Iranian woman baptised after waiting 24 years

Can you imagine waiting 24 years for the chance to be baptised?

That was exactly what happened to Maral*, one of 34 Iranian Christian women who attended Elam Ministries women’s conference recently in a country close to Iran. Elam’s purpose is to strengthen and expand the church of Christ in and beyond Iran. The women’s conferences have been going for over 15 years for Persian-speaking (Iranian and Afghan) women. The multi-day residential conferences enable women to enjoy Bible teaching, worship, fellowship, and prayer ministry.

Despite having been born into a Muslim family, Maral had been fascinated with Jesus from a young age. She later put her trust in Him, but for many years did not have the opportunity to have regular fellowship and teaching with other Christians. She had also never attended a Christian conference outside Iran, so she and the other women arrived with great excitement.

For the first time in their Christian lives, these women could sing in worship at the top of their lungs without fear of discovery and arrest. They were able to enjoy rich Bible teaching and the fellowship of other believers without the slightest anxiety.

But most exciting of all was the opportunity finally to be baptised. Many, like Maral, had waited years for the chance. As 22 women went through the waters, many shed tears of huge joy. All those being baptised were dressed fully in white, representing their new purity in Christ, as has become customary for Iranian believers. They gathered around the pool at the conference venue, and each woman gave a confession of faith in Christ before being baptised.

All these women have already completed the Safar discipleship journey and own their own Bible in Farsi (Persian). Safar is a one-to-one discipleship journey to help new believer’s walk with Jesus and live His ways. Clear and easy to use, Safar guides one through 30 biblical steps – each designed to help you grow in relationship, go deeper in the word of God and prayer, and to put into practice what you’ve learned.

Many of these women are also part of small groups that meet regularly for fellowship, using Elam’s Weekly Fellowship resource. This is highly practical and encourages participants not only to worship and learn from the word together, but to seek out opportunities to serve their communities and – with wisdom and courage - to share the gospel with others.

The women may be invited to other discipleship opportunities in future, and those with emerging leadership potential could be invited to take part in leadership development training. 

*name changed to ensure anonymity.