The Christian pastor who spent 3-1/2 years behind bars in an Iranian prison recently spoke about the experience, sharing his insights into the power of faith in the face of persecution.

Saeed Abedini addressed Liberty University Convocation on Friday, and discussed the series of events that led to him receiving an eight-year prison sentence on charges related to his beliefs.

He spoke about growing up in a Muslim household in Iran, converting to Christianity as a 20-year-old and the numerous challenges he faced spreading the Gospel in his homeland.

“The first time they arrested me, they tried to put pressure on me to deny my faith. That was maybe 14, 13 years ago,” Abedini told those gathered at the university in Lynchburg, Virginia. “And then after torturing me psychologically and putting me into jail, they saw it doesn’t work. That’s the power of faith. You can see that Satan steps back when you stand firm in your faith.”

Abedini told the convocation he went through a cycle of “preaching, prison, preaching, prison” as authorities tried to stop his efforts to grow the church in a predominantly Islamic nation.

The struggle between Abedini, a naturalized United States citizen, and the Iranian government came to a head in 2012, when the pastor told the convocation that authorities accused him of trying to overthrow the government by converting Muslims to Christianity. The pastor was handed an eight-year prison sentence, but was freed in January as part of a prisoner exchange.

Abedini told the convocation that he was a witness of the power of prayer, and saw God at work in Iran. He added that having faith in Jesus Christ can bring light to even the darkest places.

“If you want to be realistic, there it’s very dark,” Abedini said during the convocation. “These people are very harsh. They really hate us. They really hate Christians. They really hate America, and they do everything that they can do to stop us. That’s the reality. But our Lord is above all these things. When you just come on your knees, you can see He is there.”

Abedini told the audience he shared Gospel with some of his fellow prisoners, “tens” of whom turned to Christ. He said the group of prisoners prayed and celebrated communion together, hiding the bread under blankets to conceal it from the prison’s security cameras.

“Some of them still are there,” Abedini said. “They need our (prayers).”

The pastor also shared a story about a prison guard torturing him in solitary confinement early in his prison sentence. He vowed to remain true to his Christian values and forgive the guard.

As Abedini was getting ready to leave the prison, he said he encountered that guard again. Abedini said he hugged the guard, told him he loved him and added he would pray for him.

“When we put ourselves in a situation to love people, God is going to open the door,” he said.