Tony Benjamin travelled to meet persecuted Christians long before he was the president of a ministry serving such believers. In fact, he wasn’t even an employee when he joined a missions trip to Vietnam. But meeting and ministering alongside persecuted Christians there left a permanent mark on Tony’s life and faith—and today he leads The Voice of the Martyrs Australia. Tony says more and more Christians in Australia desire to be part of “the fellowship of Christ’s suffering,” and the ministry is growing dramatically each year. He and the staff are finding ways to speak directly to Australia’s Christians—including airing VOM Radio broadcasts. They also are reaching outside Australia’s borders and inviting Christians across the South Pacific into fellowship with persecuted believers. Listen as Tony shares about witnessing the start of a flourishing ministry in Egypt that today reaches Muslims all over the Middle East and North Africa. As the difficulties Christians face intensify, Tony encourages each of us to enhance our relationship with God, the ultimate source of our strength. Tony will also equip listeners to pray for VOM Australia and its ongoing work to serve and bless persecuted Christians. Merv Knight, the co-founder of VOM Australia, has previously been a guest on VOM Radio, including remarks he shared on his retirement from the board of VOM-USA and memories of serving with Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, the founders of The Voice of the Martyrs. Never miss an episode of VOM radio! Subscribe to the Podcast
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Growing up in predominantly Muslim Bangladesh, Fedu’s life was permeated by Islam. His father was an imam, and his grandfather told him stories of pilgrimages to Mecca. Fedu studied at an Islamic school, and, like his father and three brothers, became a Muslim scholar and imam, eventually teaching at a mosque in the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka. While working at the mosque one day in 1996, Fedu met a student named Azad from a nearby college. The two struck up a conversation and quickly became friends. However, when Fedu learned two years later that Azad had become a Christian, he began to worry about him. He knew Muslims at his mosque would find out about Azad’s conversion, and he also knew the local Muslim authorities were some of the worst persecutors of Christians in Bangladesh. Instead of standing up for his friend, Fedu stopped talking to him altogether. Then, 15 years later, Fedu received a call from Azad, who had felt God nudging him to reconnect with his old friend. As the two caught up on each other’s lives, Azad mentioned how Jesus had changed his life. And when they finally met in person, Azad gave Fedu a Bible and
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Christians are among the lowest members of Pakistani society, and many do not have access to discipleship opportunities to grow in their faith. Working long hours in restricted areas as servants in wealthy households or toiling away in brick kilns, these brothers and sisters have little access to biblical instruction and Christian fellowship.
Read MoreA bomb planted by members of the al-Shabab Islamic terrorist group exploded on Feb. 28, killing seven and injuring more than a dozen others. This attack occurred after another recent attack on the predominantly Christian community where at least 13 people were killed and many homes were burned.
Read MoreOn Jan. 3, 17-year-old Anh and her father, Chinh, visited a village several miles away to pray for a family that had contracted the coronavirus. Because of their Christian faith, local authorities forced them to pay a quarantine fee after they prayed for the sick family; non-Christians they spoke with didn’t have to pay a fee.
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Hindu radicals in the area had warned him to leave. Pastor Gideon Periyaswamy and his church were attracting a lower caste of people to the area, and that was unacceptable to the high-caste villagers living nearby. “Leave this village, or else we will make life difficult for you,” they had told him. But Periyaswamy knew the risks of serving the Lord in his homeland of India. “If the Lord permits it, I would die as a martyr for Christ,” he had told a fellow pastor. Periyaswamy had left Hinduism for Christ when he was a young man and had served in ministry for most of his life. In 2015, he planted a church in a high-caste Hindu area near the city of Chennai in Tamil Nadu state, India. Unsurprisingly, he was not welcomed by local Hindu activists. Radical Hindus harassed him nearly every Sunday, and in 2017 they even beat him. Still, Periyaswamy urged his congregation to try to live peacefully with their neighbors. Then, on the morning of January 20, 2018, members of Periyaswamy’s congregation discovered his body hanging from the ceiling of hishome. Upon closer investigation, it was apparent that the unmarriedpastor had been murdered and then hanged
Read MoreCarter Gates leads VOM’s work in the Asia Pacific Region. This week he shares how he came to be involved in ministry, some travel and ministry experiences, and updates on the persecution of Christians in China, Myanmar, and Vietnam. Carter’s first spark of interest in missions came after reading a VOM book, Jesus Freaks, where he first read about Christians being persecuted for their faith. The stories, including one from North Korea, stirred in him a passion to know more about what his brothers and sisters in Christ are facing. Carter joined YWAM as a sophomore in college, and what he thought would be a few months of service turned into seven years ministering throughout East Asia! China continues to enforce drastic religious restrictions, including expelling many Christian foreigners, some of whom have lived and worked in China for decades. Local believers say they are ready to take the lead and continue God’s work—even as they face suffering and persecution. Carter will also discuss restrictions and persecution in Myanmar and Vietnam, including how Covid has affected ministry and travel in the past two years. Carter will also share an opportunity VOM workers had to help Christians obtain ground to bury their dead—something that’s been a blessing to Christians and a powerful testimony to Buddhists living in the surrounding area. Carter will help us know specific ways to pray for access to God’s Word, strength for the church and for the Lord to continue to lead His people in the Asia Pacific region. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the Podcast
Read MoreFour Christians imprisoned for their faith in Tehran’s Evin Prison are battling sickness following a possible outbreak of Covid-19 in their ward. Nasser Navard Gol-Tapeh, 60 years old, Yousef Nadarkhani, 44, Saheb Fadaie, 40, and Moslem Rahimi, 32, are serving prison sentences ranging from four to 10 years for participating in house churches and promoting Christianity in Iran.
Read MorePastor Ebrahim leads an unofficial church in Yemen. One day, while the church gathered for worship and prayer, a dozen armed men burst into the church and aimed their weapons at Ebrahim and the congregation. The leader of the armed men pointed a gun at Ebrahim’s head, threatening to kill him.
Read MoreReem is a Syrian Muslim who lives in Turkey with her husband and children. After having dreams about Jesus, Reem reached out to front-line workers to learn more about Him. “If there is anything about God that I do not know, I want to know it,” she said.
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