Showing posts with label international day of prayer for the persecuted church. Show all posts

Friday, October 30, 2020

PERSECUTED YET PREVAILING

TEXT: PSALM 129

1 “Greatly have they afflicted me from my youth”—

let Israel now say—

2 “Greatly have they afflicted me from my youth,

yet they have not prevailed against me.

3 The plowers plowed upon my back;

they made long their furrows.”

4 The Lord is righteous;

he has cut the cords of the wicked.

5 May all who hate Zion

be put to shame and turned backward!

6 Let them be like the grass on the housetops,

which withers before it grows up,

7 with which the reaper does not fill his hand

nor the binder of sheaves his arms,

8 nor do those who pass by say,

“The blessing of the Lord be upon you!

We bless you in the name of the Lord!”

English Standard Version (ESV)

Saturday, October 31, 2015

INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER FOR THE PERSECUTED CHURCH TODAY

Many who have been on the front-lines with brothers and sisters in Christ who are the victims of the vilest forms of persecution worldwide, tell us that they all have the very SAME request: "Please Pray for Us!" This simple request is stunning, when you consider it comes from people who are not just being persecuted for just being the peace-loving Christians they are, but have their cities and homes destroyed, their churches burned and in too many cases now - lose their actual lives.

The period from last year's International Day of Prayer (November 1, 2014) to now, one year later, marks incredible devastation to the Body of Christ worldwide and increasingly here in the United States of America.

- Just this past week, Bremerton High School (Washington State) Football Coach Joe Kennedy was suspended from his job for praying with his team....while three teachers in the same school invited members of the local Satanist temple to come to the game! (ABC News).

- In an eerie similarity to Columbine back in the 1990's, a vile shooter singled out Christians at an Oregon's Roseburg Community College and then killed nine of them on October 2, 2015 (Washington Post).

- Then there is Kimberly Davis, the Kentucky County clerk and first Christian openly imprisoned in America for her Christian beliefs about Biblical Marriage. (Breakpoint formerly with the Late Chuck Colson).

PLEASE READ: SEVEN SNARES IN RELATING TO THE PERSECUTED CHURCH

CLICK TO READ HOW PRAYERS
HELP SYRIAN CHRISTIANS!

These are just a few examples of a worsening trend in the USA, but nothing tops what is happening to millions of Christians whose family lines go back further than the islamic religion which represents most of the current configuration of the Middle East. This is a hard Truth for the average "open minded" westerner to grasp who cannot grasp the enormity of this form of religious persecution. In order to help us understand, the following article will assist tremendously:

HERE ARE THE TOP 30 COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD WHERE PERSECUTION IS THE MOST HORRID (PER CAPITA. STATS: COURTESY OPEN DOORS):

2015 World Watch List Country Fact Sheets

ACTION POINT FOR THIS YEAR'S IDOP 2015:

Adopt one of these countries or more than one, and pray for ALL Christians who live there, attempted to live there and are still evangelizing entire villages and regions, before being found. Click on the "pdf" listed for that country:

CLICK HERE FOR MORE PRAYER RESOURCES FOR THIS YEAR'S EVENT & BEYOND. Also, these are just starting points. The key is persistent prayer.

To assist in this, here are just five Prayer Points, courtesy Campus Crusade (now called "Cru") with the Bible verses, which I have linked, to go with them. Let's get to it:

Please pray persecuted believers would know the hope God gives (Ephesians 1:18).

Pray the Holy Spirit would strengthen them (Ephesians 3:16).

Please pray persecuted believers would know how much God loves them (Ephesians 3:17)

Pray they would know how to share the gospel (Ephesians 6:19).

Please pray persecuted believers would fearlessly tell others about Jesus (Ephesians 6:20).

Sunday, November 2, 2014

TEN DAYS OF PRAYER FOR THE PERSECUTED CHURCH: OCTOBER 24-NOVEMBER 2, 2014, Day 9

Today is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (Sunday November 2, 2014) and more intentional prayer meetings - in church buildings as well as online (and telephone conference calls) are going on all day, worldwide on behalf of our brethren ALL over the world. This is a grassroots and para-church led movement which is given short (or no) mention in most wealthy western churches, where the level of persecution we see in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, is not reached as of now (in the western hemisphere).

CLICK FOR LINK TO FREE SIMULCAST ANYWHERE

However, while the entire Body of Christ is being decimated worldwide, for standing for the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the small remnant of western and American Christianity is just being felt on this continent. We see bakers and photographers' religious freedoms (guaranteed by the First Amendment) being violated while the official church stays silent. This changed in Houston, in the past few weeks, when the Houston Mayor subpoenaed the sermons, texts and emails of five Houston bible-preaching pastors. This is unheard of in the west and the rising up of the true church has led to an event called 'I STAND SUNDAY" at 7 pm (Eastern) 6 pm (Central) and 4pm (Pacific).

I STAND SUNDAY is a live FREE simulcast available for all churches and home and can be accessed by clicking here, where more information is available. Speakers include President Ronnie Floyd, of the largest Protestant denomination in the world - Southern Baptist Convention; Pastor Mike Huckabee; Duck Dynasty's Phil Robertson and his pastor son Alan; Religion writer Todd Starnes and more. The five Houston Pastors whose free available online sermons were still subpoenaed will be featured speakers.

In addition, Open Doors is having another powerful and spirit-filled free LIVE Webcast tonight led by David Platt, well-known author (RADICAL) and leader of the Southern Baptist International Mission Board (IMB); Nik Ripken and musical guest SELAH. Click on the webcast link provided in the photo below to sign up for FREE/

http://live.opendoorsusa.org/?_ga=1.212539676.94793898.1412731225

Jesus told His disciples in John 15:19-20a "If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, 'A slave is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you."

There are religions and even Christian churches and certain well-known leaders which the world loves. They are loved by this corrupt world system because of compromise, complacency and even colluding with the culture. But the Lord Jesus said that you and I are not to be like them - because He has called His true church out of that system. These are the ones which the world hates. These are the ones who stand, like Martin Luther did - on the Book of Romans. These are the ones who are "Not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the Power of God under salvation" (Romans 1:16).

So Father, in the Name of Jesus, the Strong and Mighty Name - the Name above EVERY NAME, the Name Which is forbidden to speak of and mention as God in most countries, including this one, Father God we pray for Your saints, those whom You have called and elected worldwide, those who stand firm on the Truth of Christ, not just on Sunday but 24/7/365.

We pray on this, the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church that You cause Your Face to shine its Beauty, Glory, Power, Majesty and its Compassion to those who are in chains, those who are under the gun, those who are on the run, those who hunger and thirst in the natural, those who teach with limited or no resources except Your Spirit Who abideth in them. Lord we lift them up to Thee.

We particularly remember in prayer and intercession before the Throne, those who are among the KURDS in Northern Iraq, and are being decimated just like our brethren in the first 200 of Christianity. Lord these saints in Northern Iraq are left out to dry in no-man's land by the enemies of Christ, who are on all sides against Your people.

Father we also pray for our pastors in Houston and the remnant in the west who will stand, as the Scriptures says - for the Gospel, on Christ the Solid Rock. We pray for the men and women of God who shall not be moved by the culture, the world, sin, sex and satan, even when it is easy and convenient to so do. Father I also pray for the I STAND SUNDAY event in Houston where the top Christian leaders of America will stand for religious freedom, under the Authority of the Master, Creator and Commander in Chief of the whole universe - Jesus Christ and proclaim from the "mountain top" - the Truth, the Whole Truth and nothing but the Way the Truth and the Life, Whose righteousness we all seek for follow and live daily.

Father God, we love you and praise, adore, magnify, glorify and lift up Your Name to be praised because You alone are worthy, through the Name of Jesus Christ, the Ancient of Days, the Amen and the Alpha and Omega, amen and amen.

Sunday, November 10, 2013

INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER FOR PERSECUTED CHURCH TODAY

We should be praying for our brothers and sisters in persecuted lands, now more than ever - and daily. It is good to have special days set aside each year to remember them however, and the week of November 3-10 2013 has been set aside for the annual International Day of Prayer(IDOP) for the Persecuted Church. Today is such a day.

Even if your church does not observe it or fails to pray for persecuted brethren, you and I should. Not just that, but we should be very intentional about praying for them, but for the Grace of God, there goeth you and I! In fact, days are already here in the United States where true believers are already persecuted in these very United States of America, where Freedom of Religion is guaranteed in the US Constitution. We are not just talking about the annual "Wars on Christmas and Easter" by the secular liberal humanists and progressives.

We are seeing all sorts of persecution of Christian small businesses in the US by gay rights activists, because they refuse to conduct the gay "wedding" ceremonies or US military chaplains being told they cannot pray in the Name of Jesus or the Fox Sports broadcaster who was fired for believing in biblical marriage. There is the health care mandate on Bible publishers Tyndale to pay for pills that induce abortion or Hobby Lobby etc. More and more American Christians are being told to keep our faith behind the four walls of the church on Sunday. But it will not be long before the anti-God forces come in to to monitor what is preached from the Bible. Romans 1 preaching is already banned in certain parts of Canada because of the warning against all kinds of Sin therein.

Therefore, it is our duty to pray for those under painful persecution, worse than you and I can imagine, around the globe. Why? Because one day we may need their prayer as well. In fact, I was made aware, by reliable sources, that saints in the underground Chinese Church and in certain African cities are actually praying for American Christians because they know we are not strong in Faith and Righteousness, should we have to face what they have been for over 70 years of communist oppression!

Therefore, the following are some examples for us to consider in prayer, along with any others you may know about. These are direct links back to the original articles. American Pastor Saeed is being treated like this and sent to the Iranian "death row" to disappear, because the Iranians know the American authorities and most of our western churches do not care either. God will hold those accountable for that. We know who know better should pray for him and his family over here. So without further ado, here are some headlines etc to consider at this time:

Pastor Saeed Abedini Placed in Cell With Death Row

BY STOYAN ZAIMOV, CHRISTIAN POST REPORTER

November 7, 2013|2:50 pm

Pastor Saeed Abedini has been placed in a single cell with five death row inmates in Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj and is prevented from having any visitors, the American Center for Law and Justice said, raising further concerns that officials placed him there to "disappear."

"Rajai Shahr is a murders' jail. It's a violent criminals' jail," said ACLJ Executive Director Jordan Sekulow on Fox News following news that the U.S. pastor was abruptly transferred from Evin Prison in Tehran on Monday. "He is not allowed any visitors, and he is under quarantine. He is in Ward 9, which is the murders' ward. So he's sharing a 10x10 cell with five people who have been convicted of violent crimes, these are people who are basically on death row.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE

Half a Million Churches to Pray for Persecuted Believers for IDOP

Christians around the world will observe the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP) either this Sunday or on Nov. 10, but those being persecuted for their faith want other believers to not just pray for them, but pray with them.Jerry Dykstra, director of media relations for Open Doors USA, told The Christian Post that prayer is the "number one request" of believers in persecuted nations, and even those who are among the persecuted are praying for Christians in other nations.

Christians in Nigeria, for example, pray for other persecuted believers in the Middle East, said Dykstra. A century ago about 20 percent of the population in North Africa and the Middle East was Christian, according to Open Doors, but Christ-followers now make up only four percent of the population there due to persecution.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE

CHRISTIANS IN SYRIA:

CNN claims ISIS has taken control of key entry points into the city of Aleppo. David Holt / Flickr / Creative Commons

A SYRIAN CHRISTIAN VILLAGE

A new survey of Syrian towns by CNN suggests that much of northern Syria has come under the control of radical Islamist groups. CNN claims that Islamist militants, led by a group called the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), are attempting to impose a strict Islamic ideology on Syrians across the region.

ISIS is said to have complete control of a number of towns in the region, including Keftin, Tal Rifat, Azaz, Ad Dana, Dar Ta Izzah, Binnish, Taqqa, Ma’arrat, Misrin, Jarablus and Al-Bab, while many others are said to contain a strong ISIS “presence”. The effect of this on minority groups within the region, including Syria’s Christians, is a cause of growing concern. Recently, ISIS was implicated in what has been described as the “biggest and most serious massacre” of Christians since the start of Syria’s civil war.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE

NORTHERN IRAQ NO LONGER SAFE FOR CHRISTIANS

The Kurdish capital of Erbil is one of a number of cities where bombings have left Christians feeling unsafe.

CHRISTIANS IN NORTHERN IRAQ LIVED THERE FOR ALMOST 2000 YEARS!

An increase in violence against Christians in northern Iraq has increased the flow of Christians leaving the country. The north, generally considered a relatively safe area of the country, had become home for many Christians fleeing from the tumultuous central and southern regions.However, several bombings in the north in recent months have caused panic among the Christian community.

On September 22, a suicide bomb went off outside the home of Christian politician Emad Youhanna in Rafigayn, part of the Kirkuk province, injuring 19 people, including three of Youhanna’s children.Several bomb attacks have also taken place in the northern city of Erbil, for which Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility. In early September, Christians in the village of Deshtakh complained that they were facing harassment from local police.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE

WORLDWIDE WATCH LIST OF TOP 26 COUNTRIES (PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS)
Source: Open Doors

(RED SIGNIFIES EXTREME & ORANGE SEVERE PERSECUTION)

VISIT THE OPEN DOORS AND VOICE OF THE MARTYRS WEBSITES FOR MORE INFORMATION.

Saturday, November 12, 2011

THINK ON THESE THINGS - SUNDAY

TODAY: INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER FOR THE PERSECUTED CHURCH (IDOP 2011)

BACKGROUND AND SEVERAL SPECIFIC PRAYER NEEDS

Most of us will never come face to face with a brother or sister in Christ, from another country, who faces regular and constant persecution by evil - day after day... month after month....year after year....decade after decade!

My good longtime friend and brother in Christ, "P" (not his real name, for obvious reasons) is such a man. Having known this man for about 5 years, am amazed not just at his resilience, but his faithfulness to the Lord Jesus Christ.

P comes from a family of Christians who have been adopted by a network of local churches in a military pagan Buddhist country not far from India. Persecution range from imprisonment, seizing of property, withholding Bibles, beatings, discrimination in employment and just plain brutality.

But he stands up to them, just as Stephen stood up to the Pharisees...or Peter right after Pentecost. The buddhists are always telling him he is bowing down to Americans, thinking they are insulting him. He then has the chance to tell them he is not bowing down to American Christians but to Christ, the Good News which American missionaries bring!

He then asks them, "where is the Good News of the buddha? Where is it?" Of course they can't answer that because there is not a shred of Good News in either buddha, islam or any of the new earth/new age garbage promoted by Oprah by ungodly cultists like Eckhart Tolle, Rhonda Byrne, Deepak Chopra and other anti-Christian writers.

Still the persecution P and his people suffer, as harsh and brutal as it is, pales into comparison to what is done to Christians in deepest, darkest African with Christians stuffed into containers in Eritrea. Christians are murdered and their homes burned in Uganda, Nigeria and we all saw the Egyptian islamic regime run over and kill 37 Coptic Christians with tanks weeks ago. Over 1,000,000 Chaldean Christians were evicted from their more than 2000 year old home region when the islamists took over the Baghdad region of Iraq, after the United States removed Saddam Hussein. Jews and Christians are persecuted in Libya and Syria....in the name of the god of islam.

So today, when you pray to the Holy One of Israel - the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY is His Name, pray for your persecuted brother and sister around the world. If you don't, you will answer to Christ. When one part of the Body hurts, the rest hurts. American christians are mostly into navel-gazing and enjoying their plush comfort and Starbucks...and you can do that, but please spare one moment for those who share a Bible with 30 other people, while we have 10 collecting dusts on our book shelves at home.

Right now, P and other christian leaders in the Persecuted Church are in need of Bibles. Many in Asia and Africa have to share and swap pages! Yes, PAGES of the Bible! Our friend and a ministry we support called LOVE PACKAGES in Butler, Illinois, sends containers full of used and new Bibles worldwide and you can see the full story HERE on their Website. Same story - the need is Bibles.

Therefore, in the Name of Jesus, HERE ARE THE PRAYER POINTS FOR TODAY'S MISSION - AS WE PRAY FOR THE PERSECUTED CHURCH:

CHINA
Although the constitution provides for religious freedom, China's
Government has consistently tried to control religious practice. All religious
groups are required to register. Those who refuse are regarded as 'illegal' and
sometimes forced underground. During 2011, a number of churches and
Christians have continued to face intimidation, with some individuals being
detained and tortured.
Pray for
• Pastor Shi Enhao, vice-president of the Chinese House Church Alliance,
who was sentenced in July to two years of ‘re-education through labour’.
• Prominent Beijing human rights lawyer Gao
Zhisheng, who has not been seen since April 2010.
Gao has made public statements about his brutal
torture by security police in 2007 – despite being
warned by officials not to do so.
• Members of Shouwang Church, Beijing, who repeatedly held their
Sunday worship outdoors during 2011 after being barred entry to their
normal venue. Police officers then arrested hundreds of church members
and detained several leaders. It is believed that the church has attracted
official attention because its members include many well-educated
people, including human rights lawyers, former government officials and
religious scholars.

INDIA
Hindu nationalists have been open and violent in opposing the church.
Several pastors have been murdered, others beaten. Churches and their
congregations have been attacked or threatened. Seven Indian states have
now passed anti-conversion laws.

Pray for Christians living in Egypt and Libya. The ouster of the dictators of those countries and the takeover of power by fundamentalist Islamic forces have only increased the level of persecution of Christians living there.

Pray for peace in the Middle East. Pray that Palestine’s latest strategy to grab international attention by applying for full membership of the United Nations as a state does not lead to renewed tension in the already troubled region.

Pray against the spirit of superstition prevailing in India. A newspaper report said desperate women, under pressure to produce male heirs, in villages in Salem district of Tamil Nadu still resort to feticide based on astrological predictions. God detests sorcery and fortunetelling (2 Kings 21:6; Isaiah 2:6).

Pray against the prevalence of sex education classes around the world. In schools in Washington, US, even 10 year old children are made aware of the use of condoms in the name of sex education. Pray Christians remain united against this abhorrent phenomenon and fight it tooth and nail.

Pray for peace between the Jacobite Church and the Orthodox Church in Kerala. These churches have been at loggerheads over property disputes for over four decades now. Recently, both churches sparred and approached court seeking rights over a church in Kolenchery, Kerala.

Pray for Christians living in Algeria. The government continues its crackdown on churches and has issued orders for several to be closed down. Meanwhile, an Algerian Christian is facing a five-year prison sentence for alleged blasphemy.

Schools in the western countries are increasingly coming under the attack of groups that are intent on banning anything to do with Christianity beginning from prayers, mention of Jesus Christ and Bible lessons. Pray that Christian families stand up together and plead their cause effectively.

Pray for peace in Israel. The Hezbollah and the Hamas opposed to Jews are believed to have capabilities to launch bio/chemical and nuke attacks against Israel from Iran or Syria.

Pray that churches will come forward and form a bloc against corruption prevailing in the country. The Bible makes a case against giving and accepting bribes and corruption.

Continue to uphold Asia Bibi in your prayers. The Christian wife and mother who was convicted of blasphemy charges in Pakistan is on death row since November 2010. Last month, there were reports that she was assaulted inside jail.

NOW WATCH THIS AWESOME TESTIMONY OF HOPE: