Page 8 - Voice of the Persecuted Christians - Jul-Sep 2023 - 123

Despite having endured deep personal suffering in Iran, Priscilla wants to go back there when it is free and build up the church
© Release International 2023
‘When Iran is free,’ she declared, ‘I will go back to the prison, get the list of prisoners’ names and tell them about Jesus!’
rejection from his family and spent time behind bars for sharing the gospel in Iran is ‘Matthew’*.
The pair then went to see his brother-in-law’s pastor and after talking to him Matthew accepted Christ.
After she was released, Priscilla
tried to run a small business but her laptop, phone and business products were confiscated. ‘I had no control over anything,’ she said. ‘Every month money was deducted from my bank account but there was nothing to show who was taking it. I felt they were raping me in a different way.’
Fifteen years ago Matthew’s life was in a ‘bad place’ but when his brother-in- law, a Christian who worked for him, tried to share the hope of salvation with him, he just laughed.
Shortly afterwards his troubles began: his wife’s first reaction was to get divorced.
Faced with a bleak future of being monitored and not being able to earn a proper living, Priscilla had little choice but to leave Iran.
‘He was talking about Jesus all the time and I told him to be quiet but one day something just said to me: “Stop! Listen to him.”
‘So at the park I asked him to tell me about Jesus and at that moment I saw a person appear nearby. I realised it was Jesus Himself. My brother-in-law
‘I told her I had found
something that I couldn’t
sacrifice’
said that Jesus was alive, and I said, “I know, I can see Him with my own eyes”. He said it was impossible as he couldn’t see Jesus, but I said, “He’s near to you”.’
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‘All my family left me and did not want any connection with me but I prayed for them. I shared my faith and the Bible with my wife but she took my son’s hands and called me a pagan and said she didn’t want to live with me any more.
However, her decision to flee came at a cost. Ironically, despite their rejection of her, her biggest sadness was not being able to see her family.
‘I told her I had found something
that I couldn’t sacrifice and when she asked what it was, I replied, “A live God”. Then she put her bags down and sat on the stairs and after three days she believed God like I did. That night she saw Jesus too!’
‘The mother I had once hated – now my only desire was to hold her in my arms one more time,’ she said.
After trying to share his faith with other family members, Matthew took the message to three cities in Iran. However, unbeknown to him,
Someone else who has suffered