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Flourishing Faith in Persecuted Places

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  • Jan 29, 2025

On Christmas Eve in Tehran, house-church pastor Farshid Fatah and his family were awakened to the frightening sounds of the Iranian security police pounding at their door. After the police searched his apartment and seized his computer, Farshid was arrested and sent to Evin prison.

Farshid’s crime was being a follower of Jesus. Behind bars and often in solitary confinement, Farshid was deprived of his freedom, his material possessions, and his livelihood. For six years, Farshid had very limited contact with his family, yet in the midst of the crucible of material and relational deprivation, Farshid lived a God-honoring flourishing life.

In a note sent from prison, Farshid described his difficult experience as a lovely wilderness where his good Shepherd was with him. Like many other members of the persecuted church around the globe, Farshid’s story reminds us that even in the most difficult circumstances and times of relational and material deprivation, followers of Jesus can and do flourish.

Taken from The Economics of Neighborly Love by Tom Nelson, Copyright (c) 2017, by Tom Nelson. Published by InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL. www.ivpress.com