Just a brief thought before today’s update. Faith is a subject that we sometimes struggle to define, but also struggle to see in operation in our Christian lives. We know Jesus spoke often about great faith. We also know that even He at times was not able to do many miracles due to a lack of faith in the location where He was. Question: Is great faith a measure of quantity? Or could it also be a measure of quality? Most of us are aware that God is the object of our faith. After all it is only He who is big enough to accomplish anything necessary on behalf of those who believe in Him. But do we trust in God’s ability without really understanding His ways. Does He actually hear me when I ask? I know He might answer, but does He want to? Could that be a hint that we might be suspicious of Him?
We recognize God’s omnipotence and absolute sovereignty, but often the definition of our faith is more theological than it is practical in real life. True faith in God is not just assuming I can expect Him to provide anything I would want. We need a deeper understanding of God’s willingness to intervene on our behalf when we are not sure He really wants to. But as our relationship with God grows in intimacy, we begin to understand His ways and His timing. Unless we understand these, we will continue to be suspicious of His willingness to respond to us. However, as we walk in intimacy with our Father, we will make our requests through our understanding of His ways and we will see His interventions as they fit into His ultimate plan. As we determine the answer to our requests will bring Him glory, we should ask, and keep right on asking! Then in all things, we trust His timing and His will in the matter. We serve a good God!
On to the House of Blessing…
As some of you know, there was an abduction of a group of HOB female missionaries belonging to what is known as the “Widow Sisterhood.” When I received the urgent message from Dr. Bandis, a quick request for prayer was sent out to many of you by text to your phone numbers and others on WhatsApp. You folks responded immediately. Below, you will find the short urgent request and then the report of the results to our prayers. God answered in a most unusual way!
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Greetings Brother Jack:
I am sorry to share this news. Several sisters, Safinaz, Khoja, Ikhlas, and Khawla, along with 15 others have been assaulted and abducted near Isfahan. They were engaged in the work of leading women to Jesus and introducing them to the true faith. They have been taken to the province of Shiraz. Please pray!
Dr. Bandis
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Greetings, Brother Jack:
Brothers Durgham and Suhail found that the sisters had been taken to a mosque near Isfahan. Mulla Al-Shamubi, Sheikh Abbas, and Sheikh Andaleeb were there. There were 500 other Muslims who had gathered either to witness the sisters renouncing their Christian faith or to see them executed by the sheikhs. Their stated goal, of course, was to prove their own worthiness before Allah.
We, as believers, prayed with sincerity and devotion that these people might come to know the truth of Christ in His love, and that God would lead them to seek and accept forgiveness that saves us all. Sadly, our prayers were not answered in the way we had hoped. Nevertheless, God, the God of justice and mercy, made His Word perfectly clear in the situation.
The sisters were brought to the front of the mosque, and they were tied to the wall with hanging ropes. They were told to renounce Christ so that Allah might accept them back, and they were threatened with a slow death before the eyes of the crowd if they refused. Yet the mercy of God was present within them. They declared that they would never forsake Christ, for they had found true life in him and would not turn away from it.
Then, with the full backing of the gathered crowd, the sheikhs began to whip them with chains and burn them while they remained suspended on the wall with the ropes. In this seemingly hopeless situation, they had no recourse but to pray. As they prayed, the Spirit of the Lord descended upon their hearts, granting them strength directly from the Lord himself.
When they were commanded to repent for their apostasy, they replied: “No, followers of Muhammad; it is you who must repent! Your god is not the true God, and you will realize this sooner or later. Sister Safinaz, a humble widow, along with her companions, including Ikhlas and Khawaja spoke out boldly, expressing great confidence in Jesus. They also warned the others to be extremely careful, for God himself might choose to deal with them directly.
The sheikhs and the gathered crowd refused to repent and instead decided that Safinaz and those accompanying her should be executed. It was then that a thunderous roar erupted and the entire mosque collapsed before their eyes, all while they were still fastened to one of the walls! A wall of fire suddenly surrounded them, shielding them from the inferno that was consuming the rest of the structure. Neither Safinaz nor her companions felt any pain from the inferno, nor were they harmed in the slightest by the intense heat. The widows watched in utter astonishment as everything around them turned to ash. The entire building, wood and stone alike, as well as at least 100 of those gathered who were closest were consumed. The rest managed to escape. The women remained where they were, protected by the wall of fire where the mosque once stood. All that remained was a deep chasm in the ground.
What a merciful Lord we serve who saves his people. This brings to mind the story of the prophet Elijah when he was pursued by soldiers. Entire platoons, each consisting of 50 soldiers, were consumed by fire whenever they attempted to seize him, until God commanded Elijah to go with the third Battalion. And God also protected Elijah on Mount Carmel when he confronted the wicked King Ahab and 850 false prophets of Ba’al and Asherah. In a fleeting moment, fire descended from God and consumed the sacrifice, the water, and even the stones — all before the eyes of the witnesses.
Then there’s the account in the book of Daniel, of the three Hebrew men who were cast alive into King Nebuchadnezzar’s intensely heated furnace because they refused to bow down to anyone other than the one true God, Yahweh. They walked amidst the flames, and when they were released, not even a scent of smoke clung to them.
The book of Zechariah 2:5 states: “For I”, says the Lord, “will be a wall of fire around her, and I will be the glory in her midst.” Although this passage specifically concerns Jerusalem, throughout history, God has served as an impenetrable wall of fire around His people. In fact, the Israelites were protected by a cloud of fire by night as they wandered in the wilderness for 40 years before they were allowed into the promised land.
And now the same thing has happened once again. And as a result, countless people are coming to faith in Christ. Reports are that there are already over 900. God is continuing His powerful move across the Middle East. We thank Him again for the life He has placed within us, and for the mighty power of the Lion of the tribe of Judah!
His servants forever,
Dr. Bandis and brothers Aylout and Ma’touq
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Long time readers of this website’s Mideast Updates may remember an incident much like this over 12 years ago in which Sister Mufida, who had just witnessed her husband being murdered by her son and nine other Islamists three days earlier, was caught by the same 32-year-old son and pinned to a wall of a mosque in front of hundreds of male witnesses, just as the women in the incident above were. She also witnessed a divine intervention in which the entire mosque and 400 male witnesses were incinerated, including her son who was about to execute her for her faith in Jesus. A male HOB missionary, Khaled, was nearby and heard the explosion and watched Mufida walk through the wall of flames, uninjured. Many in the village found Jesus as their Savior on that day also.
Attached to the original request for special prayer was a report that I would also like to share with you. It was also from Dr. Bandis.
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I also want to inform you Brother Jack of other initiatives underway. We are preparing 5 to 10 additional large tents so that well-trained missionaries, following the example of Ma’touq and Aylout Eban, can carry out their work. This will effectively double the number of those being trained.
The House of Blessing is praying to be able to send these missionaries throughout Iran and during whatever time remains before the Lord calls us all home to Him. We know that there is a vast number of new believers, not only in Iran, but also in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Azerbaijan and Syria whom the Lord has enabled HOB to reach. They now number in the hundreds of thousands and are multiplying very rapidly.
Although Satan has killed many of these new believers, he cannot kill them as quickly as they are multiplying. A year ago when I joined this project with Pastor Abdelrahem, the Lord promised me that he would make every copy of the Bible distributed highly fruitful. I have been praying that for every believer Satan manages to kill, the Lord would raise up anywhere from 100 to several thousand new ones. It appears that this is exactly what is happening. Their numbers have truly grown to be vast.
We worship a great and mighty God. I have been told that the number of sheikhs and mullahs being reached is on the rise. I have also learned that this outreach is increasingly extending to high ranking sheikhs; men who have spent 50 years teaching Islam. I want you to know that they are very interested in what the Bible says about the end times. They know that we are the final generation, and they are fascinated by the specific details provided in the Bible, details that are not found in the Quran. In fact, the prophecies contained in the Quran distort our understanding of how God orchestrates the events of the end times. The Koran has been proven wrong in many of its predictions, whereas the Bible has never been wrong about anything. These men are now eager to know what they should be watching for.
This is truly exciting, especially since most Christians elsewhere in the world tend to shy away from this entire subject. Yet it was Jesus himself who told us to watch, to be alert, and to be aware of prophecies as they unfold because they reveal where we stand on God’s timeline. God wants us to know! There is more I could share, but I will save it for another time.
I want you to be aware of an urgent need today. There is a request for 40,000 additional copies of our educational booklets in Farsi. Somehow, Jack, we must find a way to provide them. The people here have nothing, yet they are willing to sacrifice an entire month’s worth of food just to obtain a copy of the Bible or the teaching – discipleship booklets to study. I pray that God will provide for this need.
His servant forever,
Dr. Bandis.
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Thank you all for your quick response to the urgent request for prayer. God doesn’t always answer as we hope, but He does answer. In this case, the widows were set free. There is more for them to do! Thank you all for your support for the House of Blessing also. God is doing amazing things!! The second underground printing press is operational and Bibles and teaching booklets are being printed as supplies are available.
In conclusion, if any of you would like to be on the quick contact list when there is an urgent need for prayer, it is quickest and easiest for me to do so by text, WhatsApp, or Telegram.
Forever in His Service,
Jake (aka Jack)