Compass Keeper

What is the government of Iran afraid of?

A senior general of the Islamic police said, “We must be on guard to find out the reasons behind this massive and country-wide distribution of the Bible.” He called the distribution “illegal” and accused Christian businessmen of being involved.

In seven Iranian cities, Christians were summoned by the state security, interrogated, and threatened that they would be called back again.

The head of the Ministry of Intelligence warned educators about the spread of Christianity in schools. He said that churches are a threat to the country’s youth.

Pray that believers will remain strong in the Lord. 

“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of Him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?” –2 Corinthians 2:14-16

Sources:

Farsi Christian News Network 

Assist News (first story, second story)

Barnabas Fund 

Voice of the Martyrs Canada 

Going to church is not something that Christians in Indonesia can take for granted. The GKI Yasmin Church has been struggling to meet for years. In 2008, their permit was revoked.They continued meeting, despite Muslim protests outside of their church. Eventually their building was locked. They were forced to meet in the street, and later in a member’s home. All this occurred despite a ruling by the Indonesian Supreme Court in the church’s favor.

For the second Christmas in a row, the congregation could not hold a service at their own church. When they tried to meet in a member’s home, Muslims yelled at them and threatened them. Other churches in Indonesia, like the second church mentioned in today’s prayer request, face similar problems. What is remarkable is their perseverance despite all obstacles. Please pray with us that these believers will not be intimidated by the persecution they face.

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” –Hebrews 10:24-25

An incredible story came out of the earthquake zone in Turkey earlier this year.  As the quake shook a church building on that Sunday afternoon, people rushed outside.  Throughout the region, many people were killed and trapped inside fallen buildings.  But the pastor of this church went back toward the building’s wall and started praying.  He prayed that it would survive and stand as a witness.  God answered his prayer.  The church became a refuge and a center for aid to the community.  God is good!

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.” –Psalm 46:1-3

In Iraq, being a Christian is dangerous—but being a Christian convert from Islam takes even more courage.  Compass Direct News writes, “Whereas Assyrian Iraqis are accepted as Christians by ethnic identity, Iraqi Muslims believe Arabs have no business becoming Christians; it is not possible, according to society and the constitution.” 

Listen to their stories:

***

“The government said, ‘We will not support you financially,’ and we said, ‘OK, no problem.’ They said, ‘Don’t evangelize in the street publicly;’ we said, ‘OK, we won’t do that. But you should give us another chance. We want to register [as Christians].’”—convert in Kurdistan

In Kurdistan, this Iraqi convert from Islam is the only person in Iraq to have tried to change the religion on his government ID card.  Lawyers turned him away, and a judge refused even to take his case, saying that it was “impossible.” He is campaigning hard for the sake of his son, for whom he wants freedom of religion.  Right now, his son is considered to be a Muslim because of the father’s background.  This brave convert has sought to rally other Christians as well.  He says there are as many as 2,000 other Kurdish converts like him, but only 200 of them overcame their fear and signed a petition to change the religion on their ID cards.

***

“Some people tell me it’s my fault we have troubles because I tell people I am a Christian.  I am so confused. Even some Christians tell me it’s my problem. I am reading the Bible, and it says that whoever denies God in public, God will also deny him, so what can I do?”—convert in Kirkuk

Even Kurdistan is considered to be relatively peaceful compared to Kirkuk, where this believer and his family reside.  As Arab converts to Christianity, they would be viewed with suspicion if they tried to move to Kurdistan.  Unlike Christians from non-Muslim (Assyrian) backgrounds, they have difficulty getting through the checkpoints even to visit Kurdistan.  Their landlord in Kirkuk has threatened eviction, increased rent, or extortion. Because their older daughter has “Muslim” on her ID card, she had to leave the Christian (Assyrian) school she was attending.  She and her sisters are criticized by Muslim relatives if they accidentally hum a Christian song in their presence.

***

“I never went to God, and I didn’t look for Him. He came to me and turned me into a pastor to serve the Iranians here. My life is in His hands. I will go where He sends me.”—Iranian convert living in Iraq

This Iranian family who became Christians in Iraq also has “Muslim” displayed on their government IDs. They have received death threats.  Their son was beaten by a teacher in front of the class and called an infidel.  Their daughter was so traumatized by her teacher that she stopped attending school.  The siblings are beaten and robbed by other children.  Yet still, the family perseveres.

“Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.  So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven…”

—Matthew 10:31-32

“To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna.  I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.”

—Revelation 2:17b

News Source: Compass Direct

Believers in northern Sudan are in serious danger.  Reports of persecution are coming from South Kurdufan, a state just above the border with South Sudan. 

Christians among the Nuba people have been persecuted for years.  Almost two decades ago, Muslim clerics issued a religious opinion saying that the government could legitimately kill the Nuba because they were “apostates” and “infidels” “who stand as a bulwark against the spread of Islam.”  In the 1990s, approximately half of the Nuba population was wiped out.  Now, some estimate that 70,000-90,000 people could die in the coming months if the situation does not improve. 

Bombing raids, election fraud, and murder are just some of the tactics used against South Kurdufan by the Islamic government of Sudan, which has ties to terrorist organizations. According to one witness, “If you are affiliated in anyway with the Church or any other stripe of religion that is different from their brand of Islam, you’re dead.”  Because of the bombing, the seasonal planting of crops has ceased, and starvation is likely to ensue. In the capital city government forces have searched house to house, arresting or killing Christians and other targets. All church members, and especially pastors, are considered to be enemies.  One pastor said that he knows he is on a governmental hit list—if they find him, they will kill him. 

Please pray for Christians in northern Sudan!

Related news: A congregation in northern Sudan is afraid to meet for worship and has not been able to rebuild after Muslims burned the church.

Also, see Smyrna's 8/23/11 daily prayer request, about a believer arrested and tortured in northern Sudan 

News sources: Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin, Religious Liberty Monitoring, Persecution Project Foundation, Washington Times Communities

When Ahmadi became a Christian, her family locked her in a room, shackled her to a chair, and beat her, telling her that she didn’t deserve to be a member of the family.  Neighbors smuggled her food and water. When she told her brother about her faith, he stabbed her in the stomach and broke her leg.  Despite her injuries, hospital workers were reluctant to help her because she was a Christian. 

In a hospital she met Hassan, who would later become her husband. 

Hassan was the son of an imam. After he became a Christian, his father discovered him praying. His father and relatives beat Hassan and almost blinded him.  Later he was ordered never to return home. 

He married Ahamdi, and they fled together to Khartoum, where they rented a house from her uncle. 

But after relatives in Khartoum learned that they were Christians, Ahmadi and Hassan were attacked by masked men with knives.  Her uncle ordered them to leave the house. Ahmadi suffered injuries from the attack as well as lingering injuries from previous abuse.

They don’t have food, a job, or a place to go.  She is in pain and is caring for a young baby.  Nevertheless, she says, “We cannot deny Christ—this is a big challenge to us.” 

Please pray for them.

“Preserve me, O God, for in You I take refuge.  I say to the LORD, ‘You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.’…The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; You hold my lot….I have set the LORD always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.” –Ps. 16:1-2,5,8

News source: Compass Direct News

During my blog’s inactivity, our ministry partners have been busy sharing God’s Word despite the persecution they face.  What a privilege it is to pray and praise God with them!  Here are just a few stories:

• In the Philippines, our ministry partner was able to redeem the mortgaged land of a martyr’s widow.  Now the widow and her children can farm the land and have a means to survive.
• Our ministry partner in North Africa emailed us to say that right outside their neighborhood churches are being burned and Christians are being killed.  Please pray for their safety and their media ministry!
• From January 11 to April 11 in Bangladesh, 572 people came to know Christ through our ministry partner’s outreach. 375 new believers were baptized!  In addition to overseeing ministries in the village camp, our partner travels 23-25 days out of the month, sharing the Gospel throughout Bangladesh and mentoring the new pastors he has trained!
• This month our ministry partner in India is teaching a new group of illiterate Muslim women how to read.
• Our ministry partner in the Middle East is helping refugees and comforting fearful hearts. He reports a food shortage in one of the areas where his ministry operates.  Ask God to provide.
• Our Iranian ministry partner tells us that even in the midst of great danger Iranians are filled with joy and gratitude when they receive Bibles in their language.  The government is trying to prevent the Bibles from getting into peoples’ hands.  Please pray for the safe arrival and distribution of even more Bibles!

“I have set the LORD always before me; because He is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.”—Psalm 16:8

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.”—Ephesians 6:10

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.”—2 Corinthians 4:7-8

Normally we tend to think of the persecuted church as comprising adult believers, but children can be equally hit by persecution, and their stories can be especially heartbreaking. A surprising number of the persecution incidents that Smyrna uncovered this past month (and that will be in the March prayer guide) involve kids and teens.

• Muslims brought false charges against a Christian youth in Pakistan, and police broke both his ankles.
• Four Somali children, ages 12, 8, 6, and 4 are traumatized by the public martyrdom of their mother.
• An eight-year-old orphan in Sudan is caring for her infant brother in a refugee camp in Sudan.
• Two children were only recently reunited with their father, a pastor who was imprisoned for four years in Uzbekistan.
• A Christian teen was tortured, sexually assaulted, and shot dead in Pakistan. A 10-year-old girl was also sexually assaulted.
• Four kids, ages 15, 8, 4, and 3 were shot to death by terrorists in Egypt.
• Two children in Turkmenistan were publically insulted in front of their schools because police found them at a Christian gathering.

There are many other untold stories like these that we may never know. But God knows. Please pray for the children in the Persecuted Church.

“Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.” – Luke 12:6-7

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know Him.” – 1 John 3:1

The courage of ordinary believers in Iran is amazing. They are forced to meet in secret, and their Farsi language Bibles are forbidden by the government. Yet they persevere.

A woman who was arrested led three fellow-prisoners to Christ. Another believer found authorities waiting at his house to arrest him. Instead of running away, he called Christian friends to ask for prayer, and then continued home to meet his captors.

One ministry leader said, “These Christians are prepared to suffer and they count it a privilege to be suffering for the name of Christ.” In the past 31 years, the church has grown from roughly 350,500 Christians—including only 500 converts from a Muslim background—to over one million.

The church is growing, and persecution cannot stop it.

“In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” –1 Peter 1:6-7

News source: Assist News

The church in Algeria has faced fear before and overcome it. When the government cracked down on Christians in 2008, a ministry leader told a government official, “If you are thinking of putting us in prison, you had better enlarge your prisons—because what you have today will not be enough for us.”

Another ministry leader, who has faced charges for “shaking” the faith of Muslims, often gets called into the police station. There he takes the opportunity to witness to the Muslim policemen. His calm attitude is astonishing. He says, “When you overcome fear, the enemy does not have much to frighten or threaten you with!”

A recent court case in Algeria could create renewed danger for churches in Algeria. In December four Christians were given “suspended” prison sentences for worshiping without a permit—suspended meaning that they will not serve time, but are condemned as criminals.

Compass Direct News reports,

Although the suspended sentences mean the four Christians will not serve prison time, [Pastor] Yahou told Compass that he and the three other men plan to appeal the verdict because the outcome of their case could affect all Protestant churches of the country, none of which have official permission to operate.

“If they close us, they can close all the gatherings and churches that exist in Algeria,” [Pastor] Yahou said. “They could all be closed.”

Pray that the Algerian church will continue to overcome fear, even in the face of these new dangers.

“The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” –Psalm 27:1

Their courage is a challenge to us.

“Some of you dare not do a thing that you know to be right, because somebody might make a remark about it. What are you but slaves? …The fear of God is the death of every other fear; like a mighty lion, it chases all other fears before it.” –Spurgeon

News sources: ANM, Compass Direct

At Christmastime Iranian government officials arrested approximately 70 Christians. While believers were still asleep on Christmas morning, authorities broke into their homes and took them into custody. Some Christians eluded arrest because they were not in their homes at the time of the raid. The government is still hunting for more to arrest. Those imprisoned are converts from Islam or believers who were known to share the Gospel with Muslims.

The governor of Tehran strongly denounced the Christians. He described them as “deviant” and an “enemy cultural invasion.” He said, “The leaders of this movement have been arrested in Tehran province and more will be arrested in the near future. Just like the Taliban, who have inserted themselves into Islam like a parasite, [evangelicals] have crafted a movement with Britain’s baking in the name of Christianity. But their conspiracy was unveiled quickly and the first blows were delivered to them.” His words echo those of Iran’s supreme leader back in October when he called churches dangerous and portrayed Christians as enemies of the country.

Deviant. Parasite. Conspiracy. Dangerous. Enemy. How could someone use such violent language about people who are sharing the love of Jesus?

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. But all these things they will do to you on account of my name, because they do not know Him who sent me.” –John 15:18-21

Over the past weeks I have been slow in writing, but many exciting stories have come into our office.

One of our ministry partners who was depressed and worried about very real safety concerns has found renewed peace.

Another ministry partner rejoiced to tell us that in the first three-quarters of the year 3,000 people were saved and over 800 baptized.

Still another reported that despite nearby bombings their compound is safe.

One partner told a story that reminded me of the Apostle Paul. He described the life change in a former Muslim who once persecuted Christians. Now this man is preaching the Gospel he once tried to silence.

A ministry partner in a country with a very small Christian population reported that in the space of two weeks 35 Children trusted Christ. God used his ministry to increase the population of believers in the nation by 1%!

Another partner shared his excitement when he wrote about how he foresees “a wide opened door for the spread of the Gospel in these places.”

It has been amazing to read these stories and know that they are just a tiny glimpse of how God is at work. Keep praying! God is doing amazing things!

The International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP) is less than two weeks away. On November 14, an estimated over half a million churches will be praying for persecuted believers around the world.

These persecuted Christians are ordinary people, like you and me, going about their lives, but they are willing to risk everything to follow Jesus. One day an 11-year-old Christian in Pakistan went to pick up some detergent at the store. When he got there, the shopkeeper said, “I don’t sell to any non-Muslim; you are not welcome here; don’t you dare ever come to my shop again.” Shortly after the boy went home, a Muslim religious leader came to his house and accused him of blasphemy. A Muslim mob killed him, his mother, and three siblings.

Persecution comes in many different forms. A Christian doctor in Pakistan said, “At present I…have neither my daughter, which they deceitfully kidnapped, nor my house, but I have protected the most precious thing in my life; my faith in Jesus Christ.”

These are ordinary heroes. Will you stand with them and pray?

To read stories of other ordinary heroes, see the IDOP bulletin insert here: http://www.smyrnaministries.org/IDOP

News Sources: Compass Direct and Asssist News

At the third Lausanne conference at Cape Town, a church leader from Jos, Nigeria gave a moving testimony.  You may recall that it was near Jos that Muslims slaughtered hundreds of Christians earlier this year. 

He says, “Those who carry the message of the Gospel will not always be welcomed.  There may be intimidation, humiliation, persecution, and suffering.”  He tells of how churches and houses have been burned, how he has lost a classmate and colleagues.  He describes the suffering when Muslims massacred men, women, and children in his country.  He personally faced persecution when over 40 people came to his house to kill him.  Because he was not home at the time, the attackers found his wife and did “unspeakable things to her.” 

His persecutors did not give up on silencing him.  He continues,

Exactly one year later they came back again, but this time they met me at home. Over thirty people came, broke down…the back door, came in, and took me out to kill me.  They later on changed their minds and said they would kill me in my bedroom.  I pleaded with them to [let me] pray. 

And they allowed me to pray.  As I prostrated before the Lord, about two minutes later my wife was holding my hands.  Five minutes later my son came in.  And I said, "What are you doing here?"  He said, "Daddy, they’re gone."  What chased them away, what they saw, what they didn’t see, only eternity will reveal….

Why I am alive, I don’t know.  But one thing I know, until my time is up …. I have a Gospel to proclaim, I have a Gospel worth living for, and I have a Gospel worth dying for.  Amen. 

Persecution does not mean defeat, even if worldly wisdom suggests that it does.  Why is this Gospel worth living for, even in the face of persecution?  Paul writes to the Corinthians,

Why are we in danger every hour? … I die every day! What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” … But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:30-32, 57-58)

If you want to see the video testimony, click here: http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/conversations/detail/11459

Robert Louis Wilken’s article “Christianity Face to Face with Islam” in the January 2009 issue of First Things argues that a “complacent ignorance” toward Islam “has prevailed, especially in the West” (19). He uses the geographic expansion of Islam to make a case for taking Islam seriously.

Yet Wilken’s argument against complacency seems upside down at some points, where it builds on despair rather than on hope. He writes, “Set against the history of Islam, the career of Christianity is marked as much by decline and extinction as it is by growth and triumph” (22-23).

Islam has conquered with sword many regions where Christianity was once openly practiced. But even where Islam has conquered and has driven the church underground through persecution, even there the church has thrived.

Where Islam is gaining power and shown to be lacking, many are thirsty for truth. In a published interview with International Christian Concern, an Iranian believer said,

When Khomeini took over, many people believed that Islam was the answer. They believed Islam was going to take over the world, through Iran. Now . . . a large number have come to the conclusion—the definite conclusion—that Islam is not the answer. It is the problem! . . . Iranians have seen the total implementation of Islam and how it has worked. . . . Ayatollah Khomeini was in power for ten years. In ten years, he did more than the missionaries did in 200 years in Iran.

The church is not in decline or extinction. The church has a treasure, an answer to share with those who are living under the fear of Islam. We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. Believers in Islamic regions are afflicted, but not crushed, persecuted, but not forsaken, struck down, but not destroyed. So we do not lose heart.

For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you. . . .

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:5-12, 16-18)

Imagine you get up and go to church one morning—only to find the door locked with a sign that reads, “Because this building is continuing to be processed under the law, it cannot be used.” What? You were just at the church the other day, and everything seemed great. The building had finally been cleared and un-sealed by the government only yesterday, and you were looking forward to having a roof over your head during worship.  Meeting only every other week by the side of a road was not very pleasant, especially with the rain and the heat.  Months of legal battles grew tiring, too, especially when you knew you had followed the law.  Even the city officials had agreed that your church was legal, but someone must have re-sealed the building during the night.  Now here you were, standing by a locked door at 11:00 AM when you should be inside fellowshipping with other believers.  You had been given no warning, no notice—and now what were you supposed to do?

The real-life church in Indonesia decided to remove the lock and banner.  Late that night, however, security officials re-sealed the church all over again without any warning.

Muslims protest churches in Indonesia with such regularity that keeping track of the different persecution stories is difficult.  But even if there were just one church—your church—that had been closed, wouldn’t that one incident be enough to move you to pray?  The churches of Indonesia need our prayers.  Remember, they are our church, too. 

“For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. . . . If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.” – 1 Cor. 12:12, 26

In an article I was reading by Hagai Mazuz, I came across an interesting statement: “In our ‘post-modern’ age, most Western scholars, who are secular, find it difficult to accept the idea that medieval texts [like the Koran] can dictate the lives of, or even inspire, people today. They criticize those who see the conflict [between Muslims and Jews] as religious, arguing that scholars who see the conflict as religious, place too much emphasis on these ancient texts, as both the times and circumstances have changed. For them, these texts are outdated. In short, secular scholars find it difficult to believe that people even still regard religious ideas as relevant.”

It seems that many news outlets have difficulty calling religious violence as just that—violence motivated by religion.  It’s often labeled “ethnic violence.”  For example, when as many as 500 Christians were slaughtered in Nigeria back in March, the BBC reported that hundreds had died in “ethnic violence.”  As Compass Direct reported, however, the Muslims who attacked were chanting “Allah Akbar” as they murdered the Christians.  According to International Christian Concern, church leaders in Nigeria reported that Muslims were “bent on forcefully converting everyone in Plateau State to Islam.”  Is that ethnic violence?

Many “intellectuals” consider our Christian faith to be part of our ethnicity or culture.  They explain away our relationship with Jesus Christ as just a part of our heritage—something we inherited from our parents and our parents’ parents, like the ways we walk and talk and cook our food.  Similarly, Islamic violence is seen as ethnic—since intellectuals have already dismissed religion as part of ethnicity. 

But we know that the “intellectuals” are wrong.  Religion cannot be dismissed as part of ethnicity.  For many Greeks in the early church, Christian faith was not at all part of their heritage.  Yet they learned that in Christ “there is neither Jew nor Greek.”  Their ethnicity did not determine their standing before God.  Many people today do pattern their lives after ancient texts.  The Bible is an old book—far older than the Koran—but its Author is ever living and has a relationship with His readers who follow Him.

Many Muslims take their religion and its texts seriously, including the Koranic verses of violence that abrogated the earlier “peaceful” verses.  If they take their religious motivation seriously, why do the intellectuals and scholars of the West ignore it?

As you may have seen, the entry for September 3rd in this month’s prayer guide tells how a pastor and his brother who had been falsely accused of blasphemy were shot as they were leaving the courthouse.  Muslim media outlets helped to fuel Muslim’s hatred of these two men.  According to Assist News, the mainstream Islamic media “did not speak about the hearing in the court in which the police informed the judge that ‘no evidence’ was found against the two brothers.”

In Muslim countries, Christians can be publically labeled as criminals without evidence. Islamic media spreads lies about them. Will you help to speak the truth?

“All Your commandments are sure; they persecute me with falsehood; help me!” –Psalm 119:86

In a story out of Iran, a woman who is not normally able to worship aloud said “what a privilege it was” when she had an opportunity to worship Jesus at the top of her voice.  In Iran, even singing to God can be dangerous business.

When I was at college, a missions group sponsored a “persecution night.”  We gathered to pray for the persecuted and worship together.  After I arrived, however, I was surprised at what I found.  The windowless classroom had little light.  We were told to sing in a whisper, as many persecuted believers must do.  Being used to singing however loud I want to, the meeting jolted me.  How often do we take our freedom to sing without fear for granted? 

Pray for those who risk their lives to worship Jesus.

“But I will sing of Your strength; I will sing aloud of Your steadfast love in the morning. For You have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of my distress.” – Psalm 59:16

“. . . my mouth will praise You with joyful lips, when I . . . meditate on you in the watches of the night; for You have been my help, and in the shadow of Your wings I will sing for joy. My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me.” –Psalm 63:5-8

While Christians in Islamic strongholds suffer greatly, they do experience God’s hand of protection, as shown by two recent incidents in Pakistan. After Muslims sent threatening letters to area Christians, a motorcyclist threw a grenade at the local church. The grenade, however, did not explode. Children who were playing nearby were unharmed.

In another incident, twelve armed Muslims shot at pastors driving a car and a motorbike. After an intense high-speed chase with flying bullets and broken windows, the pastors escaped with their vehicles into a field. The attackers drove right past them. Miraculously, none of the believers were injured.

The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? . . . For He will hide me in His shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of His tent; He will lift me high upon a rock. –Psalm 27:1, 5

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and He will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if He does not, we want you to know, O, king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” – Daniel 3:16-18

Sources: Voice of the Martyrs, Compass Direct News

“Michael” is 11 years old. He might be in sixth grade if he lived in another country, but in Pakistan Michael doesn’t go to school. He was abducted by a wealthy Muslim landowner, and for the last one-and-a-half years, he has worked from 4:00 AM to 11:00 PM without a break or lunch.

Although his name has been changed, Michael is a real boy. Often he wears iron chains while he works. Neither sickness nor intense heat exempts him from his labor. Now he is growing weak and ill. His master often tells him that the chains will go away, the work will lessen, and the food will be better if the young boy does one thing—convert to Islam.

But Michael is a Christian. His body may be weak, but any child who can resist such intense pressure has another kind of strength—a remarkable strength of character that can only come from Jesus.

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, "For Your sake we are being killed all day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. –Romans 8:35-39

Source: Compass Direct News

Not long ago we learned that the Iranian government has confiscated and destroyed hundreds of Farsi (Persian) language Bibles. Officials called the Bibles “perverted,” alluding to the Muslim belief that Christians have perverted the word of Allah. Farsi Christian News Network says, “Of course, the security officials have not clarified the difference between these so called ‘perverted Bibles’ and those that are commonly used by people around the world - including Iran.”

The Iranian news source refutes the governments’ justification for burning the Bibles:

The Quran states that the Torah and the Gospels are Holy Scriptures as well. Nevertheless, the Islamic leaders claim that the Bibles used by Christians and Jews are not the authentic scriptures but have been changed by the church. Considering the fact that the Quran also states that no man can destroy the word of God, the question remains that if the currently used Bible is, as the Islamic leaders so claim, a changed and untrustworthy document[,] where is the real Torah and the Gospels?

If the Quranic claim that the word of God can never be perverted and changed [is true], then there must be a copy of the real Torah and the Gospels somewhere. To this question Muslims have not credible answers. There is no such difference or variance between today's Scriptures and the original writings. Our modern Bibles go back to the very ancient copies of the scriptures that in some cases date back to only 50 years from Christ Himself. There are even copies of the Old Testament that date several hundred years before Christ.

Definitely and for sure, one can not find any ancient writings that have been as carefully and precisely copied and preserved as the Bible has been. There are thousands of ancient manuscripts in world museums that testify to this fact. Therefore the claim that the Bible is a changed and false scripture is totally baseless and is nothing but a ploy to confuse and mislead people by the Islamic leaders.

Consider the contrasting history of the Koran. In Unveiling Islam, Ergun Caner and Emir Caner explain that it was written approximately six centuries after Christ and that all but one of approximately 25 variants of the Koran were deliberately destroyed (82, 86-87).

In the upcoming month of Ramadan (August 11-September 9), Muslims will be celebrating the arrival of the Koran. Pray that they will see that the Bible, the book they are trying to destroy, is the true Word of God.

Forever, O LORD, Thy word is settled in heaven. –Psalm 119:89

Source: Farsi Christian News Network

In an Egyptian town without a church, Christians must ride in open-top cattle cars to get to a place where they can worship together. Joseph (a lay pastor whose name has been changed) explains, “We take them not in proper cars or micro-buses, but trucks—the same trucks we use to move animals.” A year ago, a man fell out of a truck and died.

Joseph was given land to build a church, but Muslims and government officials have been opposing the project for ten years. He was ready to give up—until tragedy struck, and a door opened where he had expected none.

Very active Christians in their community, Joseph and his wife were well known for their faith and service. He went door to door encouraging Christians, provided basic medical services to all faiths, offered vocational training to Christian women, repaired roofs for the poor, provided other housework, distributed free food to the elderly and infirm, and conducted prayer meetings. The government forced him to stop the prayer meetings, but he still sought ways to help the community.

One day when he and his wife were riding on a motorcycle, a group of Muslims ambushed them. He was knocked to the ground with clubs, and the couple were shot and left for dead. Then the villagers began celebrating the hated Christians’ death.

Miraculously, however, the couple survived. Many more bullets were shot than actually hit them. Because Joseph’s wife was wearing a large coat that made her body look like a wider target than it actually was, she was hit only in the arm. Joseph lost much blood, but because an elective surgery had been canceled the day before, the doctors were able to give him a large enough blood transfusion in his blood type. Still, many of the bullet fragments could not be removed from his body, and he suffered internal infections that caused his flesh to rot inside him. He spent 70 days in the hospital, and to this day he is still bedridden, partially paralyzed, unable to eat solid food, unable to use the bathroom normally, unable to work, and facing large doctors’ bills. He and his wife struggle, but they have not given up their faith.

Joseph’s wife says, “There is a great work the Lord is doing in our lives; we may not know what the reason is now, but maybe some day we will.”

Now they are hoping that they may have new leverage in their ten-year-old effort to build a church. Joseph has told officials that he will not testify against the attackers if the government allows him to build a place of worship. He hopes that his personal tragedy may enable other believers to gather together without having to ride in dangerous cattle cars.

Joseph says that his Muslim attackers wanted to “break the hearts of the Christians.” Pray that God will turn these believers’ heartbreak into an opportunity for them to spread the Gospel and to grow in their faith.

Source: Compass Direct News

The forgiveness and love offered by persecuted Christians is mind blowing sometimes. One man in Nigeria used to persecute Christians until he became a Christian himself. Muslim attackers wanted to punish him and killed his oldest son. The believer struggled with the loss of his son, but then went to the mastermind of the murder and offered forgiveness. His forgiveness was rejected, but the murderer’s son came to him and accepted Christ. Although he lost his son, the murderer’s son was saved eternally. He says,

I discovered that love is ultimate. If you want to win Muslims to be on your side, you have to love them, not with the human type of love, but the love you yourself have experienced through Christ. . . . I was once a persecutor; now through His grace He has forgiven me. This is God’s love. And though we have been persecuted, we are not crushed. . . . We die so that others will live.

A similar story of forgiveness came out of Iraq. After the bombing of two buses full of Christian students, a young man covered in blood told an Assyrian TV station, “We are not like you, we are Christians and we forgive you.”

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. –1 John 4:10-11

Sources: Voice of the Martyrs and Assyrian International News Agency

In Pakistan, five Christian boys were forced to leave their home because they were accused of desecrating a banner that displayed verses from the Koran. The banner was on an electric pole, and high winds knocked it down. One of the boys picked up the banner and handed it to a Muslim man. This helpful gesture was twisted into grounds for legal action. Muslims claimed that the Christian boys had desecrated the banner by touching it. They were forced to leave their hometown to diffuse tensions.

The boys probably felt utterly rejected after being forced to leave their home and being told that they contaminated the things they touched.

We can be reminded of the compassion of Jesus—who touched the untouchable with acceptance and love. “And behold, a leper came to Him and knelt before Him, saying ‘Lord, if You will, You can make me clean.’ And Jesus stretched out His hand and touched Him . . . .” – Matthew 8:2-3a

Source: Assist News

In the June prayer guide that many of you are just receiving, you will see an entry on two brothers in Egypt. The limited space of the prayer guide did not have room for their full story. These Egyptian brothers have been facing challenges to their faith for years. They were forced to take Islamic Religion exams at school in order to receive a promotion to the next class. One brother wrote on his exam, “I am a Christian.” The other wrote, “My religion is Christianity.” Even when they were forced to retake the exam again, they wrote the same messages.

You will also see in the June prayer guide the story of Christian university students in Iraq who were attacked while going to school. Violence against Christians in their city had become so great that they were forced to live in villages outside the city and to commute to school. When a roadside bomb and a car bomb targeted three of their buses, students were severely injured and one died. Over 1,000 students and about 100 faculty and staff used buses to commute into the city, but now the transportation project for students has been canceled. How are they going to complete their education?

Christian students in other Islamic countries likewise face challenges. In Brunei, Christians are required to teach Islam in their schools. In the Maldives, Islamic education is mandatory, and parents are forbidden from teaching their children about their own faith. In Pakistan, Christian students who try to substitute ethics classes for Islamic education often lack textbooks and qualified teachers.

If you are or were a student, consider the challenges that your fellow Christian students in Islamic countries face—and pray for them. Pray that they will be courageous and faithful as they seek to learn and to follow Christ.

Three years ago in Pakistan, Martha was accused of blasphemy. She and her husband had supplied construction materials to Muslim contractors, but the contractors did not want to pay for the supplies they took. Instead they brought charges of blasphemy against Martha, and a mob of hundreds of angry Muslims gathered at her house. Her husband and six children managed to get away, but the mob caught her and took her to the police. For several days, she was deprived of food. She lived in a dark and dirty cell where the prison warden hated her. A pastor managed to get her a Bible that she could read, but the food that her loved ones brought her was given instead to Muslim female prisoners. After three months and thirteen days in prison, she was released on bail.

Martha then took refuge with her cousin, a teacher and evangelist. For his kindness, he received this death threat: “….if you do not convert to Islam within 10 days and admit … your mistake, you will be surely put to death. We will kill the blasphemer woman [Martha], her husband and those who shelter them.” Martha felt badly that she had brought trouble on her cousin. She was afraid to go out in public, even to do her shopping, and felt like she was still imprisoned.

Now Martha is headed back to court on Wednesday, May 26. If she is found guilty, she could be sentenced to death.

Imagine being in Martha’s shoes. Where would you turn? What would you do?

While in prison, Martha did not back down on her faith—instead, she was reading her Bible and praying for her children’s protection. Pray that now she will be strong in Christ, no matter what she faces in the courtroom.

Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. –Revelation 2:10

Source: Assist News

In Pakistan, a Christian woman has been imprisoned for almost a year on blasphemy charges. Her bail was rejected, and she still has not had a trial. Assist News reports that she was ruthlessly tortured by an angry Muslim mob before her arrest.

This incident of persecution in Pakistan is like many that appear in Smyrna’s monthly prayer guide. I am struck by the consistency of persecution in that country: so many stories from Pakistan come across my desk that I can never squeeze all of them into the monthly prayer guide. But each incident of persecution is more than just an incident—it is ongoing. This woman in Pakistan, who has been in prison for almost a year, is suffering every day that she is separated from her husband and four children. Those children miss her terribly and want to see her. This one incident of persecution has drawn out for almost a full year. Multiply that prolonged suffering by the vast number of incidents, and you can see that the suffering in Pakistan is great.

And yet, in the midst of this suffering, God is faithfully working. The pastor of this Pakistani mother has encouraged her and her family to stand firm in their faith. Voice of the Martyrs contacts say that she “is in strong faith” and is in consistent prayer. The One who is faithful is still with her and is still at work in Pakistan.

Pray for this mother and for the suffering in her country.

They were gathered to study the Bible. These young men, roughly ten in number, were new in their faith and sought the guidance of their pastor. When they gathered at his house on a Wednesday afternoon, they weren’t discussing political topics—they just wanted to study God’s Word.

Can you imagine being one of the young people at this Bible study, and suddenly having armed plain clothes security officers break the lock on the front door, assault your pastor, and taken him away? Then the officers make you fill out a form about how you became a Christian and who baptized you. You wonder, why do they need this information anyway? Their words to you are ominous—you have attended an illegal meeting and will be called in for questioning sometime soon. Meanwhile, your pastor and his Bibles and Christian books are whisked away. The security officers won’t say where they are taking him or what their charges against him are. When the pastor’s wife comes home, she thinks her house has been robbed. The other witnesses tell her what really happened and how her husband is gone. How would you be feeling right about now?

This arrest actually occurred at a Bible study in Iran. Pastor Bahnam was taken away by the Ministry of Information, and his whereabouts are still uncertain. His arrest, however, is unfortunately not an isolated occurrence. Earlier this year, Pastor Wilson, Pastor Vahik, and Pastor Hamid and his wife Reyhaneh were each arrested. What prayers would you ask for if you worshiped in their congregations?

So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets. – Matthew 7:12

Sources: Farsi Christian News Network and Assist News

When I think of religious persecution, I generally think of people who have been martyred or falsely put in prison. But in Turkmenistan, persecution means so much more than this. It means that church members who feed the homeless may be detained by police. It means that youth playing sports at a Church’s conference may be taken in to the police station for fingerprinting while their computer files of hymns are confiscated. It means that Christian women who gather in a home for a birthday party may face an “anti-terror” raid. This persecution is very real for the 76 year old Christian woman who is trying to survive on a small state pension and who has now been charged with a massive fine.

This kind of persecution is every-day reality for some Christians. As I sit at my desk and go about my life, it is easy to forget how much persecution affects the everyday lives of many Christians. All the events I listed above actually occurred, and they occurred recently. These are the Christians who need our prayers.

Source: Forum 18

Does world travel interest you? If you have ever wanted a glimpse of the other side of the world, read on to get a snapshot of one mystery country. If you think you already know a lot about the world, test your skill and see if you can guess this mystery country in 8 clues or less!

Clue 1: This country was one of the first to declare its independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Clue 2: In 2001, the State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations was formed. It demands the registration of religious communities and censors religious literature. Christians have been imprisoned and fined for “meeting without state registration.”

Clue 3: This country has a dry, semiarid steppe climate and is slightly smaller than Maine.

Follow the next 5 clues on Twitter!

Special thanks goes to our intern for his research help!

Maryam, 27, and Marzieh, 30, are two women in Iran who stand firm in their faith even as they face continuing persecution. They were arrested just over a year ago when state security officials searched their apartments and confiscated their Bibles. They suffered intense interrogation and sleep deprivation and were sentenced without a specified charge in a court for political, military, and serious crimes. Later they were transferred to a general court where they were charged with propagation of Christianity and conversion from Islam. They were released in November after 259 days of imprisonment, but now they face further court hearings this coming Tuesday, April 13. They are ill and weak, but determined to follow Christ whatever the cost.

This Tuesday, they will be speaking the truth in the face of a court that sees conversion to Christianity as a crime. Even as they face the court, however, we know that the prosecutors are not the enemy—“we wrestle not against flesh and blood.” These are bold women, wearing the armor of God. I am reminded of Ephesians 6:11-20:

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.

Sources: PrayForIran.org and Christian Solidarity Worldwide 

“But I will stay on at Ephesus until Pentecost, because a great door for effective work has been opened to me, and there are many who oppose me.” I am reminded of Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 16:8-9 as I read the news today. In Morocco, many Christian foreigners have been deported and Christian citizens “have been questioned by the police and are under great pressure.” And in Iran, the government continues to push an Islamic agenda. One evangelist says that he expects persecution in Iran to increase, and that “everything is moving toward some kind of boiling point.” Many oppose the gospel. But yet—has a great door for effective work been opened?

A missionary leader says of Morocco that the pressure on the church “forces the church to grow and to endure hardship. And that makes them stronger and makes them even more bold in their proclamation of the Gospel.” Similarly, the evangelist who expects persecution in Iran to continue to increase says that there is “no place in all of the Middle East that is as receptive to the Gospel as Iran.” The news of suffering that comes through Smyrna can seem discouraging at times, but we serve a victorious and risen Savior, who has triumphed over suffering, death, and sin. Praise Him!

Source: Mission News Network

I was reading an article by Elizabeth Kendal titled “Fitna in Morocco.” She explains why Christian orphanage workers in Morocco were accused of proselytizing, even though the Christians never pressured the children to convert:

Fitna, which is equated with persecution, involves anything that could cause a Muslim to leave Islam—anything from vile torture to magnetic grace. The whole purpose of jihad was to eliminate fitna. . . . For according to the Islamic order, Muslims are superior—the most noble/best community ever raised up for mankind (Q3:110)—and therefore must dominate. It is the Muslims who are called to success. Thus a thriving dhimmi would be a source of fitna for the Muslim community. Of course a thriving apostate is the most threatening embodiment of fitna imaginable. This is why the dictators of Islam are so desperately apostaphobic. . . . The fundamentalists know that in order to really eliminate fitna, they must eliminate every demonstration of Christian sacrificial love, Christian mercy, Christian grace, Christian joy and Christian assurance/peace—for these amount to the most devastating fitna of all!

The church’s love is seen as persecution of Muslims, so the church is persecuted. This inversion boggles my mind. Why would people persecute love? I am reminded of Jesus’ words in John 3:19,

And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.

But this is no reason for the church to give up; rather, it is a reason for it to persevere. 1 Peter 2:20-21 reads,

For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in His steps.

May God’s light shine through the darkness.

Two Muslim girls are hungry for the Word of God. A report we received from the Arabian Peninsula tells us that when local children gathered at a Christian’s house to get help with homework, one girl spotted a Bible and asked to look at it. The Christian let her look at an English Bible and then gave her an Arabic Bible to look at. She asked to take it home to borrow, but never returned it. Later another girl was working on a school project at the Christian’s house, and whenever the believer left the room she would begin to read a book about the Bible. These girls are starving for God’s Word.

Why are they so hungry for the Bible if their own religious text critiques the Bible? Ergun Mehmet Caner and Emir Fethi Caner explain in their book Unveiling Islam that Muslims believe the Bible is “unfulfilled (so needing the Qur’an to complete the revelation) and flawed (corrupted at its core).” Muslims also hold that “Allah sent the revisions of the biblical stories to Muhammed to ‘fix’ the corrupted Bible (surahs 6:34; 4:82; 10:65).” The Bible and the Qur’an may refer to some of the same names, but they make different claims about those names, especially concerning the name of Jesus. Muslims do not believe that God is triune or that Jesus the Son is one Person of the Trinity. They also do not believe that Jesus was crucified. Unveiling Islam explains, “The Jews boast in surah 4:157, ‘“We killed Christ Jesus the son of Mary, the Apostle of Allah”,--but they killed him not, nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them.’” Furthermore, Islam has some contradictory teachings about Jesus: “Surah 4:144 states that all messengers died before Muhammad, but surah 4:158 claims that Jesus was raised to God without death. In his commentary on surah 3:46, Yusaf Ali teaches that Jesus lived until he was about thirty-three, but surah 5:110 says He taught the people as an old man” (Caner and Caner 87, 89, 90, 93, 108). No wonder some Muslim children are hungry for God’s Word, and for the Word become flesh.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. --John 1:14
I am the bread of life; whoever comes to Me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in Me shall never thirst.—John 6:35 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved . . . . I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. --John 10:9-10

I was reading about orphans in Morocco whose Christian foster parents are being deported. Assist News Service says that many children there are “abandoned at birth because they were illegitimate—a despised stigma in Muslim Morocco. Unwanted babies are often discarded in hospitals or left in trash bags to die.” The Christians who try to help these orphans face persecution. I cannot understand how anyone could place a precious child in a trash bag—the thought horrifies me. And yet, as Assist News Service explains, these children are “abandoned by a society that doesn’t value orphans.” I am baffled.

But then I began to wonder—would I recognize the treasure of a human life if God had not shown me that he values my own life? I know the true God as a loving Father. Galatians 4:4-6 tells us of this love:

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”

God adopted me. God’s example of compassion teaches me what compassion means and how important it is. I pity those who have never experienced this kind of compassion. In their book Unveiling Islam, Ergun Mehmet Caner and Emir Fethi Caner explain how Allah is not a loving, compassionate father:

When Allah is discussed within the Islamic community, the absence of intimacy, atonement, and omnibenevolence becomes apparent. In all the terms and titles of Allah, one does not encounter terms of intimacy. In Christianity, we learn that each of us is a “temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 6:19), suggesting immanence in the life of the believer. Jesus stresses this dimension in His Garden prayer on the night before the crucifixion. God is the Father, “Abba” (e.g., Mark 14:36), the term of endearment for a loving parent. Even the most faithful and devout Muslim refers to Allah only as servant to master; Allah is a distant sovereign. Some titles for Allah connote mercy, but it is a redefined mercy: Allah is merciful because he did not kill me or leave me in peril. Yahweh is a caring, loving, and intimately involved Father. (117)

God is a Father from whom no one can take us away. Although Christian foster parents in Morocco may be separated from their foster children, persecution cannot separate us from the love of God (Rom. 8:35-37). How thankful I am that we serve a compassionate Father!

To read more about Morocco, click here. 

Just recently we were preparing the April prayer guide that is now going out to all of you. We had placed in it a prayer request for a man in Ethiopia who had been arrested last year and was now being threatened with charges of terrorism. But just as we were finalizing the prayer guide and prayer letter, we received exciting news—the man had just been released! Our prayer request suddenly turned into a praise report. We serve an amazing God!

“Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear.” – Isaiah 65:24
“Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.” – Psalm 139:4

If you are interested in receiving the prayer guide, click here. 

 Authorities brought false charges against him and claimed that he had stored or produced drugs illegally. He was framed after refusing to renounce his faith—refusing to keep quiet about what he believes.

The government of Uzbekistan uses intimidation in an attempt to halt the spread of Christianity. According to Mission Network News, a spokesman for Voice of the Martyrs Canada “says the persecution is having an effect on the church [in Uzbekistan]. ‘It’s not stopping the spread of the Gospel. In fact, it is growing the Gospel.’”

These Christians face persecution for their faith, and the Islamic world tries to silence them. But the world cannot silence their message, and the world cannot silence our prayers.

And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, saying, "We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man's blood upon us." But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than men." –Acts 5:27-29

Sources: Mission News Network and Voice of the Martyrs Canada.

Violence erupted in a town, and when people complained that the police were not doing enough, they arrested local teenagers. Their behavior implied that the teenagers would be released when church leaders gave up their complaints. The government discouraged the Christians from making their grievances known abroad.

Middle East Concern explains some background on the situation in Egypt: “Church leaders believe that the Christian teenagers will be released only when they drop their complaints, noting that in recent years, authorities have pressed Christian leaders to drop complaints in return for “peace”, i.e. peaceful co-existence. However, to drop complaints effectively grants impunity to the perpetrators of the violence, encouraging further incidents.”

Authorities tried to silence them, but we cannot be deaf to their suffering.
 

If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. – 1 Corinthians 12:26-27

Sources: Middle East Concern and Assist News

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