The COVID-19 crisis in Iran continues to grow and in its midst are Christians who are offering hope in both word and deed.

Iran remains the epicentre of COVID-19 in the Middle East. Mike Ansari of Heart 4 Iran tells Mission Network News (MNN), "The situation in Iran is very, very dire. And so, we really do not have an understanding of the full scope of the of the transmission of this disease and the number of deaths because traditionally, the Iranian government does not announce the exact numbers."

MNN says it's a very busy time of year as many people are still celebrating Iran’s new year. "That means travelling with family, buying food, and more, and yet many remain seemingly unaware of the severity of the crisis."

Ansari says, "The message that people need to exercise social distancing has not really settled in Iran. On the other hand, you also have the clerics asking to open the shrines so people could go there."

Christians in the country are responding with "caution and education. Many underground churches have cancelled their gatherings and services. Instead, they distribute hand sanitizer." 

Ansari says, "What we are doing from is we have produced programming on MohabatTV and are airing it to the country of Iran, talking about coronavirus. Talking about how to have hope, how to bring light into uncertainty and faith into the volatility of the situation."

Ansari encourages believers to pray for each other all over the world. "I was talking to one of the believers in Iran. I asked him, ‘How can we pray for you?’ And he said, ‘Please pray Psalm 91 for us.’ And we are reminded again that when you turn to God in times like this, God’s peace and hope gives us that extra dosage of faith and perseverance that we need to make it through the difficult times."