April 15th: Join in prayer for North Korea

From Open Doors USA:

“On April 15 all of North Korea will celebrate the “Day of the Sun” in honor of Kim Il-Sung’s 100^th birthday. To the outside world, the picture will be one of prosperity and wealth; that North Korea is a great place to live under their caring leaders. But outside of the media’s eye the vast majority will continue to quietly suffer extreme poverty and starvation.

For Christians, as the birthday celebration draws near, their fear has increased as their actions are watched closer than before. They know that outwardly they must participate in the nationwide celebrations to avoid arrest …but in their hearts they will be celebrating the true “Son” Jesus Christ.

North Korea is the most hostile country in the world to live and practice the Christian faith. Estimates report that 25 percent of the Christian population is suffering in labor camps for their refusal to worship founder Kim Il-Sung’s cult religion called Juche. Enormous statues of the “Great Leader” are prominently displayed throughout the country. Kim Il-Sung is exalted and revered as a god to be followed with obedience. Citizens are required to bow down to pay their respects, wear a lapel pin with his image on it and prominently display photos of both Kim Il-Sung and his son Kim Jong-Il (both deceased).

As North Korea celebrates the “Day of the Sun” let us unite our efforts by drawing on the power of the Holy Son, Jesus Christ. Show your solidarity on April 15 by praying for believers in North Korea and taking a day off of food – or perhaps one meal – to remember the suffering of the North Korean people.”

To register to receive information on how to pray for North Korea, sign up at the Open Doors website. (On April 15 they will be posting hourly updates from their Facebook and Twitter accounts to keep you engaged in prayer.)

(HT: Randy Alcorn)

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Would you enroll in this college?

“In other parts of the world, the battle is much more graphic. In China, for example, claiming to be Christian is a life or death decision. The book The Heavenly Man: The Remarkable True Story of Chinese Christian Brother Yun shares the remarkable story of Christians in China who have developed home churches and in their devotion and commitment to Christ have watched the power of God explode and thousands become Christian. He and his fellow believers have suffered greatly but remained enthusiastic and faithful in spite of it. They are part of a movement called “Back to Jerusalem.” It is a missionary movement, and they are winning thousands to Christ as they retrace the Silk Road from China back to Jerusalem, sharing the gospel as they go. As he says in his book, they are an army of brokenhearted Chinese men and women who have already been through years of hardship and deprivation for the sake of the gospel. In worldly terms, they have nothing and appear unimpressive. But in the spiritual realm they are mighty warriors for Jesus Christ.

They have also started a college where they receive training in the following subjects:

• How to suffer and die for the Lord. We examine what the Bible says about suffering and look at how the Lord’s people have laid down their lives throughout history for the advance of the gospel.
• How to witness for the Lord. We teach how to witness under any circumstances…on the bus or trains, in the back of a police van or on our way to be executed.
• How to escape for the Lord. Sometimes we need to be in prison to witness and sometimes we know the devil sends us to prison to stop our message and it becomes our jobs to set ourselves free.

This is not exactly the curriculum of a normal or average college or seminary! But then again, there is nothing average or normal about pursuing a life of devotion to God at this level. The point is this: God is calling from our midst a group of students who in days ahead will pursue such a life of uncommon commitment and it will only be by wisdom that the Lord will allow any of us into such a life of significance.”

Already Compromised by Ken Ham and Greg Hall, pp. 146-47.

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Imagine this: 100 believers among 22 million

Dispatches from the Front:

Yemen is one of the harshest countries for persecution of Christians. Its Islamist government has declared it illegal for Muslims to  convert to Christianity.  Estimates are there are only 100 Yemeni believers in this poverty-stricken country of 22 million.

Keep reading about one couple’s great need for prayer here.

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Keep praying for India

Since we don’t experience persecution in the USA, we often forget to pray for those who do–such as those who are suffering greatly in India. Back in late August/early September I asked you to pray for those in Orissa, India, but sometimes we think such persecution was isolated or sporadic.

Not so according to MNN which updates us on the situation there. “I believe the persecution in Orissa is not the end but the beginning of concerted attacks on the Church among the oppressed in India,” stated the leader of Operation Mobilization in India. “We covet your prayers at this time.”

Read this brief update and then stop and pray right now for our brothers and sisters suffering distress and anguish.

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Students jailed for reading Bible

In America, we take so much for granted.  Read what is happening elsewhere.

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Malaysia seizes Christian children’s books

From worldontheweb:

Elizabeth Eldridge of the Washington Times reports today that Malaysian authorities have begun confiscating Christian children’s books under orders from the Internal Security Ministry headed by Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi because they contain images of Moses and Abraham, allegedly in violation of shariah law. Christian leaders in the country, however, say that the move is part of a larger campaign by Muslims in the government to chip away further at the rights of all religious minorities there, which account for 40 percent of the population.

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Praying for the persecuted church

Here is a good resource for helping you be informed and pray for the persecuted church.

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