^{Hebrews 13:3} Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.

The January 2021 issue of The Voice of the Martyrs magazine begins with this question on the front cover: What Will You Say? It also poses other questions. How will you respond to your accusers? What will you do when you’re called before judges? Mosque confrontation? These are all situations our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world are facing, which we may also face sooner than we think. Maybe you already have!

A few months ago, I ordered Petr Jasek’s book Imprisoned With Isis Faith in the face of evil from VOM. This prayer bracelet came with the book. The bracelet sends you to http://www.icommittopray.com Along with VOM’s prayer calendar, which you can find at https://secure.persecution.com/newsletter_feature.aspx, it helps me remember to pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ as the Apostle Paul wrote so much about.

Colossians 4:2 Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. ³ And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. ⁴ Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.

One of the stories in this issue: Iran: Summoned by Security officials. This brother’s boldness surprised the official interviewing, and he wanted to understand who was leading so many muslims to Christ.

“Shahrokh gave the official and inspired response. ‘You cannot stop the work of God,’ he said. ‘If a person has a dream of Jesus or [if] God directly reveals Himself in a vision and draws them to Himself, or if he has seen a miracle of Christ and follows after Him, then no one is at fault here. You cannot block the divine methods God uses to meet human beings. You can close Christian social activities and house groups or put Christian workers in prison, but you cannot stop people seeing dreams or visions. You cannot put Jesus Christ in prison. You cannot stop the work of the Holy Spirit. He is at work, and in different ways He reveals the truth to people. Can you change the hearts and inner lives of people where the Lord dwells?'”

Voice of the Martyrs January 2021 page 7

Philippians 1:13 As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. ¹⁴ And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.

Think about this: Paul was a special prisoner. The palace guards changed every few hours, watching Paul closely. He had many opportunities to share the Gospel with them, and many came to believe because his attitude of joy and love that flowed out of him were amazing! Our contemporaries find the same thing happens when they get put in prison for their faith. People question their Godly attitude, share Bibles, Bible studies spring up… The Voice of the Martyrs is valuable for hearing testimonies of faith under pressure. It’s an excellent resource for praying for our brothers & sisters in chains as if we’re chained with them. May we be as faithful, with boldness and no fear, in the challenges we face!

Hebrews 13:3 Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.