Every second counts. Heart4Iran’s Edwin Abnous says, “When they call us, they cannot stay on the telephone for long — less than two minutes, and they have to cut the connection.” 

Abnous says that when the war started, the signal was suddenly blocked for Mohabat TV, Heart4Iran’s 24/7 Farsi satellite station. Their team scrambled to switch to a different satellite provider so that they could continue reaching into Iran. Not long after, a man named Armin managed to call Mohabat TV.

(Photo courtesy of Heart4Iran)

Armin told the call center staff member that he lives in a city near Tehran and was hearing missile strikes. 

“He was very nervous, and he said, ‘I want peace. That’s why I called Mohabat TV,'” says Abnous. “And after that conversation, he gave his heart to Jesus.” 

Please pray for call connections and great wisdom for Heart4Iran call center staff. Consider supporting their work as a tangible expression of your prayers. 

“Moments like this [call with Armin] are very emotional to me, when I hear and see things like that happen. If two minutes of phone conversation and an opportunity to get into the country provide such a life-changing experience for a person that will impact his eternity… God knows through [Armin] how many will be impacted, how many more people can be touched [by] Jesus’ gospel that we’re preaching into the country,” says Abnous.

Iran (Representative stock photo courtesy of Zahra Amiri via Unsplash)

God is responding to the prayers of people like you and is moving in Iran. 

“The more prayer warriors, the better. We need to stand in the gap and make sure the Iranian people receive the protection, especially the Church in the inside of the country,” says Abnous.

“A friend of ours, a partner, shared with me a picture of a house church baptizing while this is happening. [During] this uprising of protest, the church is still active and going.”

Header photo: Tehran, Iran (Stock photo courtesy of Seyed Amir Mohammad via Unsplash)

“When you have a program in Dari, it really turns heads,” he says, pointing out that heart languages allow for greater depth of communication than do regional languages. 

Willey says the programming is particularly important in Afghanistan, where girls are strictly banned from secondary or higher education. 

“Really the way that girls or women in the country will be able to access any education is through a madrasa, or a religious center, but of course this is not from a Christian worldview,” Willey says. 

In contrast, SAT-7’s programming is always grounded in a Biblical worldview, one that also celebrates literacy and a broader education. Beyond that, Willey says the content is culturally sensitive.

Photo is a representative stock image courtesy of ArmyAmber via Pixabay.

“SAT-7 is Christian content in the Middle East created by Middle Eastern Christians for the people of the Middle East, so the context is there, the understanding is there,” he says. 

Satellite TV remains ubiquitous in Afghanistan, allowing SAT-7 to cast a wide net in search of an audience. Even as the country makes headlines for internet restrictions, Willey says SAT-7 can work around the shutdowns.

“SAT-7 has other ways that we can deliver the great content, but it just may be digital content via satellite, which is virtually uncensorable,” he says. 

Please pray that this programming would serve as an open door for God’s Word to prick the hearts of women and girls across Afghanistan. Willey says it’s paramount for them to understand the Gospel. 

“But also, what Scripture has to say about their worth.” 

Would you ask the Lord to work in the hearts of Afghan women? Please pray that those viewing SAT-7’s programs would understand the value they have in the eyes of their Maker.

Featured photo courtesy of SAT-7.

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

According to Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence, more than 50 Christians are among those who have been arrested since the June 24 ceasefire.

Nazanin Baghestani with Heart4Iran says the regime’s strategy of fear is working.

“People are afraid to call. People are afraid to talk to us. All their phone calls, all their apps are being tapped. Everything is monitored, and people inside the country have lost their hope.” 

Iran’s exiled crown prince, Reza Pahlavi, has led public dialogue on what a democratic Iran could look like. But Baghestani says politics are not the real frontline for the Church.

“Even if Reza Pahlavi comes on the scene, it doesn’t mean that the root of Islam is broken. It’s still there, and the persecution and the hardships will still be there,” she said. 

“We should pray that in spite of all this darkness, people will see the Lord.” 

Heart4Iran broadcasts Christian satellite TV into Iran, a medium that the Iranian government can’t so easily control. It’s a lifeline for isolated believers. So is the work of Heart4Iran’s call center team. They are carefully reaching out to Iranians. 

One man they connected with told them, “I see this as a sign from God that He still loves me.” 

One woman was overjoyed and said, “This is the first time I’m speaking to a Christian. We don’t know any Christians here, but we [have been] watching your channels for four years, and this is the first time I’ve called. I am so happy that I’m talking with a Christian.”

They are also seeing God do miracles! One widow reached out to the Heart4Iran team in desperate need of money and daily provisions.

(Photo courtesy of Heart4Iran)

“Of course, we cannot help her from here. We prayed for her. We encouraged her to believe in the Lord,” said Baghestani. “Unexpectedly, she received money from [a] far relative who owed her [late] husband. He paid the amount that he owed out of nowhere.”

Praise God for sending hope to His people. Pray for great spiritual awakening in Iran. Pray for protection for Iranian Christians, that they will not be discovered by authorities. 

“[We are] praying for hope, courage, strength, that in spite of all their disappointments, all their hardships, the inflation, the arrests, the tensions, the fear…that they will have hope and they will press on,” says Baghestani. 

Header photo is an image capture courtesy of Heart4Iran.

This diplomatic development comes more than a month after sectarian violence broke out in Syria, challenging the transitional government’s position on religious freedom. Last week, Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, extended the initial 30-day investigation of that massacre to three months from now.

Photo of shadowed Syrian flag is a representative stock photo (Courtesy of Abdalhady Mansour via Pexels)

But will more time lead to justice or religious freedom? Joe Willey serves with SAT-7, a satellite TV ministry to the Middle East and North Africa. He says that across the MENA region, people’s human rights, especially those of Christians, are not always honored.

That may mean a more helpful response to Syria’s instability is to help its people, especially its Christians, endure. 

“So when we look at a country like Syria or others in the Middle East and North Africa, we really think about Christians, because there may be — if not outright persecution — it just may be that there are what we call ‘isolated believers,’” says Willey.

Through SAT-7’s gospel-centered satellite TV and digital avenues, Christians with no connections to other believers have a chance to be discipled and interact with other Christians. Willey says the technology SAT-7 uses is “virtually uncensorable” — meaning hope can’t be silenced. 

“Christians are only 4% of the population in the Middle East and North Africa,” he says. “That means that there are other religions — and it’s not just Islam, but there are other religions, or even atheism — that Christians have to deal with.”

Whether Christians are viewed as minorities, as people without rights, or as people from a separate, inconsequential religion, the result is often still the same:

“Many people… are not really allowed to freely proclaim their faith. That does not mean they do not have faith. It means that their faith is not able to be communicated to everyone, one at large, like we may do in the U.S.,” says Willey.

(Photo courtesy of SAT-7 USA via Facebook)

But far from “hiding their light under a bushel,” so to speak, Willey says he’s noticed something interesting among these persecuted believers. “That is where God sovereignly has placed them, and they’re going to serve Him no matter if they’re the only one. That is so encouraging, as another Christian, to say, ‘These people are not Christians because it is easy. They are Christians because it is true.’”

Please pray! Pray that Syria’s government will truly uphold religious freedom. Ask God to open the way for believers in Syria (as well as other nations under persecution) to be able to share His love.

Pray also for SAT-7’s gospel ministry, meant as a resource not a replacement for the church. Pray their work truly does strengthen the church in the MENA in its range of needs.

Learn more about SAT-7 here.

Header photo: On Thursday, April 10, diplomatic relations were established between the Republic of Korea and the Syrian Arab Republic with the signing of the Joint Communiqué by Cho Tae-yul, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea, and Asaad al-Shaibani, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of the Syrian Arab Republic, in Damascus. (Photo courtesy of Ministry of Foreign Affairs (South Korea) – https://www.mofa.go.kr/eng/brd/m_5674/view.do?seq=321125, South Korea-Gov, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=163426738 via Wikimedia Commons.)

It’s a sobering snapshot of dual realities in Iran today: Iranians are coming to Christ like never before, and the persecution they face is relentless. 

Shah Ahmadi with Iran Alive Ministries explains imprisonment is a key strategy of the Iranian regime.

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

“Some people get baptized. Only for baptism, they go more than five years being in prison. If you hold the Bible, you go to prison. If you evangelize, you go to prison,” he says. 

Entire families suffer the emotional strain of separation as well as the loss of one of their breadwinners. But that’s not all Christians in Iran face. 

“[If the government knows] they become a Christian, they don’t have a right to go to university. They don’t have a right to work in many jobs,” says Ahmadi. 

He adds that the Iranian government has been accusing believers involved in home churches as threats against the Iranian government.

“They [are] saying these (house churches) are having some kind of relationship with Israel, some kind of relation with America. They try to make political things of that. So they say, ‘Oh, we are not against Christianity. We are against this (political) movement.’”

Despite the difficulties, many Iranians say Jesus is worth it. Iran is still one of the fastest growing churches today.

“In Iran around 50 years ago, there was 10,000 believers. Right now, [there are] more than 2 million believers,” says Ahmadi. 

Why the growing Church?

It’s important for us to understand some of the context for Iran’s Christian community growing so much. Here are insights from Ahmadi.

1) God is reaching Iranians through dreams and visions of Jesus. He did that in Ahmadi’s own life as well as the lives of some of his family members. 

2) The power of the gospel and prayer is leading to salvation (Romans 1:16).

“Many people [have] been praying from America, England, Europe to inside Iran see salvation, and God [is] answering prayers,” says Ahmadi. “Spiritual warfare has been going on, people [are] battling, but right now, they [are] receiving Christ in amazing ways.”

People hear the gospel from family who have accepted Christ. They also hear it through satellite TV, one of the ways Iran Alive sends the hope of Christ into Iran.

(Photo courtesy of Pixabay)

3) The discontent Iranians have toward their government is pushing them away from Islam. 

Iranians know their history. Ahmadi says they see how kings in the Persian era were an incredible empire. In their own lifetime they remember Iran’s prosperity and freedom before the Islamic revolution of 1979. They compare it with the oppression they are under today.

“[They say] ‘Why this history happened to us?’ So this generation, they read. This generation, they search. They go to Instagram, they search in through AI and everything,” says Ahmadi.

“Why this [growing of the Church] happening? Because many people [are] leaving Islam. They don’t want to do anything with religion. So through the satellite, through social media, through the hearing [of] the gospel, some of them [come] to Christ Jesus.”

How we can respond

(Photo courtesy of Zahra Amiri/Unsplash)

More and more Iranians are grasping the hope of Christ in a seriously hostile nation. Please pray for them to be faithful to Christ and witness to others even under persecution. Pray that especially for the three Christians sentenced in March 2025 to long prison terms.

Pray for God’s protection as new believers go through spiritual warfare. 

Then, learn more about partnering with Iran Alive Ministries. Sign up to receive their emails or print newsletters to receive specific prayer requests and partnering opportunities. Pray for God’s blessing on their critical ministry to Iran. Connect with Iran Alive here. 

Header image is a representative stock photo from Iran, courtesy of Mashid Saberpour via Unsplash.

But the U.S. is also pointing past the Houthis to Iran, which denies backing the group despite evidence over the years. 

For Iran, it’s already not been a good year. Dr. Hormoz Shariat with Iran Alive Ministries says that after the events of 2024 and of 2025 so far, “the Iranian government has lost its influence in the Middle East.”

He says Iran’s proxies Hamas, Hezbollah and players in Syria have been destroyed. On top of that, Iran has already lost the support of the Iranian people, plus suffered financial losses.

“Now with Trump in power, it’s going to be even worse with maximum pressure and sanctions,” he says. “So [the] Iranian government is really desperate right now for survival.”

The people of Iran are suffering along with the government, though in sharper ways. “They’re suffering because of [the] economy. They’re suffering because of the government. The government is so afraid of the people … that anybody [who] speaks up will be killed,” Shariat says, pointing to recent uprisings in the past few years which the government responded to with brutal crackdowns.

But despite the continued undercurrent of defiance of Iranians, their outlook is still grim.

Women in Iran wearing the traditional hijab and loose-fitting clothing required by sharia law.
(Photo courtesy of mostafa meraji/Unsplash)

“People are in such a desperate way that they say, ‘What else is there? Who can save us? If we come on the streets, they will kill us,’” says Shariat. “So [the] people of Iran are looking for a savior.”

As the Iranian regime grips its own people, Iran Alive broadcasts the hope of Jesus into Iranian homes through a 24/7 satellite channel. 

“The message we have is, ‘No human can be your Savior. Don’t trust in human[s]. They say something and they change their mind. The prince is not your Savior. Netanyahu is not your Savior. Trump is not your Savior. Jesus is your only Savior left.’” 

Please ask God for more spiritual breakthroughs in Iran. “We are facing a dark spirit of Islam. It’s named in Daniel 10 ‘the Prince of Persia,’” says Shariat. “So, number one [way to get involved]: prayer. Number two is to support us financially. For any growth, you need the right people and you need finances.

“Number three is [to] get involved. If you have discipleship material, if you have video resources on any subject — not just the Bible, but how to have a good marriage, how to parent — any subject that you can build [up] Christians, you can broadcast on our channel. I invite brothers and sisters to join us using media to help the church in Iran,” says Shariat.

Connect with Iran Alive Ministries here to learn more. 

Header photo of Tehran, Iran courtesy of Mohammad Amirahmadi/Unsplash. 

The answer is satellite TV. Here’s why Christian programming for this medium is so worth investing in.

(Photo courtesy of Sam Moghadam Khamsen/Unsplash)

“Consider someone’s relationship with Jesus from complete ignorance right through to personal commitment and submission,” says Lana Silk with Transform Iran. “At that first stage, they are probably Muslim — if not, sort of secular Muslim — and nervous to be considering anything outside of Islam.”

She explains that while social media tends to dominate in the West, social media can be dangerous in Iran. The Iranian government can track internet activity and impose internet restrictions and blackouts. 

“[Seekers will] be looking for a way to safely explore without being detected, and the only way to truly do that is either TV or radio, where they’re anonymous and just accessing information without anyone seeing,” Silk says.

A person might watch a Transform Iran TV program intentionally or by “coincidence.” If it captures their interest, they might respond to the program’s invitation to reach out to Transform Iran.

“That journey just keeps continuing, from digital church, to a phone call, to remote discipleship, to in-person training at a secure training center in the Middle East,” Silk says. “The whole time, we’re investing in them, loving them, doing everything we know how to do to keep them safe and progressing them through their relationship, from discovery to commitment to Jesus.” 

Silk estimates more than half of the Iranians who reach out to them say their first contact was a satellite TV program. This is an opportunity Christians need to make the most of in closed countries like Iran, where Silk says “we can’t walk the streets, we can’t have open meetings. We have to use digital media to open that conversation with people who are looking for an alternative [to what the Iranian government is pushing].

(Graphic courtesy of Transform Iran)

“Of course, the aim is one-to-one connection, the aim is church plants and inviting people into personal relationships [with Christ], but it starts with digital media,” she continues. “So pray for us. Help us raise awareness for the need, and go and partner with us through our website. You can designate your gift to media ministry, and it will go to this kind of work.”

Here’s one example of the quality programming you would be partnering with: Transform Iran just finished recording a socio-political TV series, for release in 2025. 

“We touch on international affairs, foreign relations with everything that’s going on in the Middle East and Iran’s role in the world, and how that affects the people Iran in their day-to-day lives,” Silk says, “[These are] the subjects that are on their minds today — and of course, all with the Christian perspective. They’ve all been recorded in studios in Finland with our dear partners there who support us.” 

Future topics Transform Iran has in mind are trauma counseling, freedom from addiction, apologetics, and more. They have a detailed proposal outlined for the new year and will start rolling once funding comes in. It costs only $450 to create a 30-minute program that will be aired multiple times and reach countless Iranians.

So start your partnership today! Visit Transform Iran’s website to give and learn more.  

Header image courtesy of Transform Iran. 

To offer hope, Transform Iran has brought a beloved character to life in a new and meaningful way. Enter Chonke, an animated character with a gospel-centered mission. 

Lana Silk from Transform Iran explains how this initiative was born: “We’re privileged to work with a talented woman who once voiced a famous puppet in Iran called ‘Chera,’ which means ‘why.’ She helped us create a new character, ‘Chonke,’ which means ‘because.’ Now, Chonke provides answers to children’s biggest questions.”

(Photo courtesy of Transform Iran)

In 2014, Transform Iran produced pilot episodes with Chonke, but funding challenges brought the project to a halt. Now, they’re gearing up to relaunch the series, with an even greater vision. 

“We’re considering how we can help educate the children of Iran on these issues that we talked about identity, truth, God. How does God relate to us, how do we relate to God? How should I treat the other kids in my class? It’s some basic things that are steeped in Christian teaching.” 

Transform Iran believes programs like this one with Chonke can plant seeds of faith in the hearts of a generation that will shape the nation’s future. 

Silk says children face hard realities in Iran.

“A lot of kids in Iran are struggling: their parents can’t work. Their parents might have addiction, depression, or their moms might have to prostitute themselves to feed them,” she says.

“We want to equip them to be able to cope with what life is throwing at them.”

You can make a difference for kids in Iran with Transform Iran this Christmas. Learn more here. 

“Get envisioned for what it is to reach a new generation, a fresh future for Iran,” Silk says.

Header photo of children in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran (Representative stock photo courtesy of Amin Alavi via Unsplash).

In Iran, the government can not only limit or shut down the internet, but also track peoples’ use of it. Because of this, more and more Iranians are turning to satellite TV, which cannot be stopped or monitored. 

(Photo courtesy of Transform Iran)

It’s a trend that ministries such as Transform Iran are making the most of for Christ. 

“They’re not necessarily looking for Jesus at this point,” says Lana Silk with Transform Iran. 

“They take to the satellite airwaves to find material from the West that they can listen to that is different to the rhetoric that they hear at home — and that is where we want them to find Jesus.”

There’s an interesting contrast here. In 2016, Iranian officials confiscated 100,000 satellite dishes, declaring that the corrupting influence of satellite TV led to marriage troubles, addiction and poor education for children. 

Today, however, Transform Iran hears testimonies from people who were caught in those same struggles. But in these accounts, people on the brink of suicide, or trapped in addiction, depression or broken relationships discovered the help they needed. 

“They find the message of Jesus through the TV, and it gives them hope, it gives them a better way, and then through that they can contact us — and we give them safe ways to do that. Then we can minister to them in-person and disciple them,” Silk says.

“We have really increased our investment into program creation, to make sure that we’re delivering fresh, current quality programs that the people of Iran will want to watch, will engage with and be blessed by.”

In addition to recently finishing a series on history, politics and heritage of Iran, they have also focused on children’s programming. Silk says that in Iran there are eight to 10 million children between the ages of five and 12. They are the future of Iran. 

(Photo courtesy of Transform Iran)

“We would love you to pray for us for protection on all the people involved in the frontline producing these programs, because we see time and again, as people take offensive in spiritual battle, their health is attacked, their families are attacked,” Silk says. 

There is also a practical way you can reach Iran with the gospel: by partnering to support their next programs.

“Our regular programming costs $800 for one 30-minute episode, $900 for children’s programs,” Silk says. “That’s everything from conception to production, to all the talent to recording, post production, editing. All in one, that’s $800-900 will get you a program.”

Click to learn more about Transform Iran’s ministry in radio, television and social media.

Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of mojzagrebinfo/Pixabay.

“The church in Iran is a ripe, healthy church that is constantly growing,” Transform Iran’s Lana Silk says.

Secret believers often meet online for security purposes. However, recent government crackdowns on the Internet make digital gatherings challenging to organize.

“With mission to Iran, there’s kind of a ‘reverse migration’ right now back to satellite TV as a primary source because it’s harder for the government to control,” Silk says.

Satellite TV is banned in Iran, but over 70 percent of the population uses satellite dishes to access media outside the country. “As part of our Persian Community Church, we have live broadcasts on Friday night through satellite TV,” Silk says.

“Friday night is primetime in Iran, so that’s an excellent time for a family to [gather] at home, in their living room [to watch the broadcast.] There is an interactive element, so people feel they’re participating in something rather than just watching it.”

Satellite TV, radio, social media, and mobile apps allow Gospel workers to discuss their faith, disciple new believers, and resource church planters. More about Transform Iran’s media ministry here.

Iranian lawmakers tightened the country’s internet censorship legislation last year amid widespread civil unrest. But difficult is not impossible. Most Iranians use VPNs or other workarounds to bypass government restrictions. This opens the door for digital evangelism and discipleship.

(Photo courtesy of Transform Iran)

“We are mindful of security and take [several] measures to address people’s security concerns. We don’t reveal people’s identities or force anyone to show their video,” Silk says.

“We have a fully interactive Zoom meeting [on Sundays] where hundreds of devices will join. Of course, the most visible will be [those] with their video on. Those are very, very rarely Christians who are [inside] Iran.”

Help Transform Iran share the hope of Christ with Iranians through media. Pray desperate Iranians searching for truth will meet the God of heaven.

Header and story images courtesy of Transform Iran.