Lana Silk of Transform Iran describes the reality facing children in the country, including those caught up in the protests.

“The children are caught up in it. Children as young as 10, 11, and 12 have been part of the protests [and] have been arrested and killed. I’ve heard reports of girls as young as 12 being raped in custody. The government is indiscriminate.”

(Photo courtesy of Transform Iran)

Silk says children in Iran are dealing with multi-layered trauma, and need Jesus more than ever.

“Children are…very aware that they have no future in this country and have grown up sooner than you would normally want your 10-, 11-, 12-year-old to grow up and are aware that this is a necessary fight to secure their own future.”

Transform Iran is discipling believers in the Iranian underground Church. Christian children in Iran have been forced to live double lives under the oppressive Islamist regime.

“They have to profess Islam at school, recite the Quran, hide their faith, and then come home and have a Christian life,” Silk explains. “So that is very, very taxing for children when they’ve got to constantly remember who they can say what to, and try to muddle through and remember what’s true and what’s right.”

As you continue to pray for Iran, Silk asks believers to remember the youngest generation.

“I want us to remember the children and to be praying specifically for them…. This is the future of Iran. [Pray] that there will be stability in the future of Iran.

“Jesus does appear to people in dreams and visions in Iran! Let that be the children – that these children have encounters that they can talk about when they’re older and say, ‘Oh my goodness. While it was all happening, I remember that man in white that came to me in my dreams,’ and for that generation to be redeemed.”

Learn more about Transform Iran’s ministry at transformiran.com.

Header photo courtesy of Transform Iran.

Mojtaba is the son of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s former supreme leader, who was assassinated on February 28 by Israel and the United States. 

The new Khamenei has never run for office or been voted for publicly, yet he has been influential within the Iranian regime for years. What should the world expect from him? Lana Silk with Transform Iran says we can expect more of the same. 

Transform Iran has been praying for a righteous change of leadership within Iran. But Silk says frankly, “Mojtaba is not it. He wants the same things his father wanted. He is driven by the same ideological goals.”

The flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran (Photo courtesy of Engin Akyurt/Pexels)

Iran’s new supreme leader has close ties within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. This paramilitary group has been instrumental in crushing dissent in Iran.

“This [appointment of Mojtaba Khamenei] is not the answer to our prayers,” Silk continues. “But the path to the fall of this regime may be discord in the higher echelons, and if Mojtaba can’t unite the different factions within the leadership of Iran, then we will see a weaker government, which may well pave the way to real change.” 

If you don’t know how to pray through these uncertain times, pray for Iran and the Middle East in the ways Silk suggests:

“We continue to pray for the same things for Iran. We want God’s will, His mercy, covering all the many millions caught up in this conflict right across the Middle East, and a righteous transition of leadership.”

Pray for a powerful movement of God’s Spirit among Iran’s leaders and its people.

Header photo of Tehran, Iran, courtesy of Hamid Mohammad Hossein Zadeh Hashemi via Unsplash. 

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei  (Wikimedia Commons)

But Lana Silk with Transform Iran says there’s more to be done before real change will come to Iran. 

“It’s not enough just to take the very cream at the top off Iran’s leadership. It’s a very vast network of leadership with multiple factions,” she says. “A lot of people still have a vested interest to continue the same cause that Iran has had since before [this weekend].” 

Since Saturday, Iran has fired retaliatory strikes against Israel and against US assets in at least seven other nations. Silk wonders if that was a miscalculation on Iran’s part, “because what has happened now is that any potential sympathy from Arab nations towards Iran, all of that’s been wiped out.” 

But targeted strikes from any nation could become something much larger.

“I don’t think anyone really wants to engage in a regional war —I’m speaking about the Arab nations that have been pulled in here—but it’s not going to take a lot,” Silk says.

“Even though Iran’s not been targeting interests beyond American bases in these countries, of course there’s been debris and fallout.” 

Still, Silk hopes for something other than a few exchanged strikes that are called “good enough.” “That’s a version of what happened in June with the 12-day war, and [it] put the Iranian people in even greater difficulty,” she says. “But I’m pleased to hear that there’s commitment to see this thing through. So now we watch and wait to see what the Americans and Israelis will do next, and how the Iranians will retaliate.”

Azadi Square, Tehran, Iran (Stock photo courtesy of Erfan Ro via Unsplash)

Transform Iran’s team has been praying for change in Iran for years. 

“Thankfully, our leaders and founders had the foresight decades ago to be thinking toward this day. We have been talking about the call that they had in 1988: The Lord said, ‘Iran will open again, and I need you to prepare the church for that day,’” says Silk. “By God’s grace, that’s what we’ve been doing. So really, we’re at the last stages of what we have already been doing for many, many years.”

Pray for Transform Iran as their ministry conversations change from the long-term to the imminent. 

“There are going to be a lot of very, very broken, hurting people — physically, as well as emotionally, mentally, spiritually. Our first call will be to love them and to bind up the brokenhearted, as it says in Isaiah 61,” Silk says.

“Pray for a quick and decisive end, and this righteous transition of leadership, that we will move from this brutal, oppressive dictatorship to a democracy.”

Header photo: Iranians rally in Tbilisi, Georgia and worldwide voicing support for the United States and Israel, March 1, 2026 (Photo courtesy of MNN).

The 1979 Iranian Revolution toppled a U.S.-backed monarchy and established an Islamic Republic under Ayatollah Khomeini. It combined broad social grievances with religious leadership and had world-changing consequences for Iran’s political system, its relationship with the West, and the Middle East.

While traditionally marked with parades and speeches, this year’s anniversary is different.

“There is no celebration for Revolution Day. Any inclination by the people to ‘play nice’ with their oppressive regime is now overshadowed by the overwhelming pain of personal loss and grief,” Lana Silk of Transform Iran says.

“There is no pretending anymore. If anything, Revolution Day becomes a reminder of the day their country was ‘lost.’”

See updates from inside Iran here.

Revolution Day: then and now

Revolution Day 2026 lives up to its name following weeks of protests and state repression. Analysts say the unrest is the biggest challenge to Iran’s authoritarian rulers in decades.

Demonstration of Sep. 8, 1978, the sentence on the placard: “We want an Islamic government, led by Imam Khomeini.”
(Islamic Revolution Document Center, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

“If – and it is a big if – the regime has any support in the country, it is bought. Those marches we see are employees and direct contacts of the regime,” Silk says.

“Regular people are grieving what the regime has done to them.”

Iranians have lost not only freedoms, but also loved ones. Thousands of people are confirmed to have died in the government’s latest crackdown, while independent estimates suggest the toll could be in the tens of thousands.

Yet grief comes with a silver lining. Iran has the world’s fastest-growing church today.

“Before 1979, Iranians were ‘free’, chasing the pleasures of this world and consumed with spiritual apathy,” Silk says.

“[After] 1979, Iranians became oppressed and lost their freedom in almost every way imaginable — and a huge appetite for the Gospel engulfed the country.”

Preparing for change amid hardship

Transform Iran supports indigenous believers involved in church planting, discipleship, leadership development, business, project management, and strategic thinking. More about that here.

The ministry is well-positioned for change. “Iran’s regime is going to fall, and Iran will become open,” Silk says. “People, processes, and plans are ready so that when the doors open, we are ready to act and reach the WHOLE nation for Christ!”

(AI photo generated by Chat GPT)

Until then, believers must endure the challenges of everyday life. “Iranians are hungry!” Silk says. “Food is limited in supply, and prices are out of reach. They need our help!”

Send aid to Iranian families here. “Please give where you can and bolster our efforts. It costs up to $150 per week to feed a family of four,” Silk says.

“We are OFAC certified and have the means to get it (the aid) there.”

Most importantly, pray. Pray that grief and oppression would continue to open hearts to the Gospel. Pray that the growing underground church would be strengthened and guided by the Holy Spirit, and that Iran would move toward freedom and openness so the nation can be reached with hope and truth.

“Christians are actively hunted down and ’taken out’” by Iran’s secret police, Silk says. Despite the risk, “Iranians are ‘counting the cost’ and deeming it 100 percent worthy,” she continues.

“When someone chooses to follow Jesus like this, then God fills and uses them in powerful ways.”

Header image depicts pro-Iranian protests in Eastern Europe circa 2026. Photo credit: MNN. 

For the store owners, the breaking point came when Iran’s rial collapsed to 1.42 million to the dollar on Sunday. 

“The current demonstrations are the biggest that we have seen since 2022. But what’s interesting is this is not an isolated part of society. It affects many more people,” says Lana Silk with Transform Iran.

Representative photo of Iranian police (photo courtesy of Alireza Heidarpour via Pexels)

“Last time around, it was really just the young people and some activists, but these are regular, working-class people who are struggling to live and are protesting about it.”

Surprisingly, the Iranian regime’s response has been relatively tame. It has used tear gas instead of bullets against protesters. And that’s not the only surprise. 

“One rare, high-level action that was taken straight after the protest was the resignation of Mohammad Reza Farzin,” says Silk. Farzin served as the chief of Iran’s central bank beginning in December 2022. “It’s interesting that somebody who is directly related to the cause of the protests has stepped down. That’s unusual.” 

But Iran’s economic crisis needs many more direct actions from its leaders. Inflation is up by 42.2% compared to December 2024, according to the state statistics center. 

“When we look at that situation, we have to remember this isn’t people being melodramatic about their situation. This is about millions of people who cannot afford to eat every day,” Silk says of the demonstrators. “They have to make choices between eating and heating their homes in the winter, or worse, eating and covering costs of essential medical care.”

Transform Iran has received more calls for help than they can possibly respond to, but they understand it to be part of the call to follow Christ.

(Representative stock photo of boy in Tehran, Iran courtesy of Fateme Alaei via Unsplash.)

“We can’t ignore people’s real practical needs while preaching a gospel of love,” explains Silk. “So practical aid becomes a critical component of effective ministry in the country. We welcome funds and resources given for that purpose so that we can give people the help that they need.”

Please pray for gospel hope to reach Iranians. Consider partnering with Transform Iran to reach both believers and non-believers with tangible aid. 

“Let’s be praying for the Christians to be a light in these very dark spaces in Iran,” Silk says. “[Pray that] communities will get to know Jesus and find their only true salvation, only true life. They’re looking for life, for freedom, for hope.”

Header photo: Man in Mazandaran Province, Iran (photo courtesy of Lumière Rezaie via Unsplash)

Lana Silk with Transform Iran says the end goal is not solely to be in the AI space, but to solve real problems and help people connect with the Gospel. However, it is crucial to have Christian involvement in the fast-moving world of technology. This dilemma was forefront as Transform Iran sought to make their online apologetic center more user-friendly.

(Photo is a representative stock image courtesy of Tara Winstead via Pexels)

“People want more bite-size, more personalized. So, in order to solve that problem, we began down this journey towards AI. We ended up with a tool that was capable of even more than we had hoped. And with that, we had to start dealing with the challenges of AI. How do we make sure that it says truthful to the Word of God? How do we make sure that it’s entirely reliable? So when people are asking it questions, they can know what’s coming back to them is 100% Scripture-based.”

Based in Truth

To do this Transform Iran had to tackle the massive concern of “AI hallucinations”. This term refers to the practice of AI fabricating the answers to questions for which it cannot find a clear answer. A tool making up information about God would be a massive concern for a Bible-based tool. The Transform Iran team was able to circumvent this by programing Kairos to admit when it does not have the answers.

(Photo is courtesy of Transform Iran)

When a person asks Kairos a question it searches the database of Biblical information it has been given by Transform Iran’s team of theologians, apologists, software engineers, and researchers. If there is no answer available, it is programed to respond, “I don’t know. You can check back in a few days. Our team has been notified that that this question still needs answering.”

Who is Chatting?

This transparency helps with another concern about the perceptions of the user. Do they know “who” is answering the questions? It is critical that when AI is doing the work, that is clear.

“We don’t want people to be misled and to get into a place where they think they’re interacting with a human, or worse, with God himself. So we’ve put in measures in Kairos where we are actively protecting the answers and making sure that the way that it answers the questions that people give it don’t mislead them into thinking that they are interacting with a live pastor on the other end, or worse, texting Jesus, so to speak.”

Meeting a Need

In places like Iran, Kairos is meeting a very real need that a human can’t do as effectively right now. Silk says there are people across Iran who are afraid to text, email, or call Transform Iran because of government tracking. When people go online, Transform Iran offers a free, safe and reliable VPN to help them access Kairos and ask their questions. She says it’s not a replacement for human discipling, but it is a tool they hope will bolster the Church.

“Kairos is such a phenomenal tool, but there is a really sort of noisy AI space out there. We really believe we have created something uniquely powerful that does overcome the constantly talked about challenges of AI. So, pray for us that we can really get the word out there for it. We want people to benefit from what we’ve developed. It’s available in 250 plus languages. It’s free to use.”

Please pray that God would open doors to help Kairos help accelerate the Gospel in hard-to-reach areas like Iran. Pray also for the Transform Iran team as they continue to monitor Kairos, answer questions, and honor God with this new technology.

If you want to learn more about Kairos or send it along to someone who may benefit from it, click here.

Header photo is a representative stock image courtesy of Ron Lach via Pexels.

Transform Iran’s CEO Lana Silk says that for the 55 Iranians deported this week, uncertainty awaits them under the Iranian regime. 

“Someone who has chosen to leave Iran and live in another country — particularly an enemy state — for any amount of time will absolutely be under suspicion. You know, ‘Are these people for us or against us?’ The government will be assuming ‘against us,’” she says.

(Photo courtesy of Transform Iran)

For any Christian who returns to Iran, the danger goes to another level. 

“Christians already in Iran are called Zionists. When a person is identified as a Christian — therefore a Zionist — and that Christian has been living abroad in an enemy state, then that person will be at risk, for sure. Absolutely, they will be incarcerated and very likely at some point executed,” says Silk. 

Since Iran’s 12-day war with Israel in June, arrests and executions have sharply increased. 

“What ended up happening within Iran’s borders was the unleashing of a very angry, humiliated government that we like to think was weakened, but not really,” says Silk. “[It was] short-term weakened, but strengthened in its resolve and in its anger and rage towards its own people, as well as outside.” 

Silk says 2025 has been a year like no other in Iran’s history — but in devastating ways. More conflict is likely ahead. 

“Iran’s made no secret of the fact that they are rearming, repositioning themselves for another round,” she says. “There’s a sort of cat-and-mouse game that is happening between Iran and Israel now, and really, we can all expect for some other confrontation to come soon.”

Yet even in the urgent physical, spiritual, and emotional needs facing Iran, Silk points to where hope comes from: God is still on His throne.

“He loves the people of Israel, Gaza, Lebanon, Iran, all across that region. He has a plan and a purpose to prosper them and not to harm them,” Silk says. 

“Let’s be praying with faith. Let’s be praying with hope. We as a ministry do that. We constantly declare the righteousness and the joy and the peace of God, the kingdom of God in Iran. We pray that God would have His way in Iran, that the leaders who are causing such pain and destruction would have Damascus Road encounters and be saved.”

Financial partnership is another way to become part of this work. Learn more about Transform Iran’s calling to reach Iran and how you can support them at transformiran.com. 

Header photo: Tafresh, Markazi Province, Iran (Photo courtesy of Mostafa Meraji via Unsplash)

“Iranian children right now are victims of their wider society and the struggles that their parents face,” says Silk. “There’s a lot of very serious economic hardship in Iran today, and that is affecting the adult population in their mental health. There are a lot of people turning to drugs and alcohol. There’s a lot of joblessness and struggling to put food on the table. So that worry and stress and struggle, of course, is going to permeate the whole household. And children are very helpless in these kinds of situations.”

The weight of these challenges increases for Christian children. In Open Doors’ World Watch List, an annual ranking of the 50 countries where Christians face the most persecution, Iran ranks #9.  According to Silk, Christian Iranians have needed to be even more cautious with their faith since the 12 Day War in June, which started when Israel launched targeted airstrikes in Tehran, dramatically escalating conflict within the Middle East.

“The government is really scrutinizing everything and desperately trying to weed out the Christians, and these children have been very careful at school to toe the line and keep up pretenses that they are sympathetic, at least, to the Muslim faith. So all of that carries its toll.”

And while Iranians are free to acknowledge Christmas as a “festival,” that doesn’t mean Christians are safe to celebrate the meaning behind the day.

“People can still decorate their homes and make a fuss of that time of year,” says Silk, “but as soon as you get into a truly Christian celebration of what happened 2000 years ago, then that’s all going to be kept quiet.”

She notes that Iranian children outside of Iran are mostly refugees, with their own set of challenges: “A lot of the issues they face really affect their sense of well-being, even mental health, depression, anxiety, panic attacks.” However, evangelism efforts are much less dangerous for Iranian refugees than for Christians living within Iran.

“We do a lot of that, particularly in Turkey, where we can gather other refugee Iranians who are all living a sort of bleak life at the time,” Silk says. “And so the Christian families can say our holy celebration is coming up. So it’s a great way just to gather a community, and of course, through that, then we get to bless these families, practically and spiritually, sharing truth.”

For all Iranian children—Christian or not, within Iran or in refugee regions—Transform Iran is working to share joy through Operation Christmas Joy, a six-week program where families gather and talk about Jesus and what Christmas means, culminating with a gift for each child that helps meet a practical need.

“We talk a lot about joy and peace and hope at Christmas time,” says Silk. “We thought, well, how do we share the gospel message with children and truly allow it to penetrate their lives so that it does birth joy in their hearts? We want them to be laughing again and dancing again and enjoying community.”

To learn more about partnering with Transform Iran this Christmas, visit their website.

Header photo courtesy of Transform Iran.

The new Tehran metro station named “Maryam-e Moqaddas,” or “Holy Mary,” features reliefs of Mary and Jesus Christ. Located on Line 6 (the pink line) in central Tehran, it opens at the end of November. Yet it is a surprising development in a nation dominated by Islam and known for strict limits on religious imagery.

Lana Silk from Transform Iran says, “It’s just political manipulation, and it’s far from reality.”

Representative photo: Man Standing Inside Train (photo courtesy of Francesco Paggiaro via Pexels)

The announcement comes during a wave of mass arrests of Christians. The government has become increasingly brazen and open in rounding up, interrogating, and persecuting anyone who practices a different faith. Many face extremely high bail and ongoing persecution.

In this context, the opening of the “Holy Mary” station is not only misleading but also offensive. Silk explains:

“Meanwhile, they [government] round up and question and arrest and imprison and torture Christians, including Armenian and Assyrian Christians who violate the terms of their faith.”

These “violations” for Armenians or Assyrians typically involve holding services in Persian, allowing non-ethnic Christians to attend, sharing their faith with Muslims, or engaging in unapproved church activities — actions that can trigger interrogation, arrest, or worse under Iranian law.

To some Muslims, the station may seem to project tolerance, since Mary (Maryam) and Jesus are mentioned in the Quran. But Christians in Iran point to a clear double standard: authorities showcase Christian imagery while persecuting believers who speak about Jesus and Mary from a biblical perspective. Silk says:

“But it’s all just a way around the topic of: Are we going to acknowledge that Jesus is God? Are we going to acknowledge His claims? And that, of course, is a flat-out ‘No’.”

Even so, the opening of a new metro station can still open doors for Gospel conversations, as thousands of commuters will see the reliefs daily.

“This is a great conversation starter in the homes of families where not everyone is yet a believer,” encourages Silk. These conversations can lead to simple but important questions: “Who was Mary? Who was Jesus?” And give believers a chance to explain.

Pray that the “Holy Mary” metro station prompts many Iranians to seek truth and learn more about Jesus. Visit Transform Iran to discover how you can support the persecuted Church in Iran!

Header representative photo: Taleghani Station, Tehran Metro (photo courtesy of ZarlokX via Wikimedia Commons).

At school, Christian children must live double lives. Home is the only safe place to explore real truth, while outside, Islamic ideology dominates.

Lana Silk from Transform Iran says, “All material has a flavor of Islam. You know, even if you’re doing math or the arts.”

Sama Kindergarten and Elementary School (Photo courtesy of Sonia Sevilla via Wikimedia Commons)

Beyond regular subjects, students take religious classes to learn Islam and Arabic so they can recite Namaz and become proper Muslims. Even familiar Bible stories are rewritten through an Islamic lens.

“They have to be able to talk about the Islamic version at school, play along, and pretend that’s their reality — all while keeping the differences straight in their minds and not mixing them up. It’s a lot of pressure on the children,” explains Silk.

At home, Christian parents try to keep their children grounded in Scripture, but many lack training. That’s where Transform Iran steps in.

“We do a lot of ministry that focuses on children and have created resources focused on children to give parents the tools they need to help instill these foundations in their children at a young age, so that they grow up knowing the truth,” says Silk.

Whenever possible, the ministry organizes discreet gatherings — every few weeks or monthly — in small home groups led by trained teachers who use age-appropriate, biblically based materials.

For many children, the difference between truth and falsehood is tangible.

First day of Iranian new education year (Photo courtesy of Sonia Sevilla via Wikimedia Commons)

“They experience the love of God very early in their lives in Christian homes, and particularly in Iran’s toxic climate, they recognize that at home there is joy and peace — something lacking outside their home,” says Silk.

Yet this double life takes a toll. Many children struggle with anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem as they navigate two conflicting worlds. They need your prayers.

Pray for Iranian parents to wisely guide their children through the emotional strain of their environment. Pray for children to hold fast to the truth they know at home.

Learn more about how Transform Iran equips families and children to live faithfully in one of the world’s most challenging environments.

Header photo courtesy of Mohammad Moslehi via Unsplash.