Lives Transformed

“We Are No Longer Orphans”

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Although illegal to own, satellite dishes are pervasive inside Iran
Although illegal to own, satellite dishes are pervasive inside Iran

As you know from reading my previous posts, there are no above ground churches inside Iran.  Until a few months ago, there was actually one building church, the Central Church of Iran, that was allowed to exist.  It was highly regulated and everyone who walked in the door was registered with the government.  Many of them were harassed and persecuted as a result, even though the church was allowed to exist.

It too has been closed, leaving every Christian in the country with the choice of finding an underground house church, or plugging in to Church 7, our global satellite Church for Iran.  You can read more about this strategy in my post, “Our House Was Converted into a Church”.

Below, I have copied an email we just received from a Church 7 member, whose family found themselves orphaned after the Central Church of Iran closed it’s doors.  I know you will find it encouraging.  There is no doubt the Lord is using Satellite TV to transform Iran into a Christian nation in this generation.

Hello,

My name is Amir and I am a member of Church 7. Through this letter, I want to thank you for not leaving us alone. You provide food for us who are alone in Iran.

My wife and I always cancel our plans on Friday nights in order to participate in Church 7. Sometimes we even invite friends to come to Church with us by telling people that Church has not been closed after all. We record all of Church 7 programs and when we gather with our friends, we watch them and worship together.

The Lord has been faithful, just as he promised, and has not left us alone. Even after the closing of the Central Church of Iran, of which we were members, we have not become orphans. We have a Church to go to, where we worship and receive our teachings.

I want you to know that we love you all and to let you know that for us, your programs are a living hope.

Amir

“We Need You Guys!”

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iran_tv_watch
A family watching satellite TV

One of the ministers in our Counseling Center Ministry gave me this note of encouragement from a Church 7 member/viewer inside Iran. I think you will find it encouraging as well. It beautifully illustrates the openness of the people of Iran to the Gospel and their distrust of Islam.

My name is Mahmoud (name changed for security) and I am contacting you from Iran. I am a member of Church 7 and love you all.

My friends an I used to attend the prayer meetings held by the Mullahs. They would always say bad things and curse at Christians, Jews and other religions. They always thought that they were better then everyone else. You guys are different than the Mullahs here.  You are full of love and kindness. I wish that everyone here was more like you.

When I watch the Church 7 programs, I see that you guys even pray for your enemies. This is very touching and it caused me to feel a change in my spirit. I am so happy that I have found Jesus and know that I will be living with God the rest of my days.

I pray for all of you. Continue doing what you do because we need you guys!

“Our House Was Converted into a Church”

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I have previously written about the amazing fact that Iran is home to the fastest growing Evangelical population in the world according to the extensive research of Operation World.  Considering that at the time of the Islamic Revolution of 1979, there were an estimated 500 total believers in Iran, compared with 1 million by conservative estimates today, it is not difficult to see the tangible expression of Operation World’s research.

Our Team Praying on the Set of Church 7
Our team praying on the set of Church 7

Due to the stifling persecution of Christians by the Iranian government and resulting reluctance of believers to trust the security of plugging into community with people they do not know, the most liberal estimates assume that 30,000 people are members of underground house churches inside Iran.

While this is worth celebrating, it is also merits noting that there are at least 970,000 believers inside Iran who have no connection to fellowship with other believers.  This is a staggering reality that must be addressed.

This June, we launched an initiative called Church 7, which is intended to concentrate on meeting the needs of these 97% of believers who desperately long for a church community.  Because of the power of Satellite TV safely and privately bring the Gospel into the homes of millions of Persians, we are able to create a church service for a nation.

Rather than broadcasting a service from an existing church with a congregation, where the viewer is simply an observer, we have a very simple set and let the viewers know that they are the church. Every Friday, which the the weekly holy day of Shia Islam and a holiday for all Iranians, we have church in Iran!

We are in the process of developing programming throughout the week that will meet the needs of the Body.  For example, on Wednesday nights, the youth will watch “gather” for youth group and watch a special program intended for their development, like any church with a Youth Ministry.  The same will be true throughout the week for Men’s and Women’s Ministry, Marriage, Singles, Children, etc…

This is a very exciting time to be engaged in Kingdom Building in Iran!

Below, I have copied a Facebook post from one of our newest Church 7 members.  I think you will be encouraged have a greater understanding of the potential of this opportunity:

Hello Dear Brother,

We thank God that after a long time we experienced being at Church.
 
Yesterday when your program started, we placed our chairs in front of the TV, put on our best clothes, brought our Bibles and sat in front of the TV. We worshiped, heard a sermon and took notes. Our house was converted into Church.
Dear brother, our spirits were lifted. I don’t know how to thank God for the fact that we now belong to a Church. Our prayers have been heard. The doors have opened. Thank you Father, thank you.
 
Please accept us as your members. 
Praise God for you. Praise for Christ who is alive.
Be strong and go forth. We are praying for you all.
We love you guys so much. I feel like we are old relatives. I feel like I have known you for many years.
 
His grace be with you now and for ever.

 

A Life Transformed: Roghiyeh’s Redemption

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Last October, I had the privilege of speaking live on the air with a troubled woman living inside Iran.  She had very recently attempted suicide and had plans to follow through with a successful bid to take her own life later that day.  She had spoken several times with one of our Counseling Center ministers over the course of few weeks, but felt that her life was worthless.  She was completely hopeless.  She called that day to apologize to our counselor and let her know that what she was about to do was not her fault.

As the Lord graciously laid out the timing, Roghiyeh called while we were broadcasting our live program.  Our counselor convinced her to speak with me on air before doing anything further.  She agreed.

What you will see is a shortened version of a 20 minute conversation, in which I struggled to convince Roghiyeh that death was not the answer.  She was actually more afraid of converting to Christianity, than death!  Islam feeds on controlling people through fear.  Roghiyeh felt trapped.

Through God’s endless grace and mercy, she was transformed before our eyes in that conversation from hopelessness, to joyful hope.

Following my conversation with Roghiyeh, you will get a very recent update on her life, which I think you will find very encouraging.

Hello Blogging World!

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It is with great excitement that I write the first post on my new Blog!

My prayer is that you will find this site to be a useful resource to better understanding Iran, it’s people and how the Lord is working there unlike any other time in history.  Each week, I will post my personal thoughts related to Iran and the Middle East based upon my own experiences as a former Muslim who was born and raised in Iran, who later came to a saving knowledge of Christ and who has spent the last 35 years following the Lord’s calling to take the Gospel back to my countrymen.

I will be posting video entries, photos and relaying testimonies of brave brothers and sisters in Christ who are subjected to intense persecution and daily danger inside Iran as they seek to follow Him and make Him known.  I will also comment on current events in Iran and the rest of the Middle East regularly.

Join me as we take a look at one of the least understood countries in the world.  I think you will be surprised!

Shariat Family