Nik and Ruth Ripken are back for the second half of our conversation. How do we bear other Christians’ burdens (Gal. 6:2), both those living in hostile and restricted nations, and missionaries that serve in difficult places around the world? Why is it so important, before we offer help, to offer a listening ear to hear the stories on the hearts of the people that we want to minister to?

As veteran missionaries who have served for 35+ years, Nik and Ruth offer advice to American Christians on how we can minister to missionaries home from the field.

How should young people feeling a call to missions respond, prepare and pray? Nik and Ruth offer advice for those sensing God’s call to serve Him in far-off and even difficult places—and remind us that ALL followers of Christ are called to GO…the only question is WHERE each Christian is called to go to.

How have the Ripkens kept their marriage strong and fresh through 35 years of ministry in difficult places…and how has God used their marriage as a spiritual lighthouse to reach Muslims for Christ? Why is it that Muslims often ask them about their marriage, and about how they raised their children?

What are some specific, practical ways we can pray for missionaries that we support and send out? How do we pray for Christians in the midst of persecution? How can we pray for the nation of Somalia, a nation where the Ripkens served heroically in the midst of a tragic famine.

This special podcast edition of this week’s conversation includes bonus material not included in the broadcast version. If you missed the first half of our conversation with Nik and Ruth, you can listen to it here. Their first visit to VOM Radio, following the release of the film version of Nik’s book, The Insanity of God, is here.

Nik and Ruth Ripken have served 35+ years as missionaries and conducted extensive interviews with hundreds of persecuted Christians from all parts of the world. They went not as teachers but as students, simply to sit at the feet of persecuted believers and learn from them. The bold believers they met shared amazing lessons about living out faith in Jesus in the midst of hostile enemies, literally sheep among wolves.

What are the qualities that allow faith to thrive in such hard places? How are churches built in nations closed to Christian witness? Are there ways we can reach out to people from hostile nations, right here in the United States?

Nik and Ruth also offer insights for American Christians on ways we can encourage and bless missionaries that our churches are sending out and supporting—both while they serve and when they come home to refresh and recharge.

Nik is the author of The Insanity of God: A True Story of Faith Resurrected, which was also made into a film. You can listen to Nik and Ruth’s previous conversation on VOM Radio, conducted when the film was released, here.

Fouad Masri founded Crescent Project (www.CrescentProject.org) to train American Christians to share the gospel with Muslims. In 25 years since, the group has trained more than 21,000 Christians to reach out with love to those deceived by Islam. Listen this week as Fouad helps ignite your passion for reaching out, and equips you to enter those conversations with confidence and grace.

Listen as he shares how God implanted the passion in his heart—as a young man in Lebanon—to reach Muslims with the hope of Jesus. What questions are on the hearts of Muslims? How is Jesus the Answer to those questions? How can we pray for our Muslim friends and coworkers?

God calls us to be light in darkness for Muslims, and Fouad and Crescent Project provide tools that equip and enable our light to shine more clearly.

Other workers associated with Crescent Project have been guests on VOM Radio, including Jami Staples talking about women’s ministry (Part 1, Part 2) and Ali Sassi, who while still a Muslim was challenged by a Christian friend to demonstrate how the Bible had been changed—a challenge that ultimately led him to faith in Christ.

The Bridges Study app from Crescent Project, which equips Christians to reach out to Muslims, is available for iOS and Android.

Rashin Soodmand was 13 years old when her father, Pastor Hossein Soodmand, was executed in Iran for the crime of apostasy. His body was quietly buried in an unmarked grave in a part of the local cemetery reserved for “the cursed.”

Yet only three days later, Rashin wrote a letter to God promising to follow Christ boldly, just as her father had—even if it meant great sacrifices. Today she is living out that promise, including ministering to the church inside Iran.

Her father wasn’t the only martyr of the Iranian church Rashin knew well. In this second part of our conversation, Rashin shares some of the things she remembers about the other martyrs she knew personally: Haik Hovsepian, who preached at her father’s funeral; Mehdi Dibaj, who encouraged her to attend Bible school; and Pastor Mohammad “Ravanbakhsh” Yusefi.

This is Part 2 of our conversation with Rashin; if you missed Part 1 of her amazing testimony, listen here. To learn more about the current ministry activities of Rashin and her husband, Amir, visit the Torch Ministries web site.

Rashin Soodmand was 13 years old when her father, Pastor Hossein Soodmand, was executed by the Iranian government for the crime of apostasy—leaving Islam to follow another faith. Listen as she shares how her family’s life was changed, but also how proud she is of a father who chose to lay down his life rather than deny Christ.

Listen as she recalls the man her father was, loving his congregation and loving his family, and how people were drawn to his kindness and love.

Rashin will tell how church leaders encouraged Pastor Hossein to take his family, leave Iran and go somewhere safer; hear his exact words as he flatly refused, saying that to do so would discourage the hearts of his congregation.

She’ll also describe the last time she saw her dad, and the day she heard that he’d been executed.

This is Part 1 of our conversation with Rashin; click here to hear the second half of her story, including how God has used the loss of her father to equip her to minister to hurting people inside and outside of Iran to this day. To learn more about the current ministry activities of Rashin and her husband, Amir, visit the Torch Ministries web site.

Would you like to be on staff, delivering aid and encouragement to persecuted Christians in the 70+ nations where VOM works?

Jonathan Eckman leads a staff of 65 people living in 24 nations who conduct VOM’s international ministry, being the hands and feet on the ground among persecuted Christians all over the world. This week he shares about VOM’s international work, and some of the people from among our persecuted family who have inspired his personal faith walk.

Listen to understand better how VOM’s international ministry happens in the 70+ nations where VOM works, the importance of partnerships, and where Jonathan sees persecution increasing as we enter a new year; and where things are getting better for Christians—or at least not getting worse.

Jonathan will also share how you can pray for VOM workers as they travel in and out of restricted nations and provide help and encouragement to Christians who are persecuted for the name of Christ, as well as their families who remain at home. He’ll also issue a challenge to pray for church and mission leaders conducting Great Commission work in an increasingly complex and hostile world.

This week we continue our look back on some of the amazing testimonies God has allowed VOM Radio to share in 2018.

Brother Blake and Brother Joel told us about the state of the church, and the increased persecution, in China and how Chinese Christians wear out their Bibles.

Manfred Mueller challenged the way his fellow Germans—and many Americans—think about refugees, urging us to see a gospel opportunity.

“Sister Sahar” came to the US as a Muslim student from Saudi Arabia. Today she is a follower of Christ, and she shared ways we, as Christians, can reach out to Muslims we know today.

“Brother Fahdi” told us that God is at work in Yemen, drawing Muslims to faith in Christ.

Brother Aaron shared the story of how VOM’s help to a Christian family in Central Asia arrived at exactly the right time.

John Grooters, the director of Tortured For Christ—The Movie, shared an inspiring chapter from the life of Richard Wurmbrand, VOM’s founder.

George Verwer, the founder of Operation Mobilization, encouraged American Christians not to lose gospel focus, and to be intentional about sharing our faith in Christ with people around us.

If you’ve been blessed by these snippets from conversations on VOM Radio this year, you’ll want to go back and listen to the entire conversation with each of these guests:

Brother Blake and Brother Joel: here and Brother Joel on Bibles in China: here.

Manfred Mueller, the head of VOM’s sister office in Germany: here.

“Sister Sahar,” from Saudi Arabia: here.

“Brother Fahdi,” talking about Yemen and other Middle Eastern countries: here.

Aaron, on VOM’s work in Central Asia: here.

John Grooters, on the making of Tortured For Christ—The Movie: here, and on the making of the Wurmbrand video-based small-group curriculum: here.

George Verwer, the founder of Operation Mobilization: here.

Join us as we look back on some of the amazing testimonies God has allowed VOM Radio to share this year.

Helen Berhane explained the power of worshipping the Lord while locked in a shipping container in Eritrea.

Gary Witherall talked about God’s help to choose forgiveness, and even love, just minutes after Gary’s wife, Bonnie, was martyred in Lebanon.

Brad Phillips shared the story of Morris, a church leader in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan, who forgave the man who attacked his daughter—and even paid the fine to get the young man out of prison.

Dan Baumann told what happened when God challenged him to love the man beating him inside a prison in Iran—and the breakthrough that happened when Dan did indeed show love.

Finally we’ll hear some of the ways these guests have encouraged us to pray for persecuted Christians this year.

If you’re blessed by these snippets from conversations on VOM Radio this year, you’ll want to go back and listen to the entire conversation with each of these guests:

Helen Berhane: Part 1 and Part 2

Gary Witherall: Part 1 and Part 2. You can also order a copy of Gary’s book, Total Abandon (affiliate link).

Brad Phillips: here.

Dan Baumann: Part 1 and Part 2. You can also order a copy of Dan’s book, Cell 58 (affiliate link).

If you’re already in prison for your faith, and facing a possible death penalty, Petr Jasek says you can be even more bold about sharing Jesus. After all…how much worse could your situation get, from an earthly perspective?

Jasek and Pastor Hassan Abduraheem Taour were cell mates in a Sudanese prison, on trial together for alleged espionage against the nation of Sudan, and this week they are together on VOM Radio in a special episode recorded at a VOM Advance Conference.

Listen to how they found JOY even as they were physically suffering and were separated from families and loved ones. Listen as Petr shares how he could physically feel the prayers of people around the world while he was in prison. Both men will share how God had specifically prepared them to face persecution and imprisonment.

Petr will also talk about how God brought back to his mind the words of songs he had learned as a child, and about the invisible “prayer map” on the walls of his prison cell. Both Petr and Hassan will share what it meant to them for Sudanese Christians to gather outside the courtroom and boldly sing hymns of praise to God as the men were taken to and from their court hearings.

Finally, you’ll be equipped to pray specifically for Christians in prison right now for their faith in Christ, as well as for their family members waiting, hoping and praying for their incarcerated loved ones.

You can hear the VOM Radio interview with Petr Jasek, recorded just eight days after he was released from prison in Sudan, here: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. Our interview with Pastor Hassan is here: Part 1 and Part 2.

Today we conclude China Week on VOM Radio. All week we've looked at the increasing persecution of Christians in China in conjunction with a new VOM Special Report on China.

Today: “Sister Amber” shares her story of being arrested and persecuted at the hands of Chinese officials in Tibet. It’s one of the most impactful conversations we’ve ever shared on VOM Radio.

Sister Amber spent more than a decade in Tibet, providing vocational training to the people and sharing the gospel message of Christ’s love. She felt God's call especially to work among Tibet's nomadic tribal people, who jokingly call themselves "the roof on the roof of the world." Amber watched as God brought about a great ministry breakthrough: people who'd been totally closed to her message were now asking to learn more about Jesus.

But just days after the breakthrough Amber experienced persecution; police came pounding on her door.

Listen as she tells the story. You'll hear how God ministered to her in the hardest moments of her suffering. You'll hear how she was eventually released, and the way God showed her that her persecution was not the end of the story.

You'll also hear how God laid on the hearts of people around the world to pray for Amber, including one who drew a picture of Amber surrounded by policemen in the interrogation room. Months later, when Amber saw the picture, it matched exactly the setting of her interrogation, but also offered a ray of spiritual hope.

Your faith will be challenged as you hear Amber's thoughts on what the New Testament calls the "honor" of being persecuted, and she’ll give first-hand advice on how we can pray for Christians in prison right now.

If you did not yet receive a copy of VOM’s Special Report on the increase of persecution in China, request your copy at www.VOMRadio.net/China.

It’s Day 4 of China Week here on VOM Radio as we look at the increasing persecution of Christians in China in conjunction with a new VOM Special Report on China.

Today: Brother Joel is back with us to talk specifically to the state of Bible distribution in China. Listen to hear why Chinese believers need a new copy of the Bible every 3-5 years. He’ll also talk about how he and his family think about the possibility that he might face persecution.

Tomorrow China Week concludes as we hear from “Sister Amber;” one of the most impactful interviews that has ever aired on VOM Radio.

If you did not yet receive a copy of VOM’s Special Report on the increase of persecution in China, request your copy at www.VOMRadio.net/China.

It’s Day 3 of China Week here on VOM Radio as we look at the increasing persecution of Christians in China in conjunction with a new VOM Special Report on China.

Today: an interview recorded inside China with one of VOM’s Bible distribution partners, a man who risks three years in prison every time he leaves his home to minister for Christ. Listen as our brother shares about growing up in a family of persecuted Christians, and the story of his very first arrest, and the thoughts on his heart as he went through that testing time.

Tomorrow China Week continues as we hear more from Brother Joel about the challenges of getting Bibles to our spiritual family members all across the country.

If you did not yet receive a copy of VOM’s Special Report on the increase of persecution in China, request your copy at www.VOMRadio.net/China.

It’s Day 2 of our special China Week here on VOM Radio as we look into the increasing persecution of Christian brothers and sisters in China.

New laws went into effect in February that greatly affect our Christian brothers and sisters in China and how they are able to live out their faith. Then, in March, term limits were abolished for China’s President, allowing current leader Xi Jinping to lead the country for many more years.

Today Brother Blake and Brother Joel will share what these changes mean for churches in China, and how Christians are responding to continue serving Christ in the face of increased communist oppression. Blake and Joel will also equip and inspire you to pray for China’s Christians during these days of increasing pressure.

Tomorrow China Week continues as we meet one of our Chinese brothers involved in Bible distribution there.

If you did not yet receive a copy of VOM’s Special Report on the increase of persecution in China, request your copy at www.VOMRadio.net/China.

In this special episode Cole Richards, VOM’s President and CEO, shares about a new special report issued by The Voice of the Martyrs about the increased persecution of Christians in the nation of China.

Cole will talk about what has changed in recent months in China and how Christians there are responding by continuing to serve Christ, regardless of what the communist government does or what pressure they face.

We’ll also discuss how this crackdown in China is affecting VOM’s work in the country, and what American Christians can learn from the way our Chinese brothers and sisters are responding to the challenges of persecution they face. Finally, as we always do on VOM Radio, we’ll talk about specific ways you can pray for our spiritual family in China.

Note: This is the first of five special episodes this week focusing in China, released in conjunction with a VOM Special Report about the increase in persecution on Christians in China this year. If you did not already receive a copy of this special report, you can request a copy at www.VOMRadio.net/China.

Cole Richards is the President of The Voice of the Martyrs (VOM). In addition to leading VOM’s service to persecuted Christians abroad, Cole serves as Publisher and Executive Producer of VOM’s publishing and media initiatives. Cole joined VOM in 2006 after living and ministering in a restricted nation, one of the least-reached in the Middle East, where he, his wife and their children reached out to Muslims and supported persecuted Christians.

Cole holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering as well as two master’s degrees: one in missiology, with a focus on evangelism in the Muslim world, and one in business administration (MBA) in the context of organizational leadership. Before entering full-time ministry, Cole served as a USAF officer, focusing on the rise of Islamic terrorist groups in the Middle East.

“Brother Fahdi” spent many years doing gospel work all over the Middle East and North Africa, equipping church planters and leaders and helping to reach Muslims with the gospel message of Christ’s love. Listen as he discusses the situation for Christians in Yemen, Algeria and other nations.

What happens when a Muslim in the Middle East comes to faith in Christ? Fahdi will describe the persecution they are likely to face, but says in spite of such persecution God is reaching many hearts.

Fahdi will explain how Muslims think about Shariah Law, the lies they’ve been told about Christianity’s teachings, and how Christians—in the Middle East and the United States—can reach out to share the truth of the gospel with love for Muslim friends and neighbors.

Finally, Brother Fahdi will equip us to pray for Christians across the region, and especially in the war-torn country of Yemen.

The gospel worker in Somalia knows that his life is in danger. He’s seen ministry coworkers gunned down by radical Muslims. But he doesn’t fear death, seeing as the Apostle Paul did that “to die is gain.”

This week we’ll hear from “Brother Michael,” who assists VOM to serve alongside persecuted Christians in the Horn of Africa, including that bold evangelist in Somalia and others like him in Ethiopia, Sudan and other nations.

Listen to hear the story of an Imam who came to faith in Christ, then had both his job and his family taken from him. Michael will also share about a woman who committed her life to Christ in a Muslim village, then woke up one night to find her home on fire and watched it burn as neighbors refused to help her.

Michael will also tell us why a motorcycle can make a huge difference in the ministry of Front-line workers supported by VOM, helping them reach exponentially more villages and more people with the gospel message of Jesus’ love.

Operation World says the fastest growing church in the world is in the Islamic Republic of Iran. What is driving this incredible revival among Iranian people?

Rev. Dr. Mehrdad Fatehi leads PARS Theological Center, training leaders for the Iranian church in Iran and around the world. He’ll help us look behind the scenes at the phenomenal growth of the church in Iran, and the pressure house churches—and especially church leaders—face right now from the Islamic government. Listen to hear how God intervened to bring an end to one believer’s police interrogation. How does a new Christian believer in Iran find other believers to connect and fellowship with? How are leaders trained when public, open theological education is impossible?

Hear how PARS focuses on both increasing knowledge from education and study, as well as mentoring to help students practice the behaviors of leadership, face the challenges that come with ministry in a closed nation and continue their personal spiritual growth.

Finally, Dr. Fatehi will help us pray more specifically for the needs of our brothers and sisters inside the Islamic Republic.

When this year began, there was talk of war between North Korea and the United States. By June, we watched video of President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un smiling and shaking hands. Big changes!

What does it mean? How are those changes affecting our Christian brothers and sisters in the DPRK? Dr. Eric Foley, the President of VOM-Korea, joins us to offer answers to those questions, and helps us look at news coverage of North Korea not as Americans or Koreans, but as members of the Body of Christ.

Dr. Foley will talk about changes on the Korean peninsula, and how those changes are affecting Christian work there—both north and south of the DMZ. He’ll share why this has been the most difficult year ever for VOM balloon launches into North Korea, and explain why North Korean defectors are such a significant part of reaching North Korea with the gospel message.

Finally, Dr. Foley will give very specific advice on how we can be in prayer for North Korean Christians.

Will you commit to pray for North Korea this week? Join us on VOM Radio and equip yourself to pray more knowledgeably for the “hermit kingdom.”

George Verwer is the founder of Operation Mobilization; OM has mobilized more than 200,000 people to spread the gospel to the furthest parts of the world. Listen as George shares how he thinks about risk, and his challenge to Christian believers to refocus from comfort and convenience to serving the Lord.

George will share about OM workers he has known who’ve sacrificed everything for Christ, and also how he makes tough leadership decisions—including sending mission workers into dangerous places.

Verwer challenges each of us to be involved in sharing the gospel message and to focus more on the things of Christ than on the daily news or our social media feed.

He’ll also share about his early encounters with VOM’s founder, Richard Wurmbrand, and how George declined to use OM vehicles to smuggle Richard out of Romania.

Listen to OM co-founder Dale Rhoton on VOM Radio here and here. Current OM-USA President, Andrew Scott, has also been a guest on VOM Radio.

Purchase George's book, Messiology (affiliate link).

What do our brothers and sisters in Central Asia face in walking out their faith in Christ? A hard path filled with loss and persecution—but also a path filled with joy! Aaron Miller oversees VOM’s work there, and he’s just back from meeting with and hearing the testimonies of our persecuted family there about how God’s Kingdom is advancing even in small steps, one conversation or one taxi ride at a time.

Listen to hear specific types of persecution that Christians in Central Asia face, and ways VOM is standing with them—and in some cases has stood with them for years.

You’ll meet Rebekah, whose husband was martyred for his faith years ago, and who now says that the hard path of losing her husband has opened the door for even greater ministry in her nation—especially to women who’ve experienced loss and hardship.

One of those Rebekah is ministering to is Rachel. Listen to hear why getting a driver’s license was a major accomplishment for Rachel—and how it is already improving her, and Rebekah’s, ability to minister for Christ.

Lydia is the widow of a pastor. Her family is trying to get her to marry a Muslim man. it's an offer she has repeatedly refused, even though in her culture it is very difficult for a single mother. Listen to hear specific ways you can pray for Lydia and her children—and what the support of Christians around the world has meant to her.

Hear the story of a second-grade boy boldly sharing about Jesus with classmates and friends—even though he lives in a restricted nation where such talk can lead to trouble.

You’ll hear about Caleb, who was so convicted after he came to faith in Christ that it changed the way he did his work—which ultimately cost him his job as a policeman. Listen to hear how God continues to meet his family’s needs, and how God let VOM play a role in their story—at exactly the right time.

Your faith will be encouraged and you’ll be equipped to pray for our brothers and sisters in Central Asia this week on VOM Radio.