In December 2023, Mauritanian authorities arrested a group of around 15 Christians after a video of them participating in a baptism was posted online. All of the arrested Christians were former Muslims. Mauritania is dominated by Islamist leadership, and conversion from Islam is illegal. “At first, no lawyer would defend them,” said a front-line worker. “The officials tried to get them to apologize on social media for spreading the gospel, to agree to never promote Christianity, and to return to Islam,” he added.
Read MoreSome local Christian leaders in Lebanon have reported an inspiring work of God even as many in the country are struggling amid economic hardship and political instability. “You’re aware of the many crises Lebanon is facing,” said one pastor. “In the past year alone, we have endured unemployment and underemployment, a dysfunctional government, hyperinflation, and war along our southern border.” Then he added, “And yet we are seeing one of the greatest gospel movements in the country’s history.
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Many Muslims are ready to hear the gospel and experience the love of Jesus Christ. For more than two decades Peter Smith has prayed for the nation of Iran and connected with ministries reaching people and supporting persecuted Christians in the nation he and his wife “adopted.” Seeing the gospel go forth in the Middle East reminds Peter of the good soil that produced 30, 60 and 100-fold harvests in Jesus’ Matthew 13 parable. Persecution is rising in restricted nations across the Middle East; despite that risk, more Muslims are becoming followers of Christ. Listen as Peter shares the stories of how God worked in the heart of an Uber driver and a divorced woman. “When you adopt a country,” Peter says, “sooner or later you get to adopt the people.” Peter’s wife also has an international ministry—from their home in the United States. She asks the Lord each day for divine appointments and looks for gospel opportunities at the grocery store, in her neighborhood and wherever else the day takes her. Hear how she’s had gospel conversations with women from 54 different countries. Learn how you can pray specifically for Christians in Iran and across the Middle East as Peter shares what current events mean for Christians there and how to pray for what God is already doing. Go to TheRealStoryOfJesus.com to see one resource people are using to share the gospel in the Middle East—a resource also available in English. Hear the story of Peter “adopting” the nation of Iran during his first visit with VOM Radio. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast. Or you can listen each week—and get daily prayer reminders—in the VOM App for your smartphone or tablet.
Read MoreOn Sunday, January 28, two masked gunmen entered a Catholic church in Istanbul during a service and randomly shot and killed a 52-year-old man. The self-proclaimed Islamic State (ISIS) claimed responsibility. Turkish police quickly arrested two suspects with ties to ISIS and later arrested 25 more after raiding numerous locations. Afterwards, police contacted a pastor of a rapidly growing church in another part of Turkiye and told him that his name was on an ISIS hit list.
Read MoreFarid placed his trust in Christ six years ago, but with no church to attend, he had not been growing in his faith. While riding in an elevator, a Christian woman gave him a magazine and said, “This is a gift for you.” Farid was startled and wondered if it was a special kind of advertising campaign. But after the woman left, he read it. “I came upon a page that really touched my heart,” he said. “On that page, they interviewed believers who shared their stories of faith.
Read MoreRoughly 2.5 million Malawians are part of the Muslim Yao people group. According to front-line workers, God has been moving significantly among the Yao people in the last two decades. But in recent years, Yao Christians have experienced severe pressure. “They are beaten and cast out of their communities,” said a front-line worker. “When others find out they are Christian, they have 24 hours to leave the village, and then they will put a fatwa on their life,” he added.
Read MoreLast week, Brother Kevin shared how he came to Christ and how God gave him a passion to reach the 13 million Hui people in China. For members of this people group, to be Hui is to be Muslim. Those who become Christians are considered traitors, bringing shame to their family. Hui Christians face social, psychological, and sometimes financial persecution, typically enforced by members of their own family. They may lose their job, be kicked out of the family home, and even renounced as a member of the family. Kevin came to see the communist authorities as ordinary people doing their jobs and providing for their families. He intentionally chose to see police and other authorities as worthy of his respect and compassion. When Xi Jinping ascended to the leadership of the Communist Party and the Chinese nation, things changed. By 2017, most foreigners were having a hard time renewing visas. By 2018, hardly any foreign gospel workers were able to remain in China. Members of Muslim minorities—including the Hui and the Uyghurs—received “reeducation” enforced by the government. Listen as Kevin shares how his family’s ministry in China ended and how tension grew during their final weeks in country as authorities searched for legal reasons to detain or deport Kevin and his family, including a late-night drive to the airport. Choosing to focus on God’s sovereignty allowed Kevin to shepherd his family and others struggling with their forced departure. Gospel outreach to the Hui did not end with foreign missionaries being kicked out of China. Today they are reached through social media gospel outreach and multifaceted church planting by local Han Chinese believers as well as Christians from non-Western countries. Pray for the Lord to continue moving among the Hui through dreams, visions and divine appointments with followers of Christ. Pray for Chinese brothers and sisters to boldly preach the cross and to prepare new Christians for persecution. Richard and Jeannette had a similar experience in China as Kevin’s family, yet Richard found himself detained by the authorities. Listen to their story. Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcast. Or you can listen each week—and get daily prayer reminders—in the VOM App for your smartphone or tablet. April is Bible month at VOM! Please consider giving online to help deliver Bibles to Christians living in restricted nations and hostile areas.
Read MoreBishwas Thapa, a 10-year-old boy who has been regularly attending a children’s fellowship for the last year, received a children’s Bible during a distribution event. His mother, Kamala, was attracted by the colorful pictures and began to read the Bible herself. Through this Bible, both Bishwas and Kamala came to know Jesus Christ as their Savior.
Read MoreThe West African nation of Benin is the birthplace of voodoo. Every year on January 10, the country celebrates National Voodoo Day, which includes occultic ceremonies attended by political leaders seeking favor from voodoo shamans. “Voodoo is its name in Benin, but these types of demonic groups can be found throughout West Africa,” a front-line worker said. These groups are sometimes called “secret societies” and have names like the Poro and Bundu in Sierra Leone and the Ogboni in Togo. Members of these groups regularly attack and persecute Christians whom they see as a threat to their dominance.
Read MoreKhamKeo placed his trust in Christ after he was healed from gallbladder disease. Eventually, the change in his life caused his wife and children to place their trust in Christ as well. The family began to experience opposition from neighbors and coworkers who noticed that they did not participate in the worship of local spirits. KhamKeo bought land some distance from the village and built a hut there, but the villagers were still unhappy with his family, so they moved again.
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