Mustaq's STORY:

At 40 years old, Mustaq had found himself in jail for a long list of criminal activities. But ultimately what landed him there was taking out life insurance on his wife, hiring someone to kill her and then collecting on that insurance.

Once the insurance company investigated him and revealed his crime, he was sentenced to 21 years in jail.

After 7 years of jail time, the Iranian government came and, knowing his character and demeanor, offered him an opportunity for freedom. They needed an assassin in Syria.

The terms were simple - get paid $50 to kill a member of the opposing militia and get paid $100 for killing an American.

Over a two year period, Mustaq made quite a sum of money.

He used the money to open a restaurant in Iran, and anytime he needed more money, he would go back to Syria to kill people. One time when they invaded and robbed a house of a Christian leader, he saw a picture of Jesus that said: “God is Love, and God loves you.”

This caught his attention.

A few months later, back in his restaurant, an employee was arguing with a customer named Emam. Emam was a Bible distributor, and when he went to pay, he told the employee, “God is Love.” When Mustaq heard what he said, it stopped him right in his tracks. So he went to the table and spoke with Emam, asking where he had gotten that phrase from because he had heard it before.

Emam told him about the Bible and the things he had learned from it. He brought a Bible back to the restaurant and gave it to Mustaq. After 5 days, Mustaq called Emam back and asked him to come to the restaurant and talk.

When Mustaq saw Emam, he began to weep saying he wanted to give his life to Jesus!

Emam prayed with him to receive Christ that day.

Mustaq has experienced God’s forgiveness, peace and joy.

He is now part of a Bible study that occurs in the very restaurant he owns.

Yassir’s Story:

After being in and out of jail for crimes he did not commit, Yassir found himself without a family, suicidal and wreaking havoc on society. As part of a driving service, he spent two years picking up women, raping them and leaving them on the side of the road.

One day, he got into an accident with a man in his car - resulting in the man’s death. Because the accident was his fault and he had no insurance, he was sent to jail again. To be freed, he had to serve the time or pay fines that he couldn’t afford.

Suddenly, after three years in prison, he was released when a woman named Zahra paid them. Yassir did not know this lady and went to meet her and thank her.

Walking into her home, he saw two pictures - one of Jesus and one of the man who had died from the accident he caused. Zahra told him that it was her husband who was killed.

Before he died at the hospital, he told Zahra that he prayed his death would help others come to know Christ. She thought he was in shock and talking crazy.

Zahra began to share their story. Her husband was a drug addict causing the children to leave the home. She became depressed, suicidal and found herself out of hope.

Until - someone gave her a Bible.

Their lives changed completely. They shared it with their family, and everything was restored.

Zahra gave Yassir a Bible.

3 days later he came back to her weeping, saying he was like Barabbas - a man sentenced to death for his crimes, but Jesus took his place.

He said her husband’s prayers worked, and he gave his life to Christ right there with her.

Now, Yassir attends a Bible study with Zahra’s son and helps distribute Bibles every week.