Padina was ready to kill herself on live TV to earn Allah's favor and prove the God of the Christians was powerless. Instead, she met Jesus Christ and saw Him heal her mother from sickness. She became passionate to introduce her countrymen to the Savior. Today she leads a house church network inside Iran, including training church leaders to be ready to face arrest, harassment and persecution.
"Mike" and "Rose" serve the Lord in Mexico, where they planted a secret church in a tribal village hostile to evangelical work. They'd been warned that gospel work in that village was dangerous, but God's call was clear. Several villagers came to Christ, and they began a secret Bible study. But the Good News didn't stay secret for long, and Mike and Rose were evicted from their home and kicked out of the village.
The North Korean government has built a counterfeit religion to control it s people, a mirror image of Christianity that features their own trinity, their own meeting halls, their own sacred writings and even their own hymns to their god -- Kim Il Sung. Following a different deity, like Jesus Christ, is a treasonous act deserving of death.
Balloon launches are one of the key ways that VOM is delivering Bibles into North Korea. This week Dr. Eric Foley shares how weather balloon and GPS technology are even allowing us to pinpoint where the Bibles are landing.
Turn on the news and you'll see upheaval in every corner of the world, including attacks on our Christian brothers and sisters. But Cole Richards, Executive Vice President at The Voice of the Martyrs, reminds us that in the midst of this earthly suffering God is producing eternal fruit every single day.
For the first few days after Bob Fu was arrested for his Christian work in China, his prayers were pretty simple: "Lord, get me out of here!" He even prayed that God would punish his interrogators for persecuting God's children! But as days passed, Bob saw that God had a ministry for him in prison, and his prayers changed. Instead of praying only to be released, he asked God to use him while he was in prison. And God answered his prayer.
As a young man, Dale Rhoton was invited to join a prayer meeting to ask God to move across the nations. The young man that invited him was George Verwer; later the two would help send thousands of young people into gospel work around the world through Operation Mobilization (OM), the ministry they founded
For Christians in China, persecution is just "part of the package" for those who follow Christ. Dory, part of VOM's newsletter staff, just returned from China, where she met Christians who face arrest and imprisonment for following Jesus Christ. In fact, one of her meetings with a pastor had to be cancelled because the pastor was arrested before she could meet him
"Lance" is a gospel worker in the nation of Turkey, a nation where 99.8% of the almost-80-million people are Muslims. This week on VOM Radio, Lance shares some of the challenges he faced in moving to a Muslim nation, building relationships and reaching out with the gospel.
Aaron Miller, Vice President of International Ministry at The Voice of the Martyrs, looks back to recount changes and transitions he saw during 2025 in places like Syria, Turkmenistan, Tanzania, and Saudi Arabia. He also shares stories of sitting down with fellow believers in hostile areas and restricted nations and how VOM's work expanded in countries such as Benin, Indonesia, Morocco, and western Nepal. "In times of transition," Aaron says, "our staff sees opportunities." VOM's field staff is excited by the chance to reach new places, which allows them to learn the needs of our persecuted brothers and sisters, pray for them specifically and find the best ways VOM can serve.
Last week, we began a look back on some of the most moving moments on The Voice of the Martyrs Radio in 2025. This week, we continue to remember:
- Brother Nathan, gospel worker with YWAM in the Middle East
- Miguel Angel Angeles, Executive Director of Bethel Radio & TV in Peru
- Michael & Mona, Christian leaders from Egypt working across North Africa
- Brother Kevin serves as a gospel worker and church planter in Asia
- Hana Menghisteab, the daughter of imprisoned Eritrean pastor, Dr. Tecleab Menghisteab, who has been in prison for over twenty years.
- Dr. Yousaf Sadiq grew up in Pakistan and is now a professor at Wheaton College and co-leader of the Lausanne Persecuted Church Initiative.
- Brother Samuel grew up Muslim and now faces persecution in Malaysia for his faith in Christ.
- Susanna Koh, Pastor Raymond Koh's wife, continues to go to court for his release
- Sister Neda, serves persecuted Christians in Iran through Iran Alive Ministries
We thank the Lord for allowing VOM Radio to encourage and challenge listeners all over the world this year. Thank you for listening and praying for our persecuted family in restricted nations and hostile areas around the world during 2025!
We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what conversation in 2025 most inspired your faith or equipped you to pray. You can also give online to support persecuted Christians through the work of The Voice of the Martyrs.
Join us in 2026 for another year of testimonies about what God is doing in and through our persecuted brothers and sisters and hear how you can pray specifically for them throughout the year!
This week, we begin looking back on some of the most moving moments shared on The Voice of the Martyrs Radio in 2025:
- Hope & Nagy, gospel workers to Libya and the Middle East
- Jerry Mattix, long-time aid ministry worker and pastor in Türkiye
- Nathan & Kari, gospel workers in South Asia with the International Mission Board (IMB)
- John Samara, Founder and Executive Director of Ananias House
- Eric Mock, the Senior Vice President of the Slavic Gospel Association
- Dr. Michael Reeves, President of Union School of Theology in the United Kingdom
- Ty Scott, VOM's Regional Leader for East and Southern Africa
- John Weaver, long-time gospel worker in Afghanistan
- Abraham & Sara serve refugees at a church in a Middle Eastern country
We thank the Lord for allowing VOM Radio to encourage and challenge listeners all over the world this year. Thank you for faithfully listening and praying for our persecuted family in restricted nations and hostile areas around the world!
We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what conversation in 2025 most inspired your faith or equipped you to pray. You can also give online to support persecuted Christians through the work of The Voice of the Martyrs.
In Part 2 of our interview with Pastor Hassan Abduraheem Taour, he shares how his heart remained upbeat, even as the judge pronounced him guilty and sentenced him to 12 years in prison. He'll talk about how reading the Bible is different inside prison than when you're free. Hassan says he experienced persecution as a blessing from God—a blessing that brought him tears of joy. "It is really a privilege to be persecuted," he says.
This week, Marcus Fernandez, VOM's Regional Leader for Central Asia, joins VOM Radio for the first time. He'll share about the fast-growing church in Iran, the North Caucasus—an area never before discussed on VOM Radio—and how persecution is escalating in Pakistan. Listen as Todd Nettleton interviews Marcus on this episode of VOM Radio.
