” is back to talk about persecution of Christians in India, including the story of three close friends recently arrested for their evangelistic work. Hear how God worked during their time in prison—especially once they received a copy of the Bible.
Bennie will talk about recent passage of anti-conversion laws in several Indian states, and how Christians and churches are affected by such laws. He says the India of today is dramatically different from the India he knew as a child, and even from how the nation was five or ten years ago.
In addition to praying for India during the current coronavirus surge, Bennie will give listeners specific ways to pray for imprisoned Christians there, and for the nation as a whole.
When Susi Childers met a woman who’d had three children killed in an attack in Northern Nigeria, God used the pain of three miscarriages in Susi’s life to open the door for a powerful time of connection and ministry. Listen as Susi shares the story, and offers encouragement to Christians wrestling with suffering, loss or even persecution right now.
Paul and Susi Childers have spent more than two decades working to spread the gospel through Youth With a Mission (YWAM).
They will give advice about blending the responsibilities of marriage and family with the missionary calling God has placed on their lives to serve Him—including very practical things that they do in their home and with their children.
Paul and Susi Childers have spent more than two decades working to spread the gospel to the nations at Youth With a Mission (YWAM).
Listen as Susi shares how God called her from a career in photography to go as a missionary—and how He turned her camera into a bridge-building tool for sharing the gospel. “Don’t think because you don’t have a typical ‘Christian’ job that you can’t be used [in missions],” she says.
Susi started out by committing to serve for one year, a commitment that has now been renewed for 24 years! She will offer advice if you sense God may be asking you to get involved in spreading the gospel to the world.
Paul and Susi will also tell us how they think about risk—for themselves and for each other—and how they involve their children in sending and praying as they answer God’s call to go into all the world.
“Brother Jeff” served as a long-time gospel worker in South Asia and Indonesia—places with intense Christian persecution. Today he helps lead Assemblies of God World Missions.
Listen as he shares about the time he was arrested for his work, how God worked to set him free and how his arrest opened a doorway to more (and more secure) ministry opportunities.
He’ll also talk about the challenges he and his wife experienced in their early years of missionary service, and how God’s clear call on their lives became an anchor they could hold on to in difficult seasons. His stories will help you know how to pray for missionaries currently in the field.
Jeff will also offer advice to listeners sensing a call to serve God cross-culturally, including the need for a sense of adventure: “In 23 years [of overseas ministry],” he says, “the greatest things we did were not planned.”
Brother Alayu was a very young man when he became a follower of Christ. Soon after, he was persecuted for that choice, even facing a communist official who told Alayu to “choose Jesus or my gun.”
Alayu chose Jesus—and he continues to do so. Today, he is a leader with Global Call, a church-planting work in Ethiopia and surrounding nations, where he has seen great hunger for the gospel and a great move of God—in spite of the persecution Christians often face.
Listen as he shares about ministry today in areas dominated by Ethiopian Orthodox teaching—a mixture of ancient Jewish teachings, some Christian ideas and even traditional African religious and witch doctor practices. Alayu and his workers have seen many people—even Orthodox priests—come to life-changing faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord. Alayu will also describe the importance of delivering Bibles and equip us to pray for Ethiopia and for the church there.
Karen Short’s husband, John, was detained inside North Korea, held incommunicado. Yet Karen never felt panicked about what would happen to him. “I simply trusted the Lord,” she says.
John Short, an Australian Christian, was detained in North Korea in 2014 after leaving gospel tracts outside a Buddhist temple while part of a tour. Karen was home in Hong Kong, dealing with media attention, praying for her husband and receiving words of encouragement from all around the world.
Listen in as Karen shares: How God ministered to her during John’s detention How she and John stayed connected through Scripture—even though they couldn’t communicate during his detention How journalists and others responded when they observed Karen’s calm assurance and faith in God How she learned that her husband would be released and allowed to return home The one thing she wishes she’d done differently—it will surprise you!
The story of Karen’s faithfulness will inspire you to trust more deeply in God and dive deeper into His Word, even if you’re not planning a trip to North Korea.
Through books and other writing, Pastor Richard Wurmbrand became a voice for persecuted Christians all over the world. This week we will meet the woman who shaped and polished so many of Richard’s printed words.
Ellen Oblander served many years as the editor for Richard Wurmbrand, co-founder of The Voice of the Martyrs. She worked on many of his books, as well as on VOM’s free monthly magazine. Over the years Ellen became much more than an editor; she grew into being almost a member of the family.
Listen as she shares the story of being given a copy of Tortured For Christ, then soon afterwards hearing Richard Wurmbrand speak for the first time and meeting his wife, Sabina. She saw, first-hand, Sabina’s incredible behind-the-scenes ministry supporting her husband and advancing the work of VOM.
Ellen will also talk about Richard’s constant writing, his editing process and the times she’d pick up the phone to hear Richard unpack some Scripture passage he’d just read or a spiritual truth he was pondering.
She’ll also tell about her time with Richard and Sabina in the latter years of their lives, and how Richard always looked to be a witness for Christ.
Petr Jasek was imprisoned 445 days in Sudan. He travelled to the country on behalf of The Voice of the Martyrs to meet with and encourage Sudanese Christians. His first cellmates were arrested ISIS fighters—men who hated Christians and quickly began to persecute Petr.
In his lowest moments, God brought to mind names and faces of other persecuted Christians—men and women Petr had met personally during his years serving with VOM. He began to pray for other persecuted believers, and his spirit lifted as his focus changed from his own difficulties to his prayers for other Christians.
Listen as Petr shares how God prepared him to face persecution, how he had prepared his own family for his arrest, and how he prays for Christians after his experience of long months in prison and facing a death sentence for his gospel work.
Bob Fu is founder and president of the China Aid Association, and he’s one of the most knowledgeable people in the world on the Christian persecution in China. He’ll help explain why the Chinese government is cracking down on churches—even registered, “legal” churches— and how it is demanding Christians’ first loyalty be to the Communist Party and President Xi Jinping.
Wang Yi, pastor of Early Rain Covenant Church, was sentenced to nine years in prison by a Chinese court. Listen as Fu describes current oppression of the church in China—and how the church is responding. How can government leaders in free nations respond, and will it make a difference?
Bob will also share an update on the “prison ministry” of pastor John Cao—including a poem Cao wrote about God’s faithfulness to him in prison and his love, even for his persecutors. Pastor Cao is one of the Chinese prisoners you can write letters to through PrisonerAlert.com.
As a teenager in Cuba, “Maria” encountered the book Tortured For Christ, written by VOM’s founder, Pastor Richard Wurmbrand—when she was told to burn the books before Cuban authorities could find them and arrest her father!
Today, Maria and her husband, “Pedro,” help VOM serve persecuted Christians in Cuba and other Latin American nations. Listen as they share a recent experience when Cuban authorities issued an arrest warrant for Pedro, and how Pedro and Maria experienced the prayers of Christians around the world in that time of pressure and trial.
Listen also to learn how Cuban pastors are pressured by communist authorities, and whether or not anything changed for Cuban Christians after the death of Fidel Castro.
We’re trading chairs this week on VOM Radio! Todd Nettleton has a new book releasing March 2 from Moody Publishers: When Faith is Forbidden: 40 Days on the Frontlines With Persecuted Christians. So he’s in the guest chair this week, and Janet Parshall—nationally syndicated host of In The Market With Janet Parshall—has graciously agreed to fill in as our VOM Radio host for the week.
Todd’s new book contains 40 of the most powerful and inspiring stories he’s heard in interviews with persecuted Christians over the past 20+ years. He’ll also share a little of how God brought him to work at VOM, including time as a missionary kid in Papua New Guinea.
“Joe” was in prison in the United States—justly, he says. As a young man his life was filled with drugs and crime. A fellow prisoner gave Joe a Bible, and Joe’s life was transformed as he found forgiveness and surrendered his life to Jesus Christ.
Having seen the power of God’s Word first-hand, Joe committed his life to getting Bibles to as many people as possible. He and his wife, “Dawn,” are now part of a team delivering Bibles into the Islamic Republic of Iran. It’s dangerous work, but Joe and Dawn have counted the cost and answered God’s call.
Joe will tell his story of salvation, and share about the work he’s doing today—including how God allowed Bibles to be delivered throughout the coronavirus pandemic. Dawn will explain how she thinks about the danger her family is in—including making peace with the fact that her children are at risk.
They’ll also help equip listeners to pray for Bible delivery work into Iran and also around the world.
Cheng Jie, whose English name is “Esther,” was the wife of a pastor in China. She and her husband had discussed the idea that he could be arrested and go to prison for his Christian work. They hadn’t believed that she would be targeted by the communist government. But in 2014 she was called to the police station for a “meeting” about the school Esther was running. The meeting with police turned into Esther’s arrest and two years in a Chinese prison.
At the time of her arrest, Esther’s sons were aged 3 and 1. Listen to her share how they were affected by her arrest and imprisonment—and even the challenges after she was released and returned home.
She’ll also talk about how God enabled her to have a ministry in the prison—and even the prison guards saw the difference her ministry made.
Listen to hear her speak directly to those that prayed for her and wrote letters to her while she was in prison and advise how we can pray for Christians in prison today.
As a college student in San Francisco, Brother Kevin explored many avenues of spirituality, including pursuing Zen Buddhism and Transcendental Meditation. But an experience of darkness caused him to call out for Jesus, and Christ revealed himself to Kevin as both real and powerful.
Since that day, Kevin has wanted to tell people about Jesus, including Muslims, Hindus and people of other faiths. Today he helps lead YWAM Frontier Missions, sending workers to share the gospel in places where Jesus’ name is completely unknown.
It’s not an easy work. Kevin will share stories of gospel workers he’s sent out who have been arrested, beaten, kidnapped and even killed. Kevin says he’s seen blessing come out of even very difficult circumstances—and he’s thankful for the unique role that VOM plays in helping Christians enduring persecution.
He will also share how he prays on certain days each week for Muslims and Hindus to come to Christ.
Brother ‘Joshua’ is a church leader in Cuba. He says for Christians on the island, persecution is expected. Police regularly call Joshua in for interrogation; every time they call, he feels intimidation and fear about what might happen. However, as the questioning begins, he says he can feel God’s presence and God’s provision of an answer for each question. As he senses God’s power taking over, he says his fear shrinks and disappears.
Joshua will give an update on the persecution of the church in Cuba, including one church which recently had its building demolished by the government. Have things changed for the church since the death of Fidel Castro? How difficult is it for Christians to obtain Bibles? How do pastors deal with the knowledge that every time they preach, government spies are present to watch, listen and cause problems?
Reed Olson helps VOM to get Bibles and other Christian materials into hostile and restricted nations around the world. Listen to Reed share about God’s call on his life, and his excitement to use every hour, every tool and every possible channel to deliver to every person God’s life-changing Word.
He’ll also share how VOM resources are being translated and delivered freely into hostile and restricted nations around the world—in some cases connecting Christians facing persecution in different countries who pray for and inspire each other. Finally, he’ll update how the church in Latin America is growing and becoming a great missionary-sending church.
Martin and Gracia Burnham were serving as missionaries in the Philippines, where Martin was a pilot with New Tribes Mission (now called Ethnos 360). The Burnhams went away for a few days to celebrate their wedding anniversary. Those few days turned into more than a year in the jungle when they were kidnapped and held hostage by radical Muslim terrorists.
Listen this week as Gracia tells how she wrestled with God and even with her own faith during those dark days of captivity. She’ll also share how she experienced the prayers of God’s people, even as Martin was killed during a rescue attempt.
Gracia says at times in the jungle she couldn’t allow herself to even think about her three children because it was just to difficult. Yet now she knows the full story of God’s faithfulness to them. She will also give an update on how God continues to work in the hearts of the terrorists that held them hostage.
Gracia’s story will inspire you to find ways to glorify God, regardless of what challenges you may be facing.
C. Anderson is a leader in Frontier Missions for YWAM – Youth With A Mission. She’s developed a course based on the principles of II Timothy 2:2 with the aim of developing DMM — Disciple Making Movements.
Anderson was born an MK in Africa, but after traumatic experiences in her youth she decided she would never live anywhere she felt unsafe. Yet God called her to lay down that need for safety to answer His call to missions and gave her the grace to answer His call.
Listen to learn how DMMs are developing and growing, and how the Biblical principles cross national and ethnic boundaries to grow and build the church in many nations, including India, Iraq, Afghanistan and southeast Asia.
The course Anderson developed, “Getting Started in Disciple Making Movements,” is available online. Anderson will tell us how she felt God leading her to develop the course for use online before the coronavirus pandemic hit — and has seen the fruit of the course explode during the past 12 months. She’ll also speak specifically about next steps for those feeling called to missions and equip us to pray for church leaders and church planters all over the world.
Sister Amber spent more than a decade in Tibet, providing vocational training to the people and sharing the Gospel message of Christ’s love. She felt God's call especially to work among Tibet's nomadic tribal people, who jokingly call themselves "the roof on the roof of the world." Amber watched as God brought about a great ministry breakthrough: people who'd been totally closed to her message were now asking to learn more about Jesus. But just days after the breakthrough Amber experienced persecution as police came pounding on her door. Listen as she tells the story. You'll hear how God ministered to her in the hardest moments of her suffering. You'll hear how she was eventually released, and the way God showed her that her persecution wasn't the end of the story. You'll also hear how God laid on the hearts of people around the world to pray for Amber, including one who drew a picture of Amber surrounded by policemen in the interrogation room. Months later, when Amber saw the picture, it matched exactly the setting of her interrogation, but also offered a ray of spiritual hope. Your faith will be challenged as you hear Amber's thoughts on what the New Testament calls the "honour" of being persecuted, and she’ll give first-hand advice on how we can pray for Christians in prison right now.
Sitting in a solitary confinement cell in Iran, Robert Aserian felt God comforting him with these words: “If you are here, it is My plan.” God had prepared him for prison in a unique way: as a pastor he’d counseled many Iranian Christians after they’d suffered imprisonment, so he knew some of the challenge he would face.
Listen as Robert shares the challenges of interrogation, prison and solitary confinement. One way Robert passed the time in solitary confinement was composing and preaching sermons — even though his congregation wasn’t there to hear them. He also tells how every prisoner goes through difficult times in prison, and how he responded during those difficult days.
Robert will also discusses how former prisoners face intense pressure and isolation after they’re released, and tell us that praying for prisoners after their release may be more important even than during their time in prison. Finally he’ll equip us to pray for the nation of Iran and for the church there.
Rev. Robert Aserian serves today as Director for Training at Pars Theological Centre, training and equipping leaders for the Iranian Church.
When Robert Aserian first prayed to Jesus, it was an atheist’s prayer: I don’t know if you are real, Jesus, but if You are please show Yourself to me. Jesus answered that prayer, and Robert has been following Him passionately – and encouraging others, including Iranian Muslims, also to follow – ever since. He even taught a class on Christian theology to Islamic clergy members.
Listen to Robert’s story of coming to faith, then experiencing God’s call to ministry. Robert will share about different martyrs of the church in Iran he knew and learned from and describe how their legacy emboldened him to serve Christ inside the Islamic Republic, no matter what persecution he might face – including the day authorities came to his house early in the morning to take him to prison.
Today, Rev. Robert Aserian is the Director for Training at Pars Theological Centre, training and equipping leaders for the Iranian Church.
In the midst of his persecution, Pastor Dmitry “David” Shestakov remembered Christ on the cross and determined in his heart that if Christ suffered willingly, David also would persevere through his time of suffering.
As a young man, David was a criminal and a drug user. His mother’s desperate prayer to God – even though she was an atheist – led to Shestakov surrendering his life to Christ. Once surrendered, he immediately began to tell others about Jesus. He knew, early on, that such witness would be costly.
Listen to how God used letters written by VOM readers via www.PrisonerAlert.com to bless and protect David while he was in prison in Uzbekistan – even saving him from being beaten by guards. You’ll also hear how the Uzbek government tried to add years to his sentence, but God miraculously moved and David was released, as he says, “like a Scripture came to life.”
David will also help us know how to pray for Christians currently in prison, and for their family members.
The phone message was clear: “We know you are there! And we’re going to kill you!”
Todd Lafferty received that phone message as he was preparing to host a meeting of Christian leaders in his home. He had to decide how much risk he was willing to take to continue spreading the Gospel.
This week we continue our conversation with Todd about his experience as a missionary in Southeast Asia and his work now helping lead the International Mission Board.
He’ll share a story of God’s work among an unreached people group in Southeast Asia, and how not even persecution could stop the spread of the Gospel. What powered that work? Todd will share about a women’s prayer group that agreed to pray specifically every day—and how God answered their prayers.
Listen to Todd share how every listener can reach out to Muslims – and gives advice about how to prepare for those conversations. He’ll also talk about the first steps for people sensing God’s call to missions and equip us to pray for Gospel work around the world.
If you missed it, listen to the first part of our conversation with Todd. Please share this episode with your Christian friends; especially those considering a call to missions or Christian service.
Todd Lafferty came to Christ as a USA college football player. It wasn’t long after coming to faith that he sensed God’s call to go and tell others. He and his wife answered that call, serving in the United Kingdom and eventually in Pakistan.
Today Todd helps lead the International Mission Board, equipping and sending missionaries to tell the story of Jesus’ love all over the world, including places where Christians face persecution.
Listen to hear Todd tell about arriving in Pakistan, fighting through the culture shock and temptation to pack up and return to familiar surroundings. He will also equip you to pray, especially for newer missionaries going through some of those same challenges today.
Finally, Todd will share the story of an Islamist Pakistani assassin who became a believer in Christ and then a bold evangelist, in spite of threats and danger.
Please share this episode with your Christian friends; especially those considering a call to missions or Christian service.
Margaret Court is an Australian tennis player who dominated women’s competition in the 1960s.
In 1995 she founded a Pentecostal Christian church outside of Perth, West Australia, where she serves as pastor.
Margaret talks to a VOM Oz Radio host about how her faith has impacted her tennis career as well as her personal life.
Sister Nilufar” (not her real name) is ministering in the name of Jesus and sharing the Gospel inside the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Listen as Nilufar tells the story of a young woman, Eldora, who became a follower of Christ – leaving behind a difficult life and becoming a bold witness among members of her family. God revealed the pain in her past and rescued her from a life of depression and addiction.
Eldora immediately began to bring friends and family members to meet the Saviour who had rescued her life, and God revealed to Nilufar that He had significant plans for one of Eldora’s friends, Sara, like the Samaritan woman in John 4.
You’ll be encouraged and amazed as you hear stories of God working in miraculous ways inside Iran – inspiring Christians with specific ways to share the Gospel and reach out to their countrymen.
Covid-19 has hit hard in Syria, yet many are unwilling to acknowledge the illness in their honor-shame culture where getting sick can bring shame on a family. Brother John will update listeners on how the virus is affecting Syria – and how God’s Kingdom is advancing even amidst the pandemic.
Learn what Christian persecution looks like today in Syria, and how Christians there respond. You’ll also hear specific ways to pray for Syrian Christians.
John will share the story of God’s work in one family. Their son was born with a birth defect, and his mom felt such shame she attempted suicide multiple times. Then she met Jesus – and the transformation was so dramatic it radically changed the outlook for her family and impacted people all over their city.
Brother John leads Ananias House, working to proclaim the light and hope of Jesus Christ in the Middle East and North Africa.
God is at work in Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh! Even amidst the Covid pandemic, the Gospel message is advancing among Rohingya people. But it’s not without cost; Rohingya Christians risk intense persecution.
Dave and Pam lead Operation Mobilization’s work in western and central Asia, overseeing Gospel workers reaching Muslims in multiple countries. They will share first-hand accounts of the Gospel’s advance and the persecution Christ followers endure in their region of the world.
They will also offer advice to Western Christians who want to build a bridge to Muslims living in their countries. It starts, they say, with simple things like hospitality and friendship. Dave and Pam also give listeners encouragement for seasons of struggle and discouragement.
Finally, they will equip us to pray for God’s work in Muslim nations — including praying for our Christian brothers and sisters and praying for government leaders in those nations.
1 November is a strategic time to pray for persecuted Christians as churches around the world commemorate the International Day of Prayer for Persecuted Christians. Download resources to help you and your church pray at vom.com.au/idop
Dave and Pam lead Operation Mobilization’s work in western and central Asia, overseeing Gospel workers reaching Muslims in multiple countries.
Listen as they discuss their call to missions and how God led them to work among Muslims. They will also share how finishing the task of reaching the Muslim world for Christ will require a better understanding of risk — a theology of suffering that allows Christians to victoriously endure persecution.
Dave will challenge us to think Biblically about reaching Muslims, to intentionally see them as people God loves and that Jesus died for, rather than allowing our vision to be influenced by media portrayals or geopolitical animosities.
Fear is real, and Dave and Pam will talk about how it affects them, and practical ways to fight through fear and reach those around us for Christ.
Sean Paton leads VOM’s work on the continent of Africa, and he’ll share this week about significant changes in two African Countries: Sudan and Ethiopia.
In Sudan, there are reasons for optimism after the Sovereign Council leading the country revoked the apostasy law, which required the death penalty for anyone who left Islam to follow another faith. Sean will share how Christians in Sudan say, “no one is looking” at the church right now. While that window is open, bold believers are working diligently to advance Christ’s Kingdom.
The treatment of Christians is also changing in Ethiopia, but the trend is more persecution rather than less. Sean will help us understand some of the history of the church in Ethiopia, including how persecution is really a part of its DNA. He’ll also discuss different streams within the Christian community and how persecution is affecting each.
Sean will share the story of specific brothers and sisters who’ve faced attacks, and how they’ve responded with love and forgiveness to persecution. He’ll also talk about how VOM is helping — including letting Christian leaders know that VOM will stand with their families if God calls them to lay down their lives for His service. Finally, he’ll talk about specific ways to pray for both Ethiopia and Sudan.
What does your church do to help new believers grow in their faith? Imagine how much more difficult it would be to disciple new Christians if you couldn’t meet together in person, or if they couldn’t admit openly that they were now following Christ for fear of persecution?
“Brother Mark” works with Christians in 22 countries in North Africa and the Middle East, and he will tell us about the persecution faced by Christians in Muslim nations of that region.
We’ll talk about the new reality in Sudan after the overthrow of Omar al Bashir and his Islamist regime. There is more freedom for Christians—but still threats against the church.
What is the journey new Christians must make in order to be ready to face persecution and respond with forgiveness, love and hope? How is their identity, and their place in the culture, affected by their decision to follow Christ?
“Brother Mark” is active in Gospel work in North Africa and the Middle East. Listen as he shares how coronavirus impacted ministry work in those regions — actually increasing interest in the Gospel and online contact with curious Muslims.
Brother Mark will talk about his own testimony and share how God called him to reach Muslims for Jesus. He’ll advise listeners on how to respond — not react — to Muslim questions or arguments against the Gospel.
Brother Mark will describe the persecution against Christians in the North African nation of Mauritania, and the challenge of discipling new believers in a country where it is not safe for more than 15 people to meet together. He will also talk about two Christians who are currently in prison in Mauritania and invite listeners to pray for these men and their pregnant wives.
Al Shabaab is advancing in Northern Mozambique, attacking and killing Christians and others.
Will Hart leads Iris Global, which works to share the gospel in 34 nations around the world. We’ll focus this week on Africa, and especially Mozambique, where radical Islamist terrorists are taking territory and targeting churches and Christians.
Will also shares how God radically saved him and sent him to the nations. He’ll talk about overcoming fear as he and his wife went to minister in the Congo — at the time one of the most dangerous countries in the world. Listen to how God protected them, even providing elite military guards to watch over them in the country.
He’ll also advise those sensing a call to missions and equip us to pray for the nation of Mozambique.
Dr. Hormoz Shariat, the founder and president of Iran Alive Ministries, and his wife Donnell are back with us this week to finish our conversation about how God called them to share the gospel with 1,000,000 Iranians—a calling that grew out of a family tragedy and great loss.
Hormoz will tell us he’s not a “natural” evangelist—he calls himself a shy nerd—but says God has given him strength and boldness to share the gospel. Listen as he describes getting laid off from his job and voted out by his church as blessings that unlocked the doorway to greater seasons of ministry.
Hormoz will also share current needs of the church in Iran, equipping listeners to pray specifically for that country and for our brothers and sisters there.
Dr. Hormoz Shariat was among thousands of Iranian Muslims marching in the streets of Tehran during the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Today, he’s “The Billy Graham of Iran” with a vision to reach one million Iranians for Jesus Christ. He tried Islam, but says it didn’t work to meet the needs of his heart and life.
Hormoz’s wife, Donnell, was born in America, yet she too was marching in those streets after moving to Iran — and converting to Islam — to marry Hormoz.
Today Hormoz leads Iran Alive Ministries, one of VOM’s partners in spreading the gospel to the people of Iran. Listen as Hormoz and Donnell tell the story of how God changed their hearts—and saved their marriage—through the love of Jesus and the faithful witness of His followers.
Hormoz’s new book, Iran’s Great Awakening: How God is Using a Muslim Convert to Spark Revival, releases this week.
Joy Subasiguller has lived in Turkey for 10 years. She is a pastor’s wife and the mother of three small children. In the eyes of Turkey’s government, she is also a threat to national security! Her application for continued residency in Turkey has been denied, and Joy faces expulsion from the country.
Joy’s husband, today the pastor of a Turkish church, was born into a Muslim family. Joy will share how he decided to leave Islam and follow Jesus Christ — and the persecution he endured for that decision.
Listen to hear how God called Joy to missions, and to Turkey, and how He has given her and her husband complete peace, even as they face complete upheaval in their life and ministry.
Joy will update listeners on her court case as she seeks the overturn of the expulsion order and that she be allowed to remain in Turkey. She will suggest specific ways to pray for her and her family, and for the broader church in Turkey.
Omid Sabouki serves as the President and CEO of Jubal Band Ministries, helping reach Iranian Muslims with the message that Jesus is the Son of God, and that He loves us.
Omid will tell us this week about the persecution of Christians by Iran’s government, including arrest, imprisonment and even assault at the hands of interrogators. He’ll talk about the importance of getting more Bibles to the church in Iran — a challenge VOM is helping to meet through various Bible delivery methods. He’ll explain how he and other Christian leaders are training church leaders, both inside and outside Iran, to serve the rapidly-growing number of Iranian Christians.
Omid will share the pain he feels when one of his workers inside Iran is arrested, and how he prepares workers to face persecution without losing their zeal for Christ — including sharing stories from VOM about persecuted Christians in other nations, like North Korea.
Finally, Brother Omid will equip listeners to pray for Iran and the ongoing Gospel work inside the Islamic Republic.
Brother Omid shared his testimony of coming to Christ, including a dream, a taxi driver and a Bible, in the first part of our conversation.
Omid Sabouki grew up in a Muslim household in Iran. Today he is a follower of Christ and helping reach more Iranian Muslims with the message that Jesus is the Son of God and that He loves us.
Listen to Omid’s story of finding Jesus, including a dream during which a man in white told Omid, “Stay on my way.” The next morning, the driver of his taxi gave Omid a package. Inside the package was a complete Bible. That Bible led Omid and his wife to faith in Christ — a decision that would cost him his relationship with his family.
Listen to Omid’s story of finding Christ, then finding a spiritual family through a home church. Soon after, persecution forced Omid to leave Iran after the government closed his business and froze his bank accounts. But Omid says, “God had a plan for me.”
Listen to Omid’s story of coming to faith and how God sustained him through persecution and trials. And hear how his ministry into Iran continues to lead others to Christ — including placing Bibles into letter boxes all across Iran.
Omid serves as the President and CEO of Jubal Band Ministries.
Andrew Scott, President and CEO of Operation Mobilization – USA, and the author of a book, SCATTER: Go Therefore and Take Your Job with You, talks about missions right now including the effects of COVID-19 on international Gospel workers. He says every follower of Christ is called to be part of spreading Jesus’ glory around the world. Andrew will talk about how world missions is changing — including more missionaries raised up and sent out from developing world nations. He will also share how OM is collaborating with other mission organisations — including Voice of the Martyrs — to complete the task of preaching Christ to every tribe, tongue and nation.
Finally, he will share thoughts for those thinking about what role they might play in overseas Gospel work, and coach every listener in how to pray for mission workers and the advance of Christ’s Kingdom around the world.
Aaron Miller leads VOM’s work in South and Central Asia, including India, where five Christians have been killed in the past two months.
Listen as he shares how coronavirus is affecting VOM’s work, including stories of blessings that have grown out of the COVID-19 pandemic. One pastor said his interrogation was postponed because authorities in his area are focused on the virus, not on the church.
Aaron brings unique expertise on persecution in India. Listen to the stories of some of the recent martyrs, including a teenager who stepped up when his pastor could no longer shepherd the flock in his village—and paid with his life. You’ll also hear how a husband, knowing persecution was coming, prepared his wife to stand strong in her faith even if she became a widow.
How does VOM respond when a Christian is killed in India or other nations? How are help and encouragement delivered to family members left behind? How can we pray for Christians in South and Central Asia?
“Brother Joel” continues the conversation we left off last week about God’s work in China, work which continues in spite of an ongoing wave of Christian persecution and the coronavirus pandemic. Brother Joel helps VOM distribute Bibles in every part of China. He’ll give us an update on current challenges for Bible efforts in China—including Chinese Christians currently in prison simply for providing people—including children—access to God’s Word.
Joel will tell us how new laws in China affected foreign Christian workers, including thousands who found their visas cancelled and were forced to leave China, sometimes almost immediately. He’ll also talk about a current project to complete a new translation of the Bible into Chinese—a translation more favourable to Communist Party and socialist principles.
Yet in spite of persecution, the virus and the other challenges facing China’s church, Joel says Chinese Christians are encouraged and excited about what God is doing in their nation. He will equip listeners to pray with current, specific needs of the church in China.
In spite of the COVID-19 pandemic in China, the government’s focus on persecuting Christians and closing churches hasn’t faded. In fact, there’s been an increase in persecution in recent months as Chinese Communist Party leaders continue their efforts to control the hearts and minds of the people.
Churches have been closed. Pastors have been arrested. But Chinese Christians are responding with boldness, finding new ways to spread the gospel even amidst pandemic and persecution.
“Brother Joel” helps VOM distribute Bibles in every part of China, and this week he’ll share what’s happening with the church in China. How is coronavirus affecting the church? Why does the Communist Party fear Christians so much? What does persecution in China look like right now?
There are currently 600 persecuted Christians imprisoned in the African nation of Eritrea. Some of them have been in prison more than 15 years!
Dr. Berhane knows what it is like inside Eritrean prisons. He spent 11 months in prison for his faith in Christ. But, even in prison, he saw God’s hand at work and found opportunities to witness to others—including prisoners about to be executed. Imagine the feeling as prison guards would read the names of prisoners scheduled for execution that day, each prisoner wondering if this were the day their name would be on that terrible list.
Yet in the midst of suffering and executions, Dr. Berhane says he experienced an inner peace through the presence of Jesus Christ. “Whenever I read the Scripture,” he says, “it’s full of persecution.” Listen as he explains how there is more freedom for Christians to worship inside Eritrean prisons than for Christians outside of prison.
Today, Dr. Berhane is a voice for persecuted Christians in Eritrea through Release Eritrea, a UK-based charity. Be inspired as he shares his own story and equips every listener to pray for Christians in Eritrea, including those 600 currently in prison.
You can write letters on behalf Christians in prison in Eritrea through PrisonerAlert.com.
Ed Cannon is the President and CEO of FEBC. For 75 years, FEBC has been using radio to communicate the gospel to the least-reached people on earth. Their radio signals—and internet connections, smartphone apps and social media feeds—reach people speaking 129 languages in 50 countries. Included in those countries are hostile and restricted nations where Christians are persecuted for their faith in Christ.
Ed has travelled the world to meet and support the broadcasters—including a 10-hour stay in jail when police discovered him carrying Christian materials for distribution in a hostile nation. Listen as Ed talks about the workers who lead FEBC’s in-country work, and how their commitment to Christ and to sharing the gospel inspires Ed’s own walk with Christ.
Listen as Ed shares how FEBC signals and content are reaching minority language groups, including a Khmu language broadcast sponsored in part by VOM.
When Petr Jasek spent 445 days in prison in Sudan, Omar al-Bashir was the dictatorial leader of the country. Since Petr’s release, Bashir’s government has been overthrown and Bashir locked inside one of the same prisons where Petr had been held.
But are things really different for Christians in Sudan? Petr will answer that question as he returns to finish the conversation we began last week about his arrest and imprisonment in Sudan.
In prison, Petr felt the Lord’s presence very near as he spent hours every day reading the Bible and praying. What has he done to maintain that same closeness as he returned to his normal, busy life?
The story of Petr’s imprisonment—and the ministry God allowed him inside—is told in a brand new book, Imprisoned with ISIS: Faith in the Face of Evil. Order your copy at vom.com.au/shop
In 2015, Petr Jasek traveled to Khartoum, Sudan, to meet with pastors and other Christians to evaluate how The Voice of the Martyrs—a ministry Petr has served with since 2002—could help and encourage persecuted Sudanese believers.
Petr was arrested at the airport on his way out of the country, charged with espionage and other crimes and sentenced to life in prison before the Czech government negotiated his release.
The story of Petr’s imprisonment—and the ministry God allowed him inside—is told in a brand new book, Imprisoned with ISIS: Faith in the Face of Evil. Order your copy at vom.com.au/shop
Listen as Petr shares his story and updates listeners on his current ministry around the world.
TT’s ministry in Malaysia and Brunei has come at a great personal cost but also reaped a great harvest. Today he shares with us the countless ways he ministers and how he still finds joy despite persecution.
Voice of the Martyrs Australia CEO Tony Benjamin talks to VOM Oz Radio host Stefan Clint about the current persecution situation in Egypt.
This week VOM Oz Radio Interviewed Truman, a front line worker and VOM partner, on current persecution in Vietnam.
Voice of the Martyrs Australia, CEO Tony Benjamin interview with Homero Aziz, a VOM partner based in Jordan.
Homero and Tony discuss persecution in the Middle East and how COVID-19 is impacting the lives of Christians there.
“Uncle Monnie” has ministered in more than 150 countries, including many hostile and restricted nations where Christians are persecuted. He serves not as a “father” to persecuted-church pastors, but as an “uncle,” one who comes alongside and encourages, but isn’t the decision-making authority figure.
Uncle Monnie says he quickly realised, in his first overseas ministry experience, that he needed to go as a fellow learner alongside God’s people he was there to serve. He equips pastors to study the Bible for themselves, to not be reliant on a Westerner or an outside organisation for their spiritual food. He also prepares them to face persecution—including looking together at real-life case studies from persecuted Christians in other nations.
Listen as Monnie talks about how he does ministry with Fulani former-Muslims in Africa, Christian leaders and pastors in China, Sudan, Nigeria, Nepal, Lebanon and other nations.
Monnie has also served as a missions pastor in large American churches, and he’ll share challenges and struggles of that job, as well as encouragement for those currently serving God in that role. He’ll also challenge American Christians to be more grounded in our faith.
Ebrahim Firouzi, a Christian convert from Islam, has been in and out of prison in Iran since 2011. Last year he completed his most recent prison sentence, but instead of being set free and allowed to go home, Ebrahim has been banished to internal exile in Sarbaz, a city near the border with Pakistan. All of these punishments are a direct result of Ebrahim’s conversion from Islam to follow Jesus and his faithful witness for Christ.
This week, speaking from exile, Ebrahim shares his testimony and gives an update on his life today and God’s faithfulness during his time in prison. Multiple times, Ebrahim was given the opportunity to renounce Christ and go free; each time he refused to compromise. “I could never turn my back on my faith,” Ebrahim says. “By God’s grace I endured a few years in prison in exchange for an eternity with Him.”
This interview was originally conducted in Farsi by Joseph Hovsepian, the son of martyred Iranian church leader Haik Hovsepian. We are thankful to Joseph and our friends at Hovsepian Ministries for allowing VOM Radio to broadcast this interview and share Ebrahim’s testimony.
Right now, Muslims around the world are fasting during daylight hours in an effort to show their devotion and earn Allah’s favor and approval. It is a strategic time for us, as Christians, to pray for Muslims to come to know Jesus Christ as the Savior and Son of God.
This week on VOM Radio we’ll hear from people working in Muslim nations and among Muslim people. They’ll help us understand what Ramadan means to Muslims and share specific ways Christians can pray.
Finally, our guests will lead in prayer for God’s Holy Spirit to move among Muslims during this month.
Steve and Debbie Wolcott have served for decades as missionaries in Africa, seeking to share the gospel and strengthen the church in Congo, Central African Republic, Nigeria, Burkina Faso and other nations.
The Wolcotts are back this week to finish our conversation about sharing the gospel even when it’s risky. They’ve gone to dangerous places to serve the church; listen as they explain how they think about risk-taking and the values that guide their decisions—decisions that have affected not only Steve and Debbie but their children as well.
Perhaps you or people you know are sensing God’s call to serve Him in missions. Steve and Debbie, as experienced missionaries, are uniquely qualified to advise and encourage on that journey. They’ll talk about discerning and answering that call, as well as their own journey of saying yes to God’s call—separately and together—to serve Him and His church in Africa.
They will also equip listeners to pray for missionaries, and for the church in some of the African nations where they work—and where Christians are persecuted for the name of Christ.
Steve and Debbie Wolcott have served for decades as missionaries in Africa, seeking to share the gospel and strengthen the church in Congo, Central African Republic, Nigeria, Burkina Faso and other nations.
The Wolcotts will share how God called them to global mission work. Debbie will talk about her specific ministry helping victims recover from the wounds of trauma using Godly, Biblical principles—and training the church in 22 different languages to spread the healing power of Christ.
Steve will share how God allowed him to illustrate the message of salvation in such a way that, 22 years later, one of the men in the audience was able to recall how Steve’s message led him to commit his life to Christ.
We’ll explain Christian persecution in Central African Republic—including what motivates attacks and how Christians are responding. Steve will also give context to the spread of Islam on the African continent—and explain how Islam is not just a set of religious teachings, but an entire way of life and framework for all of society.
Steve and Debbie will also share the biggest challenges of their work—which will help you pray not only for the Wolcotts but for other missionaries you know and support.
In the past 18 months Burkina Faso has seen repeated jihadi attacks on churches, pastors and other Christian targets.
Sean Paton, VOM’s Africa regional director, explains the increase of persecution in Burkina Faso, including government changes and the rise of groups linked with Al Qaeda, ISIS and other Islamist factions. He’ll describe how VOM monitors persecution and makes the decision to ramp up our work in a particular country to equip and encourage Christians undergoing persecution—some for the first time. He’ll also share about other African countries where persecution is increasing.
Sean will tell some of the stories of courageous believers in Burkina Faso, including one pastor who, along with his son and nephews, was abducted and then executed after they refused to renounce their faith in Christ.
Finally, Sean will equip listeners to pray for the church in Burkina Faso, as well as VOM’s international ministry workers who travel to meet with and serve persecuted Christians.
VOM’s President, Cole Richards, joins us to talk about communism and how this old philosophy is motivating new persecution of our Christian brothers and sisters. Why is communism so directly opposed to the gospel of Jesus Christ? We’ll look specifically at China and steps President Xi Jinping and his government are taking to bring every aspect of Christian worship and practice under Communist Party control.
Richards will also share how the coronavirus pandemic is affecting VOM’s work, and how Christians can respond in the midst of an international health crisis.
We’ll look at what China’s Christians face right now, through the experiences of Early Rain Covenant Church, which is the focus of the feature story in the March edition of VOM’s free magazine. Their pastor has been sentenced to nine years in prison, and yet this church continues serving and evangelizing—church leaders even train members to see police interrogations as opportunities to witness for Christ!
Turbulent times have created many positives for those who seek to spread the Gospel. People in desperate situations are questioning the regimes that govern them and are searching for true freedom.
CEO Tony Benjamin talks to Neil Johnson on Vision radio, on this issue, particularly in relation to Iran and North Korea.