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 Alpha Ministries’ 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.

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In the eyes of the Chinese Communist Party, loving Jesus makes Christians “unpatriotic.”

Bob Fu, founder and president of China Aid, 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!

Pastor Wang Yi 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 www.PrisonerAlert.com.

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 Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

The VOM App 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 iOS or Android device today.

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 Somali Christian TV.

Last week, 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.

Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the VOM Radio podcast or download the VOM App for your smartphone or tablet. You can also give online to support persecuted Christians through the work of The Voice of the Martyrs.

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.

Jesus is building his church among former Muslims—including inside hostile and restricted nations where Christian persecution is common and among Muslims living in the United States and other nations with more religious freedom. To learn more about how to witness and build bridges cross culturally with Muslims, sign up for the Sahara Challenge in Nashville, TN from May 1-3, or join online from May 23-25.

Listen to the first half of this conversation here. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast. Or listen each week in the new VOM App for your smartphone or tablet.

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?

Pray the openness of Muslims right now will result in a great harvest of people coming to know Christ in a personal way. If you want to learn more about sharing your faith with Muslims, Crescent Project’s Sahara Challenge provides an in-depth training on how to serve unreached Muslims locally and globally. The event is offered in-person from May 1st-3rd in Nashville or online from May 23rd-25th.

Would you like to hear more about how God is working in the Muslim world? You’ll be encouraged as you listen to more stories of Muslims who came to faith, like Rachid from Morocco, Al Fadi in Saudi Arabia, and Benesh in Iran.

Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast. Or listen each week in the new VOM App for your smartphone or tablet.

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.

Never miss and episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast. Or you can listen each week in the new VOM App for your smartphone or tablet.

“As we commit daily to being Christ’s witnesses to a lost world, we must understand that we will be opposed. In fact, the more faithful we are, the more serious the opposition.”

Cole Richards, President of The Voice of the Martyrs, joins VOM Radio this week to talk about helping Christians in free nations, like the United States, discover what it means to follow Christ when it’s unpopular or even costly—something Christians living in restricted nations and hostile areas deal with every day. We’ll also introduce a new resource from The Voice of the Martyrs to inspire believers to learn about and develop a faith worth suffering for.

Cole recently wrote a series of editorials in The Voice of the Martyrs free monthly magazine on the topic, “Prepared for Persecution.” The Bible promises opposition (John 16:33) and persecution (II Tim. 3:12) when we live out our faith as biblical disciples of Christ. If Christians in free nations don’t learn these scriptural truths, we will be unprepared to face persecution when it comes.

Cole and Todd will also discuss The Sabina Group Study, a new resource from The Voice of the Martyrs offering inspiring examples of Christians who have taken up their crosses and followed Christ in spite of opposition, persecution, suffering and pain. Examples in the study come from the lives of VOM’s founders, Pastor Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, and also from seven “modern-day Sabinas,” women who endured intense persecution as faithful witnesses for Christ in our day.

You can access this resource, including the full-length Sabina feature film and six video study sessions, FOR FREE right now in The Voice of the Martyrs' app for your smartphone or tablet.

Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast. Or listen each week in the  VOM App for your smartphone or tablet.

Cole Richards is the President of The Voice of the Martyrs (VOM). In addition to leading VOM’s service to persecuted Christians abroad, Cole serves as Publisher and Executive Producer of VOM’s publishing and media initiatives. Cole joined VOM in 2006 after living and ministering in a restricted nation, one of the least-reached in the Middle East, where he, his wife and their children reached out to Muslims and supported persecuted Christians.

Cole holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering as well as two master’s degrees: one in missiology, with a focus on evangelism in the Muslim world, and one in business administration (MBA) in the context of organizational leadership. Before entering full-time ministry, Cole served as a USAF officer, focusing on the rise of Islamic terrorist groups 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. You can learn more about Gary’s story by reading his book, Total Abandon (affiliate link).

Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast. Or you can listen in the brand new VOM App for your smartphone or tablet.

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.”

Be sure to join us next week on VOM Radio as Gary tells about the day Bonnie gave her life for Christ. You can learn more about Gary’s story by reading his book, Total Abandon (affiliate link).

Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast. Or you can listen in the brand new VOM App for your smartphone or tablet.

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. Pray for VOM’s Asia/Pacific team as they creatively work to stand with those furthering the gospel in these hostile and restricted nations.

Please send us a note to share how this episode encouraged you. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast.

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 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.

Hanna is the founder and president of Christian Ministry to Gaza, blessing and serving widows, orphans, and refugees in multiple nations of the Middle East, helping provide for spiritual and physical needs.

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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.

Today Pastor Hanna Massad serves as the leader for Christian Mission to Gaza. He is also author of the book Pastor From Gaza (affiliate link). Hanna reminds us what the most important thing in life is as we, children of God by His grace, carry the Holy Spirit’s presence wherever we go.

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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.

In this conversation we refer to a previous episode on VOM Radio with Bob and Kasey, who were enjoying their retirement when God gave them a “holy discontent,” and called them to minister to the people of a very closed Muslim nation.

Learn how you can specifically pray for persecuted Christians in 2023 by requesting a complimentary copy of VOM’s 2023 Global Prayer Guide.

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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: 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 Shino and Shania 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.

Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the VOM Radio podcast or download the VOM App for your smartphone or tablet to access VOM Radio each week, in addition to e-books, audio books and video content from The Voice of the Martyrs.

“Tell me the truth! Dead or alive?”

When Susanne Geske heard the answer to that question—that her husband, Tilmann, had been murdered along with two Turkish Christians, Necati Aydin and Uğur 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.

VOM Radio has also shared a conversation with Semse Aydin, widow of Necati. Listen to that conversation here. VOM Radio host, Todd Nettleton, wrote about meeting Susanne and Semse in Turkey just seven weeks after the murder of their husbands in his book, When Faith is Forbidden.

Learn more about praying for persecuted Christians in Turkey and other restricted nations and hostile areas when you request your free copy of the VOM 2023 Global Prayer Guide.

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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.

One way you can pray more knowledgeably for persecuted Christians in the new year is to request a complimentary copy of VOM’s 2023 Global Prayer Guide. For an in-depth discussion of Christian persecution and current events in China, listen to this recent VOM Radio conversation with Dr. Bob Fu.

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Join this week as we continue to look back on some of the most moving moments of 2022 on The Voice of the Martyrs Radio:

• Tim and Dawn, gospel workers in South Asia, tell how stories from the Bible can confront people of other faiths and draw them to Christ.
• Brother Malik shares his testimony of coming from a Fulani Muslim family to committing his life to Christ after reading through the Bible ten times.
• Soner Tufan, a Christian in Turkey, tells about receiving a 14-page death threat letter from ISIS—and how God turned his difficulties into a blessing.
• Victor Kalisher also has received threats as the director of the Israel Bible Society. He’ll tell about his work providing God’s Word to people in Israel in a modern translation they can understand.
• Brother Hayel was thrown out of his Druze community when he chose to follow Jesus. Despite what faith has cost him, Hayel continues to share hope using a variety of media. He and his coworker, Brother Dan, challenge listeners to pray for the advance of the gospel.
• Brother Silas was raised in a communist country by a Muslim family. Authorities threw him out of his home after he chose to follow Jesus, accusing him of being a spy. The persecution he faced couldn’t silence him.
• Pauline Ayyad watched her husband, Rami, boldly live out his faith in Christ in Gaza. She says Rami wasn’t afraid of the threats, but she was terrified. Listen as she tells about the day she learned Rami had been martyred for Christ, and the long process of forgiving his killers, a decision that opened up a new pathway of ministry in her life.
• VOM Radio host, Todd Nettleton, along with his wife, Char, share about meeting persecuted Christian brothers and sisters in the Middle East and hearing about their sacrifices—and their joy.

After hearing these brief excerpts of these powerful interviews, you’ll want to go back and listen to the entire conversations. You can listen below to VOM Radio on your favorite podcast app or listen online at VOMRadio.net.

• Brother John in the Himalayas
• Tim and Dawn on mission in South Asia
• Brother Malik, a Fulani Christian
• Soner Tufan leading Christian radio in Turkey
• Victor Kalisher, director of Israel Bible Society
• Brother Hayel and Brother Dan, gospel workers to the Druze community
• Brother Silas from Turkmenistan
• Pauline Ayyad, wife of Rami Ayyad, who was martyred for Christ
• Todd Nettleton and his wife, Char, on visiting Persecuted Middle East Christians

We praise God for allowing VOM Radio to share these inspiring stories of His power and the faithfulness of our brothers and sisters in restricted nations and hostile areas in 2022. We also THANK YOU for listening and praying for our persecuted family. Please subscribe to the podcast and share VOM Radio with Christian friends you know would also be encouraged by these testimonies!

Join this week in looking back on some of the most moving moments on The Voice of the Martyrs Radio in 2022:

• Author John Weaver reminds us of the power of prayer in the lives of our brothers and sisters in Afghanistan and how we can pray with and for them.
• Benesh, who has planted more than 30 churches inside Iran in only five years of following Jesus, shares how prayer is the foundation of her ministry and outreach.
• Pam Arlund explains how the Lord can ask us to lay down our lives for Him, and at the same time we can know that we are perfectly safe. She will also look back on training and sending John Chau, who gave his life to reach the people of North Sentinel Island for the gospel.
• Jerry and Stacy chose to leave behind the American Dream to pursue God’s call to Tanzania and then Iraq. Listen as they share how Jesus is using them to encourage refugees with the love of Christ.
• Matthew Hanson reminds us of the price our brothers and sisters pay for the sake of sharing Jesus through the story of an imam who found Jesus in Bangladesh.
• “Brother Max,” completely transformed by Christ in Uzbekistan, shares his Muslim father’s reaction to his new faith and the New Testament.
• Cade Jefferson reminds us that even in the darkest moments in life, God is there through the incredible story of Nathan and the gospel worker God sent to him on a beach in North Africa.

After hearing these brief excerpts, you’ll want to go back and listen to the entire conversations. Click on the links below to listen in your favorite podcast app or visit VOMRadio.net.

• John Weaver on Afghanistan
• Benesh from Iran
• Pam Arlund with All Nations
• Jerry and Stacy from Love For The Least
• Matthew Hanson, VOM regional leader for Central and South Asia
• Brother Max from Uzbekistan
• Cade Jefferson, VOM regional leader for North and East Africa

We thank the Lord for allowing VOM Radio to share in 2022 these amazing stories of the power of prayer and of Jesus’s love for the lost. We also THANK YOU for listening and praying for our persecuted brothers and sisters in hostile nations and restricted areas. If you haven’t already, please subscribe to the podcast and share VOM Radio with Christian friends you know would also be encouraged by these testimonies!

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. You can write letters of encouragement to brothers and sisters imprisoned for their faith.

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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. Subscribe to VOM’s free magazine to read more about Matendo’s story in the January issue, as well as recieve the 2023 VOM Prayer Map. Listen to Brother Malik’s episode on VOM Radio to hear more about this Fulani Christian’s testimony.

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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.

You can connect with Garth and Caroline and with YWAM online.

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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?

If you’ve taken up the challenge to pray for a specific nation in 2023, please let us know!

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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.

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.

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.

To hear more about the history and work of Operation Mobilization, listen to previous VOM Radio conversations with founders George Verwer and Dale Rhoton, and also with OM-USA President Andrew Scott.

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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. He 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 now with Spirit of Martyrdom training pastors and evangelists to work in many parts of Africa, reaching more Muslims for Christ and sending out more gospel workers. 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.

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“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. Tecleab Menghisteab, 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. Tecleab’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. Tecleab’s letters and share them with other Christians where she was. Hearing how much those letters had encouraged believers, Dr. Tecleab 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. Menghisteab 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 Dr. Tecleab Menghisteab, Dr. Fitsum-Berhan Gebrenegus, and Rev. Gebremedhin Gebregergis, along with more than 300 other Christians currently imprisoned in Eritrea. Pray also for God’s comfort to be close to Hana, her mother and her sisters.

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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 gospel 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.

Listen to hear how Christians in Sri Lanka responded to the Easter Sunday church bombings in 2019, and how recent political turmoil in that country has affected their work. They will also equip listeners to pray for persecuted Christians in other nations of South Asia.

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 placed a particular people group or place on your heart. They will share practical next steps to explore God’s leading into missions. You can see opportunities to serve in their region at the Southern Asia Access web site.

On the first Sunday in November, churches around the world will mark The International Day of Prayer for Persecuted Christians. You can join in prayer with your family, friends and church. Learn specific ways to pray by downloading free resources here, including a video telling Rebecca’s inspiring story from Nigeria.

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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 the context of hostile and restricted nations where Christians are persecuted by speaking Biblical truth into peoples’ lives. Just as Jesus used parables to communicate spiritual truth, Tim and Dawn often share simple stories from the Bible, then invite their listeners to respond to the message of the story. Listen for the story of a Buddhist man responding to the story of Moses and the golden calf.

The tools Tim and Dawn are using to spread the gospel—hospitality, conversation, simple Bible stories—are available to listeners in free nations, too. Who in your life could you share Biblical truth with this week?

Pray for Tim and Dawn and their fellow gospel workers in South Asia.

Don’t forget to access resources from The Voice of the Martyrs for the upcoming International Day of Prayer for Persecuted Christians. And never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast.

The anxious mother in India had tried everything. Her son was very sick. 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 traveling 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 traveled more than 40,000 miles 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 The Voice of the Martyrs. David will also 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 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 frontline gospel workers.

The International Day of Prayer for Persecuted Christians is coming soon. CLICK HERE to access resources—including a video about a persecuted Christian in Nigeria—to help your church, small group and family pray for persecuted Christians on this important day.

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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. Listen to the first part of Max’s story here, and learn more about Max’s ministry, Global Teams, here.

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As a boy in Uzbekistan, Brother Max couldn’t imagine a God that cared about his life or had a plan for him. His biological parents didn’t want him. 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, seeking God, and learning more about how to pray to Allah in the required way and the history of Islam. But those lessons, and his increasing knowledge, never brought the peace he craved. Max had many questions about Islam. Why couldn’t Allah understand his native language? Did Prophet Mohammed’s life match his teachings? But 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 differently. He finally felt peace in his heart, and from that moment his life changed completely. He started sharing his testimony with people who remembered how angry Max had been before Christ, explaining that he was a new creation! He even forgave his biological mother. As a new Christian, Max wasn’t worried about Christian persecution; he simply wanted to share what Jesus had done for him.

Today Brother Max is serving the Lord with Global Teams, where he helps train others to evangelize Muslims and plant churches in hostile and restricted nations.

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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.” But as he looks back, he 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.

Dr. 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, Dr. Mike was finishing his PhD in linguistics and anthropology. After completing his doctoral program, offers for teaching jobs flooded in. But his heart was still in PNG. As he sought God’s will, and considered his children’s educational needs, Dr. Mike took a one-year teaching job at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.

As he wrestled with what direction God was leading, Dr. 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,” Dr. 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 his passions is helping students develop tools to learn language—a key factor in long-term fruitful service on the mission field.

Listen as Dr. 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—and for God to call forth more workers to go into ripe harvest fields, even in dangerous places.

Read more about Dr. Mike Fullingim’s mission work and legacy of teaching at Oklahoma Wesleyan University here.

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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.

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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. For specific prayer updates, please register at Pray4Druze.com and join with others committed to pray regularly for Christ’s work among the Druze.

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“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 kicked out from his home and ostracized, 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 hatred for Arabs and Muslims. Yet he 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 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!

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Cade Jefferson was called to missions as a young adult. Soon after college, he went to one of the most restricted countries in the world: Afghanistan. Despite difficult images he still carries from that 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. A VOM worker had once 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 gospel 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.

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Dr. Tecleab Menghisteab 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. Menghisteab 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 Menghisteab’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. Menghisteab 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. Menghisteab’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. Menghisteab was arrested, two other pastors were also taken into custody. All three will mark 20 years in prison this week. Please pray for Dr. Tecleab Menghisteab, Dr. Fitsum-Berhan Gebrenegus, and Rev. Gebremedhin Gebregergis, 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.

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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.

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“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. To see a documentary about their work in Iraq, watch “Don’t Forget Them” on Amazon.

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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.

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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.

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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 reentry. 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 neighborhoods 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.

David previously shared about his gospel work in Turkey and the court case he’d filed to remain there. Listen to Part 1 and Part 2 of David’s previous conversations with VOM Radio.

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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.

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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.

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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.

Copies of Helen’s book, Song of the Nightingale, have been smuggled into Eritrea, and her story has encouraged many people toward faith in Christ. Continue to pray for believers currently in prison in Eritrea—an estimated 250 to 300 Christians as of June 2022, including five currently listed on PrisonerAlert.com.

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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.

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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.

Read more about John Chau’s story and watch a video about his mission.

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“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.

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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.

In sharing these stories, Todd refers to several previous VOM Radio guests, including Helen Berhane from Eritrea, Nik and Ruth Ripken, Dan Baumann, David Byle and Pastor Hassan from Sudan.

For more stories and lessons from persecuted Christians, read Todd’s book, When Faith is Forbidden: 40 Days on the Frontlines With Persecuted Christians.

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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 coworker 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.

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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.

Listen to Brother John’s previous interview on VOM Radio here where he shared how teaching your children foreign languages is a strategic plan to serve the Lord.

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