In its first full year of broadcasting, VOM Radio has had the opportunity to share some amazing stories!

Earlier this year, I traveled to meet with Syrian refugees in Lebanon. The national crisis facing Lebanon is noteworthy. A country long known for its hospitable people, towering cedars and beautiful shores has been flooded by Syrians who have been displaced by the spread of Islamic extremists and government troops.

The atrocities committed by terrorists against Christians are generally attributed to their ideology. Usually it falls into the category of radical jihadist ideology. While ideology may play a role of being a catalyst that spawns extreme violence, there is something deeper and darker that is the root cause of such evil acts. It is more than just a clash of ideologies—the infidel verses the jihadist.

Many American children are looking forward to the arrival of Santa Claus on Christmas Eve, bearing presents for good little boys and girls. But most of those celebrating don't know that there is a real man behind the story of Santa Claus, and that real man was a Christian persecuted because of his faith and actions.

"Mike" and "Rose" serve the Lord in Mexico, where they planted a secret church in a tribal village hostile to evangelical work. They'd been warned that gospel work in that village was dangerous, but God’s call was clear. Several villagers came to Christ, and they began a secret Bible study.

J. Christiaan Beker’s suffering and persecution came at the hands of German occupation forces of the Netherlands in World War II. Beker later immigrated to the United States to become a professor of New Testament at Princeton Theological Seminary. He died in 1999. While not specifically suffering for Christ’s sake, he suffered at the hands of those who were idolatrous, adhering to the false religion of Naziism. This experience led him to investigate the meaning of suffering, not only because of the emotional and psychological damage done to him but also theologically. The “mystery of suffering” must somehow be reconciled with the Christian belief in “the goodness of the good creation.”

An unspoken rule of many barbershops and hair salons is that two topics are never to be discussed: religion and politics.

Padina was ready to kill herself on live TV to earn Allah’s favor and prove the God of the Christians was powerless. Instead, she met Jesus Christ and saw Him heal her mother from sickness. She became passionate to introduce her countrymen to the Savior.

Recently a college friend asked my opinion about Syrian refugees and whether or not the US should allow them in. In recent weeks—especially since the Paris attacks—there has been much ado about Syrian refugees coming in, and how they are being screened, and the security concerns raised by allowing thousands of people from the war-torn Middle East into our nation. “What is the right thing for us as Christians to do?” my friend asked, crediting me with a lot more expertise than I actually possess.