Jim's Random Thoughts and Pictures

Iran: four Christians detained following raid on a church service

Iranian Christians have requested our prayers following a raid on an officially recognized church in Ahvaz during a service on Friday 23rd December. All attendees, including children, were reportedly detained. All mobiles were confiscated, as was the church’s audio-visual equipment and Christian literature. Most were released within a few hours. However, the church’s pastor (Farhad), his wife (Shahnaz) and two other church members (David and Naser) remain detained. Their whereabouts are unknown.

We are pleased to report that another Iranian Christian, Shahla Rahmati, was released on 20th December having been cleared of all charges against her. She had been detained since 9th March.

Iranian Christians request our prayers that:

a.  Farhad, Shahnaz, David and Naser will know the presence and peace of Jesus, and be released soon

b.  All church members will know the Spirit’s wisdom and guidance, especially concerning meeting together for worship

c.  All confiscated property would be returned

d.  Shahla would know the Father’s love and healing as she adjusts to normal life

e.  All officials involved will love mercy, act justly, learn about Jesus and choose to follow Him

 Open source used: Elam, FCNN

———————————

Website: www.meconcern.org

Iran: fears of increased pressure on Christians

Iranian Christian leaders have called for prayer for Christians in Iran over the Christmas and New Year period. Pressure continues on Christians, and especially those from Muslim backgrounds, and there are fears that these pressures may intensify in the coming days.

These fears stem partly from the waves of arrests last Christmas and New Year, and also the previous year, in which several dozen believers were detained. Two of those arrested in late December 2010, Farshid and Noorallah, remain in prison.

In addition, several government officials and senior clerics have made public threats against Christians in recent weeks. For example, Mohabat News quotes the Information Minister, Heydar Moslehi, in a speech in November at a Muslim Seminary, as saying, “The house churches are a threat to the youth and the Ministry of Intelligence has already started a serious effort to oppose this movement.”

There is continuing concern about a number of Christians who remain detained. Several have been subjected to harsh treatment and interrogation. Some of those detained, and many of those released during 2011, are awaiting hearings that are often not scheduled for months, compounding uncertainty and anxiety. In most cases in which bail payments have been made, these payments, including property title deeds, remain in the possession of the authorities.

Iranian Christians request our prayers that:

a.  Christians throughout Iran will know Jesus’ presence and peace at this time, and His strengthening in whatever pressures they face

b.  The authorities will not act against Christians, and not take further unjust action against Christians

c.  Those detained will be released soon

d.  Those awaiting hearings or verdicts will be formally cleared and bail payments returned

e.  Christians throughout Iran will be firm in their faith and clear in their testimony

f.  All officials involved will love mercy, act justly, learn about Jesus and choose to follow Him.

Open sources used: Mohabat News

———————————

Website: www.meconcern.org

Turkey: updates on trial of murderers of Christians and on Monastery legal cases

Last week we requested prayer concerning the long-running legal case following the murders of three Christians (Necati Aydin, Ugur Yuksel and Tilmann Geske) at the Zirve Christian publishing house in Malatya, Eastern Turkey, in April 2007. Five men, aged 19 and 20 at the time, were arrested at the scene and were charged with the murder. Their trial opened in November 2007 and became complicated as a result of efforts to identify those behind the perpetrators.

At the hearing on 16th December no verdicts were issued, contrary to the lawyers’ expectations. However, a witness testified that he had had knowledge of a plot to murder the publishing house staff and informed the authorities one week prior to the attack.

The next hearing is scheduled for 17th February 2012.

Under Turkish law, those accused will be exonerated if they have not been formally convicted and sentenced within five years. Therefore, delays beyond April 2012 may lead to the perpetrators being released.

Further prayer has also been requested for another long-running series of legal cases. We last requested prayer concerning the St. Gabriel Monastery, eastern Turkey, in March 2011. The monastery faces five court cases concerning, among other matters, a land-ownership dispute with the Turkish Treasury. The next hearing in one of the cases is scheduled for 12th January 2012. In another of the cases, an appeal was submitted to the European Court of Human Rights earlier this year but no hearings have yet been scheduled.

 Turkish Christians request our continued prayers that:

a.  Family members and friends of the Malatya victims will continue to know the peace of Jesus as the trial process continues

b.  Justice will be done concerning the perpetrators, and that all those behind them will be identified

c.  All those who aided or perpetrated the murders would have a deep conviction about what they have done, and understand the depths of Jesus’ forgiveness

d.  The true ownership of all areas of land surrounding St. Gabriel Monastery will be accurately identified

e.  All Christians involved will know the Spirit’s enabling, equipping and assisting as they persevere in their efforts to promote justice

f.  All judges, other officials, lawyers and journalists involved will hear the gospel of Jesus, and be drawn to the Father’s love, forgiveness and acceptance.

—————————-

Web site: www.meconcern.org

Iran: update on pastor sentenced to death

Iranian Christians thank us for our continued prayer for pastor Yousef Nadarkhani, whose death sentence for apostasy (i.e. leaving Islam) was upheld in provincial court hearings in late September. No written verdict has yet been delivered following those hearings.

It has recently been reported that the Head of the Judiciary had ordered the presiding judge at the provincial court to continue delaying the issuing of the written verdict. Pastor Yousef is to remain detained, and pressure to recant his faith in Jesus is to continue. Recanting his faith would lead to his immediate release.

Recall that Yousef is a pastor within the Full Gospel ‘Church of Iran’ denomination in the northern city of Rasht. He has been detained in prison since October 2009. In September 2010 the Revolutionary Tribunal of Gilan Province found him guilty of apostasy and sentenced him to death – a verdict upheld by the Supreme Court in July 2011. The Supreme Court also ordered the original tribunal to clarify whether or not Yousef was ever a practicing Muslim as an adult, and to give him further opportunity to recant his faith in Jesus. He refused to do so during the September 2011 hearings. The judge’s verbal ruling acknowledged that Yousef had not been a practicing Muslim as an adult but upheld the death sentence because he was from Muslim ancestry and therefore guilty of apostasy.

Iranian Christians rejoice that Yousef’s life has been spared thus far. They request our continued intercession that:

a.  Yousef’s death sentence will be revoked and his conviction overturned

b.  Yousef, his wife, Fatemeh, and their two sons will know the comfort, presence and hope of Jesus, and that the family will be reunited soon

c.  Christians throughout Iran will not be intimidated but will know the Lord’s enabling and guidance

d.  All officials involved will love mercy, act justly, learn about Jesus and choose to follow Him

———————————

Website: www.meconcern.org

NEW MINISTRY OPPORTUNITY!!

After knocking on a lot of doors and waiting on God to show us just the right place to serve Him, it has finally come.

On June 15th I began working for Aramaic Bible Translation (ABT) as a Language Advisor. I will also serve as their Funding Coordinator. We are very excited about this opportunity and looked forward to serving here. To facilitate our support we have joined Wycliffe Associates and will be on loan to ABT.

Aramaic was the language the Christ spoke. Today there are five moden dialects of Aramaic spoken and it is the goal of ABT to publish both the Old and New Testaments in every Aramaic dialect. The plan includes not only the publication of Bibles but also booklets and children’s books.

You can find out more about ABT at http://www.aramaicbible.org

Ministry’s broadcast still interrupted after elections

SAT-7′s broadcasts are being interrupted in Iran.

Iran (MNN) ― Protesters gathered yesterday to mark the tenth anniversary of a student uprising against the Islamic regime. Calm seemed to have resumed following the June 12 elections, but this recent gathering was dispersed violently.

An estimated 2,000 to 3,000 people assembled at Tehran University, the site of the 1999 uprising.

Yesterday’s events were foreseen, according to some news sources who report that Iran’s government had not given a demonstration permit. The government has cracked down on civilian freedoms and interactions since the unrest after the elections– including restrictions placed on cell phone and satellite signals. SAT-7 ‘s Terry Ascott said their Christian broadcasts have suffered.

“The truth is that many of the satellite channels, including ours, are blocked from certain parts of the country, and I’m not sure how they’re doing it. It’s some new technology, because until now, it’s not really been possible to block multiple satellite channels coming into the country without up-linking interference to the satellite,” said Ascott.

Ascott doesn’t believe that the problem is going to go away anytime soon as far as peace is concerned. “There’s been a fundamental undermining of trust in the regime, so this is a new dynamic. It’s not something that can be put back, if you like, in the bottle–it’s out. It’s something that’s going to be on the agenda for the coming year unless it’s resolved quickly.”

The interruptions of satellite signals are happening mostly in Tehran. The programs that do make it through there and elsewhere are meeting ready hearts. “People caught up in this kind of change are, perhaps, more open than ever to the Gospel of Christ,” said Ascott.

SAT-7′s programs address living in tension and include encouraging verses such as 1 Peter 5:7 which urges viewers to “cast your anxieties on Him, for He cares for you.” SAT-7 planned to send Scriptures to viewers who have registered a mobile phone or e-mail address.

Ascott shared the story of an unbeliever who saw one of SAT-7′s programs in Iran. The man was a carpet weaver who was beginning to lose his eyesight. After losing his job, he began to worry about how he would be able to support his children. During a SAT-7 program, he began praying that God would protect his children. In the middle of that night, his daughter called from Armenia where she was living. She told him that during the time that he was praying, a man dressed in white had come to her house saying her father had sent him to warn her that there was a gas leak. She called her dad to ask him how he’d known, but he’d been too afraid to tell her that he’d been watching Christian television. Instead, he wrote a letter to SAT-7 telling them his story. Though he said he is not yet a Christian, he is in awe of their God.

The ministry of SAT-7 is having a powerful effect on people who live in areas where the message of Christianity is not well received. Ascott asks for prayer that the broadcasts will stop being interrupted and that the the programs will give hope despite the tension and uncertainty about the future. Pray also that the economic downturn will not affect SAT-7′s ability to financially support broadcasting in Iran and other nations.

SAT-7
P.O. Box 2770
Easton, MD21601
Phone: 410-770-9804
Fax: 410-770-9807
www.sat7usa.org

Kids control the television

Kids watching Television

Children control much of the television programming in Iraqi homes.

Iraq (MNN) ― A new study by a secular research company, in partnership with several other Arab news networks, brought good news to SAT-7.

So far, only information from Iraq has come in. But the viewer ratings, equivalent to the Nielson Ratings in the U.S., report that 10 percent of families in Iraq watch SAT-7′s programs during the year. Even in a predominantly Islamic population, that is more than any Christian network in the U.S.

It is likely that much of the viewership is due to the enthusiasm children have for SAT-7′s kids shows. Kids often end up in charge of the remote in many families, which means the parents are also viewing the programs their kids watch.

The message of hope and acceptance that SAT-7 presents is in stark contrast to the message of conventional Arab television. Arab television often promotes devotion to the culture and religion, obligation, legalism, acceptance of oppression, retaliation, hatred and very little hope.

Often, children write in requesting more reading materials like the story of Moses, or asking for a children’s Bible. Terry Ascott, CEO of SAT-7, shared an experience he had in Palestine last January, recounting that he met a nun who was the principal of a local orphanage. She told him that each night she battled the kids for the remote control: they wanted to watch SAT-7, and she wanted to see the news.

Ascott wrote, “I believe this phenomenon is being repeated daily and every night throughout the Middle East. Remember that children under the age of 15 represent 100 million people of the region. Through SAT-7 KIDS, child-by-child, family-by-family, for the first time in their lives, millions are being exposed to the truth, the Gospel, and the Word of God.”

If you’re interested in supporting SAT-7 financially, go to www.sat7usa.org

Interactive program connects Arab youth with Lebanese worship band

Facebook

Posted: 28 April, 2009

Middle East (MNN) ― Members of a well-known Lebanese worship band, “Strongholds,” desired to reach more people with their message. The group recently launched a live program on SAT-7, a Christian satellite television ministry to the Middle East and North Africa. The program called “From Me to You” communicates with viewers through text messages, e-mail and Facebook.

“I love how I’m talking to people I never thought I would, from many different countries,” said Joyce, one of the band members and a host on the show. “It’s great to get to know them, pray for them, and see how we are one body in Christ.”

Band members introduce Arab music videos on each show, take requests, and perform some songs live. Hosts also talk to viewers directly. On a recent show, a viewer from Iraq named F.H. sent a text message asking about salvation. Rawad, another host/band member on the show, used this opportunity to clarify the meaning of being “born again.”

“It’s a response from the call of God to accept Jesus as your Savior,” Rawad explained. “I want to tell you, F.H., that you are very courageous and also say that if there is anyone else out there who also wants to take this step, you shouldn’t be afraid.”

Each show also discusses a topical issue, such as fear. At the end of each show, viewers are encouraged to visit “From Me to You” on Facebook. They can send prayer requests to the site, as well as songs or issues they’d like to see in the next episode.

“We are getting many responses,” says Joyce. “People like to send text messages, especially from Iraq, and they also go to our Facebook site to discuss topics we’ve covered on the show.”

You can find out more about “From Me to You” and other SAT-7 programs by visiting SAT-7′s Web site  http://www.sat7usa.org