God's Word Is Going to Iran!

Teresa and I and all the Antioch Church family join in celebration with Elam Ministries as they dedicate the new Farsi translation of the entire Bible for the people of Iran! What a momentous occasion with far-reaching consequences for the glory of God and the advancement of his kingdom. 

We are so thankful and honored for our congregation to have partnered with this outstanding ministry for many years. If you do not know about them and what they are doing, I encourage you to check out their website: www.elam.com. Teresa and I know many wonderful missionary ministries around the world, but Elam is right up there at the very top of our list. We know the leaders of this ministry personally and we recommend them wholeheartedly!

The new translation of the Bible has been dedicated

A very, very urgent prayer request...!

Friday, August 22, 2014

Dear Antioch Church Family,

Please join me in fervent prayer for our dear brother Pastor Farshid from Iran. This precious brother has preached in our pulpit and broken bread with us in our home. As you will read below in this email I have just received from our missionary partner Elam Ministries led by Sam Yeghnazar, Farshid has just been transferred to another prision in Teheran, Iran with conditions that are far more dangerous than where he was before. YOUR prayers can help make a difference...!

"The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results." (James 5:16 New Living Translation)

If you are unfamiliar with Farshid's story, I encourage you to read the following link before reading the rest of my email: http://freefarshid.org/farshids-story.

Thanks!

Pastor Mark

Farshid: new prison, new dangers

Christian prisoner Farshid Fathi was moved from Evin prison (Tehran) to Rajai Shahr prison* in nearby Karaj on Tuesday 19 August. The reason for this sudden move is unknown. He is detained in an open cell with hardened criminals and drug addicts. In this tense atmosphere he asks for prayers for his safety.

Farshid’s relocation follows the transfer of other Evin inmates to Rajai Shahr on Saturday 16 August, apparently because they were found to be in possession of items such as telephones, memory cards, cameras, and mp3 players. Farshid was relieved not to be among those moved last Saturday. He was given no answers when he tried to discover why he was being moved on Tuesday.

Due to the more aggressive nature of this prison a guard is constantly present in the cell to try to prevent the inmates from attacking each other, and Farshid is having trouble sleeping from fear of assault. Farshid had much favor with fellow inmates and guards in ward 350 of Evin. Now his situation has become a lot more precarious and unpredictable: please keep him in your prayers.

Pray for

• Safety in his cell, and for breakthroughs in relationships with cellmates
• Courage, faith, peace and good health for Farshid
• Favor with the guards at Rajai Shahr

*Also known as ‘Gohardasht prison’, Rajai Shahr is where fellow Christian prisoner Saeed Abedini is also incarcerated.

For more information about Farshid and to read his letters from prison, visit www.freefarshid.org

URGENT Prayer Request for Iranian Pastor...!

Just received this email from my friend David Yeghnazar calling for prayer for an Iranian pastor who could be executed today or tomorrow. 

Please pray...!

Begin forwarded message:
From: David Yeghnazar
Date: September 28, 2011 12:13:23 PM CDT 


Subject: Urgent prayer needed 


Dear friends, 


Urgent prayer is needed for Yousef Naderkhani, who could be executed soon for his faith in Iran. Please see this link which just appeared as the main story on foxnews.com. Let's praise God for this kind of exposure and pray that the Holy Spirit will intervene.


http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/09/28/iranian-pastor-faces-execution-for-refusing-to-recant-christian-faith/ 

Please share this with others. 


David


David Yeghnazar
Twitter (@DYeghnazar) 
Elam Ministries 
Office: 770 664 8800 | Mobile: 770 634 3994 | www.elam.com | www.iran30.org 
Follow Iran 30 on facebook and twitter.

God is moving in Iran...!

This past Thursday, I was privileged to host Sam Yeghnazar from Elam Ministries on the Word and Spirit telecast. Elam is dedicated to sharing the love of God and the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the Iranian people.

Click on the window below to hear Sam share several powerful testimonies from Iran.

MARYAM AND MARZIEH: “We will not deny our faith” (Iranian trial update)

Here is the latest update from Elam Ministries concerning the two young Iranian Christian women who were arrested five months ago for their faith and who were summoned before the judge yesterday at 7am....

MARYAM AND MARZIEH: “We will not deny our faith”

In a dramatic session before the revolutionary court today in Tehran, Maryam Rustampoor (27) and Marzieh Amirizadeh (30) were told to recant their faith in Christ. Though great pressure was put on them, both women declared that they would not deny their faith. Maryam and Marzieh were originally arrested on March 5, 2009 and have suffered greatly while in prison, suffering ill health, solitary confinement and interrogations for many hours while blindfolded.

On Saturday August 8, Maryam and Marzieh were summoned to appear in court on Sunday August 9 in order to hear a verdict on their case. The chief interrogator had recommended a verdict of ‘apostasy.’ However, when they arrived, no verdict was actually given. Instead, the court session focussed on the deputy prosecutor, Mr Haddad, questioning Maryam and Marzieh about their faith and telling them that they had to recant in both verbal and written form. This made it clear that in the eyes of the court, Maryam and Marzieh’s only crime is that they have converted to Christianity.

Mr. Haddad, asked the two women if they were Christians. “We love Jesus,” they replied. He repeated his question and they said, “Yes, we are Christians.”

Mr. Haddad then said, “You were Muslims and now you have become Christians.”

“We were born in Muslim families, but we were not Muslims,” was their reply.

Mr. Haddad’s questioning continued and he asked them if they regretted becoming Christians, to which they replied, “We have no regrets.”

Then he stated emphatically, “You should renounce your faith verbally and in written form.” They stood firm and replied, “We will not deny our faith.”

During one tense moment in the questioning, Maryam and Marzieh made reference to their belief that God had convicted them through the Holy Spirit. Mr. Haddad told them, “It is impossible for God to speak with humans.”

Marzieh asked him in return, “Are you questioning whether God is Almighty?”

Mr. Haddad then replied, “You are not worthy for God to speak to you.”

Marzieh said, “It is God, and not you, who determines if I am worthy.”

Mr. Haddad told the women to return to prison and think about the options they were given and come back to him when they are ready (to comply). Maryam and Marzieh said, “We have already done our thinking.”

At the end of the session, Mr. Haddad told them that a judge will give them his verdict, though it is not clear who will be the judge in their case now. He also allowed Maryam and Marzieh to have a lawyer represent them in the case for the first time since their arrest.

Both women are back in Evin prison tonight. During their five-month ordeal, both have been unwell and have lost much weight. Marzieh is in pain due to an on-going problem with her spine, as well as an infected tooth and intense headaches.She desperately needs medical attention. Two months ago the prison officials told her the prison had proper medical equipment and that they will attend to her, but so far no proper treatment has been given.

Despite the concentrated effort of officials to pressure them into recanting their faith, Maryam and Marzieh love Jesus and they are determined to stand firm to the very end no matter whatever happens. They have demonstrated their love for Jesus and would offer their lives for Him if they were called to do so. After today’s court session they said, “If we come out of prison we want to do so with honor.”

Maryam and Marzieh’s case is a clear and harsh violation of human rights and religious liberty by Iran’s authorities. They deserve the support of all those who respect human rights and to be released without charges so they can pursue a life of freedom.

ELAM Ministries - http://www.elam.com/

Please pray for these two Iranian sisters!

I have just received the following email with a very urgent prayer request from our dear friends at Elam Ministries...

Two young Iranian Christian women, Maryam and Marzieh, were arrested by the authorities there five months ago for converting from Islam to Christianity. They have been summoned to appear in court tomorrow (Sunday) to hear the verdict in their case.

One judge has already told them that he was personally going to see to it that they will be put to death. Even if they are released, they will still be in tremendous danger since in the past Christians have been martyred in the streets after being set from from prison.

Please take a moment to pray for these two precious sisters in the Lord, asking God to supernaturally intervene on their behalf and that His comforting, protecting angels will be with them…!

===============================

Dear friends, After five months of being detained in Evin Prison in Tehran for their conversion to Christianity, Maryam and Marzieh have been told to be ready. Tomorrow (Sunday 9th August) at 7am they will be taken to the court where they will hear of the court's decision. Hopefully their lawyer will be allowed to be present. Marzieh is in pain due to her spine, her tooth and searing headaches. She desperately needs to see a specialist but she has not been allowed.

Let us urgently go to the Lord in believing prayer for Maryam and Marzieh in this most sensitive time.

• Let us thank Him For preserving, sustaining and strengthening them in prison.
• For giving them the grace to be steadfast in their faith.
• For the witness they have been in prison.
• For the love, concern and prayer of many believers around the world.

Pray for their court hearing tomorrow morning.

• Pray that the court will set them free.
• Pray that the presence and the anointing of the Holy Spirit will be with them.
• That they will receive healing from all illness.
• That the peace of God will cover their minds and their hearts, and will keep them safe in Jesus and refresh them tonight.
• That in all this the Lord will be greatly glorified and His perfect will be done.

Thank you so much for praying.

The Elam team

Iran Crying for Freedom - Elam Ministries Report

At Hillcrest Church, we have been privileged to partner with the premier ministry to Iran, “Elam,” since their inception many years ago. I know their leaders well and esteem them very highly for their character and commitment to the Lord. They just sent me this excellent update on what is happening right now in Iran that I want to pass it on to you. It is truly a “must-read.” Please feel free to pass it on to others...

Iran Crying For Freedom

As hundreds of thousands continue to pour out onto the streets of Tehran and all Iran’s major cities demanding fair elections, Iranian Christians are crying out to God for freedom and are asking the global church to stand with them in prayer.


For nearly thirty years the church has struggled against severe restrictions and outright persecution which has driven many Christians underground. Church services are infiltrated, pastors are regularly called for questioning, phones are tapped, outreach illegal, and Christians cannot even publish the Bible or Christian literature in Iran’s national language, Persian. Those who have evangelized and campaigned for religious freedom have paid a heavy price. Eight prominent Christians have been killed since 1979 and there are reports that many others have been arrested, imprisoned, and even further deaths.

While the early years of the revolution were relatively trouble free, intimidation of the church increased after the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini died in 1989 and was succeeded by Ali Khamanei. Under Khamanei the Iranian regime took a very harsh stance against the church. There was some easing of pressure under the reformist President Mohammad Khatami (1997 – 2005), but under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (2005 - ?), who vowed ‘to stop’ Christianity, there has been severe intimidation.

In 2008 over 50 ordinary Christians were arrested, some being held for weeks in solitary confinement. In 2009 this has continued. On March 5th Marzieh Amirizadeh (30) and Maryam Rustampoor (27), two active Christians, were taken from their home in Tehran to Evin prison where they are still being held. These two young women have both spent time in a two by two meter cell in solitary confinement, which one of them described as being ‘like a grave’.

For Maryam and Marzieh and the thousands of other Christians who were formerly Muslim, the outcome of the present political turmoil could crucially impact the level of suffering they have to face. If the position of hard-liners is strengthened there is a real danger they could unleash more persecution against the church. There is a law making its way through the legislative bodies making the death sentence for male apostates mandatory, and life imprisonment for women. If the moderates are strengthened, then, as happened under Khatami, there is a hope that the intimidation and arrests will come to an end as the regime signals it is willing to tolerate more diversity.

While the outcome of the political turmoil might impact the level of suffering the church faces, it should not affect the church’s remarkable recent history of growth. This will continue. If the moderates gain the upper hand there will be more freedom for Christians to share with the most open people to the Gospel in the Middle East. If the hard-liners are strengthened and there is more suffering, as the last thirty years has shown, this will only increase Christians’ determination to witness to Jesus.

“Iranian Christians are pleading for believers around the world to pray that God will touch the nation of Iran at this time,” says Sam Yeghnazar, Founder and Director of Elam Ministries, who are publishing a new prayer guide, next month called ‘IRAN 30’ to help Christians discover what is happening behind the headlines and to know how to pray effectively.

IRAN 30 is endorsed by George Verwer, Ravi Zaharias, and other influential Christian leaders. Click here to view a sample of the book and pre-order copies of ‘Iran 30’.

For more information on Iran and Christians order ‘Iran: Open Hearts in A Closed Land’ by Mark Bradley, published by Authentic Media from here.