SAT-7 is always excited to hear stories of what the Holy Spirit is doing in the hearts of believers across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). As churches in the region recently marked the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, we highlight and celebrate our viewers’ experiences of His work in their lives.
SAT-7’s Viewer Support teams are helping people to encounter the Holy Spirit and understand more about Him, while other viewers sense the Holy Spirit’s presence while watching our programmes.
Our Persian channel, SAT-7 PARS, runs teaching sessions on Zoom for isolated believers in Iran and Afghanistan. Feriyal, a woman from Iran, has sensed the presence of the Spirit during the sessions. “Thank you for these excellent classes,” she said. “Last night I sensed a tangible presence and a real infilling of the Holy Spirit. When I woke up this morning, I was full of deep joy. This is the second time that I have experienced this; the previous time was during [another] teaching session.”
Omad, a SAT-7 PARS viewer who is also from Iran, has had a similar experience. “All your programmes and worship songs are beautiful,” his message began. “Whenever I watch any of your programmes, I learn new things to apply in my life, causing my being to be filled by the Holy Spirit.”
Kazem, a man from Iraq, had clearly sensed the Spirit at work and contacted us to ask some questions. He knew that Christians were called to “walk in the Spirit,” but did not know exactly what this meant. As our team answered his questions, Kazem showed how much he was learning. “Thank you for guiding me, and God bless!” he said, before finishing with a prayer: “Lead me on your path and renew my thoughts in your way.”
For Riad, a Moroccan man who got in touch via Facebook, the sensation of the Holy Spirit was something he was unfamiliar with. He knew something was wrong in his heart, but he didn’t know how to make it better. After a long exchange of messages, the team prayed for Riad to receive Jesus as his Saviour. “I felt my heart beat fast,” he shared. “I was not afraid, but for some reason, my heart beat fast.”
HEARTS TURNING TO GOD
Viewers also share with us testimonies of answered prayer as they witness the Holy Spirit at work in the hearts of their loved ones. Shiva, a woman from Iran, watched her father weep “tears of joy” when he encountered the Holy Spirit for the first time.
Shiva’s father knew about Jesus but had never made a commitment to follow Him. But as his daughter was explaining some verses from 1 Peter to him, the Spirit worked a miracle in his heart.
“My father was listening intently and gave his life to the Lord,” she said. “My father wept tears of joy as we prayed together and it was clear that he had a deep joy and was full of the Holy Spirit. It was such a wonderful day… May it be that the Lord grants you the joy of seeing your loved ones come to salvation.”
Others in the MENA are asking us to join them in prayer for their loved ones. Enver, a man from Türkiye, asked us to “pray for the work of the Holy Spirit to be seen in the life of my family,” while a Turkish woman called Sezen asked us to pray for her son: “My son Eser believes in Jesus. Will you pray that the Lord will prepare him for baptism and that he will be baptised with the Holy Spirit?”
“PENTECOST GIVES ME HOPE”
As we witness the Holy Spirit changing hearts and lives all over the MENA, the importance of His coming at Pentecost – and His continual presence with us – becomes ever clearer. Armita, a SAT-7 viewer from Iran, contacted us to explain just what Pentecost means to her.
“The greatest gift that our Heavenly Father has given His children is the Holy Spirit who comforts us,” Armita shared. “Pentecost gives me hope and fills me with faith and love. For it is the day that the fire of the Spirit came upon the disciples and the promise that Jesus had made to them was fulfilled. Glory to the Lord forever.
“Pentecost confirms Jesus Christ in my heart, and I give thanks for the living Word of God who is the Truth. I live in hope for the day that I meet the Lord in His kingdom and meanwhile I know that His grace is always with me.”
PLEASE PRAY:
- Give thanks for the work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts and lives of SAT-7 viewers across the MENA
- Pray that SAT-7’s production and Viewer Support teams will be filled with the Holy Spirit as they make programmes and interact with those watching
- Pray for SAT-7’s viewers to notice and nurture the work of the Holy Spirit in their lives.