Yesterday Todd Nettleton appeared on In the Market with Janet Parshall to give his monthly update about the persecuted church and during his discussion with Janet, Todd emotionally shared the latest update concerning Asia Bibi and the blessing she has received from God while in prison. Click here to listen to this riveting interview.

Tom White,  Executive Director of The Voice of the Martyrs shares more in this letter he's written about Asia.  Enjoy, and please pray for Asia Bibi.

“The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening ...” (1 Kings 17:6a).

 

Dear Friend,

Do you remember the story of Elijah being fed by the ravens? Asia Bibi, a Christian wife and mother imprisoned in Pakistan, has received hope and encouragement in a similar way. Asia has remained in jail since her arrest on blasphemy charges in June 2009. A Pakistani court found her guilty of blasphemy in June 2010 and sentenced her to death. But God has not forgotten her!

 Asia shared this story with a VOM contact who recently visited her in prison:

 

There is a beautiful thing that happens every day in my cell. Two days after they announced my death penalty, I was brought into [death row]. Every morning around 3:30 or 4, a brown bird with a long beak appears and sits on the boundary wall. This bird also comes every evening around 5. He sits there for 10 minutes in the morning and 10 minutes in the evening. Later on he became my friend. I talk to him and he also talks to me.

 

As I watched this bird every day, I tried to understand the meaning of him coming day after day. I think this is a messenger from God giving me His message. When the bird comes, I feel encouraged and peaceful. I feel comforted after his visit. I think this is a very significant sign from God.

 Asia also reported that she spends much of her time in prayer, including prayer for those around the world who pray for her and speak out on her behalf.

 The Voice of the Martyrs provides financial assistance to Asia's family through our Families of Prisoners fund. We invite you to make a special contribution to this fund, which enables VOM to help the families of imprisoned Christians, families like Asia Bibi’s. To learn more, visit http://etools.vomusa.org/a/vomso/bg_vomso_wdbm-20120207-FOP_443.html .

 Please support the families of Christians imprisoned for their faith around the world, and please continue to pray for Asia Bibi as well as her husband, Ashiq, and daughters. And if you have not signed the online petition asking for Asia's release, please sign now at www.CallForMercy.com. To support the families of prisoners, visit http://etools.vomusa.org/a/vomso/bg_vomso_wdbm-20120207-FOP_443.html .

For those in bonds,

 

Tom White

Executive Director

 

What do you do while imprisoned in solitary confinement for more than two years? The answer for one Pakistani Christian is “pray.” Asia Bibi has spent almost three years in prison on charges that she blasphemed Islam’s prophet Muhammad. She was convicted and sentenced to death, and she now awaits the ruling on her appeal. To protect her from other inmates, she has been kept in solitary confinement. She cooks her own food to ensure that no one tries to poison her.

VOM has supported Asia’s family during her long imprisonment and has stayed in touch with Asia through her faithful husband, Ashiq. In January, a VOM staff member was able to visit Asia in prison for the first time since she received the death penalty. Ashiq and the VOM worker spent 25 minutes with Asia, but they were separated by a tight metal screen.

Ashiq, Asia Bibi’s husband

“She had a smiley face full of joy and thanksgiving,” said the VOM worker. Asia said she was thankful for the visit and that she was happy and fine. She reported that jail officials were taking good care of her and that the superintendent, sympathetic to her extreme loneliness, promised to bring her any books she wanted. A female guard is with her at all times.

Asia told the VOM worker about another way she has been blessed. “There is a beautiful thing that happens every day in my cell. Two days after they announced my death penalty, I was brought into the death cell [death row]. Every morning around 3:30 or 4, a brown bird with a long beak appears and sits on the boundary wall. This bird also comes every evening around 5. He sits there for 10 minutes in the morning and 10 minutes in the evening. Later on he became my friend. I talk to him and he also talks to me.

Ashiq and daughters

“As I watched this bird every day, I tried to understand the meaning of him coming day after day. I think this is a messenger from God giving me his message. When the bird comes, I feel encouraged and peaceful. I feel comforted after his visit. I think this is very significant sign from God.”

Asia is allowed to walk in the courtyard every day for a few minutes, but she is always accompanied by guards. Other prisoners attend religious services in the jail every week, but Asia is not allowed to attend. So in her loneliness, she prays.

“I am praying every day,” she said. “I am strong in my faith. I know that this is a test of my faith and I know to make gold, it must be purified; it has to be put in the fire.

“I am not worried about myself, but I am worried about the VOM workers who are helping me, which is very dangerous. I pray for them every day.

“I don’t know the names, but I know the people from USA are helping me; I pray for them also. I pray for the people around the world who are praying for me.” Asia also prays for the families of two men, Punjab Governor Salman Taseer and Minority Affairs Minister Shahbaz Bhatti, both of whom were killed for their support of Asia.

“I am very thankful to them that they sacrificed their lives for me,” Asia said. She is also thankful for the financial support provided to her family. “I know you are the people helping me and my family and fighting my case in the court. I am very thankful to Lord for this.”

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Asia asked how her two young daughters are doing. She wanted to make sure they are going to school and church, concerned they might stray from what she wants for them. Ashiq assured her that the girls are attending school and church. “I am thankful they are doing this,” she said.

Asia, Ashiq and the VOM worker finished their time together with prayer. They prayed for the court, the judge, the attorneys and the jail’s staff. And Asia prayed that God would bless her and make her life an example to the other prisoners.

She ended with, “I pray that God will forgive the people who blamed me. … I know God helps his people and he will release me. I want to appeal to the world to pray for a miracle to release me from jail and that I stand strong in my faith.”

Please join Asia in her appeal for release by signing the petition at www.CallForMercy.com. And above all, pray.

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Imagine being one of only three Christian families in a village of 1500 families.  Now imagine you were having a conversation about faith and you shared about your love for Jesus Christ, with the Muslims you were working with.  Next, imagine that your Muslim coworkers were insisting that you recant your faith in Jesus Christ and become a follower of Allah.  Imagine that you were beaten and then mocked and ridiculed publically so that all of the community would know you follow Jesus Christ.  Finally, imagine that you were arrested for blasphemy, put in jail, and had a death sentence hanging over your head.

How would you feel?  Would you stand firm in your faith?  Would you continue to stand for Jesus?

Sadly, this is not something that needs to be imagined for Asia Bibi, because she's living it and  today she remains in jail and awaits a death sentence.

Her crime in Pakistan...believing in Jesus Christ.  The cost she's paying...imprisonment, mockery, abuse, beatings, and possibly death.

Are you praying for Asia Bibi?  Have you signed the Call for Mercy petition yet, saying that you are standing with her?  If not, we're looking to get one million signatures for her.  Sign the Call for Mercy petition now!

For more information on Asia and to read the lastest updates on how she is doing, please click here and download a PDF we've produced from our Be-A-Voice Network.

Please click here to write a letter to Asia Bibi using our very simple Prisoner Alert program.  Every letter makes an impact.  Thank you for caring.

Pakistan (MNN) ― After hundreds of thousands of signatures, Voice of the Martyrs is still calling for more to speak up on behalf of believer Asia Bibi.

In November 2010, Bibi was falsely accused of blasphemy and thereby sentenced to death by the Lahore High Court of Pakistan.

Bibi has been in jail ever since. Although she appealed the case, no verdict has been made. She remains apart from her husband and two daughters. If the High Court does decide that Bibi is guilty, the case could be appealed to Pakistan's Supreme Court.

Voices have not been silent about Bibi. VOM's Todd Nettleton recently told Assist News that the number of international signatures on a petition for Bibi's freedom has now reached well over half a million.

The petition was delivered to the Pakistani Embassy when it had just 400,000 signatures in November. Since then, 160,000 more have signed for Bibi's release.

"More than 560,000 people around the world have signed a petition asking the Pakistani government to release Asia Bibi, a Christian wife and mother falsely accused of blasphemy against Mohammed and sentenced to death by a Pakistani court," noted Nettleton.

The online petition, at www.CallForMercy.com, was launched by The Voice of the Martyrs after 150,000 Pakistani Christians started the petition calling for justice for Asia Bibi and better protection of religious minorities in Pakistan.

The goal now is to reach one million signatures asking for Bibi's release. Help reach one million by clicking here so the Gospel might spread freely in Pakistan in the future.

Source: Thank you to Mission Network News for covering this with us.

Today I'd like to share with you a special treat, as we have Todd Nettleton, Director of Media Development for The Voice of the Martyrs USA, sharing the latest about Asia Bibi in a special report posted on ASSIST News Service.

Thank you all for signing the petition and praying for Asia and her family.  Here is Todd's article...

By P. Todd Nettleton
Special to ASSIST News Service

BARTLESVILLE, OKLA. (ANS) -- More than 560,000 people around the world have signed a petition asking the Pakistani government to release Asia Bibi, a Christian wife and mother falsely accused of blasphemy against Mohammed and sentenced to death by a Pakistani court.

 

Asia Bibi received a death sentence after being convicted of blasphemy

Bibi has appealed the conviction to the Lahore High Court, but is still in jail pending the outcome of her appeal. If the High Court upholds the guilty verdict and death sentence, the case could be appealed to Pakistan’s Supreme Court.

The online petition, at www.CallForMercy.com, was launched by The Voice of the Martyrs after 150,000 Pakistani Christians started the petition calling for justice for Asia Bibi and better protection of religious minorities in Pakistan. VOM sister offices in other countries have also promoted the petition drive, and people from more than 100 nations have signed thus far. VOM is delivering petition signatures to the Pakistani Embassy in Washington DC. The goal is to collect one million signatures asking for Bibi’s release.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE