Anita Smith publicly forgave her husband's murderers on national TV after he was killed in Libya. Gracie Burnham was held captive for more than a year by Islamic extremists in the Philippines. Helen Berhane spent 32 months in a shipping container in Eritrea, Africa. Susanna Koh's husband was kidnapped in Malaysia in 2017 and has not been seen since.
Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) spokesman Todd Nettleton says all four will be sharing their testimonies Friday night at the "Hearts of Fire" virtual event.
"I think people can expect to be inspired," he tells AFN. "They can be inspired by the testimonies of four really outstanding women, all four of whom have experienced persecution firsthand."
He is personally impressed to hear them recognize and acknowledge God's faithfulness.
"The common denominator is persecution, and really, they have experienced God's faithfulness in the midst of that persecution," Nettleton relays.
He points out that the Bible assures the Church that persecution is coming, and from these women, he thinks believers can learn a lot about "how to beat persecution, how to be victorious, how to be forgiving, [and] how to be honoring God in the midst of suffering, in the midst of hardship."
The broadcast, which will also feature worship with Michael W. Smith, is free, and more than 2,000 churches have already registered to be host sites for the event.
