Pray For Them That Persecute You

Youcef Update: Sunday marked the 1,000th day that Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani has been illegally detained in prison in Iran. As we have already reported, a new trial date has been scheduled for September 8th. He has not officially been notified as to charges nor has he been notified as to whether he has been pardoned for the apostasy charges. We will find out more details once the trial takes place. There is speculation that he will be charged with a lesser crime and that he will be pardoned for Apostasy, but this is only speculation and has not been confirmed, by official notice or other means. With the reliability of the Iranian justice system always in question, we can’t count on anything until events actually occur and are confirmed.

The State Department has issued a statement saying, “We note that July 8 marked 1,000 days Christian pastor Youcef Nadarkhani has spent in an Iranian prison. Pastor Nadarkhani still faces the threat of execution for simply following his faith, and we repeat our call for Iranian authorities to release him immediately.” We applaud the State Department for taking this stand.

We ask for continued prayer for everyone involved in Youcef’s case, especially the Supreme Leader of Iran Ayatollah Khamenei and the head of the judiciary, Ayatollah Larijani. Ask the Lord to guide and direct their hearts, that they would see the truth and by it be set free.

In Christ,
Jason DeMars