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.

Twenty years ago, Marcus witnessed the growth of the church in China, despite a season of intense persecution. He says he sees the same phenomenon today in Iran, where faithful believers are bold in sharing the gospel and distributing God's Word—and where there is intense persecution. He'll share how Iranian Christians are seen as allies to Israel and, when arrested, often charged with espionage, a crime that carries the death penalty.

The North Caucasus is a predominantly Muslim region of Russia. Marcus will share what it is like to be a Christian there. Listen for the story of Marcus meeting a believer in the region and sharing about the work of The Voice of the Martyrs to help persecuted Christians who sacrifice and suffer in order to follow Christ.

"Is there any other option besides that?" the brother asked. "There is no Christian in Dagestan that didn't have to pay a price."

Marcus will share how a Christian leader says he's never seen the level of brutality against Christians in Pakistan that he's seeing now. Marcus will also share how we can pray for persecuted brothers and sisters in Pakistan, Türkiye, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Afghanistan.

The number of believers needing a Bible in Iran and many other nations is increasing. If you'd like to be part of advancing toward the goal of a Bible for every believer, visit www.vomradio.net/donate.

The VOM App for your smartphone or tablet will help you pray daily for persecuted Christians in nations like North Korea, Nigeria and Bangladesh, as well as provide free access to e-books, audiobooks, video content and feature films. Download the VOM App for your iOS or Android device today.

Ten years ago this month, Petr Jasek traveled to Sudan on behalf of The Voice of the Martyrs to meet with and encourage Sudanese Christians. At the airport on his way out of the country, Petr was arrested and later sentenced to life in prison. His first prison cellmates were ISIS fighters—men who hated Christians and quickly began to persecute Petr.

Petr Jasek spent 445 days in Sudanese custody. Listen this week as Petr shares about his first night in a jail cell, how God uniquely prepared him with a dream and how he discovered that his cellmates were radical Muslim ISIS fighters. In prison, Petr felt the Lord's presence very near as—once he received a Bible—he spent hours every day reading the Bible and praying.

In Petr's lowest moments, God brought to his mind the names and faces of other persecuted Christians—men and women Petr had met during his years overseeing VOM's work in Africa. He began to pray for other persecuted believers and his spirit lifted as his focus changed from his own difficulties to praying for other Christians. The story of Petr's imprisonment—and the ministry God allowed him inside—is told in his book, Imprisoned with ISIS: Faith in the Face of Evil.

Days after returning home, Petr sat down with VOM Radio to share his story and thank the thousands of people who prayed for him and his Sudanese co-defendants during his long months in prison. To hear Petr share the entire story of his arrest, imprisonment, and eventual release, go to www.vomradio.net/petr.

This interview was recorded during the VOM National Conference in Bartlesville, OK, where Petr shared how his time in prison and the lessons he learned there still impact him ten years later. To view a video version of Petr's interview, go to VOM's YouTube channel.

The VOM App for your smartphone or tablet will help you pray daily for persecuted Christians in nations like North Korea, Nigeria and Bangladesh, as well as provide free access to e-books, audiobooks, video content and feature films. Download the VOM App for your iOS or Android device today.

There are more cell phones in the world than cars, toilets, or people. What if each of those phones could be turned into a Bible? Using their backgrounds in electrical engineering and software development, David and Josiah Palusky have developed technology tools to help Christian workers spread the gospel in places where people are unreached and there is often Christian persecution.

David is the founder and president of Renew Outreach. He will share how the ministry began and tools they've developed to help provide unreached people in remote places with access God's Word. Josiah, Director of Strategic Initiatives at Renew, explains efforts to help persecuted Christians around the world share the gospel using emerging technology.

They will share stories of camels preaching the gospel using LightStream devices, leading an entire family to meet Christ, how AI disguised a Christian brother's voice, and how Christians in restricted nations and hostile areas can revolutionize communities for Jesus.

David also recounts the story of he and his sister hearing Pastor Richard Wurmbrand, the founder of The Voice of the Martyrs, share Richard's story of persecution in Romania at a remote Christian camp in Minnesota. That one sermon deeply impacted the lives of both David and his sister—an impact they still feel almost 40 years later.

Today, the Lord has put on their hearts to further the Great Commission among the deaf community, one of the least-reached groups in the world. Using Visual Vernacular to tell the Bible story from creation to Christ, Renew is hearing of new believers and baptisms among the deaf community weekly!

The VOM App for your smartphone or tablet will help you pray daily for persecuted Christians in nations like North Korea, Nigeria and Bangladesh, as well as provide free access to e-books, audiobooks, video content and feature films. Download the VOM App for your iOS or Android device today.