The Daily Newsroom: The Voice of the Martyrs IDOP

I am sure you have heard of the worldwide outreach of Voice of the Martyrs. I remember when I was younger, I would hear their little commercials on the local Christian radio. I remember as I used to hear the stories of men, women and children being persecuted for their belief in Christ, I would get tears in my eyes.
This past summer I was contacted by VOM and was asked if I would like one of their Prayer Bands, which I heartily wanted one. Since then, I have been on their mailing list, reading the Persecution Blog, that they regularly update with information on our brothers and sisters in Christ in persecuted countries, Twitter updates and praying for the persecuted Christians in other countries.

Voice of the Martyrs is an outreach ministry that non-profit, interdenominational organization with a vision for aiding Christians around the world who are being persecuted for their faith in Christ, fulfilling the Great Commission, and educating the world about the ongoing persecution of Christians.
Their statement of faith says:

We believe the Bible to be the inspired, authoritative Word of God who is eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His personal return in power and glory.
We believe that for salvation of lost and sinful men, regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential.
We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life.
We believe in the resurrection of both the saved and the lost. We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in Christ.

Voice of the Martyrs have 5 purposes in their ministry:

1. Empower Persecuted Christians
Example: Bibles to Captive Nations
2. Give Relief
Example: Families of Martyrs
3. Evangelize the Persecutors
Example: Pastor Support and Training
4. Projects of Encouragement
Example: Action Packs
5. Inform the World
Example: VOM’s Free Newsletter

Voice of the Martyrs is a great ministry that does a wonderful job of caring for, and lifting up our brothers and sisters in Christ who are being tortured for their belief in the One True Savior.

Voice of the Martyrs has declared November 9th as the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.
Todd Nettleton, Voice of the Martyrs Director of Media Development said, "This is an important day in the church calendar. Scripture instructs us to remember those in bonds as though we were bound with them. This special day of prayer is one of the ways corporately we do that."
Taking this day to remember and lift up those fellow believers who have been tortured for the cause of Christ, is a wonderful way we can strengthen them and the Body of Christ.

I have had the opportunity to interview Mr. Nettleton about VOM and IDOP.

Miss Amanda: First I would like to thank you for taking the time to talk to me. I have been following Voice of the Martyrs since this past summer and I am thankful for the ministry you provide to keep us informed about our persecuted brothers and sisters in other countries, so that we can lift them up in prayer. So thank you for what your part is in that.

Mr. Nettleton: You are welcome!


Miss Amanda: Can you please tell us a little bit of history about VOM?
Mr. Nettleton: The Voice of the Martrys was founded by Pastor Richard Wurmbrand who was a prisoner in Romania for 14 years because he was a Christian. Three of those years he was in solitary confinement and didn't see a single person. The guards slid the food through the door and wore padded shoes so that he didn't know they were there. He saw not one human being during that time.
While in prison, the Lord gave Pastor Wurmbrand the vision for a ministry to minister to those like him. The persecuted who were in prison for the sake of Christ. When he was ransomed out of Romania, the police took him aside, told him that they were sending him West, and he could preach and share the Gospel as much as he wanted, but he was not allowed to talk about his imprisonment. Pastor Wurmbrand talked about it anyway and he shared about the Christians that were still in Romanian prisons for being Christians. Christians asked him how they could help the persecuted and how to encourage them. The Voice of the Martyrs was founded to be an answer to those questions, to serve as a bridge between the church in free nations like the US and the church in restricted nations. VOM encourages and helps the persecuted.


Miss Amanda: How many subscribers to your newsletter do you have?
Mr. Nettleton: Right now, there are about half a million that are subscribed and are being educated about the persecuted church. (the number fluctuates from month to month)


Miss Amanda: How long have you been with VOM?
Mr. Nettleton: Last April marked my 10 year anniversary.


Miss Amanda: What you do as Director of Media Development?
Mr. Nettleton: I talk a lot. :) I do media relations; interviews to help the media tell the stories of the persecuted church. I have conducted more than 1300 interviews since I have been with VOM. I also oversee our website and am involved in the development and processes of marketing and developing VOM’s products.


Miss Amanda: What are the ways that we can follow VOM? What kind of outlets do you have?
Mr. Nettleton: The main way is by signing up for the newsletter. It is free to any Christian that would like to be informed about the persecuted church. Our newsletter is our flagship by which we share our ministry. Also our website, www.persecution.com, where you can find other sites of ours.

NOTE: I also keep up with VOM through Twitter, the Blog and Facebook.


Miss Amanda: Can we talk a little bit about the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted church? VOM has set November 9th as IDOP... What is the inspiration behind this day?
Mr. Nettleton: IDOP was established by several groups that came together and wanted to remind people that the persecution of Christians is not just something that happened in the book of Acts. It happens every day. Out of brainstorming from these groups for a remembrance in honor of the persecuted church came IDOP. Different groups have different priorities, but we can all pray for the persecuted.
The first thing persecuted Christians say when I ask them what we can do for them, is to pray! They want prayer more than anything! They don't want us to pray that their suffering will end, because they gladly endure it for Christ, but they ask that we would pray that they will be able to continue to stand for Christ through the persecution.

We set this day up as a reminder that we need to continually pray for the persecuted daily and not only on Nov. 9th. It is to motivate to pray for them daily!


Miss Amanda: Are there any other special ways we can help, besides praying?
Mr. Nettleton: There are practical things we can do for them. You can write letters to persecuted prisoners by going to http://www.prisoneralert.com, we make up action packs, also we are sending blankets to the believers in Sudan, and you can mail new testaments out also. When you write or send packages, you are sending a message not only to the persecuted, but also the government and the jailers that this case is being watched and that there is international interest in this prisoner. Many times, when they see this, the prisoner will be treated better and it will improve the situation.
We also have a site where we send you a new testament and you package and mail it to a persecuted believer in those persecuted nations (www.BiblesUnbound.com).
The big thing about The Voice of the Martyrs is that it connects the church in the U.S. directly to the persecuted church with practical projects that allow everyone to get involved, so there is fellowship among the Body of Christ.


Miss Amanda: How many different countries does VOM help currently?
Mr. Nettleton: We identify with 52 nations that persecute believers and we have projects going on in about 40 of them every year, but we don't have a project in every nation.


Miss Amanda: Where are Christians persecuted the most and by whom?
Mr. Nettleton: When you go by population and numbers, the worst situations for Christians would be China and India. Many Christians in China are persecuted, and recently in Orissa, India, radical Hindus are wiping out Christians by killing them, converting them, or expelling them out of their villages.
When you go by harshness, the worst nations would be North Korea and Saudi Arabia. I like to say that North Korea is a prison camp disguised as a country. Everyone is oppressed, but the Christians are treated more harshly than anyone. Kim Jong Il is the current dictator and is looked at as a divine being and saying that you are a Christian and serve Christ is treason.
Saudi Arabia does not allow a Christian church to exist on Saudi soil. They do not recognize that a Saudi citizen could follow any other religion than Islam.
Another place we have found is Eritrea Africa. They have over 2,000 believers and all of them are in prison.
Another country where there is severe persecution—and one that most Americans don’t know about—is Eritrea, a small country in Northeast Africa. Today in Eritrea there are more than 2,000 evangelical Christians in prison. Not a single one of them has been formally charged or had a public trial or court hearing. They are simply arrested and disappear into the Eritrean prison system.


Miss Amanda: How do you spread the Gospel and materials with those that are being persecuted?
Mr. Nettleton: It really depends on the country and the specifics of the situation. It is not illegal in many countries for one person to have a Bible. In China, you are allowed to have a bible, but if you have more than one and are used for distribution, they will arrest you. In some countries, we can actually print Bibles and Christian literature secretly inside the country. In other situations, we can get Bibles into the country from outside. One way we do this is Bibles Unbound which lets American Christians mail New Testaments into restricted nations. Egypt turned back a 2000# freight container that was full of cargo because they found 7 of our Bibles Unbound packages in it. We have to be careful to work with the situation that exists, and to work with local believers there to find a way to best support and bless them.

We just have to test and retest and test some more to find a way to get it to the persecuted. We just find a way that works!
We have a favorite story about Christians working with Pastor Wurmbrand, our founder to carry Bibles across the border into Russia during the Soviet War. They would walk backwards in the snow, to confuse anyone who would try and follow them, so they couldn't find where they were going. They found a way to get it in then, and that is what we still do today!


Miss Amanda: How is Christianity outlawed in other countries?
Mr. Nettleton: In communist places, meeting together with other believers is often the issue that government officials focus on. If its one person praying and reading the bible in their own home, they usually will not be harassed or arrested, but if it is several people meeting and worshiping together, they would need government permission so that it’s not an “illegal gathering.” When the government finds them meeting they will arrest them.

In Muslim countries, a person is not allowed to convert or share the gospel. A Muslim cannot change his or her religion because then they become an apostate. Radical Muslims and even some Islamic governments will kill apostates for leaving Islam.
Egypt has an identity card that has your religion on it and if you are muslim and become a Christian, you cannot change your ID card. Of course, if you are a Christian and become a muslim, they change it as soon as possible.
India has anti-conversion laws that say you cannot entice others to be converted. They sometimes label sharing the gospel as enticement and then the person sharing Christ can be put in prison.


Miss Amanda: What happens if you are found with a Bible in your home in those countries?
Mr. Nettleton: In North Korea, a person found to have a Bible would be arrested and probably die. When Christians are arrested in North Korea, the average sentence is 15 years in a political prison camp. The life expectancy is five years in that camp. In other countries those found to have Bibles are beaten, the bible confiscated and sometimes they are sent to jail.


Miss Amanda: Have you noticed an increase of persecution in other countries?
Mr. Nettleton: Yes. There is widespread persecution, but we have seen a particular rise of it in India. There have been horrific situations there lately, particularly in Orissa State. I would say that China is not better or worse than it was this time last year, although I think overall it is better than it was 10 or 15 years ago.


Miss Amanda: Do you also see an increase in believers?
Mr. Nettleton: Yes! Its kinda like the chicken and egg question. When the church is persecuted it grows, when it grows it receives more persecution. But the church is growing in persecuted nations.


Miss Amanda: I have seen in the newsletters that you use caution to keep the identities of the persecuted secret, what other cautions do you use to ensure that the Believers are not traced by officials?
Mr. Nettleton: We cover their faces, change names, we some times change specifics or don't share them. There is an incredible risk when we visit with those Believers, but they willingly accept that risk to meet with us and share their stories with us. They want the world to know—and especially the fellowship of believers—what they are going through and how God is blessing them.

One of the persecuted believers I met, said: "Share my name and picture, because the government will do what they want, but I want everyone to know I am follower of Christ!"


Miss Amanda: What about America? Have you seen persecution in America more?
Mr. Nettleton: We mainly focus on international persecution, but there are some instances like the YWAM shooting and church shootings in Denver that have happened. Or like Columbine High School. There is some evidence that the shooters specifically targeted kids who had been outspoken in their witness for Christ. Overall, though, I don't think that the challenges we face in America is really persecution in that it’s not yet widespread and systematic. Now it could increase in the future, but VOM focuses mainly on our international brothers and sisters who face genuine, constant, systematic persecution.


Miss Amanda: As we get ready to close, is there one message you would like to tell the comfortable American people?
Mr. Nettleton: I would say that the comfortable American Christian needs to be in contact with the persecuted church. They need to see and hear them, so that if their comfort and freedom disappears, they will see an example of how to respond. They can be encouraged by God’s faithfulness in the midst of incredible challenges and suffering.
The problem with being so comfortable and so free is that it can produce a spiritual laziness, but fellowship with the persecuted is an antidote for that laziness.


Miss Amanda: What can we do to help our persecuted brothers and sisters?
Mr. Nettleton: The most important thing is to pray for them. I like to say there is a three step process that we can complete for our persecuted brothers and sisters. Pray first, then educate yourself so you can pray more effectively, and the third is whatever the Lord asks you to do. When you are praying faithfully and educating yourself about the persecuted church, God will open the door for you to be directly involved. It maybe sending letters to Christian prisoners, or organizing a prayer group at your church or even getting on a plane with a suitcase full of Bibles. The Lord will call you to action that He wants, and you will have a chance to respond.


Miss Amanda: Do you have anything else that you would like to share with our readers?
Mr. Nettleton: We would love to have people sign up for the free, monthly VOM newsletter. We want everyone to know about the persecuted and remember them! People can sign up at www.persecution.com or by calling 1-800-75-VOICE.


Thank you so much for your time and your work for our persecuted brothers and sisters!


Growing In Grace Magazine would like to encourage our readers to remember the persecuted and those that minister to them daily in prayer. They both risk their lives for the name of Christ and they need our prayers.

Philippians 4:6
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Many times, Paul asked for prayers as he ministered to the lost. The Voice of the Martyrs is like Paul, witnessing, strengthening and encouraging the believers in other countries. The believers who work for VOM need our prayers too because they also are at risk and need to right words to say:

Romans 15:30
Now I beseech you, brethren, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake, and for the love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me;

Here are some verses that remind us how to pray for the saints:

Ephesians 6:18
Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
Philippians 4:6
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Please join us on November 9th as we remember in prayer those persecuted brethren. GGM will be doing a special on the 9th for the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted.
Prayerfully,