“At one point, it was easier to kill a person than a chicken,” said Alejandro. Back then, he was a terrorist with a militant Islamic organization in Mindanao. He’d bombed civilians, government soldiers, U.S. Marines and the homes of Christians. He didn’t even know how many people he’d killed. “I was not afraid to kill anyone for the glory of Allah,” he said. Alejandro was the only son in a strict Muslim family. He’d brought honor to his father by joining the Islamist rebels and was considered a worthy heir. But after several years of indiscriminate killing, Alejandro’s conscience began to bother him. He left the militant group and went into secular work, but he remained committed to his Muslim faith and to his family. Alejandro’s work required that he travel around the island of Mindanao, and in 2009 he met a Christian who invited him to church. At first Alejandro turned down the invitation; he wasn’t interested in Christianity. But the Christian persisted, and after five invitations Alejandro finally agreed to visit the man’s church. During the church service, Alejandro suddenly found himself crying and walking to the front of the church. “I was a tough military guy, an
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Keo wasn’t surprised by the village leaders’ decision. In some ways, he expected it. Keo, his wife and their five children became Christians in communist Laos in 2011, and they have been denied basic needs ever since. Village leaders even prevented them from accessing the public water system. Laos is a volatile area for Christians, as the gospel offends the country’s traditional, animist spiritual practices. Conversion to Christianity is seen as a rejection of family and tradition; it is believed to anger the spirits tied to ancestor and idol worship. Christians are often harassed and evicted from their homes and villages. They are denied education and work opportunities, and they are sometimes arrested and forced to deny their faith. Despite the hardships, Keo and his family refuse to abandon Christ. “I knew becoming a Christian would be difficult and I would have persecution,” Keo said. Convinced of God’s Power Keo and his family became believers after witnessing the power of prayer. Keo’s son, Khamphuy, 12 at the time, had struggled with his breathing for months. Keo spent all his money on spirit doctors, who told him to kill certain animals to atone for wrongdoings that may have caused the boy’s
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The evening of August 20, 2014, Abu Fadi received an urgent call from his mother. “Abu, come for me,” she cried from the Iraqi city of Mosul. Before he could respond, an Islamic State (ISIS) fighter grabbed the phone and asked Abu to confirm that he was her son. “Yes, I am her son,” Abu replied. “What is the problem?” “Today, come and take your mother and sister,” the fighter said. “If you will not come today, we will throw them in the street. Either they will be Muslim or we will leave them in the street. You just come and take them.” The ISIS fighter took all the family’s money and belongings, closed up their house and painted the Arabic letter “N” on the home, indicating Nassarah, or “Christian”. Knowing he couldn’t enter Mosul as a Christian, Abu asked a Muslim friend to bring his elderly mother and sister — both in wheelchairs — to his nearby city, which had recently come under ISIS control. Once there, the two women joined Abu and his wife and they drove toward Bashiqa in the north. However, shortly after starting their journey, their car was stopped at an ISIS checkpoint by fighters
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The morning after Sudanese Air Force bombers struck his village in Sudan‘s Nuba Mountains, Pastor Morris prepared to go to jail. The pastor had done nothing wrong. He was going by choice, in obedience to Christ’s command to “Love your enemies.” For him, that meant packing soap, food, clothes and shoes to give to Muslim prisoners of war who served the same government that had bombed his village the previous night. The Sudanese government has reportedly dropped more than 3,700 bombs on civilian targets since April 2012 as part of its campaign against Nuba rebels. Many have questioned the pastor’s actions, including his son. For him, forgiveness of these atrocities is unthinkable. “Are not these the people who are bombing us with the airplane and killing our people?” his son asked him as he packed. “Why are you taking these food items to them to survive when they are killing us?” “I tell him, ‘My son, this is because Jesus says we have to love our enemies,’” Morris recalled. “‘Even if they are killing us, we have to love them. Because of that love — because of the command of Jesus — this is why I am now prepared to
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On Nov. 15, 2014, National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrillas told Pastor Gabriel to get out of town. “You pastors are worthless,” they said. “You have five days to leave.” They warned him that they’d start hunting him after the five days had passed. Gabriel and his wife left the town, but they didn’t leave the department (state) of Arauca as the rebels had demanded. Instead, Gabriel settled in another village and called his VOM contact to tell him what had happened. VOM had supported Gabriel with a small monthly stipend for six years, and Gabriel knew he could count on support and encouragement from VOM workers. He had met with some of them just weeks earlier at a conference VOM sponsored for pastors working in the “red zones,” dangerous areas controlled by guerrillas. “I am thankful for your prayers and encouragement,” he told them. “Not only do you believe in me, but you suffer with me. My goal is to be faithful.” Although Gabriel and his family were forced to leave their home and lost everything they had, he has continued his work, ministering to small groups of believers in nearby rural areas. VOM is proud to partner with believers
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Just a few days before government-mandated “celebrations” of the 100th Anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party, we finish a conversation with Bob Fu, former prisoner for Christ and the founder of China Aid Association. Bob points out the terrible cost of decades of control in China by a philosophy that places zero value on human life. Bob will talk about the choice some Chinese Christians are making to stay in their country in spite of the constant threat of persecution. He’ll also tell how some Christians are choosing to leave, seeing no future under President Xi Jinping. China’s pressure and persecution efforts also reach outside their borders—including harassing Bob and his family in the United States. Bob will help us pray for Christians in China; he also says Chinese Christians are praying right now for the United States and believers here. Bob Fu is the author of two books: God’s Double Agent, which tells the story of Bob’s coming to faith in China and eventually being forced to flee the country; and The Politics of Inclusive Pluralism: A Proposed Foundation for Religious Freedom in a Post-Communist, Democratic China. You can listen to the first part of our conversation with Bob here. This month you can receive a free copy of When Faith is Forbidden, the new book by VOM Radio host Todd Nettleton, when you make any donation to help persecuted Christians through The Voice of the Martyrs. Learn more and give online. Never miss and episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast.
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Radical Fulani Muslims killed one, wounded another and kidnapped five others in an attack on Haske Baptist Church in Manini Tasha village, Kaduna state.
Read MoreAnila is a young girl who lives with her older sister, mother, and alcoholic father who spends all of the family’s money on his addiction. The family has experienced much emotional trauma because of his alcoholism, and Anila’s mother has attempted suicide.
Read MoreEconomic conditions in Iran have led to extremely high inflation and increased unemployment. Many who have lost jobs and financial stability are living on the streets, and front-line workers have observed children foraging for food in trash bins in order to relieve their hunger. As a result, pastors and workers in the Iranian house church network have begun ministering to those on the streets.
Read MoreBob Fu is a former prisoner for Christ and the founder of China Aid Association, serving and sharing the stories of persecuted Christians in China. He says persecution of Christians in communist China is the worst it has been in 40 years—since the days of the Cultural Revolution. Bob will share a recent case of persecution and the story of how our brother Chen Wensheng—a former mafia leader—thought of ten days in prison as a “spiritual retreat.” Brother Chen went right back to publicly witnessing for Christ the moment he was released. Pastor Bob says Chinese Christians understand they are in a spiritual battle, rather than a physical one. Listen to hear how they gain strength to face opposition and persecution, and how the church prepares believers—even youth—to stand strong. Bob Fu is the author of two books: God’s Double Agent, which tells the story of Bob’s coming to faith in China and eventually being forced to flee the country; and The Politics of Inclusive Pluralism: A Proposed Foundation for Religious Freedom in a Post-Communist, Democratic China. This month you can receive a free copy of VOM Radio host, Todd Nettleton’s new book, When Faith is Forbidden, when you make any donation to help persecuted Christians through The Voice of the Martyrs. Learn more and give online. Never miss and episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast.
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