Closer to the Fire with Greg Musselman

In mid-March, 29 evangelical Christians were arrested when Eritrean security forces raided a home prayer meeting in Asmara. According to reports, 17 women and 12 men were taken to the Mai Serwa prison camp on the outskirts of the capital city. It is unknown what led to this attack. Since worship outside of government-recognized churches is illegal, most gatherings take place in private homes. Howe...

The northern Nigerian state of Kaduna has again experienced multiple attacks on predominantly Christian villages. Due to the nature of these recent attacks, the exact number of victims is not yet clear, but survivors estimate that over 80 villagers were killed and approximately 150 others kidnapped. Greg Musselman, who serves as the Minister-at-Large for The Voice of the Martyrs Canada, provides m...

On Easter Sunday, 2019, in Sri Lanka’s largest city and commercial capital of Colombo, Christians had gathered to remember the resurrection of Jesus Christ. That April morning, three churches, along with three luxury hotels, were targeted in a series of coordinated attacks by suicide bombers. A total of 269 people were killed and at least 500 others were injured. Among the organizations that helpe...

With the eyes of the world focussed on the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian military, many are asking us how The Voice of the Martyrs Canada is responding to the mounting humanitarian crisis. Floyd Brobbel, Chief Executive Officer for VOM Canada, joins Closer to the Fire host Greg Musselman to address this question and discuss why the mission needs to stay focussed on the persecuted church. Floy...

Nigerian teenager Leah Sharibu was kidnapped by Islamic militants in 2018 and held captive for refusing to deny her faith in Jesus, while Malaysian pastor Raymond Koh was abducted in broad daylight by a suspected division of the state police in 2017 because of his ministry activities. Pastor Koh’s capture was caught on surveillance cameras. The anniversary dates of both abductions were recently re...

After two decades of topping the World Watch List by Open Doors, North Korea has been overtaken by Afghanistan as “the most difficult and dangerous country to be a follower of Jesus.” While the challenges of persecution have not abated for Christians in North Korea, the situation has increasingly worsened for believers in Afghanistan since the takeover of the militant Islamic group, the Taliban, l...

Pastor Saeed Pakniat grew up in a religious Muslim home in Iran. As a young man, he started to question some of the customs and beliefs of his religion. This gradually led him to explore the life and teachings of Jesus. After receiving Christ as his Saviour, Pastor Saeed was tortured and eventually forced to flee with his family to Turkey and, later, to Canada. In addition to leading three Iranian...

Note: For security reasons, the identities of this episode’s podcast guests, and their present residing country, cannot be disclosed. For two years, “Pastor Amir” was brutally tortured while imprisoned in the Middle East. According to his daughter “Sarah,” the former Muslim was arrested for his Christian activities (including distributions of food and Bibles, as well as sharing the Gospel message....

A judge at the Rawalpindi District Court in Pakistan has changed Pastor Zafar Bhatti’s sentence of life imprisonment to the death penalty. Pastor Zafar has been imprisoned on charges of blasphemy since July 2012, even though he strongly denies these charges. Greg Musselman, Minister-at-Large for The Voice of the Martyrs Canada, provides more details on this latest setback in Pastor Zafar’s case. L...

According to Release International, a fellow VOM organization that also supports persecuted Christians around the world, trends indicate that Nigeria and the Sahel region of sub-Saharan Africa are expected to become hot spots for violence against followers of Jesus this year. Other countries of growing concern include Afghanistan, India and North Korea. Closer to the Fire host Greg Musselman speak...

For Afghan followers of Jesus, persecution was a reality even before the Taliban returned to power. Radical Islam and violent political activity make the nation a dangerous place for Christians to live. To convert from Islam to Christianity can result in harsh consequences, even martyrdom, and yet thousands have decided to follow Christ. In this episode of the Closer to the Fire podcast, host Greg...

According to Open Doors, Christians in Bangladesh face the greatest pressure within their general communities and private lives. Although Bangladeshi society has traditionally been open to Christianity, the nation is growing increasingly Islamic, with the government doing more to appease concerns from Muslim extremists. Islamic militants in the country pressure all groups of Christians. However, e...

Over the past several years, the Chinese Communist Party has increased its repressive crackdown on the Chinese church. From destructive church raids to the imprisonment of pastors, there are almost daily reports of police action against believers in China. Closer to the Fire host Greg Musselman is joined by Dr. Bob Fu, the founder and president of ChinaAid – an international Christian human rights...

As there are no church buildings in this Muslim-majority nation where it's extremely dangerous to be a Christian, the total number of secret believers remains unknown. Because Islam is a critical part of Somalia’s national identity, Christian converts are likely to be harassed, intimidated, injured, or possibly even killed, by militant members of their family or community. If discovered, followers...

Following a recent military coup in Sudan, international human rights organizations are warning of a new threat to the religious freedom of Christians in this northeast African nation. Under the previous military government, it not only became illegal to convert to Christianity, but some churches were forcibly closed, demolished and even burned down. Closer to the Fire host Greg Musselman speaks w...

Being a Christian in northern Nigeria can be very dangerous, especially for well-known and high-profile Christian leaders like Pastor Yunusa Nmadu. Pastor Yunusa, who is the head of Christian Solidarity Worldwide Nigeria, also serves as the General Secretary of Evangelical Church Winning All. This dedicated husband and father of two young boys explains to Closer to the Fire host Greg Musselman why...

More than 3,400 followers of Jesus were killed in Nigeria within the first 200 days of 2021. This equates to an average loss of 17 believers each day in Africa’s most populous nation. Attacks against Christians have not abated since, leaving members of the church in Nigeria – especially those residing in the northern part of the country – vulnerable to violence, kidnappings, and forced displacemen...

Keith Getty is a Northern Irish singer/songwriter of modern hymns. Together with his wife Krystin, he’s using his music as a platform to draw attention to those suffering persecution for their faith in Jesus. Closer to the Fire host Greg Musselman speaks with Keith about the upcoming theatrical release of the movie, Sabina: Tortured for Christ, The Nazi Years.   Sabina Wurmbrand co-founded The Voi...

As India’s Hindu population reaches nearly one billion, nationalism within the country is on the rise. Fundamentalist Hindus are calling for the nation to be purged of all non-Hindus, leaving Christians increasingly vulnerable to persecution. Since 2016, the cases of persecution have worsened yearly and, in 2020, India ranked 10th on the list of countries where it is most dangerous to be a Christi...

For Afghan followers of Jesus, persecution was a reality even before the Taliban returned to power. Radical Islam and violent political activity make the nation a dangerous place for Christians to live. To convert from Islam to Christianity can result in harsh consequences, even martyrdom, and yet thousands have decided to follow Christ. In this episode of the Closer to the Fire podcast, host Greg...

A church in India recently suffered an attack that left two people injured, including the pastor’s wife, Raj Rani. Carrying swords and wooden rods, a mob of hard-line Sikhs and Hindus converged on the Evangelical Church of God in the Arniwala area of Punjab and attacked the believers. As VOM Canada’s Greg Musselman reports, the pastor and his family had to flee the area. Greg also leads us in pray...

What does the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan mean for the small but growing church in this troubled nation? According to a recently announced declaration by the militant Islamic group, the country will now follow a strict version of Sharia law, in which Christian converts are considered “apostates” – a crime punishable by death. Even before the Taliban overthrew the government, Afghan followers...

In this episode, we meet the wife and daughter of Dr. K. A. Swamy, a Christian man who was left in a nearly vegetative state after being attacked for distributing Bibles in the Indian city of Hyderabad. Although the attack, which was carried out by Hindu extremists in January of 2017, has devastated his family – not their faith in Jesus! Dr. Swamy’s wife Sujatha shares about the challenges she has...

  The rise of Buddhist nationalism is making life extremely difficult for evangelical Christians living in rural areas of the island nation of Sri Lanka. About 70 percent of the Sri Lankan population is Buddhist, compared to the approximate eight percent representing Christians of all denominations. Host Greg Musselman investigates why these followers of Christ are facing such opposition, while hi...

Will the persecution of Christians intensify in Iran, following the election of hardliner Ebrahim Raisi as the Islamic Republic’s new president? The 2021 election was described by various news sources as being fraudulent because many reformers and moderates were barred from standing for election. Dr. Hormoz Shariat of Iran Alive Ministries joins Greg Musselman to discuss the implications of Iran’s...