“God, if you exist, show yourself to me.”

Those words, uttered by Yasin*, a devout Muslim in Iraq, would change the course of his life forever. One night, Yasin had a powerful dream: a man, beautiful and compelling, said, “You are my beloved child. This is the way, follow me.”

Yasin found a local Christian who told him about Jesus. “The first time I read the Bible, I cried because of its beautiful words,” said Yasin. He gave his life to Christ.

But Iraq is in the top 20 most dangerous places in the world for Christians. Converts from Islam face extreme persecution.

If Yasin, a shopkeeper and father of two, revealed his new faith, he risked imprisonment, violence and even death. He took precautions, putting tape on the cover of his Bible to conceal it from his family. But he couldn’t hide the work of the Holy Spirit…

“Before, I was violent towards my family, so when the Gospel turned me into a better person and I started serving them, my wife and children asked why I suddenly behaved like that.”

It took Yasin months to summon the courage to reveal his hidden Bible and tell the family about Jesus. But in Iraq, if you are fearless enough to share the Gospel, fierce persecution will follow…

“My brother came to visit me,” said Yasin. “The mullah had told him I was distributing Bibles and he should stop me. My brother tried to kill me several times. One time, he broke my nose. Another time, they threw a firebomb at my house.”

Yasin lost his job and had to take low-paid work as a shepherd. He received threatening letters. His own mother refuses to speak to him.
Last year, Yasin attended an Open Doors conference with 200 other Iraqi believers and his faith deepened. Yasin’s wife and children became Christians, and two other villagers also started coming to church. Now, Yasin is on a mission to reveal hope in Iraq – but he can’t do it alone.

Your gifts and prayers can strengthen the fearless faith of Christians like Yasin and reveal hope in places like Iraq. You can help provide Bibles, offer livelihood training and disciple new believers.

Without your help, Yasin would be alone. With you, he will share Jesus no matter what.

“This world will fade but my place is with God,” says Yasin. “God has a mission for me to bring the good news to my village. I tried to leave but God wants to use me here.”

Will you help believers reveal hope amid fierce persecution?

Please give

• Every R570 could disciple a secret believer by enabling them to meet, pray and study the Bible with other Christians.
• Every R715 could provide two secret believers with a Bible in a country where God’s Word is not easy to access.
• Every R1 200 could help a vulnerable Christian establish a livelihood, giving them long-term financial security.

Please pray

• Give thanks for Yasin and his fearless faith, as he shares the Good News of Jesus.
• Pray that Yasin’s wife and children will be protected amidst persecution.
• Pray for brave believers revealing hope in places where it’s dangerous to be a Christian.

*Name changed to keep him safe.

*Any excess funds will be used to strengthen persecuted Christians where urgent help is needed.