A few weeks ago, I was together with René Lobos visiting the Word of Life church in Baku, Azerbaijan, and we witnessed God perform wonderful miracles.
One evening, a man named Nasir came forward for prayer. Nasir was formerly a pastor in Iran and, a few years ago, opened his home to his pastor friends from Azerbaijan who were traveling and preaching in the country. On one occasion, as they were speaking to a large group of people gathered tightly in an apartment in Tehran, the police broke in.
Three of the pastors from Azerbaijan were arrested along with Nasir. They were imprisoned in the notorious Evin Prison, known for holding political prisoners.
A major effort to free these brothers was launched, with strong commitment from Livets Ord in Uppsala and Moscow.
After 4 months, they finally managed to get them out, and all four were able to leave Iran under intense pressure. But in Istanbul, the Iranian police caught Nasir again and took him back to the prison in Tehran. There, he had to spend another five years before he was finally able to leave the country.
During his time in prison, he was bitten by an insect in his right ear, which caused an infection that later made him deaf in that ear. After his release, he moved to Baku and joined the local congregation. Now, after the evening service, Nasir could share how God had healed him. After five years of not being able to hear anything in his right ear, he was finally fully healed!
This was just one of many healings during those days. René shared his testimony about his broken background—growing up in a dysfunctional family with a criminal father and a life marked by deep crime, violence, and prison stays. René was saved and set free, but an important part of his restoration was learning to forgive. This made a deep impression on the friends in Baku, and a young man in the congregation, a refugee from Nagorno Karabakh, approached René for prayer. He had been suffering from pain in his hip. God led René to speak to him about forgiveness, which the young man did. The next morning he woke up pain-free. He was healed!
Many others also testified about healing. On one occasion, a word of knowledge came about a boy with pain in his shin. A woman quickly went out to the children’s meeting and brought her grandson, who had for a long time struggled to walk and often complained of terrible pain. Before everyone’s eyes, he was healed and could freely walk around on the stage.
Thank you Jesus!
