Prayer Chain: North Korea

Day 1: God's Spirit Will Never Leave North Korea As for Me, this is My covenant with them," says the Lord: "My Spirit which is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring's offspring," says the Lord, "from now and forever. Isaiah 59:21 Around 1780 a Korean man, Yi Pyok, learned about Christianity through Christian literature and, along with a friend, began living out this new faith. They gained many followers and the Christian faith grew quickly in Korea. Soon, though, a law was established that forbid Koreans from following Christ and in 1786 ancestor worship became law. Five years later, the first 400 Christians were executed for refusing to worship their ancestors. In 1793, six preachers and 300 more Christians were killed. In the mid 1800s, missionaries from France and Scotland came to the Korean shores, and though these missionaries were executed, the church began to grow quickly. When Scottish missionary Robert Thomas was executed, his Bible fell into the hands of his executioner. The seed of the Word that fell that day bore fruit when the cousin of the executioner later helped translate the Bible into Korean. In 1945, before the Soviet Union took over North Korea, the city of Pyongyang was known as the "Jerusalem of the East" with 13% of its population being Christian. But under the leadership of Kim Il Sung, 2,300 Christian congregations vanished. In total, 300,000 Christians were arrested and 260 church buildings were destroyed. The meaning of history is that God is creating a people with whom He can dwell. The process of history is still being worked out in all the affairs of man. The timing of when God will restore North Korea is unknown. But the fact that He will restore His people there is certain. READ ISAIAH 59:15b 20 God has poured out His Holy Spirit on Korea. On the surface, the fruits of God's work are not evident in North Korea today…yet His Spirit is there…He is working in silence. His power is being made perfect. PRAY Open our eyes Lord to see You walking in blazing glory and splendor among the ashes of Your people, rekindling the healing holy fire of Your power. We join today in prayer for a mighty, overwhelming outpouring of Your Spirit all over the Korean peninsula, believing as we come to You on our knees, and petition on their behalf, that the next great revival in Korea will cover the entire nation, both North and South. Amen. Send a LIVE radio broadcast to North Korea!

#1: North Korea

Stories from the Persecuted: Lee* had spent many long years in a North Korean labor camp because he had been discovered listening to a Christian merchant sharing the gospel message. As a wealthy man with a high-ranked position, Lee  knew the Christian faith was strictly forbidden.  But he did not deny his secret attempts to learn more about it. He served out his sentence in prison; forced to work day and night with very little food. He  still had nightmares about his time at the labor camp, which he described as “a living hell.” Although Lee was fortunate to come out alive, he had nowhere to go. For the first time in his life he was penniless and starving. So he risked his life to cross the river into China, seeking freedom and food. Along the way, Lee met a Christian who learned that Lee was experiencing acute pain. He was  burdened to pray for Lee, and later learned  that he was suffering from a long-term kidney stone that needed immediate treatment." When Lee went to the doctor, the diagnosis  was even worse than expected. In fact, an even larger kidney stone was discovered deep within his kidneys, requiring two separate operations." Lee and his Christian friend decided to pray.  After they finished praying at 3 a.m., Lee  explained that he had felt something hard  inside his kidney softening, turning into  something like flour as it flowed downwards." The next day, Lee went back to the doctors.  “The doctors could not hide their astonishment,” he said. “Their diagnosis revealed that the  first large kidney stone had been ground into fine powder and settled at the bottom, just  as I had described his experience during prayer.” After experiencing God’s miraculous healing, Lee now hopes to return to his hometown in  North Korea and share with his family that  God indeed exists and has miraculously healed him." *Not real name to protect identity

RELEASED

Praise the Lord that human rights lawyer and religious freedom advocate Nguyen Van Dai has been released from prison in Vietnam after serving his four-year sentence. He must still fulfill a four year administrative, or "house arrest," sentence.

Please continue to pray for Nguyen Van Dai and Christians in Vietnam.

UPDATE

Update on Kim Kyung Il Kim Kyung Il has been in prison 10 years. Just a few days ago, VOM contacts received word that his sentence is expected to be commuted in March and he may be free in September. Normally this would be cause for rejoicing, but as soon as Kim Kyung Il is released he'll face deportation to North Korea. There, he will almost certainly be executed. Our contact writes, "The only hope he may have is a huge outpouring of public awareness on this issue, which might at least delay his execution once he's returned." Friends are working frantically to help Kim Kyung Il, but it's not easy. Please pray with us for a solution, and take action by writing Chinese officials today.

RELEASED

Update on Father Nguyen Van Ly

Father Nguyen, now 64, has warned that he will go on a hunger strike and refuse medical treatment if he is readmitted to jail on March 15, 2011. The pastor was sentenced to eight years in prison in 2007 for "damaging national security." He was released March 15, 2010 to undergo a year's medical treatment after suffering two serious strokes leaving him partially paralyzed.

Nguyen Van Ly previously served a total of 15 years in jail, including years in solitary confinement. While on medical leave, authorities have prevented the pastor from giving interviews or meeting other democracy activists.

Please pray authorities will not send the Father Nguyen back to prison. Ask for healing for him.

UPDATE - Yang Caizhen

Yang Caizhen, who was arrested with four other Linfen-Fushan church members in November 2009, is currently in the hospital. Prison officials told Yang Caizhen's family to visit her there. This is the second time she has been in the hospital since she was arrested. The first time, her family was not informed, so this time they think her condition is more serious. Yang Caizhen is due to be released in July or August, but her family hopes she can be released early on medical parole.

Her daughter also said the prison recently changed its visitor policy. Previously, almost anyone could visit Yang Caizhen. Now, only close family members may visit.

RELEASED

VOM received word today that Chinese prisoner Shi Weihan was released Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2011 from the Haidian Detention Center outside Beijing. He completed his prison sentence.

Shi Weihan was convicted in June 2009 based on evidence he had printed Bibles and other Christian literature for free distribution to poor believers in rural China.

www.prisoneralert.com

RELEASED

Update on Dmitry Shestakov Pastor Dmitry (David) Shestakov was arrested in Andijan, Uzbekistan on Jan. 21, 2007. While he was in a prison labor camp, his wife and his three daughters missed him terribly. Exactly four years later, he was released on Jan. 21, 2011. Praise God that Pastor Shestakov is now home with his family. Pray for the Shestakovs as they adjust back to life together. Pray also that the church in Andijan will be strengthened. Your letters on behalf of prisoners do make a difference! Take time to write a letter to another prisoner in Uzbekistan, Tohar Haydarov, using the link below. http://www.prisoneralert.com/pprofiles/vp_prisoner_205_profile.html

Petition to Secretary Clinton regarding Iraq

The country of Iraq has had one of the biggest changes this year on the 2011 World Watch List - moving up from position seventeen in 2010, to number eight!

In response to this jump Open Doors USA is launching an advocacy campaign on behalf of the Christians in Iraq whose persecution has rapidly escalated in recent months. Advocate on behalf of our Iraqi brothers and sisters by signing the petition urging Secretary Clinton to work closely with the Iraqi government to protect its Christian community. Sign the petition today and ask others to sign as well, collectively we can globally raise awareness of the situation of Christians in Iraq.

 Please sign the petition....

http://members.opendoorsusa.org/worldwatchlist/petition/

Tribute to a Brother

In the African country of Eritrea, in a small isolation cell the size of a shipping container, Mehari Gebreneguse Asgedom (42), a man who had committed his life to Christ, was denied medical treatment for complications from diabetes and injuries sustained from torture. On January 16, 2009, at the Mitire Military Confinement Center, Asgedom’s earthly life had ended. This week Open Doors and Christian brothers and sisters around the world remember Christ’s servant Mehari Gebreneguse Asgedom and the sacrifice he made for his faith. Join with us in praying that Mehari’s family is comforted, that they are strengthened in this difficult time and that their lives become testimonies to the hope that lies within all of us.
“Remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison.” Hebrews 13:1.
As of November 2010 church leaders in Eritrea estimate that there are around 1,500 believers in prison specifically for their faith, their families sometimes waiting years to hear any news of their welfare. Eritrean Christians have asked believers around the world to continue praying for their country.

• Pray that the newly arrested would remain firm in the faith
• Pray for God’s protection and provision for them as they may be facing very trying circumstances
• Pray that God would use their testimonies of faithfulness to convict their persecutors of their need for salvation in Christ.

If this story has touched you, please share your thoughts with us below:

Somali Mother of Four Killed for Her Faith

On January 5, Asha Mberwa’s husband, Abdinazir Mohammed Hassan called his wife to make arrangements to move the family out of the area because of Asha’s fears that their lives were threatened. Al Shabaab extremists, who control large parts of Mogadishu, monitored the conversation and confirmed that she had become a Christian. She was arrested the next day.
Then on January 7, in front of villagers in Warbhigly, on the outskirts of Mogadishu, Islamic extremists slit the throat of 36 year old Asha Mberwa because of her faith in Christ. She is survived by her children – ages 12, 8, 6 and 4 – and her husband of 17 years, who was not home at the time she was apprehended. According to Compass News Asha’s children are being cared by “a good Samaritan” in Mogadishu. Her children, traumatized by their mother’s violent death, continue to weep and cry out for her.
Al Shabaab insurgents have embarked on a campaign to rid the country of its hidden Christian population. With estimates of al Shabaab’s size ranging from 3,000 to 7,000, the insurgents seek to impose a strict version of sharia (Islamic law). Said to have ties with al Qaeda, al Shabaab has been designated a terrorist organization by several western governments.
The transitional government in Mogadishu, fighting to retain control of the country, treats Christians little better than the al Shabaab insurgents do. While proclaiming himself a moderate, President Sheikh Sharif Sheik Ahmed has embraced a version of sharia that mandates the death penalty for those who leave Islam. Somalia is in the number five position on Open Doors World watch List of countries where the persecution of Christians is most severe.
Thank You, Father, for Asha’s faith in You and that she is now enjoying perfect peace and joy in Your presence. We pray, though, for her children who have known more tragedy in their young lives than anyone should ever know. Our hearts weep for them, as we know Yours does. We are powerless in ourselves to help them, but we call on You to heal them from this trauma and to protect them. Strengthen their faith. We are comforted only in your promise that “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” (Psalm 91:1)

China Experience: Open Doors USA

Pakistan--#11 on World Watch 2011

Islamic extremists killed a Christian lawyer, his wife and their five children in northwestern Pakistan for mounting a legal challenge against a Muslim who was charging a Christian exorbitant interest.

Police found the bodies of attorney and evangelist Edwin Paul and his family at their home in Haripur, a small town near Abbotabad in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province (previously known as the North-West Frontier Province).

The victim and his wife Ruby Paul, along with their five children ages 6 to 17, had been shot to death.

A group of armed men stopped Paul and took him by the collar and said, “Leave the town in 24 hours we know how to throw out Christians, we will not allow even a single Christian to live here. We will hang them all in the streets, so that no Christian would ever dare to enter the Hazara land.” 

Dear Readers,

Dear Readers,

I just wanted to thank you so much for faithfully keeping up with our persecuted brothers and sisters all over the world. I was looking at my traffic map earlier and saw just how many people I had coming to this blog.

Thank you, thank you so much for being fellow watchers with me. Whoever you are, and wherever you are, thank you. 

I will continue to post updates as I get them.

Always, always remember to pray. It's the most powerful thing on earth.


Always Fighting,
-Hannah

Al-Qaeda Attack on Christians

Two Sundays ago, as faithful Christian believers gathered at church in Baghdad to worship, Al-Qaeda attacked.

They took about 120 worshipers hostage, beat and killed three priests, and detonated explosives moments before Iraqi security forces stormed the church in a rescue attempt. At least 64 people, mostly worshippers ––including a 3-year-old–– were massacred and an estimated 300 wounded.
Help secret believers

I know your heart aches with mine at this horror. And what makes it even more shocking is that, due to the recent election focus, the American media has barely reported this persecution of Christians! 

Unfortunately, it’s not over. Al-Qaeda’s Iraq splinter group, the self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) who was responsible for the attack, just issued this statement:

"All Christian centers, organizations and institutions, leaders and followers, are legitimate targets for the mujahedeen wherever they can reach them.”

Click HERE to watch the video.

Prisoner Alert: Youcef Nardarkhani---Location: Iran

Location: Iran (Islamic Republic of)
Arrested: October 2009

Recently, Pastor Youcef Nardarkhani was reportedly sentenced to death for apostasy. VOM contacts confirm that the pastor's trial was held in recent weeks in the 11th Chamber of The Assize Court of the province of Gilan. Pastor Youcef is one of several members of his church who have been imprisoned. In the past, the Iranian government has also imprisoned and released his wife. Pastor Youcef was arrested in October 2009 after protesting a decision by the government requiring that his son study the Quran.