News and Prayer for the Persecuted

06/23/2012 Syria (Worthy News) U.S.-Backed Rebels Committing Christian Genocide in Syria-    According to various sources, Muslim rebels in Syria are targeting Christian communities. The U.S.-backed Syrian Army are sacking churches and threatening that Christians will be cleansed from rebel territory. Abdel Salam (a commander on the ground) is said to have decided that there would be "no more negotiations with Christians."    Full Story Pray for the protection of these Christian communities. Pray for the conversion of those who are attacking these Christians. Pray that these Christians will not be afraid, but will have a supernatural sense of peace despite the hardships.

06/23/2012 Indonesia (Voice of America) Indonesian Court Sentences Bali Bomber to 20 Years-   Forty-five-year-old, al-Qaeda-linked bomber Umar Patek was sentenced to 20 years for mixing the 700-kilogram bomb which killed 202 people and decimated two Bali nightclubs.Through the trial, Patek claimed that he played a minor role in the Bali bombing. Patek is a member of the militant group Jemaah Islamiyah, and he is well known among Islamic extremists. Noor Huda Ismail (terrorism expert) said that he thinks "there is a deal between him [Patek] and the police, Patek might say I will leak you a lot of informations about my networks in Southeast Asia or on the region, but make sure I will get less than 20 years." Patek had a $1 million dollar bounty on his head, and he had been on the run until he was found in Pakistan last January.   Full Story Pray that Patek will repent and come to know the Lord. Pray that Patek will meet Christians in prison who will boldly witness to him. Pray that those involved in this trial will do God's will and be born again. Pray that those who are making bombs and turning to hatred will instead turn to the love of Christ and be forever changed.

06/24/2012 Syria(AP) Syrian Christians Feel Vulnerable As Country Burns-    A small group of Christians in Homs, Syria are making pleas for safety. These Christians are very vulnerable to the violence between the crossfire of Islamic groups. One Homs resident says: "Before we were staying here to guard our homes, but now the situation is unbearable." Several mediators have urgently tried to evacuate the Christians who could be targeted because of their religion. The Christians who are trapped in Homs (including four children under 10 years old) have no running water, hardly any electricity, unreliable telephone lines, and they must hide in shelters during shelling every day.    Full Story Pray for these Christians to be delivered from the darkness that surrounds them. Pray that these brothers and sisters will be brought to a safer environment, and that through these trials they will grow stronger in the Lord. Pray that those involved in the fighting and violence will no longer target the vulnerable, but will come to repentence.

06/25/2012 Nigeria (ONN) Nigerian Churches Burned In Recent Attacks-   During a worship service on June 17, members of the Islamic group Boko Haram bombed three Christian churches in Nigeria. In response, Christian youths have killed Muslims and burned mosques. Jonathan Racho (of ICC) says: "The Christians, they don't have confidence in the Nigerian authorities, especially the military, to protect them; this is because the military is dominated by Muslims. That is why International Christian Concern would like to ask the international communities, particularly the United States, to put pressure on the government of Nigeria to protect the Christians who are being persecuted."   Full Story Pray for the Christian youths, that they will not turn to violence, but will plead to the Lord for deliverance and forgive their enemies. Pray for the Muslim youths, and all of those involved in Boko Haram, that they will come to repentence and be born again. Pray for the missionaries in and around Syria who are stepping up to care for those suffering. Pray that our brothers and sisters will not lose hope, but will stand firmly in faith and be encouraged and that they would declare praise to Jesus.

06/28/2012 Pakistan (Christian Chronicle) Six Church Members Killed In Pakistan Bus Bombing-   On June 11, near Quetta, a bomb planted on a motorbike exploded and destroyed a passenger bus. The target of this attack was a bus of pilgrims who follow Shiite Islam. The timed device exploded too late and missed the intended target. Instead, the bomb destroyed a passenger bus; six people died and at least 40 were harmed. An Indian Christian, Philip Ganta, says that Christians from Afganistan and Pakistan were on the passenger bus. He says that the number of people who died from the blast has risen to 18.   Full Story   Pray for those who were injured by the bomb, that they will heal completely by the hand of God. Pray for those who were behind the plot to plant the bomb, that they will stop murdering, and that the Holy Spirit will change the root of their ideology of hatred and attack. Pray that those who witness this will come to know the Lord, especially those who were injured, as well as those in the bus following Shiite Islam.

06/28/2012 North Korea (Christian Chronicle) 200,000 Plus To Die In North Korean Camps-   North Korea operates six labor camps which hold as many as 200,000 people. The average sentence is 15 years, but the life expectancy is only seven years; this is due to the inhumane treatment that is forced upon those in the camps. One of the camps works the prisoners to death, another camp conducts cruel experimentation on the inmates. The ideology of punishment for those in the camps lasts for three generations. In North Korea, if someone is placed in a labor camp, their children and grandchildren must pay the penalty as well.   Full Story Pray that those in the camps will be comforted by the Holy Spirit. Pray for complete revival in North Korea, and for the repentence of the leader, Kim Jong Un. Pray that all of the people in North Korea will no longer be deceived and live in fear, but that they will learn the truth of the Gospel and be set free! Pray that the worship of the "dear leader" will cease, and that the cruel treatment of the North Korean people will stop.

06/28/2012 Nigeria (Worthy News) Nigerian Missionaries Trapped As Militants Embrace Christ-

 

 

Christians in Nigeria are facing persecution from radical Muslims, especially from the Islamic group Boko Haram.
Missionaries face extreme risks in sharing the good news of Jesus with Muslims. A group of Christian converts and missionaries escaped a battle field  where some of the militants converted to Christianity. Many Christians
in Northern Nigeria face Islamic attacks. Rae Burnett (Africa director for the Christian Aid Mission group) said: as "word came that native missionaries under siege last week had escaped from Muslim terrorist murderers, Gospel workers from another mission field called in to report that they are now under attack." One missionary said that the mission group is "committed to reaching the militants, and some few have left and joined us." Though there is much violence, the good news is that the missionaries have been very successful in sharing Christ.  

 

Full Story

Praise God that some members of Boko Haram have come to Christ! Praise God for delivering them from Satan's lies and bondage!

Pray for the protection of the missionaries, and the converts, and that they will not be afraid.
Pray that the missionaries will be encouraged and continue to perservere in the great work they are doing in spreading the Gospel.

 

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