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Source: http://www.mnnonline.org/rss/news.rss

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
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<title>Mission Network News Headlines</title>
<link>http://www.mnnonline.org/news/?input_4=Worldwide&input_6=07/11/2025&input_5=Specific+Date</link>
<language>en</language>
<description>News Worth Listening To</description>
<item>
<title>Officials and young protesters in Kenya navigate strained relationship</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/officials-and-young-protesters-in-kenya-navigate-strained-relationship/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Kenya (MNN) — Young protesters and established leaders in Kenya continue to clash. A local partner with FMI says the streets of Nairobi are calm again after nationwide protests on Monday <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/9/at-least-31-dead-532-arrested-in-kenyas-antigovernment-protests" target="_blank" rel="noopener">turned deadly</a>. But the unrest is not over. 
Bruce Allen with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/forgotten-missionaries-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FMI</a> says youth-led demonstrations have occurred in over a third of Kenya’s 47 counties. The protests began in June 2024 after a proposed increase in taxes angered young people. (More on that <a href="https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/people-have-spoken-african-youth-and-kenyan-finance-bill-protests" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.) In the year since then, the relationship between Kenyans and the government has become even more strained.
Recent protests have included <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20250626-16-dead-thousands-of-businesses-destroyed-after-kenya-protests" target="_blank" rel="noopener">vandalism</a>, unfortunately. According to a <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9dgv5e6447o" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report from the BBC</a>, Kenyan President William Ruto said, "Kenya cannot and will not be ruled through threats, terror, or chaos." Ruto has ordered officers to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/09/shoot-them-in-the-leg-kenyan-presidents-anti-protest-rhetoric-hardens-as-death-toll-rises" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shoot protesters in the legs</a> if they are seen vandalizing property.
“The president's comments sparked nationwide outrage, and many Kenyans see this as state-endorsed brutality amid an already tense political climate,” says Allen. 
One FMI-supported pastor says this wave of youth-led protests is more than just politically motivated. 
“He says it's spiritual and generational. He says the Gen Z protesters long for justice, inclusion in the national dialogue about sustainable policies, and a future with hope,” says Allen. 
“[The pastor] calls them courageous and says they're voicing the frustrations of many who are even in the older generations. Unemployment remains a critical issue, as does the high cost of living and rampant corruption within the government.”
In the tension, Kenya's church leaders see the spiritual needs of the next generation.
<blockquote>
“The Church in Kenya must rise to this occasion with spiritual clarity and gospel-centered action," the pastor told Allen. "As many Gen Zs attend church physically or engage online, we have a window to disciple them, listen to them, and continually point them to Christ, the source of true hope and peace. The church must advocate for justice rooted in biblical truth.”
</blockquote>
<h2>How to direct your prayers for Kenya</h2>
"One, pray for the peaceful resolution and meaningful dialogue between the government and the youth leaders. Two, pray for wisdom for the national leaders to listen with humility and to prioritize justice," says a pastor with FMI.
"Three, pray for the protection of protesters and law enforcement officers so that they can avoid any more loss of life or injury. And four, pray for revival and reformation within the Church, so that it can be a clear voice of truth, peace, and healing."
 
 
 
Header photo: Nairobi, Kenya (Photo courtesy of Story Zangu via Unsplash).]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 11 Jul 2025 05:00:31 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/officials-and-young-protesters-in-kenya-navigate-strained-relationship/</guid>
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<title>UN Commission urges Syria to end violence</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/u-n-commission-urges-syria-to-end-violence/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Syria (MNN) -- Following the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024, attacks against Alawites and other minority ethnic and religious groups in Syria have become more common.
Under the Alawite leadership of former President and dictator Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian civil war continued for 14 years. It saw ethnic struggles as each group tried to protect itself or advance its own interests, often through violence and by claiming different areas.
Between Sunni Muslims and the Alawite sect of Shia Muslims, Pierre Houssney with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/horizons-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Horizons International</a> says, “[There's] a lot of build up of bitterness and hatred between groups, so the groups that were in control before, now that there's been regime change, they're becoming the victims of violence.”
In these areas of violence against minority religions like the Alawites, other minorities in the country, such as Christians, are also victims of ethnic violence.
Paulo Pinheiro, the head of the United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Syria, urges the new government to act. The commission calls for an end to the violence and protection of places of worship.
The Syrian government has incentives to comply with the UN: it seeks to gain legitimacy as a country.
This time marks a transition period from a dictatorship that was against the West to a government seemingly eager to please the international community and gain recognition as a legitimate state.
“They're trying to clamor for that UN approval,” says Houssney. “They want to get funding. They want to get World Bank involvement; they want to participate in the world economic system. But, the human rights issues have to be solved if they're going to get into those places of benefit.”
Despite this, it is unclear how much control the new government has over the country.
Houssney says it’s too soon to tell how this new government will impact ministry in Syria. In the past, it’s been difficult to operate gospel-oriented activities there due to the regime.
“We're up in front of a time of uncertainty in Syria,” says Houssney. “It's possible that gospel inroads are about to open up into Syria, and so it [could] become a very open country to the Gospel.
“It's possible that good opportunities for the gospel are about to open up, but it's also possible that the government could end up becoming more Sunni extremist-oriented, and that could actually make it more dangerous for the gospel to go out.”
Syria's government is also offering opportunities for religious charity groups to register. This could be positive, as it offers legitimacy, or dangerous, as organizations remain unsure of the government’s true motivations.
Please pray for peace and for the ethnic violence in Syria to end. Pray that the government will prioritize the stability and prosperity of their country, laying aside violence and creating inroads for the gospel. Pray for the protection of Syrian believers who are in Alawite communities, who are now living in fear. Pray that they will be bold and experience supernatural protection.
 
 
 
Header photo of shadowed Syrian flag is a representative stock photo (Courtesy of Abdalhady Mansour via Pexels)
 ]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 11 Jul 2025 05:00:46 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/u-n-commission-urges-syria-to-end-violence/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Bible-centered radio program offers something we’re all looking for: hope that lasts</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/bible-centered-radio-program-offers-something-were-all-looking-for-hope-that-lasts/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
International (MNN) — If you long to know more of God and His power in your life, a recently launched radio program might spur you on in your pursuit.
Mission 66 from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/trans-world-radio/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Trans World Radio</a> is a chapter-by-chapter journey through the Bible. Its two co-hosts are eager to help Scripture come to life for every listener. One of the hosts is John-Paul Davies, a freelance broadcaster from Wales. 
“People are looking for something that only God can offer,” Davies says about Wales today. To him, Jesus’ words in John 14:6 (“I am the way, the truth and the life”) is a message that people from every country in the world long for. 
“That sense of hope and encouragement,” he says. “What's a hope that lasts? Well, a hope that lasts is a hope that goes beyond this life.”
<div id="attachment_215805" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215805" class="size-medium wp-image-215805" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/JohnPaul2-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" />John Paul Davies is the voice of John Mathews on the Mission 66 program. (Photo courtesy of TWR)</div>
Today, Davies sees how technology and media offer so many distractions from what really matters. But only the gospel of Christ gives hope for eternity. That’s where a program like Mission 66 redirects our focus — back on the eternal things in God’s Word. 
“It's deep, because the Bible is deep and people's needs are deep, but it's accessible as well,” Davies says of the program. 
Would you join in praying for <a href="https://twr.org/programs/mission-66-global" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mission 66</a>? (Check it out for yourself <a href="https://twr.org/programs/mission-66-global" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>!) Pray that God will open the hearts of listeners to receive from His Word. Pray for blessing on the team as well.
“We go to it really with a sense of, ‘Lord, this is Your work. It's not ours,’ and so we cover it in prayer,” Davies says. “That would be my prayer for Mission 66, that we would surrender it completely to Him and just say, 'Lord, you lead the way.’”
Pray also for a move of God to come again to Wales. 
“There was [a revival] in the 18th century, 1735 — it was a Methodist revival. There was one in 1859, and then 1904 was the last great revival that swept across Wales, when tens of thousands of people were converted in a matter of months,” Davies says. “There's a real sense of longing, I think, amongst young people — amongst students, amongst 20-year-olds. I see a longing for hope, a longing for something more in Wales.”
 
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Humble Lamb via Unsplash.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 11 Jul 2025 05:00:25 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/bible-centered-radio-program-offers-something-were-all-looking-for-hope-that-lasts/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Kenyan young people march for political change, but some pay with their lives</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/kenyan-young-people-march-for-political-change-but-some-pay-with-their-lives/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Kenya (MNN) — Riots broke out across cities in Kenya last Monday, but it wasn’t a surprise. July 7 is known as Saba Saba, or Seven Seven, a date associated with civil unrest in Kenya since 1990. 
Steve Holman with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/kenya-hope/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kenya Hope</a> explains that authorities saw last Monday coming. “The national government pretty much blockaded and <a href="https://www.the-star.co.ke/news/2025-07-08-deaths-lockdown-as-kenyans-mark-saba-saba">closed down</a> the centers of all those towns, and especially Nairobi," he says.
The July 1990 protests called for a return to multi-party democracy, according to a <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/9/at-least-31-dead-532-arrested-in-kenyas-antigovernment-protests" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from Al Jazeera. Today's unrest also reflects anti-government frustration, including deep concern over <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2025/7/9/killed-by-those-meant-to-protect-kenyans-outraged-by-police-violence" target="_blank" rel="noopener">police</a> brutality<a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2025/7/9/killed-by-those-meant-to-protect-kenyans-outraged-by-police-violence" target="_blank" rel="noopener">,</a> as in the case of Albert Ojwang.
Clashes between rioters and police turned violent, damaging properties, injuring dozens, and resulting in <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/9/at-least-31-dead-532-arrested-in-kenyas-antigovernment-protests" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more than 500 arrests</a>. Kenya’s human rights commission reports that <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/9/at-least-31-dead-532-arrested-in-kenyas-antigovernment-protests" target="_blank" rel="noopener">31 people died</a> during the July 7 marches nationwide.
Though the unrest isn’t over yet, Kenya Hope’s Nairobi-based national director, Reuben Kamau, viewed the July 7 riots as one-day events. Holman says Kenya Hope’s work among the Maasai people in Narok State has remained unaffected by events in the capital. 
“What happens there (in Nairobi) will not change their life (among the Maasai),” he says. “They’re already [in] a situation where, while money is given and money supposedly sent, the projects that you and I take for granted — like reasonable roads, public water systems, elementary schools — even though the money's been allocated, it doesn't reach there because of corruption.” 
What <a href="https://kenyahope.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kenya Hope</a> needs these days is more gospel workers. 
<div id="attachment_202587" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-202587" class="size-medium wp-image-202587" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/KEN_story-image-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />(Photo courtesy of Kenya Hope)</div>
“We have donations, we have programs ready to go,” Holman says candidly. “We just don't have enough people to do it well.”
Young people in Kenya are searching for something — or Someone — to live for. Ask God to call young men and women in Kenya to serve with Him in His Kingdom.
“This is a new generation, and there's a lot of university students who don't have a lot to do, and they're looking for a cause,” Holman says of the protesters. 
 
 
Header photo: Nairobi, Kenya July 2025 (Photo courtesy of Story Zangu via Unsplash).]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 2025 05:00:50 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/kenyan-young-people-march-for-political-change-but-some-pay-with-their-lives/</guid>
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</item>
<item>
<title>What defines a place of worship? Attack on Christian youth retreat in Indonesia</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/what-defines-a-place-of-worship-attack-on-christian-youth-retreat-in-indonesia/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Indonesia (MNN) — As Indonesian youth gathered for fellowship and teaching, an angry mob brought chaos and disruption.
In Indonesia, Christianity is permitted by law, yet gatherings often face obstacles. Bruce Allen from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/forgotten-missionaries-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FMI</a> recalls the<a href="https://www.christiandaily.com/news/muslim-mob-disrupts-christian-retreat-in-indonesia" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> recent attack</a> on June 27:
“About two hundred residents of a neighborhood in West Java, Indonesia, stormed a private home where Christian youth had gathered for a retreat.”
<div id="attachment_215774" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215774" class="size-medium wp-image-215774" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pexels-ian-panelo-4715441-300x200.jpg" alt="Pexels" width="300" height="200" />Photo courtesy of Nothing Ahead via Pexels</div>
They destroyed property and terrified attendees. The attack allegedly happened because the event was held in a place not officially designated for worship. Yet Muslim meetings outside mosques rarely face such concerns.
“So the Christians see a double standard at play, and that's what disturbs them the most,” Allen explains.
There is strong evidence that the attack was intentional: the mob came with pre-made banners and seemed aware of the event’s nature. Police did not intervene, and the seven arrests made may lead nowhere.
Neighbors around the home reportedly tried earlier to persuade the owners not to use their residence for religious purposes. Allen adds, “They said it offends their sensibilities, and since the Muslims are the majority, in essence, you need to do what the Muslims say without them going so far.”
The community is still recovering from the attacks and needs our prayers for courage and wisdom on how to proceed.
Historically, West Java has been one of the most populated regions where Christians face difficulties worshiping openly.
While attacks remain isolated, bureaucratic hurdles add to the challenges. Indonesia, spread across over a thousand islands, strives to accommodate its diverse religions and communities. Allen says, “The goal is that the Indonesian authorities want there to be harmony, even though there's such diversity in all these islands — that’s a very good goal.”
However, believers face disproportionate legal barriers. While building mosques is relatively easy, starting a church requires a congregation of at least ninety believers and sixty signatures from sometimes hostile Muslim neighbors. Often, this mission feels nearly impossible, as church planters have only a few members in the beginning, and their connections with local communities are unstable.
“It just shows that it's very important to cultivate good relations with your neighbors in West Java,” says Allen. It requires love and forgiveness from believers, which often draws Muslim Indonesians to Christ.
<a href="https://forgottenmissionaries.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FMI</a> walks alongside believers in Indonesia, facilitating, mobilizing, and inspiring them amid hostility.
Pray for the courage of Indonesian believers, especially in West Java. Pray that as they long to grow in fellowship, God will grant them favor in the eyes of local Muslims to provide their signatures.
 
 
 
Header photo: West Java, Indonesia (photo courtesy of Kevin Yung via Pexels).]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 2025 05:00:51 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/what-defines-a-place-of-worship-attack-on-christian-youth-retreat-in-indonesia/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Volunteers protect preborn life in Croatia</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/volunteers-protect-preborn-life-in-croatia/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Croatia (MNN) -- “Eva” was pregnant, alone, and depressed. Now, she works, cares for her child, and gives glory to God. This is just one example of life transformation from Choose Life Croatia, a <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/life-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">LIFE International</a> partner.
Anita Jovanovic is on the leadership team of LIFE International’s Europe hub, facilitating prayer across the network. She says Choose Life Croatia helps young women avoid abortions.
The nongovernment organization, or NGO, primarily works with “young women who don’t have support. They were forced, because of circumstances, to consider abortion,” Jovanovic says.
<blockquote>
“Those we met didn’t want to abort.”
</blockquote>
Approximately 49 percent of all pregnancies were unintended in Croatia <a href="https://www.guttmacher.org/regions/europe/croatia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">between 2015 and 2019</a>, and half of them ended in abortion. Abortion in Croatia is legal on request, according to the Guttmacher Institute.
<div id="attachment_215757" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/muhamad-harun-rabiyudin-t1kqxJVkbUs-unsplash.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215757" class="size-medium wp-image-215757" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/muhamad-harun-rabiyudin-t1kqxJVkbUs-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /></a>(Photo courtesy of Muhamad Harun Rabiyudin/Unsplash)</div>
Through biblical counseling, Choose Life Croatia introduces women in crisis pregnancies to God and the value He places on preborn life. Women who are pregnant yet cannot afford a third or fourth child also benefit from counseling and practical support.
<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LGikjTzak41KSjOK1oNz4ugUj8gZLN9D/view?usp=drive_link" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hear from women helped by Choose Life Croatia.</a>
Meeting women at a point of crisis segues beautifully to conversations about Christ and His love.
“Sharing the Gospel is very easy for us right now,” Jovanovic says. “Because of the desperation [women face in crisis pregnancies,] you come to the spot where you don’t have anything to say except ‘okay, I know [someone] who can help. This is Jesus Christ.”
These conversations soften hardened hearts. “Those clients usually begin to pray or read the Bible; [they] begin to speak about Jesus as their Savior and Helper in their lives,” Jovanovic says.
<a href="https://www.lifeinternational.com/our-work/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Learn how LIFE International comes alongside local partners to protect preborn life.</a>
Along with prevention, Choose Life Croatia offers support to women who have lost their babies through abortion or sexual trauma.
“One of our clients became the director of a secular safe house. She invited us to have [counseling] groups with wounded women who escaped for their lives,” Jovanovic says.
“There is a lot of abuse in our countries, in the Balkans. A man will often kill a woman because he’s jealous or something. This is terrible, but it’s still happening too much in our countries.”
Pray the Lord will provide Choose Life Croatia with the financial support it needs. Donating to support NGOs is not a common practice in Croatia. “People think that if you work for God, your payment is in heaven,” Jovanovic says.
Right now, “People are working in secular jobs to gain money for life, and then they are volunteering [at Choose Life Croatia.] It would be so much easier if we could, instead of working our secular jobs, work in ministry and have more time to serve.”
 
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/a-pregnant-woman-holding-her-belly-in-her-hands-6rXLhbMHMXU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tim Kraaijvanger/Unsplash</a>.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 2025 05:00:28 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/volunteers-protect-preborn-life-in-croatia/</guid>
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<item>
<title>Flooding compounds misery in Sudan</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/flooding-compounds-misery-in-sudan/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Sudan (MNN) -- The rainy season is now underway in Sudan, and flooding risks compound misery. Nearly half a million people were affected by floods last year, with a repeat or worse season <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/07/1165176" target="_blank" rel="noopener">likely this year.</a>
Flood warnings come on top of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/famine-spreading-as-refugee-camps-attacked-in-sudan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">famine</a>, a worsening cholera outbreak, and <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/tag/sudan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ongoing civil war.</a> More than 14 million people have been forced to flee.
“Every two seconds, someone is newly displaced in the world because of war, violence, or persecution,” Greg Kelley with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unknown-nations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unknown Nations</a> says. “Exhibit A is Sudan. They’re saying it’s the worst in the world.”
<div id="attachment_111692" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/WMI_southsudan.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-111692" class="size-medium wp-image-111692" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/WMI_southsudan-300x199.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="199" /></a>(Photo courtesy of World Mission)</div>
Conflict between the Sudanese army and rebel forces shows no signs of letting up.
“You’re talking about a fairly recent civil war between two entities, the Sudanese armed forces and the Rapid Support Forces, that were allies until just a couple of years ago,” Kelley says.
“You get this power struggle and they start killing each other, [resulting in] about 150,000 fatalities, and that’s not to mention the 14 million people that have been displaced,” he continues.
<blockquote>
“When it’s all said and done, the average Sudanese person – the common man, woman, child – suffers the most.”
</blockquote>
Gospel workers are meeting needs on every front. “[It’s] a physical crisis, but it’s also a spiritual crisis, because Sudan is a country [where] well over 95% of the people are yet without a Gospel witness,” Kelley says.
Pray for protection as believers risk their lives to reach the lost.
“They’re being the hands and feet of Jesus meeting physical needs, but they’re also taking the solar-powered audio Bible, and multiplying themselves,” Kelley says.
“When talking about 14 million people displaced and growing, we have to think exponentially, and that is through the multiplication of God-fearing, Jesus-loving men and women who are making disciples of all nations.”
<a href="https://www.unknownnations.com/strategic-outposts" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Partner with Unknown Nations to make the Gospel known in Sudan.</a> 
 
 
 
Header image depicts 2024 floods in Al Fasher, Sudan. (<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_natural_landscape_of_plains_flooded_with_rainwater_under_the_sky_in_the_Zamzam_area,_El_Fasher.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wikimedia Commons</a>)]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 09 Jul 2025 05:00:55 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/flooding-compounds-misery-in-sudan/</guid>
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<title>US removes terrorist designation from Syria’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/us-removes-terrorist-designation-from-syrias-hayat-tahrir-al-sham/</link>
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Syria (MNN) —Another load is lifted from Syria’s shoulders. As of July 8, the US <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/7/us-revokes-terrorist-designation-for-syrian-presidents-former-group-hts">no longer designates</a> Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) as a foreign terrorist organization. HTS was technically <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/1/30/syrias-baath-party-dissolved-what-happens-next">disbanded</a> in January, shortly after its then-leader Ahmed al-Sharaa shed rebel attire and assumed the interim presidency in Syria.
The change in HTS designation comes a week after the US <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/30/trump-scraps-syria-sanctions-regime-00433633" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lifted other sanctions</a> on Syria.
Pierre Houssney with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/horizons-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Horizons International</a> says reopened commerce and business travel with Syria will change what gospel ministry looks like. 
“Before, when everything was economically sanctioned and closed, it was very conspicuous for somebody to come in and want to do missionary activity in the country,” he says. “Often people would get their visas revoked if they were doing something ministry-oriented.”
New opportunities may be ahead! But could financial hope have a harmful impact on Syrians?
<div id="attachment_206177" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-206177" class="size-medium wp-image-206177" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Horizons_header-image-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />(Photo courtesy of Horizons International)</div>
“We've seen over history so many times when economic prosperity hardens the hearts and the spiritual eyes of people. But we really don't know what could be in store," says Houssney.
“Often when people are in a new situation, they're open to new ideas, open to considering the claims of Christ. With time, they become more hardened."
Christians in neighboring Lebanon have been reaching Syria for years. (More on that here.) Praise God, and pray for even more spiritual openness to the gospel.
“Only God knows, but He has a way of ripening people at certain times. Our job as Christians is to be there in the time when the Holy Spirit is moving among a people group," says Houssney. 
Learn more about <a href="https://www.horizonsinternational.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Horizons International</a>’s calling to serve the people of Lebanon and beyond.
“Pray for Middle Eastern Christians, that they can find ways to respond to the new opportunities and start really advancing the gospel into Syria,” says Houssney. 
 
 
Header photo: Aleppo, Syria. Courtesy of DianneKet78 via Pixabay. ]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 09 Jul 2025 05:00:27 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Ways to pray for Texas flood tragedies</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/ways-to-pray-for-texas-flood-tragedies/</link>
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United States (MNN) — Flash floods <a href="https://apnews.com/article/texas-floods-victims-camp-mystic-death-toll-ea38edadc7e965fb2c76c0ec46245a82" target="_blank" rel="noopener">struck central Texas</a> in the early morning of July 4, devastating many summer campgrounds and homes in the Guadalupe River lowlands. According to reports, the water level rose 26 feet in less than an hour.
As of Tuesday, at least 109 people are known to have lost their lives, too many of them children. According to the state government, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/texas-floods-death-toll-creeps-up-search-rescue-continues-2025-07-08/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">161 people remain missing</a>. 
The Christian, all-girls Camp Mystic was among those hardest hit, with 27 campers and counselors lost and six remaining missing as of Tuesday. 
“Can you imagine being a camp director, even along the river here, being used to hearing about flash flooding, being used to hearing about raining and so forth, and knowing that you're entrusted with [all these] campers?” says Greg Yoder with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/keys-kids/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Keys for Kids Ministries</a>. “Our hearts go out to them.”
Keys for Kids works with camps across Texas and the United States as part of the <a href="http://www.ccca.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Christian Camp and Conference Association</a>. They provide devotional materials that camp directors can use with their own branding to help kids grow in their faith during and after camp.
<div id="attachment_197241" style="width: 250px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-197241" class="size-medium wp-image-197241" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/KFK_unlocked-and-keys-240x300.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="300" />Quarterly devotionals for teens and kids (Photo courtesy of Keys for Kids Ministries)</div>
“Every quarter for the rest of the year, these campers will receive Keys for Kids [devotionals] in the mail with a custom cover from their camp,” Yoder explains. 
The Keys for Kids team has interacted with people from Texas camps at different conferences they attend. “So it hits us right where we live,” Yoder says. 
<h2>Ways to pray</h2>
Pray for first responders. “If you go through some of these flooding situations and you're going up against debris, you're going to get injured,” says Yoder. 
Pray for kids who survived the disaster and are probably asking, “Why did God spare me and not my friend?” 
Pray for the families grieving over their losses. 
Then, ask how you can help kids in your life process this tragedy. 
“As adults, what is [our] responsibility as we look at this whole situation from the outside in, in helping the kids in our lives... understand that God is a good God even in this scenario, by pointing them to various portions of Scripture?” says Yoder. 
“Isaiah 57 is the perfect one that I tend to go to because sometimes I don't have answers, I don't understand. Sometimes I wonder why. Knowing that God has it all figured out and that it's His plan A and not plan B, that really is helpful for me.
"Talking it all through and really helping our families be engaged in a situation helps us to be more connected and [helps] them understand the gospel message, actually."
 
 
Header photo: Response to the floods in Central Texas, July 2025 (By wckitchen - via Flickr and Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0)]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 09 Jul 2025 05:00:24 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/ways-to-pray-for-texas-flood-tragedies/</guid>
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<title>Houthi and al-Shabaab ties deepen, threatening Gulf of Aden safety</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/houthi-and-al-shabaab-ties-deepen-threatening-gulf-of-aden-safety/</link>
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Yemen (MNN) -- Last year, the United Nations described the ties between Somalia’s al-Shabaab and Yemen’s Houthi rebels as “transactional or opportunistic.” But now, those connections are deepening — and becoming more dangerous.
Greg Musselman with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/voice-of-the-martyrs-canada/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Voice of the Martyrs Canada</a> explains, “The Houthis and al-Shabaab are now sharing weaponry; they’re becoming more aligned, in a sense.”
<a href="https://adf-magazine.com/2025/06/al-shabaab-alliance-with-houthis-continues-to-grow/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">As described here</a>, the Houthis are giving al-Shabaab access to more advanced weaponry systems. In return, al-Shabaab shares its coastal intelligence network and years of expertise in piracy.
<div id="attachment_215717" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Ansar_Allah_Logo.svg_.png"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215717" class="size-medium wp-image-215717" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Ansar_Allah_Logo.svg_-300x240.png" alt="" width="300" height="240" /></a>A calligraphic logo used by Ansar Allah, a Shia movement in Yemen commonly called the Houthis, with Arabic text: "Oh ye who believe, be supporters of God" (Quran 61:14) (Wikimedia Commons)</div>
“These groups have these weapons, they share intelligence, and that makes it very scary for persecuted Christians in those nations as these radicalized groups take more and more control of their countries,” Musselman says.
As radical control grows in Yemen and Somalia, believers continue to quietly share the hope of Christ. “In Somalia, they have one of the fastest-growing Churches in the world,” Musselman says.
<blockquote>
“Instability causes people a lot of fear, but also opens them up to the Gospel.”
</blockquote>
Yemen and Somalia are some of the world’s most dangerous places to follow Christ. For example, Yemeni citizens are not allowed to convert to Christianity. <a href="https://www.vomcanada.com/yemen.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
Similarly, believers in Somalia keep their faith a closely-held secret, as al-Shabaab demands the death of Christians if discovered. <a href="https://www.vomcanada.com/somalia.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
“Often, we can’t talk about stories [like these] because of the security issues. We don’t want to put anybody else in any further danger. But we can be encouraged that God is working amid all the challenges these believers are facing,” Musselman says.
“Because of the fear, the unhappiness with [the] regimes leading these countries, they (people) just see no hope. And that’s when many of them are turning to the Lord.”
Pray that the Gospel will penetrate the hearts of many hopeless people.
“Let’s pray for God’s work to continue in Somalia and Yemen. Yeah, they have heavy Muslim populations, but there is an emerging Church,” Musselman says.
“Believers are willing to risk their lives to bring the Gospel to some of the world’s most dangerous places.”
 
 
 
Header image depicts al-Shabaab insurgents during an attack on Somali National Army positions in 2023. (<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Al-Shabaab_insurgents_during_the_Battle_of_Cosweyne.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wikimedia Commons</a>)]]>
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<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jul 2025 05:00:50 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/houthi-and-al-shabaab-ties-deepen-threatening-gulf-of-aden-safety/</guid>
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<title>Russian military drones at night wage war on Ukrainian civilians</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/russian-military-drones-at-night-wage-war-on-ukrainian-civilians/</link>
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Ukraine (MNN) — As Russian military drones wage war against Ukrainian civilians at night, the Gospel brings comfort amidst the chaos.
On the night of 4th of July, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/russian-drone-attack-triggers-fire-roof-apartment-block-officials-say-2025-07-03/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kyiv endured</a> one of the most terrifying nights of the war. More than five hundred Shahed drones, each over 11 feet long, filled the sky, along with missiles. The previous month alone, Russia launched <a href="https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2025/07/01/russia-launched-record-5337-drones-at-ukraine-in-june-alone" target="_blank" rel="noopener">over f</a><a href="https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2025/07/01/russia-launched-record-5337-drones-at-ukraine-in-june-alone" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ive thousand</a> of them. The purpose of these attacks is to wear down civilians into surrender.
Eric Mock from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/slavic-gospel-association/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Slavic Gospel Associatio</a><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/slavic-gospel-association/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">n</a> says, “The one thing you do not know is where that missile is going to hit, where the intercepted wreckage is going to hit, and there's a sense in which you face your own mortality.”
<div id="attachment_215724" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215724" class="size-medium wp-image-215724" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pexels-stefits-11518767-225x300.jpg" alt="Pexels" width="225" height="300" />Photo courtesy of Алесь Усцінаў via Pexels</div>
Russian drones target <a href="https://www.kyivpost.com/post/55556" target="_blank" rel="noopener">hospitals</a>, <a href="https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2025/05/24/7513853/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shopping centers</a>, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx24g4850x4o" target="_blank" rel="noopener">apartment buildings</a>, and <a href="https://www.hrw.org/report/2025/06/03/hunted-from-above/russias-use-of-drones-to-attack-civilians-in-kherson-ukraine" target="_blank" rel="noopener">civilians</a>. Recently, an explosion hit a <a href="https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2025/06/23/7518399/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">school</a> in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, raising new fears for parents concerned about their children’s safety outside.
“It’s at a whole different level of fear,” says Mock, “The fear is when you lay your head down to sleep, you may not wake up.”
The unpredictability of the attacks is taking a serious mental toll. Civilians are overwhelmed with anxiety and stress. For children, the impact is even more severe.
While speaking with children in Odesa, a young mother approached Mock: “She said her difficulty is every time the siren goes off, her child immediately wets his pants. He is fearful and shakes.”
Despite the destruction, SGA-supported summer camps are still running. Almost every camp reports success — even amid air raid sirens and ongoing threats. These camps have continued throughout the past three years of full-scale war, providing children with a sense of hope.
This is where the Church steps in — helping people experience the love of Saviour and meaning in their suffering.
<blockquote>
“These churches now that we serve are an oasis in the storm that people who can't sleep at night, people who seem bereft of hope, are finding hope in Jesus Christ,” says Mock.
</blockquote>
Eric Mock met a pastor and his family who spent the night in a metro station that serves as a bomb shelter. Despite his exhaustion, the pastor’s desire to be with his people on Sunday morning deeply moved Eric:
“They dragged their pillows. The kids brought stuffed animals, and that was where they slept. He arrived a little disheveled and challenged, but ready to preach to the people who came on Sunday!”
Pray that as Ukrainian churches remain centers of hope for those around them, they will not grow weary. Visit <a href="https://www.sga.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Slavic Gospel Association</a> to learn more about how you can help!
 
 
 
Header photo: Ukraine, Kyiv (photo courtesy of Алесь Усцінаў via Pexels).]]>
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<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jul 2025 05:00:36 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Missions leaders conference at Missio Nexus centers on evangelism and collaboration</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/missions-leaders-conference-at-missio-nexus-centers-on-evangelism-and-collaboration/</link>
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<![CDATA[
United States (MNN) — Evangelism looks different in South America than in the Middle East, but the world around it comes down to the same thing.
“It's sharing the love of Jesus, sharing the person of Jesus with other people,” says Ted Esler, president of Missio Nexus.
But our diverse world is also a fallen world, and it’s easy for churches and ministries to get siloed. That’s one reason Missio Nexus invites missions leaders to a conference geared toward collaboration. <a href="https://web.cvent.com/event/59aa60e6-ce93-4609-ae14-b21c46038ab6/websitePage:42fd7167-2fba-4de5-9c38-1540ddbaed85?RefId=events" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Echo: Amplifying the Need for Global Evangelism</a> will happen September 24-26, 2025 in Orlando, Florida.
“Our superpower is really shared learning, and so that's what we focus on more than anything else,” says Esler about these conferences. 
For example, he says, a mission agency recruiter might come wondering about mobilization trends. They would have a chance to learn from hundreds of other agencies present.
<div id="attachment_215733" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215733" class="size-medium wp-image-215733" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/514965217_755396210383179_5176886262206934486_n-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" />(Image courtesy of Missio Nexus via Facebook)</div>
“We get together in a room [and then] we can talk about those things and help each one of those ministries lift their ability to serve,” Esler says. “It happens through sharing what they're learning.”
If you’ve ever wondered what evangelism looks like across different cultures, Echo offers a chance to listen in.
“One of our speakers is a missiologist. She's been working in Asia and she’s going to bring a discussion about contextualizing — or making the gospel understandable across cultural context,” Esler says. 
Another speaker focuses on evangelism to secular or postmodern people. Still another speaker leads large-scale crusades in Africa, following up with church planting. 
<h2>Find your place in the story </h2>
You're invited to attend Echo if you're directly involved with Great Commission work, whether in a church context or a ministry with global outreach. Registration details and a full event guide are available at <a href="https://web.cvent.com/event/59aa60e6-ce93-4609-ae14-b21c46038ab6/websitePage:42fd7167-2fba-4de5-9c38-1540ddbaed85?RefId=events" target="_blank" rel="noopener">missionexus.org/echo</a>.
“[Missio Nexus is] the association that's centered on evangelism, discipleship, and planting churches on a global scale,” says Esler. “We tie together all the missionary agencies as well as globally-focused churches into one group to try to increase relationship[s], push new ideas, and focus on collaboration.
“We’re like Lausanne, except most of our effort is aimed [at] helping the Church and the mission agencies from the US and Canada move out and do what they're doing in collaboration.” 
 
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Missio Nexus. ]]>
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<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jul 2025 05:00:51 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/missions-leaders-conference-at-missio-nexus-centers-on-evangelism-and-collaboration/</guid>
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<title>Sudan fighting spreads to previously safe areas</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/sudan-fighting-spreads-to-previously-safe-areas/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Sudan (MNN) -- The crisis in Sudan is deepening, and time is running out.
UN officials urge global involvement as fighting spreads into previously safe areas, and neither side shows signs of backing down.
“The warring parties appear unrelenting in their resolve to pursue military objectives,” warned Martha Ama Akyaa Pobee, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Africa, in a <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/06/1165046" target="_blank" rel="noopener">June 27 address</a> to the UN Security Council.
She noted that advanced weapons like long-range drones are spreading violence into previously stable regions. <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/world/article/risk-of-genocide-in-sudan-very-high-un/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Earlier</a>, UN official Virginia Gamba warned that resistance forces and their allies are increasingly targeting minority ethnic groups — a potential path to war crimes.
Darrell Templeton with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/megavoice/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MegaVoice</a> highlights the gravity of the situation: “A lot of the genocide, a lot of the killing that the RSF is doing is very tribal in nature.”
<div id="attachment_145841" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/MegaVoice04-274.png.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-145841" class="size-medium wp-image-145841" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/MegaVoice04-274.png-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>Image courtesy of MegaVoice.</div>
MegaVoice offers both spiritual and practical hope. First, solar-powered audio Bibles provide perspective from God’s Word. “There's an audio series called 'Am I My Brother's Keeper?' which is all about reconciliation between the tribes in Sudan and South Sudan,” Templeton says.
<blockquote>
“This audio has been used and is continuing to be used to provide a biblical reason for reconciliation among the people groups.”
</blockquote>
These devices also have a tangible purpose. The most popular audio Bible model has a built-in light.
“It’s called the Ember because it has a little flashlight on it that’s brighter than a cell phone flashlight. Most of these areas have very limited electricity, and so to have a light that they can use for finishing cooking, to walk around in the dark, this has been a big benefit to our pastors and the leaders there,” Templeton says.
“To have a solar-powered audio Bible that provides not only spiritual light for their lives, but physical light is a big blessing.”
<a href="https://megavoiceinternational.org/donate/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Help send more audio Bibles to Sudan by giving through MegaVoice International.</a>
“Mission Network News has been a big help in making sure people are aware that this crisis has not gone away. The crisis is still very real, and we need to uphold our brothers and sisters in prayer,” Templeton says.
 
 
 
Header image is a stock photo of fighters in South Sudan (Photo by Randy Fath on Unsplash)]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jul 2025 05:00:28 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/sudan-fighting-spreads-to-previously-safe-areas/</guid>
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<title>Pakistan’s blasphemy laws: One acquittal, hundreds of others languishing in prison, or worse</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/pakistans-blasphemy-laws-one-acquittal-hundreds-of-others-languishing-in-prison-or-worse/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Pakistan (MNN) — On June 25, 2025, a 72-year-old Christian in Pakistan was <a href="https://morningstarnews.org/2025/06/christian-acquitted-after-23-years-on-death-row-for-blasphemy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">acquitted</a> of alleged blasphemy against Islam’s prophet Mohammad. The Supreme Court of Pakistan ruled that a person with mental health conditions could not be held responsible for such a crime.
The acquittal is worth celebrating — but there’s more to the story. Ankwar Kenneth had <a href="https://morningstarnews.org/2025/06/christian-acquitted-after-23-years-on-death-row-for-blasphemy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">already spent 23 years</a> on death row under these blasphemy charges.
<div id="attachment_208639" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-208639" class="size-medium wp-image-208639" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/photo1-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" />Mob attack in recent years (Photo courtesy of FMI)</div>
What’s more, Nehemiah with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/forgotten-missionaries-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FMI</a> explains that acquittals like this are extremely rare in Pakistan. He refers to those caught in these cases as “blasphemy accused.”
“Right now [as] I'm talking, there [are] over 700 blasphemy accused sitting in the prison without any hearing in the court — because the judges are being harassed by the religious extremist organizations in Pakistan, and then lawyers or law firms are being harassed and threatened.” 
It’s not just Christians. Muslims and Hindus are also accused of blasphemy. Nehemiah explains that the vague language of Pakistan’s blasphemy laws allows people to use accusations to settle personal scores or seize property.
Nehemiah says mob culture plays a terrifying role. 
“In many cases, individuals accused of blasphemy are killed by angry mobs before their case is even heard. These extrajudicial killings are fueled by religious extremism and a culture of fear and silence,” he says.
“Law enforcement agencies often [stand] by passively, either out of fear or sympathies [for the mobs]. Over the past decades, dozens of people have been lynched or burned alive, including mentally ill individuals and children.”
This culture of violence has become the norm in Pakistan. Yet Christians living under these pressures remember someone else who was falsely accused. 
<blockquote>
“Even Jesus was blasphemy accused Himself,” says Nehemiah. (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2026:57-68&version=ESV">Matthew 26:57–68</a>) 
</blockquote>
<h2>Please pray</h2>
FMI supports church planters in Pakistan in both spiritual and practical ways — from prayer to physical aid to legal assistance to relocation help.
Pray for God to give strength, courage, faith and endurance to the Pakistani Church. Pray for boldness for FMI church planters under severe persecution.
“[Pray] that they will continue to proclaim Christ boldly — not with fear, but with compassion and truth even under the threat of arrest or violence or death threat. Pray that their work would bear much fruit: new believers, disciple[d] leaders, and strong underground churches,” says Nehemiah.
And who do Pakistani believers pray for in the midst of “hopeless” circumstances? 
“[As] Christians, we cannot have any enemy, because Jesus says, ‘Love your enemies,’” Nehemiah says with a laugh. “So the only hope is Jesus and we just keep loving and praying for our Muslim brothers in Pakistan.”
 
 
Header photo of Pakistan church group (Photo courtesy of FMI)]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jul 2025 05:00:50 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/pakistans-blasphemy-laws-one-acquittal-hundreds-of-others-languishing-in-prison-or-worse/</guid>
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<title>Africa: From mission field to mission force</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/africa-from-mission-field-to-mission-force/</link>
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Africa (MNN) — A deeper conviction and calling to gospel mission is stirring in Africa. According to <a href="https://www.gordonconwell.edu/blog/who-owns-global-christianity/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data from 2020</a>, this is the continent with the most Christians in the world.
“They say the blood of the martyrs [has] so fertilized the soil of Africa that everywhere you plant the gospel, it germinates,” says Ray Mensah with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/ghana-an-awakening-missionary-force-in-africa/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">OneWay Africa</a>. 
With that missionary history of sacrifice comes responsibility.
“The Bible says to him that much is given, much is expected or required. So now that Africa has the largest number of Christians, Africa has to play a significant role in world evangelization,” Mensah says.
<blockquote>
“Africa cannot continue to be a mission field. Africa has to be a mission force. We believe we are [a] mission force but want to be [a] full-scale mission force, sending praying, supporting in every area.”
</blockquote>
That’s why Mensah and other African leaders are planning the Africa Missions Conference this September in Nairobi, Kenya.
<div id="attachment_188617" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-188617" class="size-medium wp-image-188617" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/annie-spratt-0cgpyigyIkM-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="people, africa, Wycliffe USA, Unsplash" width="300" height="200" />(Photo courtesy of Annie Spratt via Unsplash)</div>
“It will be a place for networking, for partnerships, for new movements to rise up,” he says, adding, “We’re hoping that some of the denominational heads in Africa will come and churches that are not missionary, and they will catch the fire for missions.”
The conference carries an open invitation for you to come in person. Mensah calls for anyone around the world interested in missions to attend — whether field workers, leaders, intercessors, trainers or [those] carrying other roles.
“I challenge all those with passion for missions to stand with us globally. Especially also if someone is listening and you are African in the diaspora… we are calling you, come!” Mensah says, sharing that many nationalities will be represented. “Be part of the mission movement. God is doing wonderful things in Africa, and we invite you, come back home.”
<div id="attachment_194403" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-194403" class="size-medium wp-image-194403" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/2021-12-05-18-300x196.png" alt="" width="300" height="196" />Jesus Film Riders (Image courtesy of OneWay Africa)</div>
The conference committee is also praying that the gathering will lead to national missions associations being launched in every sub-Saharan country. These have already begun in Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Kenya and Malawi in the past decade or so.
<blockquote>
“We have realized that mission movements, or national mission associations, help to push or propel missions in the country to reach the unreached,” Mensah says, adding, “Once those movements are formed, it will be a turning point in missions in Africa.” 
</blockquote>
Mensah sees [that] God is raising every part of His Church to be active. 
“I believe the Africa Missions Conference will be that part of the global Church in action, and Africa taking its place and playing its role, together with North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America, Oceania, together for the Great Commission to take the gospel to the ends of the earth," he says. "Amen!”
 
 
Header photo of Jesus Film Rider courtesy of OneWay Africa.]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 07 Jul 2025 05:00:55 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/africa-from-mission-field-to-mission-force/</guid>
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<title>Taliban raids production facility housing Christian works</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/taliban-raids-production-facility-housing-christian-works/</link>
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Afghanistan (MNN) -- <a href="https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2025/06/taliban-denies-afghanistan-is-a-haven-for-terrorists.php" target="_blank" rel="noopener">During a recent hearing</a>, US Congressman Bill Huizenga said Afghanistan has once again become a sanctuary for terrorists. Yet the Taliban denies it, claiming no foreign terror groups are operating in the country, or that certain groups operated with government approval.
“It’s all political. They claim not to be terrorists, and yet they’re terrorists,” <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/keys-kids/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Keys for Kids’</a> Greg Yoder says.
“When you come down heavy on villages because they don’t agree with you religiously, that’s terrorism, and that’s happening throughout Afghanistan.”
The Taliban government continues to suppress anything that doesn’t align with its ideology. Recently, officials raided a production facility run by Keys for Kids partners.
<div id="attachment_215672" style="width: 306px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/PashtoProduction-9-2024-3.jpeg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215672" class="wp-image-215672 size-medium" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/PashtoProduction-9-2024-3-296x300.jpeg" alt="" width="296" height="300" /></a>Gospel worker reviews material before recording in the studio. (Photo courtesy of Keys for Kids)</div>
“The good news was everybody who was supposed to be recording was out for dinner, and everything they were working on had been backed up,” Yoder says.
“The people there, security, etc., warned the Christians not to return. But the issue is now, where do we go to resume the production?”
<a href="https://www.dw.com/en/how-safe-is-afghanistan-under-the-taliban/a-72871878" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Around 43 percent</a> of Afghanistan’s 41.5 million people are children under the age of 14. Keys for Kids and <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/forgotten-missionaries-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FMI</a> are introducing them to the hope only Christ can offer.
Believers are about 25 percent done translating Keys for Kids resources into Dari, one of Afghanistan’s two primary dialects. They’re also working on a Pashto translation, and these materials are being loaded onto <a href="https://shop.keysforkids.org/pages/storyteller?_pos=3&_sid=cebccc020&_ss=r" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Keys for Kids Storytellers.</a>
“Through these solar-powered MP3 players, we have a Bible in audio, but then also these Keys for Kids stories that introduce biblical truth and how to apply that biblical truth to everyday life,” Yoder says.
“It brings in Bible verses to help them understand who Jesus is. In the Islamic faith, Jesus is known as the only perfect Prophet, even though we know he was the Son of God. Teaching that concept is very, very critical,” he continues.
<blockquote>
“There’s no hope in Islam. They believe they have to do certain things to earn their salvation, and there are no guarantees. But we talk about the free gift of salvation to all who believe.”
</blockquote>
Despite growing pressure, hope remains strong. Kids — and adults — are finding comfort in the Gospel.
“Even the simplistic form of our theology of who Jesus is resonates with adults,” Yoder says. “We just got word that 12 churches have been planted in Afghanistan since the Keys for Kids Storytellers have been distributed by our partners, FMI.”
There’s still much work to do. <a href="https://www.keysforkids.org/Get-Involved/Donate1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Consider partnering with Keys for Kids to help bring God’s Word to Afghanistan.</a> “There are 15,000 Keys for Kids Storytellers in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and it’s just a drop in the bucket of what’s needed,” Yoder says.
 
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of Keys for Kids. ]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 04 Jul 2025 05:00:12 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/taliban-raids-production-facility-housing-christian-works/</guid>
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<title>After ceasefire, Iranian government targets its own people</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/after-ceasefire-iranian-government-targets-its-own-people/</link>
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Iran (MNN) — Ceasefires are meant to bring peace; instead, the Iranian nation is facing the enraged regime’s payback.
In June, Israel and Iran agreed to a <a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-iran-war-nuclear-trump-bomber-news-06-23-2025-9e78510c88ccc5e262341f41550609c5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ceasefire</a> after an intense exchange of fire. However, instead of bringing peace, it brought greater struggle for the Iranian people. The regime, having suffered damage to both its image and military strength, turned its focus inward. Now, <a href="https://iranhumanrights.org/2025/06/iran-launches-sweeping-crackdown-hundreds-detained-executions-underway/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">they are hunting</a> for so-called “enemies” within the State.
Lana Silk from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/transform-iran/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Transform Iran</a> says, “The Christians in Iran are under more scrutiny than ever before. The government is out for blood.”
Authorities are targeting those they believe may have helped Israel navigate its attacks on specific people or sites — and at the same time, they are looking for scapegoats to restore fear among the population.
<blockquote>
“They are searching cars, homes, and digital content on people’s phones—some are even stopped randomly in the street. Hundreds have been arrested, not only Christians, and some have already been executed on charges of threatening national security,” says Silk.
</blockquote>
Physical hardship adds another layer to the crisis. Food is growing scarce, and gas is strictly rationed. Silk describes: “Regular people are struggling to earn their living, as they depend on gas and transport. Moving money around is difficult. Day to day, survival has become a huge challenge.”
<h3>“Christians are now fighting mounting fear.”</h3>
<div id="attachment_215689" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215689" class="size-medium wp-image-215689" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pexels-kindelmedia-7785074-300x225.jpg" alt="Pexels" width="300" height="225" />Representative photo courtesy of Kindel Media via Pexels</div>
Christians are in an especially vulnerable situation. The government considers any connection outside the country — especially to U.S.-based missions — a threat. Some ministries have had to cut ties with the local believers they were supporting, simply to protect them from possible persecution.
Silk adds, “Some are deleting all the digital data from their devices, linking them to Christian activities, in anticipation of arrest.”
Despite it all, Christians seek solace and strength in their faith in Christ. They have become a source of hope for those still walking in the darkness of despair.
“In our network, the believers are determined to stay and shine as a light on the hill in an environment that is increasingly oppressive for all citizens of Iran,” she says.
Just weeks ago, many Iranians hoped for change. Now they face even deeper distress — and need our earnest prayers.
Pray that as <a href="https://transformiran.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Transform Iran</a> works to help Iranians, they will have the means and ways to do so safely.
<blockquote>
“Pray for [their] courage. Pray for the perfect love of Jesus Christ to cast out all fear. Pray for the joy of the Lord to be their strength. Pray for practical provision. Pray for regime change,” urges Silk.
</blockquote>
 
 
 
 
Header photo: representative photo of Iranian police (photo courtesy of Alireza Heidarpour via Pexels)]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 04 Jul 2025 05:00:22 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/after-ceasefire-iranian-government-targets-its-own-people/</guid>
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<title>How do sports lead to transformation? Sumit’s story</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/how-do-sports-lead-to-transformation-sumits-story/</link>
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India (MNN) — The shouts and laughter of children fill the air at <a href="https://vimeo.com/154051156" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mission India children's Bible clubs</a>. Sports are a core part of the curriculum used to reach kids with the good news of Jesus — and it makes a difference! 
Bill* with Mission India shares the story of a troubled boy named Sumit. Life wasn't easy in his house. His father had passed away when he was very young, and his two older brothers made the poor choices that Sumit followed. Eventually, he was kicked out of school.
But one thing remained steady: Sumit's love for the game of cricket! He dreamed of being on the national team for India.
<div id="attachment_215694" style="width: 286px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215694" class="wp-image-215694 " src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/MI-213-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="276" height="414" />Kids playing cricket at a Children's Bible Club (Photo courtesy of Mission India)</div>
“His mother, through the grief of losing her husband and not knowing what to do with these three boys, gave her life to Christ,” says Bill. 
The pastor at their church suggested that she send Sumit to a children’s Bible club. One of the first activities that day? Cricket! 
“[It] just so happened [that] one of the helpers of the leader of the Bible club was very good at cricket. He and Sumit developed a friendship," says Bill.
"Over the course of about six months, the misbehaviors that Sumit was so good at were replaced with positive behaviors. About seven months in, he gave his life to Christ."
Sumit’s story is one of many, where a child just needs someone to take an interest in them. 
“One of our ministry principles… follows this B.L.E.S.S. acronym: the body, the labor (the work that people do), emotional support that people need to develop, their social skills and their spiritual skills [or] their spiritual development."
Bible club leaders shower kids with the love of Christ and provide academic and spiritual instruction, along with the chance to play sports! 
<blockquote>
“I think that's the secret sauce,” Bill says, referring to the leaders. “You know, you have somebody from the community who's given their life to Christ to lead children into a relationship with Jesus.”
</blockquote>
Would you pray for the children of India? Consider partnering with Mission India to reach them. A gift of $36 per month <a href="https://missionindia.org/pathfinders/">sponsors 18 kids for an entire year</a> of Bible club. (Want to see what club looks like? <a href="https://vimeo.com/154051156" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Watch this video</a>!)
“The opportunity for children is just unbelievable. It’s a great place to invest prayer. It's a great place to invest resources,” says Bill.
“Pray specifically that the children of India would be turned toward our Almighty God. I believe it's an undeniable right that children should be able to know their father. To be able to offer that to millions of children that haven't ever met God, we would certainly like to make that offer.” 
 
*name withheld for security
 
 
Header photo: Kids playing cricket at a Children's Bible Club (Photo courtesy of Mission India)]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 04 Jul 2025 05:00:11 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/how-do-sports-lead-to-transformation-sumits-story/</guid>
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<title>“Who would you follow?” and other questions facing Iranians today</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/who-would-you-follow-and-other-questions-facing-iranians-today/</link>
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Iran (MNN) — “Who would you want to follow?” 
A Muslim man once asked Tom Doyle with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/uncharted-ministries/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Uncharted Ministries</a> this question. They were traveling together in Tehran years ago. The two men had just exchanged the facts that Doyle was a Christian and his guide was a Muslim. 
“I think all of the young people in Iran are going to convert to Christianity,” the man said.
"What? Why would you say that?" Doyle replied.
<blockquote>
“Well, who would you want to follow? Jesus, who talks about love and joy and helping people and sacrificing ourselves for others? Who would you want to follow? Him? Or that guy?” 
</blockquote>
They were near Palestine Square, and the man pointed up to a multi-story mural of Iran’s Ayatollah.
Today, Doyle says, "I hope [we] won't just fall into group think: 'Iran is this horrible enemy'.... Never before have they been more open to Jesus." 
<h2>Nuclear tensions continue</h2>
For people in Iran today, life under their leaders continues on shaky footing. Iran is still at cross purposes with other powers that be. On Wednesday, the regime <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/iran-halts-cooperation-un-nuclear-watchdog/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suspended cooperation</a> with the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog. Surveillance cameras have already been removed from its nuclear facilities, the report says.
<div id="attachment_210541" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-210541" class="size-medium wp-image-210541" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Masoud_Pezeshkian_2024_A-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (Photo courtesy of Khamenei.ir, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=150832367)</div>
Iran also rejected a U.S. invitation to immediately resume diplomatic conversations about its nuclear program. It might be just a pause, though; Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi told CBS News through a translator, <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/iran-foreign-minister-interview-nuclear-talks/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“The doors of diplomacy will never slam shut.”</a>
Whatever happens next in these conversations, the everyday people will pay the price. For many it will be through the <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/not-their-war-most-iranians-want-peace-regime-change/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">struggle for daily existence;</a> for others, through deep <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/sat-7-persian-channel-brings-gospel-comfort-to-iranian-kids-during-war/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">anxiety</a>. Others will lose their lives. Some 935 people were <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/935-people-killed-israeli-strikes-iran-iran-judiciary-spokesperson-says-2025-06-30/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">killed in Iran</a> during the 12-day Israel-Iran war, many of them civilians.
Yes, leadership matters. You’ve probably heard that many Iranians want a change in their government. Doyle affirms that Christians in Iran are among them. 
“Obviously, they don't want their country to go through destruction or loss of innocent lives at all, but this is something they have been praying for for decades, that this fanatical leadership would be removed,” he says. 
At the same time, Christians following God have different marching orders. “Our goal is for every human life to hear the gospel and to come into a saving relationship with Jesus,” says Doyle. 
Find your place in the story. If you’re a Christian, consider how good it is that God leads His people and the world perfectly. Please pray along with Uncharted Ministries that more Iranians find Christ, even in today’s chaos. 
 
 
Header photo: Tafresh, Markazi Province, Iran (Photo courtesy of Mostafa Meraji via Unsplash)]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 03 Jul 2025 05:00:57 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/who-would-you-follow-and-other-questions-facing-iranians-today/</guid>
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<title>Why sidelining Hezbollah is good for Lebanon</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/why-sidelining-hezbollah-is-good-for-lebanon/</link>
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Lebanon (MNN) -- Lebanon is breathing a sigh of relief as Hezbollah stayed out of the recent 12-day war between Iran and Israel. Hezbollah <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/mena/2025/06/26/internal-and-external-pressures-kept-lebanons-hezbollah-out-of-iran-israel-war/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> remains on the sidelines under Iranian orders to preserve “what is left of their strength.”
“Thank God they did not get involved. I mean, this is truly an answer to prayer,” <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/heart-for-lebanon/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Heart for Lebanon</a>’s Camille Melki says.
“The Lebanese population, everyday Lebanese narrative, is ‘Please spare us the pain of another war.”
Lebanon continues to reel from last year’s war with Israel. <a href="https://apnews.com/article/lebanon-world-bank-damages-israel-hezbollah-war-reconstruction-33dc0fe973d5fbd3fd3d3fc6ff2e82ff" target="_blank" rel="noopener">In March,</a> the World Bank estimated repairs from the Hezbollah-Israel conflict at $11 billion.
“The <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/02/17/lebanon-destruction-of-infrastructure-preventing-returns" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mass destruction</a> of our infrastructure, the pain that was brought into the Lebanese community, and the economic turmoil that we continue to feel are sufficient indicators for us to realize that we can no longer afford another conflict,” Melki says.
Though Lebanon didn’t directly join the latest war, it still felt the shockwaves.
<div id="attachment_215610" style="width: 360px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/HFL_Lebanon-hills.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215610" class="wp-image-215610" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/HFL_Lebanon-hills-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="350" height="233" /></a>(Photo courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)</div>
“We were looking forward to record-breaking tourism. All hotels were packed full, and flights were booked way in advance,” Melki says.
<blockquote>
“All that got canceled; 12 days were sufficient to ruin the hope that we had for a great summer.”
</blockquote>
<a href="https://heartforlebanon.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Support Heart for Lebanon’s efforts to help people move from despair to hope.</a>
Pray for strength for Gospel workers carrying an even heavier load. Pray Lebanese will find the hope that only Christ can offer.
“The ability to make up for that loss is very limited, so here we find ourselves again in need to reach out, love on, care for individuals who lost hope,” Melki says.
“Pray for perseverance and resilience among the workers. It's hard to go on day in, day out, but the reason we continue is that we know we have the Body of Christ lifting us in prayers into the throne of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.”
 
 
 
Header image depicts the flag of Hezbollah courtesy <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hezbollah.webp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wikimedia Commons</a>.]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 03 Jul 2025 05:00:57 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/why-sidelining-hezbollah-is-good-for-lebanon/</guid>
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<title>Pastors in Asia are eager for resources</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/pastors-in-asia-are-eager-for-resources/</link>
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(MNN) Asia — In addition to recent shipments delivered to the Philippines, Thailand, Fiji, and India, <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/world-missionary-press/">World Missionary Press (WMP)</a> is preparing to send more biblical resources to other areas of Asia.
Ministry partners in Sri Lanka, Papua New Guinea, and Pakistan will soon receive their container shipments, where ministries already have people ready to share the Good News.
<a href="https://www.wmpress.org/">World Missionary Press</a> also funds printing in Indonesia and Myanmar, where importing resources is difficult.
The organization is careful with shipments to Pakistan, as it would be easy to bring those on the ground into harm’s way. The coordinator in Pakistan, however, has a good church and ministry there.
Helen Williams with WMP says,
<blockquote>
“He's careful. We are careful with him as well. But the requests keep coming. ‘How soon can I get this? We need the Bible studies as well.’”
“Sometimes (it’s) overwhelming, but it is so exciting to get these reports that say, ‘We have to have more, and when can you get it here?’ The pastors are just asking. They're standing around waiting for the literature that (they) can use to reach because they see it works. They see what the Spirit does with the Word, and that excites them.”
</blockquote>
Chiang Mai, Thailand, is also a major hub for the organization, with a printing house and distribution center serving several other countries and people groups in the region.
They provide material in about six or seven languages for the region, and provide resources to ministries in different countries such as Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietnam, and China.
With persecuted people groups moving to Southern Thailand, having this material readily available in multiple languages brings hope and creates new opportunities.
This site recently sent a request for 20,000 booklets of "Help From Above” and “Way to Our God” to reach the Karen people groups in Myanmar.
<blockquote>
“The response (from partners) is always that we need more,” says Williams. “And they'll give stories or generalities from the pastors and those that come and get the booklets and are continuing to use them. (The pastors are) not just getting something and then never coming back. They keep coming back. It's a source for the pastors and the evangelists in these areas,” says Williams.
</blockquote>
Unlike other areas of the world, when requests are received from this region, organizations need to move fast because the doors are not always going to remain open.
Please pray for church leaders across Asia to access and distribute materials wisely. Pray that WMP will communicate clearly with partners and will have the resources to continue to answer the calls around the world. 
 
Photo Image courtesy of<a href="https://unsplash.com/@roadahead_2223?utm_content=creditCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=unsplash"> Road Ahead</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/a-close-up-of-a-map-of-asia--DmmEDv7MXg?utm_content=creditCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=unsplash">Unsplash</a>]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 03 Jul 2025 05:00:04 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/pastors-in-asia-are-eager-for-resources/</guid>
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<title>Whether under fire or ceasefire, believers in Israel living out God’s call</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/whether-under-fire-or-ceasefire-believers-in-israel-living-out-gods-call/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Israel (MNN) — With the Israel-Iran ceasefire a week old, diplomacy returns to the table — though not between those two nations. Instead, Israel is interested in <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-interested-establishing-diplomatic-ties-with-syria-lebanon-foreign-2025-06-30/">normalizing ties</a> with neighboring Syria and Lebanon. 
As international conversations unfold, one thing remains steady in Israel: God’s people press on. Eric Mock with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/slavic-gospel-association/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Slavic Gospel Association</a> shares stories about the Russian-speaking, Jewish believers that SGA partners with in Israel.
One church narrowly escaped a direct strike during the 12-day war.
“How would you respond if a ballistic missile was coming and landed 300 feet away?” Mock asks.
The church's response to the event was simple and resolute:
"We're going to worship. We're going to thank God that we're still here. He's got us here for a purpose. We're going to gather together on the Sabbath, and we're going to worship the Lord."
When Mock asked if they needed any help from SGA during the conflict, “I could almost see them smiling through each response to me: ‘We’re okay. We're continuing to do what God has raised us up to do,'" he says. 
“They smile in response and say, ‘This is our life. We are pressing on. We are answering the question [of] what God would have us do, and we continue to search out what we can learn through it, [so] that day by day, we may become more vibrant vessels for God's use.’”
<h2>Two stories of faith under fire</h2>
One recent training class was meant to equip Russian-speaking churches. They quickly adapted when shelter-in-place orders came.
Their response was, "Oh, that's okay. We'll switch over to Zoom, but we're going to continue the training, everyone in their home, because the government has told us to shelter in place. So we will respect the government and we'll shelter in place, but we're going to keep learning."
<div id="attachment_205407" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-205407" class="size-medium wp-image-205407" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/jonny-gios-b8AqBdjO-fA-unsplash-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" />Steeple in Jerusalem, Israel. (Photo courtesy of Jonny Gios/Unsplash)</div>
"In the difficulties they are facing, they are undaunted," says Mock. " They have not shrunk back. We have seen this not only in this moment, but in the moments prior to that."
One such story happened during an attack on Israel several years ago.
As the sirens went off and missiles flew past classroom windows, Mock says the professor said this to his students: "The sirens are a nuisance. As for you, God has raised you up to learn and grow. So you sit there until the class is done, and then you can leave."
That's exactly what they did.
"There is just this sense in which 'God is at work, and we are going to trust that God is at work,'" says Mock.
This resilience gives glory to God. "'I'm reminded of <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=col1%3A28-29&version=ESV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Colossians 1:28-29</a>, that Paul labored with all the power that God had given him to proclaim Christ, to admonish and warn and build up (or counsel) and to train up others," says Mock. "That's what these churches are doing. That's really the story behind the story."
He observes how easy it is to get caught up in politics, military actions, and opinions. "But what is more profound is the work of God among His people in the middle of broken times, and it is people that are stepping forward with the gospel, courageously and not thinking twice about the missiles that are coming over their heads."
<h2>Find your place in the story</h2>
Would you join in prayer with these brothers and sisters?
<ul>
<li>Pray that many more people in Israel and around the world heed the call of the gospel before it's too late.</li>
<li>Pray for the Western Church. Mock relays a request from Christians in Israel: "[Pray] that the people in America would know that life is fragile and life is momentary, and that we would live every day sold out for Christ, trusting that God's ways are higher than our ways."</li>
<li>Ask God if He's calling you to partner with SGA. They support the ministries of local pastors across the Slavic world. Learn more about that <a href="https://www.sga.org/pastors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.</li>
</ul>
 
 
Header photo is a representative stock photo of Jerusalem, Israel courtesy of Dave Herring via Unsplash.]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 02 Jul 2025 05:00:04 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/whether-under-fire-or-ceasefire-believers-in-israel-living-out-gods-call/</guid>
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<title>Six Americans detained for attempting to send Bibles to North Korea – why the story matters</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/six-americans-detained-for-attempting-to-send-bibles-to-north-korea-why-the-story-matters/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
South Korea (MNN) — Six Americans were detained after attempting to send bottles filled with <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2025/06/27/south-korea-detains-6-americans-sending-bibles-into-north-korea/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bibles,</a> USBs, money, and rice by sea to North Korea.
Though well-meaning, their actions violated South Korean ordinances banning balloon and sea-based launches to the North, ordinances aimed at reducing tensions. These types of efforts have long been common, but the group appears to have acted without consulting local organizations experienced in such work. (For previous MNN coverage, click <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/north-korea-says-keep-your-balloons-or-else/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>, and <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/south-korea-bible-launch-met-with-resistance/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>, and <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/tag/vom-korea/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>)
<div id="attachment_201651" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-201651" class="size-medium wp-image-201651" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/micha-brandli-H8nYVhBORW8-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />North Korean flags (Photo courtesy of Micha Brandli via Unsplash)</div>
Eric Foley from <a href="https://vomkorea.com/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Voice of the Martyrs Korea</a> explains, “One of the challenges that we see with people, groups doing work (trying to help those) inside North Korea is that they often don't think about the Christians that are inside North Korea, to begin with.”
Their unsanctioned effort has drawn scrutiny and may prompt tighter restrictions, making it harder for South Korea-based groups who conduct similar work more responsibly and effectively. Most of these groups have found rice bottles ineffective, often failing to reach North Korea.
It's a reaction, instead of a response. Foley says such efforts wrongly assume no gospel outreach exists. Yet, “More people are reading the Bible inside North Korea today than any other time in history.” As of 2020, up to eight percent had encountered Scripture, compared to none in 2000. 
Still, the cost is steep. “There are an estimated 30,000 North Koreans in prison for their faith,” says Foley.
He urges global intercession, both before God and, where possible, before their government. When Christians become aware of the extreme pressures faced by North Korean believers, they must become a voice for them. Share their stories; raise awareness, advocate on their behalf, pray that their faith holds true. Most importantly, pray for more gospel opportunities and for the boldness of local believers.
“Listen to the people who are in a country. Listen to how they tackle the problem, how they ask for partnership, how they believe that those things can best be done,” he adds. Visit <a href="https://vomkorea.com/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Voice of the Martyrs Korea</a> to learn how you can help.
 
 
 
Header photo: Children line up in front of a mural in Pyongyang, North Korea (courtesy of Thomas Evans via Unsplash)
 
 
 ]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 02 Jul 2025 05:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/six-americans-detained-for-attempting-to-send-bibles-to-north-korea-why-the-story-matters/</guid>
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<title>The MENA Leadership Center seeks to mobilize the Church in Pakistan</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/the-mena-leadership-center-mobilizes-the-church-of-pakistan/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Pakistan (MNN) — Christians make up less than 2% of Pakistan’s population and face much opposition because of this. The <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/mena-leadership-center/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MENA Leadership Center</a> is responding to this optimistically. Fadi Sharaiha, the vice president programs and partnerships, sheds light on the current challenges of the Christian minority:
“I see those challenges as opportunities for us to work on those challenges. So whether it's a capacity-building challenge, whether it's [an] evangelistic approach challenge, those are opportunities for us to go meet those needs,” he says.
<img class="size-medium wp-image-215620 alignright" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pexels-qasim-ali-214378309-12122986-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />The MENA Leadership Center is taking steps toward connecting with church leaders in Pakistan. It is starting in-person training programs that will teach believers how to better reach the lost with delivery tactics and by using their understanding of cultural needs. Through these partnerships, local leaders of Pakistani churches will be empowered with mentorship and training to encourage their members to spread the gospel.
The ministry has connected with one Pakistani leader who is currently the head of 120 different churches. He is eager to learn how he can best help them share their faith despite persecution. Sharaiha invites us to share in his vision for the future of this partnership:
<blockquote>
“Can you imagine if we have those 120 churches on fire for Christ?”
</blockquote>
The MENA Leadership Center hopes to see many leaders equipped and the Church of Pakistan awakened and mobilized to powerfully share the good news. Sharaiha reminds us that the mark of Christianity across the globe started with only 12 disciples, so any small step will make a difference.
Please join with the MENA Leadership Center in praying for wisdom and discernment for the team, fruitful partnerships, effective mentorships, an increase in financial resources, and protection against the spiritual attacks of the enemy. 
If you want to learn more about the MENA Leadership Center and how you can partner with them, click <a href="https://menaleadershipcenter.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
 
 
Header photo is a representative stock photo courtesy of Adnan Mughal Photographer via Pexels.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 02 Jul 2025 05:00:28 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/the-mena-leadership-center-mobilizes-the-church-of-pakistan/</guid>
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<title>Nigeria: a divided nation</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/nigeria-a-divided-nation/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Nigeria (MNN) — Last month, militant Fulani herdsmen killed up to 200 Nigerians in the predominantly Christian village of Yelwata. Since then, <a href="https://morningstarnews.org/2025/06/fears-heightened-of-more-carnage-in-benue-state-nigeria/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fear has risen</a> that another large-scale attack could be coming. 
Greg Kelley with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unknown-nations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unknown Nations</a> explains Nigeria is a land of contrasts.
“It's a country that's totally split in half. [Christians] largely are in the south. The other half is Muslim, largely in the north," says Kelley. “The Fulani have been just as notorious, just as aggressive and brutal as Boko Haram."
In addition to religions, influence is another dividing line. Nigeria has one of the highest Christian populations in all of Africa, with <a href="https://joshuaproject.net/countries/NI" target="_blank" rel="noopener">over 120 million believers</a> according to Joshua Project. Yet their cries for protection are often ignored. 
Why? Kelley explains that the Fulani people group is massive, influential, and politically resourceful. "They're very ambitious, and they have incredible leadership and desire for power. So with that, you have key Fulani people that are dispersed throughout the government, throughout businesses. They have tons of resources. So when these killings happen, they tend to look the other way, and that's why they're getting away with it."
The Nigerian government's response has been <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2025/06/03/all-by-design-how-nigerias-islamic-extremists-get-away-with-killing-so-many-christians/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lackluster</a>. Meanwhile, the international community is sometimes bogged down by politics. 
“I think the international community is playing a game of Russian roulette a little bit with ‘how much do we try and enforce [sanctions or human rights policies on] these guys and punish the bad guys, while not handicapping the people that we're trying to elevate?’” says Kelley. 
<h2>A contrasting response</h2>
But on the ground, some Nigerian Christians are pursuing a different solution: sharing the gospel even with the Fulani.
<div id="attachment_205037" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-205037" class="size-medium wp-image-205037" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/WMI_Nigeria-Treasure-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" />Audio Bibles bring the Gospel to people from oral cultures. (Photo courtesy of Unknown Nations)</div>
“We are hearing about these very perpetrators of aggressions and persecutions coming to know Christ," says Kelley. "We just need to resource the people who are willing to go there in a better way. That is truly the answer for Nigeria.”
Supporting these Christians could mean sponsoring motorcycles for outreach, providing training, or distributing solar-powered audio Bibles. Last year, Unknown Nations distributed over 3,000 audio Bibles in Nigeria. 
Kelley says the place to start is with prayer. Pray along with <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matt9%3A37-38&version=ESV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Matthew 9:37-38</a> that God will send more workers into Nigeria's north. Pray that the advance of the gospel will transform the country from the inside out. 
“I promise you one thing: today, there's someone taking the gospel into northern Nigeria who will be killed because of that, and they're doing it joyfully," says Kelley. "Why? Because they recognize we're just passing through this world. We are just temporary stewards of this opportunity to take the gospel into places like that. That's the answer.”
 
 
Header photo: A western Fulani woman carries a bucket on her head and is silhouetted against the setting sun. (Photo, caption courtesy of IMB, <a href="https://www.imb.org/photos/terms-conditions/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CC 4.0</a>)]]>
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<pubDate>Tue, 01 Jul 2025 05:00:25 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/nigeria-a-divided-nation/</guid>
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<title>After-school program builds trust, opens the way for the gospel</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/after-school-program-builds-trust-opens-the-way-for-the-gospel/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Sri Lanka (MNN) — The World Bank approved a $50 million package to <a href="https://www.outlookbusiness.com/news/world-bank-grants-50-million-to-improve-sri-lankas-education-system" target="_blank" rel="noopener">support public education reforms</a> in Sri Lanka. Funding will be used to improve education quality and upgrade school facilities. 
Public schools aren’t the only ones gaining attention these days. Greg Yoder with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/christian-world-outreach/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Christian World Outreach</a> says parents in Sri Lanka are increasingly drawn to their after-school tutoring program. 
At first, “parents are a little leery that we're trying to just convert their children, but then they learn that that's not what we're doing,” Yoder says. “They've grown to love what we do and [are] open to hearing that Jesus loves them, and wants nothing more than [for] them to love Him.” 
Run by volunteers, the program offers tutoring in math and English. “They use Bible stories and songs to share Christ, as well as giving them education,” says Yoder.
<div id="attachment_205624" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-205624" class="size-medium wp-image-205624" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-31-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" />Ministry in Sri Lanka. (Photo courtesy of Christian World Outreach)</div>
However, not everyone in the community wants to hear the Good News. 
“There is some resistance to the Gospel [due to] Sri Lanka being mostly Hindu and Buddhist.” 
CWO works with dedicated local leaders in Sri Lanka who live out the Gospel while meeting educational and physical needs. Pray for one CWO partner facing persecution. 
“The Buddhist priest is trying to force this homeowner to stop renting to one of our leaders [who] has a house church,” says Yoder. “We're working to help him find another place, if he does get kicked out.”
Yoder asks that you also pray for wisdom for CWO as they connect with local gospel workers. 
“Word is being spread that we're coming alongside ministry leaders,” he says. “They're coming to us and saying, ‘Hey, can we partner with you?’ So that's a challenge, but it's also an opportunity.”
CWO’s vision for gospel-centered ministry goes beyond mere financial partnership.
“We are encouraging them to find funds in-country. Some of them are doing that,” says Yoder. “They're looking to their churches and saying, ‘Hey, we need to step up. If we want to share the gospel with our community, we need to invest in that.’”
CWO partners with ministry leaders who want to share the gospel, whether they're doing a church plant, house church, or any kind of evangelism in their communities. <a href="https://cwomissions.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Learn more about their mission and how you can be part of it here</a>.
 
 
 
Header photo from Galle, Sri Lanka courtesy of Fredrik Öhlander via Unsplash. Cropped from original version. ]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Jul 2025 05:00:09 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/after-school-program-builds-trust-opens-the-way-for-the-gospel/</guid>
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<title>translationCore empowers global Church to accelerate Bible translation</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/translationcore-empowers-global-church-to-accelerate-bible-translation/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
International (MNN) -- As technology adoption increases across age groups, the global Church is beginning to bridge the digital gap, including in Bible translation.
A <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2022/01/13/share-of-those-65-and-older-who-are-tech-users-has-grown-in-the-past-decade/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recent Pew Research study</a> shows that the technology usage gap between Americans under 30 and those over 65 has significantly narrowed over the past decade. However, within the Bible translation community, a digital divide still exists.
Dane, a spokesperson with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unfoldingword/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unfoldingWord,</a> a ministry dedicated to enabling church-centric Bible translation, says traditional translation methods often require high-tech infrastructure, formal training, and external oversight. This creates barriers for many language communities that need God’s Word in their heart language.
One of the biggest challenges, Dane explains, stems from a common misconception: “The question goes like this: ‘I thought only experts with PhDs could translate the Bible. How can we know church-based Bible translations are trustworthy?”
This perception and a global decline in the number of qualified Bible translation consultants created a bottleneck. “It drove the creation of unfoldingWord’s software toolset that we call translationCore,” Dane says.
<div id="attachment_215488" style="width: 366px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/translationCore-pic.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215488" class="wp-image-215488" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/translationCore-pic-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="356" height="200" /></a>(Photo courtesy of unfoldingWord)</div>
translationCore is a suite of open-access digital tools designed to empower local churches and translation teams with quality control, accuracy checks, and collaboration support. <a href="https://unfoldingword.org/for-translators/tools/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
The impact is already visible. “This team [in Myanmar] is working on a translation that will reach over 600,000 people who have never heard the story of Jesus in their language,” Dane shares.
By streamlining the translation checking process, translationCore drastically increases efficiency.
“They tell us, ‘When we have to check a Bible translation by hand, manually, we can get through maybe 10 verses a day. When using translationCore, we can check 100 verses a day,’” Dane reports.
unfoldingWord provides these tools free of charge to the global Body of Christ, but continued development depends on support. “We share these tools... without charge, but they aren’t free,” Dane notes.
<blockquote>
“Every gift helps get them fully developed and out to the people that need them most.”
</blockquote>
You can find your place in this unfolding story — and be part of accelerating Scripture access for the world’s least-reached — by <a href="https://donorbox.org/uw-tools" target="_blank" rel="noopener">supporting unfoldingWord here.</a>
 
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/three-person-pointing-the-silver-laptop-computer-2FPjlAyMQTA" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John/Unsplash</a>.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 01 Jul 2025 05:00:05 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/translationcore-empowers-global-church-to-accelerate-bible-translation/</guid>
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<title>Protests in Kenya point to serious concerns among the next generation</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/protests-in-kenya-point-to-serious-concerns-among-the-next-generation/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Kenya (MNN) — Youth-led protests have rocked parts of Kenya this year, and last week they turned deadly. 
The suspicious death of 31-year-old blogger <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2025/6/11/east-africas-rulers-saw-what-gen-z-can-do-now-theyre-striking-first" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Albert Ojwang</a> in police custody was one spark. That early June incident is <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/6/13/kenya-police-officer-arrested-over-bloggers-death-in-custody" target="_blank" rel="noopener">under investigation</a>. Then last Wednesday, thousands hit the streets of Nairobi to mark the anniversary of <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/6/25/kenya-on-edge-will-anti-tax-protests-erupt-again-amid-national-strike" target="_blank" rel="noopener">June 2024 protests</a>.
But like last year, the demonstrations turned tragically violent. Clashes between police and demonstrators left hundreds were wounded and <a href="https://www.africanews.com/2025/06/26/death-toll-in-kenyan-anti-government-protests-rises-to-16-says-rights-group/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">at least 16 dead</a>. 
Bruce Allen with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/forgotten-missionaries-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FMI</a> spoke with a partner church planter named Caleb who witnessed these events — not by choice.
“He was in Nairobi for work, and then just saw the crowd of people,” Allen says. “Things got chaotic. ‘And suddenly,’ [Caleb] says, ‘I was caught between water cannons, tear gas and panic. It was terrifying.’” It was some time before he was able to contact his family to let them know he was safe.
<h2>Deep-set divide</h2>
There are real differences between the Kenyan government and its people, and neither side is innocent. The government denied that police used excessive force on Wednesday's protests, which it labeled as <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/kenyans-clean-up-looted-shops-torched-buildings-after-day-deadly-protests-2025-06-26/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">an attempted coup</a>. Officials <a href="https://x.com/MwauraIsaac1/status/1937819256110108943" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ordered</a> media outlets not to give live coverage to the demonstrations.
Meanwhile, protestors set cars and buildings on fire and looted Nairobi storefronts. Protests were also reported in <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/6/26/at-least-eight-killed-in-deadly-kenya-protests-what-we-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">communities</a> surrounding Nairobi.
<div id="attachment_215573" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215573" class="size-medium wp-image-215573" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/imb-photos-2009197kns708-small-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />(Photo courtesy of IMB, CC 4.0)</div>
Yet legitimate concerns exist beneath the chaos. According to the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) in Kenya, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/6/13/kenya-police-officer-arrested-over-bloggers-death-in-custody" target="_blank" rel="noopener">20 people</a> have died in police custody in the past four months. Kenya's next generation is frustrated by the police brutality, corruption, and economic hardship that seem to be going unaddressed.
“They feel like their concerns are falling on deaf ears, or that even politicians are exploiting them and will use them as cannon fodder, sadly,” says Allen. 
For example, not all protesters are there for the same reasons. One said he was hired to join a demonstration — in his case, for the equivalent of around $40. There are serious risks to this: Four young men from Caleb’s neighborhood were among those killed this week. 
“[Caleb] said they were full of promise. He said they were used and discarded by politicians who paid them to protest,” Allen says. 
In the aftermath of these events in Nairobi, Caleb shared this: “But ministry has to go on. It's the Church of Christ that offers any semblance of hope, even when life is being taken away. We press on.”
Here are ways Caleb asks for your prayers: 
<ul>
<li>Pray for peace and calm to pervade the streets and for protection over all those who are caught in the unrest, especially the young people, who are the most vulnerable.</li>
<li>Pray for justice for the lives that have been lost, and for healing in the hearts of families and communities that have been deeply affected. </li>
<li>Pray for the ministry of local churches, that they may be channels of hope, of comfort and strength to those who are hurting right now.</li>
</ul>
"Your prayers mean everything to us," said Caleb.
 
 
 
Header photo: City scene in Nairobi, Kenya (Stock photo courtesy of Nicholas Gray/Unsplash).]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 30 Jun 2025 05:00:54 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/protests-in-kenya-point-to-serious-concerns-among-the-next-generation/</guid>
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<title>How the Deaf experience war</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/how-the-deaf-experience-war/</link>
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<![CDATA[
International (MNN) -- <a href="https://www.cfr.org/global-conflict-tracker" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to the US Council on Foreign Relations,</a> there are 28 active conflicts worldwide today. Each one holds unique dangers for Deaf individuals, from Ukraine to Gaza to Sudan.
Even fleeing to safety can be deadly. Rob Myers of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/door-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DOOR International</a> says, “We know of Deaf people who have been shot on site because the person asking them questions doubted that they were Deaf.”
Deaf people often miss critical wartime information because of language barriers. For example, in Ukraine, “Hearing people in the cities would hear the UN trucks coming and would know that they were carrying food and supplies, and so they would run out and start to grab supplies,” Myers says.
<blockquote>
“Deaf people were not aware that the trucks were in town. No one told them. When they finally became aware, they would run out, and the supplies would already be gone.”
</blockquote>
<div id="attachment_215545" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/DOOR_Ukraine-2022.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215545" class="size-medium wp-image-215545" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/DOOR_Ukraine-2022-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>In 2022, DOOR International partnered with Deaf Bridge to help Deaf Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine. (Photo courtesy of DOOR International)</div>
Many Deaf also lack information about the spiritual war raging around us because they cannot access the Gospel in their heart sign language.
“Oftentimes, we think of spiritual as immaterial or invisible, and it’s interesting that the needs of many of these Deaf communities, particularly the spiritual needs, are invisible to us as the Church,” Myers says.
DOOR International equips Deaf believers to reach Deaf communities for Christ. <a href="https://doorinternational.org/our-work" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
“DOOR recognizes that God’s word is central to being able to know Him and follow Him, so DOOR is involved in sign language Bible translation in various parts of the world,” Myers says.
“[We also] recognize that the people most likely to share Christ with the Deaf are Deaf missionaries. We train Deaf missionaries to go into unreached Deaf communities and ultimately raise up indigenous, local Deaf leaders to reach their own people groups with the Gospel.”
You can be part of the change. <a href="https://doorinternational.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Learn how here.</a>
“For those who want to see people know Jesus, and especially want to see that happen for whole people groups who haven’t had access to the Gospel for millennia, we would encourage you to look at what God is doing through DOOR International,” Myers says.
 
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/a-couple-of-people-walking-down-a-dirty-street-yi441ziW2ak" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mahmoud Sulaiman/Unsplash.</a>]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 30 Jun 2025 05:00:37 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/how-the-deaf-experience-war/</guid>
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<title>Egyptian widows see threads of a brighter future</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/egyptian-widows-see-threads-of-a-brighter-future/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Egypt (MNN) — In Egypt, Christian widows often face religious and gender-based oppression. Widowhood is marked by black clothing, social isolation, and limited opportunities to work or provide for one’s family.
<a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/uncharted-ministries/">Uncharted Ministries</a> sought to encourage these believers by equipping them with a new skill and reminding them they have a purpose. 
The ministry purchased several sewing machines and hired a local Christian seamstress to offer a six-day-long sewing class as encouragement and practical help to twelve women.
Erik Ouimette with <a href="https://unchartedministries.com/">Uncharted</a> says the ministry hopes to honor the women, giving them a new skill and a reason to be in the public square again, engaging with civic life. The ministry wants the widows to know that they are worthy of investment and valuable. 
They originally intended the event to be a ministry for Christian women. However, the on-the-ground team in Egypt turned it into an opportunity for evangelism. 
They wondered, “We've got enough sewing machines here, and the room is large enough. What if we bring in six Christian widows and six Muslim widows? What would happen?”
Muslims and Christians in the country are not supposed to gather for events like this, so the biggest concern going into class was that security might shut it down.
The event was successful, however, and the favor with security that was prayed for was granted. The class was a rare example of how Christians and Muslims could interact.
Ouimette says, "I've never seen more women, more integrated, sitting side by side at a sewing machine. One of them was running the elastic on a band of a pair of pants, and the other one was sitting there running the machine through. You would never know that one was a Christian and one was a Muslim. You would never know as the children in the room were playing, which kids were of which religion."
Going forward, this ministry hopes to do more classes.
<blockquote>
“No one held up women in a culture that did not more than Jesus did. That was the heart of our Lord and Savior, and that continues to be one of the big differentiating pieces between how Christians interact with women in Egypt and how the Muslim culture does.”
</blockquote>
Please pray for the ministry that it will continue to find favor with security. 
Pray for the widows in Egypt that they will be blessed by the ministry, encouraging believers and reaching unbelievers with the love of Jesus. Pray for the resources to do this good work. 
 
 
Header Photo is a representative stock image by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@jwill14?utm_content=creditCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=unsplash">J Williams</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/sewing-machine-grey-scale-photography-and-close-up-photography-tabzu_kbVs0?utm_content=creditCopyText&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=unsplash">Unsplash</a>]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 30 Jun 2025 05:00:50 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/egyptian-widows-see-threads-of-a-brighter-future/</guid>
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<title>Hospital attack claims 40 lives in Sudan</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/hospital-attack-claims-40-lives-in-sudan/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Sudan (MNN) -- Civilians continue to bear the brunt of Sudan’s brutal war. A <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/over-40-people-including-children-killed-sudan-hospital-attack-says-who-chief-2025-06-24/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recent attack</a> on a hospital claimed over 40 lives, including health workers and children.
Vulnerable groups are coming under fire. “It's soft targets; these are not military bases,” Darrell Templeton with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/megavoice/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MegaVoice</a> says.
<blockquote>
“Less than 10 percent of the hospitals and clinics in the country are even operational, and so the humanitarian crisis just continues to rise.”
</blockquote>
Despite the scale of the crisis, few outside Sudan are aware. “The situation has gone from bad to worse,” Templeton says.
“It's the largest displacement of people anywhere in the world, and, unfortunately, because Israel and Iran are getting all the headline news, this has dropped off the radar of most people.”
Yet the Lord hears their cries. In the midst of chaos, believers are holding fast.
“If I could get out of there, I would. And yet, we hear stories of pastors and lay leaders that choose to stay and shepherd the few believers they have and be that beacon of hope in their communities,” Templeton says.
Through partners like Samaritan’s Purse, MegaVoice audio Bibles bring both hope and help.
“They not only carry the Bible and Scripture, but they also carry different content that some of our partners will put on it,” Templeton says.
“They can add local content, be it medical information for the family on how to do wound care, or even Bible stories in the local language.”
Pray for strength and resources for medical workers, and ask God to meet urgent needs.
“The whole cholera situation is a growing epidemic this year,” Templeton says. “They think it's going to be worse than what it was in 2023.”
 
 
 
Header image depicts a family in Sudan. Photo courtesy of Sudan Envoy/<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sudan_Envoy_-_Family.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wikimedia Commons.</a>]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2025 05:00:36 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/hospital-attack-claims-40-lives-in-sudan/</guid>
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<title>SAT-7 Persian channel brings gospel comfort to Iranian kids during war</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/sat-7-persian-channel-brings-gospel-comfort-to-iranian-kids-during-war/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Iran (MNN) — Iran and Israel’s open conflict simmered down after the June 24 ceasefire, but the narratives are still coming fast. Dozens of voices offer their interpretations of the events surrounding the 12-day war. 
But in the clamor, Christians need to find and hold onto the Kingdom realities. 
“No matter what country — but especially in the Middle East, which seems so different from the West — there are men and women, boys and girls who are made in the image of God,” says Joe Willey with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/sat-7/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SAT-7</a>.
<blockquote>
“I think as long as we look through that lens, we will see people who should hear the gospel. We will see people with compassion and mercy. Because after all, God has given me great mercy.”
</blockquote>
SAT-7’s Persian channel (SAT-7 PARS) broadcasts not only for adults but for children as well. 
“One of the heartbreaking things certainly is when adults contact SAT-7, but it truly is when children [do],” Willey says. “We think about children as these young innocents — and in many ways, they are. But if you grew up in conflict, I don't know what your innocence would look like. It certainly is not the innocence that I grew up in.”
<div id="attachment_215550" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215550" class="wp-image-215550 size-medium" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/506709965_1284384607026345_5832196424146531278_n-300x300.jpg" alt="Israel-Iran conflict, Sarina, children, child, kids," width="300" height="300" />SAT-7 PARS went live on satellite and social media with a special episode of '<a href="https://sat7.org/live-program-offers-shelter-of-peace-for-children-in-iran/?fbclid=IwY2xjawLKoK9leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETE5b3VOSHU1cmZ6UnBtbmROAR6J3cQxPVmjQeeSiRj-dDHbgVrt3Q4qbJ5f8eBIZQZ4Ck9v-o6GYBPAXcT7cA_aem_RJ5eshaalRN8guvTjrUurQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Church4Kids'</a>, which focused on helping young viewers to manage their emotions during times of crisis. (Photo, caption courtesy of SAT-7 via Facebook)</div>
One little girl in Iran named Sarina sent this message to <a href="https://www.sat7usa.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SAT-7</a>’s Persian channel team during the 12-day conflict: 
“I want to ask you to pray for me. Last night, five or six missiles flew right over our heads. Since then, I haven't been able to sleep at all. I was so scared. We keep reading this verse, ‘I will not die but live and will proclaim what the Lord has done.’ Psalm 118:17.”
In the midst of this heaviness, the viewer support team at SAT-7 PARS receives prayer requests and gives biblical encouragement to children and adults. 
“SAT-7 will receive heartfelt, distraught questions from people who say, ‘Where is God? Why would God let this happen? Is there hope for me? Am I going to die?’” says Willey.
“SAT-7 provides an eternal perspective. [It] provides the gospel to people who are fearful that this is their last day.” 
The conflict with Iran and Israel will likely have another chapter. Please pray for more people across the Middle East to realize the hope found only in Jesus.
“I pray that we can beg God for mercy, beg God that the gospel would continue to reach hearts and change not only countries, but change the world,” says Willey.
 
 
Header photo: Children in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran (Representative stock photo courtesy of Amin Alavi via Unsplash)]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2025 05:00:16 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Growing the church behind bars</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/growing-the-church-behind-bars/</link>
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<![CDATA[
International (MNN) — Imagine life in a third-world prison. What would it mean to have an active, growing church within those walls?
The good news? Don Szolomayer with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/prisoners-for-christ/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Prisoners for Christ</a> says almost every prison they’ve served over the years has some form of a church.
“[It] may not be in a building. It may just be a handful of inmates that gather periodically. On the other side of that, it may be a full-blown, active church with a building, with structure.” 
These churches need support. Prisoners for Christ offers an International Bible Institute program that disciples inmates in their faith in Christ. (More on that <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/nigerian-government-takes-notice-of-international-bible-institutes-impact/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.)
Another strategy is to connect believers outside of the prison with those inside.
<div id="attachment_185649" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-185649" class="size-medium wp-image-185649" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/camilo-jimenez-49h5yXieSSM-unsplash-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" />Representative picture of a small prison cell. (Photo by camilo jimenez on Unsplash)</div>
“When we go to various countries...we go into their prisons and we model how to do services and things of that nature, but then we're gone. Who's there to carry over? So one of the things we do is we try to find local churches and that to take on that responsibility,” says Szolomayer.
He encourages pastors around the world to view prison churches as part of their own congregation. Looking ahead, Prisoners for Christ hopes to see many inmates serving as chaplains within the facilities where they are incarcerated.
“You have someone in that prison that's there, 24/7, that can share, that can mentor, that can disciple, that can evangelize on the spot, as needed, as things occur — that's really the church in action in a prison setting,” says Szolomayer. 
Please pray as <a href="https://www.prisonersforchrist.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Prisoners for Christ</a> develops their ministry model to plant more churches and strengthen the ones that already exist. Rapport with prison officials is opening the way for church-planting.
“It's almost like starting from scratch every time you go to plant a church in a prison, because the variables are just all over the place,” says Szolomayer. 
 
 
 
Header photo: Representative stock photo from Iran courtesy of Mashid Saberpour via Unsplash.]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2025 05:00:40 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/growing-the-church-behind-bars/</guid>
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<title>Christians in Iran seek relocation for long-term witness</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/christians-in-iran-seek-relocation-for-long-term-witness/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Iran (MNN) — What’s next for Iran and Israel won’t change what Iran and Israel are today. As the international dialogues continue around peace and nuclear power, Greg Kelley with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unknown-nations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unknown Nations</a> says, “We need to really look at the Iranian regime as it stands now, and what that represents more so than some kind of a fleeting, fragile peace deal.”
The <a href="https://www.cfr.org/expert-brief/irans-regime-rattled-resilient-so-far" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Islamic Republic of Iran</a> will always be against Israel and America, Christianity and Judaism, among other things. It’s embedded in the regime's worldview. 
“I think that the regime, as it weakens — which there's no denying that it’s weakening — that it will all the furthermore lunge out and attack anything that is in opposition to it,” says Kelley.
<blockquote>
That puts Iranian Christians in the crosshairs. Unknown Nations partners in Iran requested immediate relocation for up to 500 leaders and their families. Kelley says it’s short-term protection in order to prepare for long-term gospel witness in Iran. 
</blockquote>
These Christians “love the Iranian people with a passion," says Kelley. "[They] aren’t interested in leaving the country of Iran, but they need to be relocated into places where it’s a little more stable, so that they can continue to grow and their ministry can continue.”
<div id="attachment_215517" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215517" class="size-medium wp-image-215517" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/erfan-ro-YJTufMXpkYk-unsplash-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" />Azadi Square, Tehran, Iran (Stock photo courtesy of Erfan Ro via Unsplash)</div>
Unknown Nations trains Christians like these with the future in mind.
"Iranians are looking at the religion of Islam through a new lens today, and there's an openness because of that to the gospel. The Body of Christ needs to recognize that and lean in. For Unknown Nations, it looks like equipping leaders, the diaspora of the Iranian people — and that involves people groups like the Persian people, who live not only in Iran, but in neighboring countries."
Kelley calls this leadership training a critical strategy, "all the more so now, because the day is coming [when] Iran will be open, and... that void of leadership is going to be a critical time — whether it lasts for a week, a month, a year, two years — for the Body of Christ to really lean in and pour into [gospel advance in Iran]."
<h2>Please pray</h2>
Kelly invites you to keep Iran regularly into your prayers. "And not just Iran as a country, but recognizing there [are] 94 nations or people groups inside the country of Iran. Jesus called us to pray for the nations, not a [geopolitical] country like Iran, but the nations.” 
Visit Joshua Project and start with the <a href="https://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/14371/IR" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Persian</a> people or with the <a href="https://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/15356/IR" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Western Baloch</a>. 
Then zoom in and pray for the <a href="https://www.unknownnations.com/special-project" target="_blank" rel="noopener">strategic relocation process</a> for the 500 believers and families Unknown Nations is working with. (Watch <a href="https://www.unknownnations.com/special-project" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a special video</a> directly from Greg Kelley to learn how you can be part of this mission.)
Please pray for the gospel ministry of Christians to increase in Iran. But don't make “safety” the focus of your prayers. 
“They would ask rather that you pray that they would be bold. Pray they would be courageous," says Kelley. "Pray that they would have discernment in the face of adversity.”
 
 
Header image: People on the Withe Bridge of Ahvaz. (Photo courtesy of Ashkan Forouzani via Unsplash)]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 26 Jun 2025 05:00:06 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/christians-in-iran-seek-relocation-for-long-term-witness/</guid>
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<title>Attack on Nigerian Christians prompts urgent global response</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/attack-on-nigerian-christians-prompts-urgent-global-response/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Nigeria (MNN) — In a devastating wave of violence, Fulani gunmen killed more than <a href="https://www.opendoorsuk.org/news/latest-news/nigeria-deadly-attacks/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">200 Christians</a> in a single night.
<blockquote>“You see children, you see mothers, you see fathers just killed. They were either burned to death, they were shot to death. And it was absolutely gruesome...”</blockquote>
This attack reflects a growing pattern of violent assaults on Christians across Nigeria. Greg Musselman of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/voice-of-the-martyrs-canada/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Voice of the Martyrs Canada </a>shares the chilling account of the most recent massacre. On the night of June 13 to 14, Fulani gunmen stormed the <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2025-06/pope-terrible-massacre-guma-yelwata-benue-state-nigeria.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Yelwata Catholic mission</a> in Benue State, where many internally displaced people had sought refuge.
<div id="attachment_215524" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215524" class="size-medium wp-image-215524" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nigeria_Benue_State_map-300x231.png" alt="Wikimedia Commons" width="300" height="231" />Nigeria Benue State map (picture courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)</div>
Shouting “Allahu Akbar,” the attackers burned buildings and slaughtered people with guns and machetes. At least 218 were killed, and more than 6,000 were displaced.
This particular assault stood out from the days of earlier violence. Musselman explains, “What makes this one just a little bit different is the number of people that were killed and the fact that the United States <a href="https://www.uscirf.gov/news-room/releases-statements/uscirf-reiterates-call-cpc-designation-nigeria" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Commission on International Religious Freedom</a> is saying, ‘Come on, something needs to be done. This is a country that is out of control!’”
The Fulani herdsmen’s motives include seizing land and enforcing their version of Islam on the populations they target. But another major reason for the violence is the growing Christian presence in northern Nigeria. “I have met so many former Muslims that are now Christians, and they're just loving the Lord, wanting to do God's mission,” says Musselman.
When it comes to violence, the Fulani militants have surpassed even Boko Haram. “In many of the places where we work through Voice of the Martyrs in Nigeria, it is, once again, the Fulani militants — radical Muslims — who are causing all this destruction,” he adds. Many Christians feel abandoned by their government and are fleeing with little hope of return.
As the Gospel spreads in the northern Nigeria and persecution intensifies, it resembles a war on earth. Musselman described it this way: “Can you see this battle between God's kingdom and the kingdom of darkness? But the Gospel is going forward, and people are coming to know Him.”
How can you help?
First, “We must remember that they are individual people,” reminds Musselman — not just numbers in a statistic, but human beings with potential, gifts, and skills whose lives were tragically cut short, or are currently in danger. Second, pray and support frontline ministries like <a href="https://www.vomcanada.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Voice of the Martyrs Canada </a>and others serving in similar contexts.
 
 
 
 
Header image courtesy of Bruchin Noeka via Pexels.]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 26 Jun 2025 05:00:50 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/attack-on-nigerian-christians-prompts-urgent-global-response/</guid>
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<title>“Pray with them, listen to their struggles” – supporting indigenous Bible translators around the world</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/pray-with-them-listen-to-their-struggles-supporting-indigenous-bible-translators-around-the-world/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
International (MNN) — Innovation and encouragement are driving Bible translation efforts worldwide.
The apostles of Jesus understood the importance of hearing the Gospel in one’s own language — even the New Testament was originally written in Greek.
Mark Stedman from <a href="https://wycliffeassociates.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wycliffe Associates</a> explains,
“One of the things that we know about Bible translation is that the work is difficult and the work is rewarding, and the work certainly brings an amazing spiritual blessing to the community that's doing that.”
The ministry provides communities with written Bibles, sign language, as well as oral and audio Scripture. “We really want to be able to provide scripture in any way that people need,” says Stedman.
Bible translation is accelerated by empowering national translators and partnering with local churches. These translators often face displacement, persecution, and economic insecurity. Supporting and encouraging them is a vital goal of the ministry. Stedman shares:
<blockquote>
“I always tell people, how do you treat people that you care about? You talk to them. You're engaged in their lives. You sit and pray with them, you listen to their struggles, and you try to help them.”
</blockquote>
<div id="attachment_215533" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215533" class="size-medium wp-image-215533" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/kelly-sikkema-ocmLNQTweT4-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="Unsplash" width="300" height="200" />Old Greek Bible (photo courtesy of Kelly Sikkema via Unsplash)</div>
To support this work, Wycliffe Associates uses <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/technology-meets-mission-starlinks-role-in-bible-translation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Starlink</a> internet, sending it directly to translators or relocating it with traveling workers. Having this technology regularly and consistently available has helped shorten the distance between Bible translation groups and their supporters worldwide.
“We've got over a dozen units now that are in place around the world. They are in Africa, as well as in the Pacific. There's one particular Pacific nation that has over 250 million people in it, and it's been really helpful for them. We've got some in Central America. In addition to that, we also have a number of units that travel,” says Stedman.
These “traveling units” are not fixed in one location but are assigned to field personnel who travel globally to support Bible translation efforts, carrying these portable units with them.
“It helps them to upload their Scriptures, to make sure that they're safely saved in the 'cloud'. It also allows them to be able to make those calls,” says Stedman.
Please pray that the Holy Spirit would encourage the hearts of His people as they serve through Bible translation. Visit <a href="https://wycliffeassociates.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Wycliffe Associates</a> to know how you can help people hear the message of love in their own language!
 
 
 
 
Header photo: Indigenous man (photo courtesy of Alva Shoot via Pexels).
 
 
 
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<pubDate>Thu, 26 Jun 2025 05:00:03 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/pray-with-them-listen-to-their-struggles-supporting-indigenous-bible-translators-around-the-world/</guid>
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<title>When did the Israel-Iran war really begin?</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/when-did-the-israel-iran-war-really-begin/</link>
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Iran (MNN) — In the midst of a shaky Israel-Iran truce, let’s take a step back to ask: when did this war actually start? Did Israel begin it on June 13, 2025 by firing on Iranian military and nuclear targets?
Brother F, an Iranian Christian serving with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/trans-world-radio/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Trans World Radio</a>, points to Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution as the answer. That’s when “Death to Israel, Death to America” became <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2024/2/11/iran-marks-45th-anniversary-of-islamic-revolution" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a government-sanctioned mantra</a>.
“There was the war started actually, not now,” he says. “And people [need] to know this war is also not a war between Iran and Israel: it is war between [the] Islamic Republic of Iran and Israel.” 
He means there is a clash of theology in the conflict, a worldview that goes beyond mere nation-to-nation narratives. 
It wasn't always like this. Israel and Iran’s relationship goes back to ancient Old Testament days, says Brother F. In the biblical accounts of Esther, Nehemiah and Daniel, we see kings of Persia like Cyrus and Ahasuerus acting on behalf of Israel. 
There's another thing Brother F wants others to know. Despite the Iranian regime’s efforts, spiritual awakening is surging as the people of Iran reject religion. 
<blockquote>
“If we go to every Iranian as speaking about religion, they just say, ‘No, I don't want to know anything about religion. We had Islam. It is enough,’” he says. “[But] when you speak about that ‘Jesus want[s a] personal relation with you,’ they accept it and they love it. They say, ‘I want to follow this Jesus, because He wants relation with me, not religion.’” 
</blockquote>
To help meet this spiritual hunger, TWR broadcasts Scripture, worship, and more through its Persian World Radio platform. (More on that <a href="https://twr.org/story/responding-to-growing-spiritual-hunger-in-iran" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.)
“We have so much to do in this way, because all these people have [the] right to know who is the true God,” says Brother F. 
If the Iranian regime stays in power after this conflict, Brother F says many people will die, including Christians. Please pray for both Israel and Iran, that many people will be saved even in the conflict. Pray for regime change in Iran, and for the Iranian people to have the freedom to follow the true God.
 
 
Header image: (2015) The anniversary of Islamic revolution is celebrated on 11 February 1979 and Iranian marches toward Azadi Tower. This political celebration held on the last day of Fajr decade. (Photo by Mostafameraji - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0 courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 25 Jun 2025 05:00:34 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/when-did-the-israel-iran-war-really-begin/</guid>
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<title>Meeting Church needs in China despite challenges</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/meeting-church-needs-in-china-despite-challenges/</link>
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China (MNN) – Despite challenges facing Christian practice in China, <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/bibles-for-china/">Bibles for China</a> continues to explore new ministry opportunities, supplying Bibles to Chinese seekers and believers.
Sinicization, the assimilation of religion with Chinese culture, came to Chinese Christianity this year, forcing and regulating the encouragement of communism as a Christian value.
Despite setbacks, <a href="https://biblesforchina.org/">Bibles for China</a> is finding ways to expand its ministry and communicate the gospel while maintaining an openness and legality with the Chinese government.
Kurt Rovenstine with Bibles for China says that of the 15 projects they had planned for the year, they are all still in play, just moving slower than in the past.
“The door has not been closed," says Rovenstine. “It's just a lot more boxes to check, and maybe a few more steps to take to get the work done.”
The need for Bibles in China is still strong. Many people would like Bibles and struggle to get access to them, which is the goal the ministry seeks to fulfill.
Rovenstine says, “We work legally and openly through the registered church to supply Bibles to areas where they would not easily be obtained otherwise.”
Bibles for China has had a more hands-off approach the last few years after COVID, but still has nationals acting on behalf of the organization in China.
Because of the challenges that have developed, the organization wondered if there was another way to reach Chinese seekers and believers.
The ministry that's beginning to develop is working to help those in the Chinese diaspora who may be leaving for a variety of reasons, whether it's religious, economic, or educational, and trying to reach those people with the gospel.
Their work has been to try to find places where Christians are already reaching out to these Chinese communities and help supply them with Bibles for their outreach, particularly Children's Bibles and a bilingual New Testament Bible targeted for Chinese seafarers.
Rovenstine says, “The church in China is still vibrant and active, and they are doing their best to live in the world in which God has placed them.”
Pray for Christians in China and their struggles and that the church would continue to thrive in China. Pray for ministries that God would grant wisdom and open and close the doors for decision making. 
 
Header Image coutesy of Bibles for China]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 25 Jun 2025 05:00:02 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/meeting-church-needs-in-china-despite-challenges/</guid>
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<title>New tools speed up global Bible translation</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/new-tools-speed-up-global-bible-translation/</link>
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International (MNN) -- Bible translation has traditionally been a slow, labor-intensive process. It often requires Western missionary linguists to spend years learning a language and then carefully translating the Bible, verse by verse.
“We have profound respect for the accomplishment of our brothers and sisters in the traditional Bible translation world,” Dane with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unfoldingword/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unfoldingWord</a> says.
“Several of our founders spent 30 or 40 years in that movement. We couldn’t do what we do without their shoulders to stand on.”
<div id="attachment_215491" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/UW_translators-at-computer.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215491" class="size-medium wp-image-215491" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/UW_translators-at-computer-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>(Photo courtesy of unfoldingWord)</div>
While traditional methods have made a significant impact, they simply can’t keep up with the growing global demand for Scripture in more languages. That’s where unfoldingWord comes in.
unfoldingWord’s innovative software, <a href="https://unfoldingword.org/for-translators/tools/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">translationCore,</a> is transforming how translation happens – putting powerful tools directly into the hands of the global Church.
“It is our goal to deliver a comprehensive end-to-end Bible translation tool chain that’s self-service,” Dane says. “It provides self-service capabilities for drafting, checking accuracy, and even publishing translations.”
The impact has been dramatic. According to partners working with unfoldingWord, “‘When we have to check a Bible translation by hand, we can get through maybe 10 verses a day. When using translationCore, we can check 100 verses a day,’” Dane shares.
<blockquote>
“They have all the tools right there. They don’t have to be a PhD consultant to do this.”
</blockquote>
As the global Church increasingly takes the lead in translating Scripture for their communities, tools like translationCore are essential. However, developing this kind of technology takes resources. <a href="https://donorbox.org/uw-tools" target="_blank" rel="noopener">You can help by giving.</a>
“It costs several hundred thousand dollars per year to develop these tools,” Dane notes. “We really need people to step up and help us to equip the global Church to translate the Bible for themselves.”
 
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of unfoldingWord. ]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 25 Jun 2025 05:00:06 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/new-tools-speed-up-global-bible-translation/</guid>
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<title>“Not their war”: most Iranians want peace, regime change</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/not-their-war-most-iranians-want-peace-regime-change/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Iran (MNN) — If the Iranian regime falls one day, do you know who will be happy? Tens of millions of Iranians. 
“Initially, when the attacks took place from Israel bombing Iranian military sites, there was a lot of enthusiasm from among the general public,” says Mike Ansari, the CEO of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/heart4iran/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Heart4Iran</a>. 
“The bit of information that did find its way out to our call center and other friends outside of Iran indicated a general sense of anticipation for a new season to be brewed — potentially even a change of regime, as most Iranians were hoping to see.”
<div id="attachment_198629" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-198629" class="size-medium wp-image-198629" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/H4A_header-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" />(Photo courtesy of Heart4Iran)</div>
But political change isn’t simple. Ansari says that as Israel-Iran tensions escalated, Iranians realized that there is a leadership gap among the opposition. 
“Therefore, the question that was raised is, ‘Well, what happens if there's a regime change? Who will take over? What would be the outcome?’” he says.
Outside of Iran, Iran’s exiled prince is calling for <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/iran-exiled-crown-prince-country-back-ali-khamenei-reza-pahlavi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">support</a> for a new Iran. Within Iran, men and women desire peace — with both Israel and America. 
<blockquote>
“In fact, when you go on the streets and you talk to most people, they're saying that the war that [the] Iranian government has waged is not their war,” says Ansari. 
</blockquote>
Yet, Iranians remain under a chokehold. Ansari says banks are shut down and surveillance is at an all-time high. “In the last 10 days, the number of arrests is on [the] rise. Over 20 people have been rounded up, and it appears two people have been <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/06/iran-growing-fears-over-torture-and-executions-of-individuals-accused-of-espionage-for-israel/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">executed</a> under the guise of being agents of Israel.”
The next few weeks and months will be especially dangerous for Iran’s growing church. 
“Remember, historically, anytime that Iran has gone through a crisis, the demographic of the underground church leaders and members have seen a rise in house raids, arrests, and confiscation of their homes or their belongings,” says Ansari.
Meanwhile, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/iran-internet-blackout-israel-war-6aa315eff871579f8bfc220ce3930e5f" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the internet in Iran is down</a>, but satellite feeds remain active. That’s how Heart4Iran continues <a href="https://heart4iran.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">broadcasting the gospel</a>.
“[There] are a lot of Iranians that are glued to their TV trying to figure out what's going on, and most of them are hopeless. So we have a unique opportunity to bring the gospel, the message of hope of Christ, to these masses that are hopeless,” says Ansari.
<div id="attachment_185522" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-185522" class="size-medium wp-image-185522" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/106988758_3096410583805638_4723868724356083893_n-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />Heart4Iran provides satellite TV to connect Christians to the teaching and fellowship of other believers. (Photo courtesy of Heart4Iran on Facebook)</div>
Pray for both Iran and Israel, that people will recognize the true freedom and life found only in Jesus.
“As we are dealing with Iran and Iranians, and <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2025/6/23/live-iran-vows-to-respond-to-us-attacks-trump-hints-at-regime-change" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the threat of imminent danger of American targets</a> across Europe and America, please understand that the average Iranians that are in our neighborhood, they are noble people. These are peaceful people. They're loving people,” says Ansari. “Just because the Iranian government is in a hostile situation, it does not mean that average Iranians are.”
 
 
 
Header photo: An Iranian woman stands at an overlook with a panoramic view of Tehran, Iran. Tehran is the capital of Iran and its largest city, with the greater metro area hosting a population of 15 million. (<a href="https://www.imb.org/photos/image/2008230snl0252/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Photo</a>, caption courtesy of IMB, <a href="https://www.imb.org/photos/terms-conditions/">CC 4.0</a>)]]>
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<pubDate>Tue, 24 Jun 2025 05:00:15 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/not-their-war-most-iranians-want-peace-regime-change/</guid>
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<title>Suicide bomber targets church, kills dozens in Damascus</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/suicide-bomber-targets-church-kills-dozens-in-damascus/</link>
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Syria (MNN) -- A suicide bomber <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2025/06/23/suicide-bomber-attacks-church-in-syria/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">allegedly connected to the Islamic State</a> attacked a Greek Orthodox church in Syria’s capital during Sunday worship.
The extremist opened fire in the sanctuary of the Mar Elias Greek Orthodox Church in Damascus before detonating an explosive belt, <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/06/1164786" target="_blank" rel="noopener">killing at least 25 people</a> and wounding more than 60.
This attack marks the first suicide bombing targeting a church in Syria since rebel groups ousted former president Bashar al-Assad in December, ending more than a decade of civil war.
Nuna with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/triumphant-mercy-lebanon/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Triumphant Mercy Lebanon</a> says, “It was a big tragedy for all of them. This is a church I know, a convent where my husband and I used to stay when we visited Syria, so I know the community there very well.”
The Islamic State claimed several attempted attacks on churches following Assad’s fall, but this was the first to succeed, one security source <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/blast-rocks-church-syrias-damascus-witnesses-say-2025-06-22/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Reuters.</a> In the aftermath, Syrian police closed all churches in the region due to fears of further violence.
<div id="attachment_136692" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Wikipedia_ISIS_COLLAGE.png"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-136692" class="size-medium wp-image-136692" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Wikipedia_ISIS_COLLAGE-300x300.png" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>(Wikipedia)</div>
“There have been threats that this would happen again in other regions of Syria,” Nuna says.
<blockquote>
“They have been writing on the walls of a church, ‘Your time is coming soon.’ So, these are real threats from ISIS.”
</blockquote>
Though diplomats applaud Syria’s political transition, minority advocates warn that persecution is on the rise.
“During the older (Assad) regime, the Christians were protected because the regime [leader] was a minority, so he needed all the other minorities to be with him,” Nuna says.
“Now, the government is more Islamist; this is a new threat for Christians.”
Despite the fear and uncertainty, many believers in Syria are drawing strength from their faith and church history. Nuna urges prayer for courage and perseverance: “We want that same boldness. The first Christians were going to lions, and they still went on their mission.”
As violence escalates, you can stand in prayerful solidarity with Syrian Christians facing renewed threats. Ask the Lord to empower believers as He did the first Church.
 
 
 
Header image depicts the Syrian flag. ]]>
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<pubDate>Tue, 24 Jun 2025 05:00:25 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/suicide-bomber-targets-church-kills-dozens-in-damascus/</guid>
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<title>Discovering their names: Gospel hope for Deaf kids</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/discovering-their-names-gospel-hope-for-deaf-kids/</link>
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<![CDATA[
International (MNN) – Imagine not knowing your name for most of your childhood. This isolation is a reality for many Deaf children who live with severely limited access to language. <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/door-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DOOR International</a> and other Deaf ministries seek to help Deaf feel seen as they share the truth of the Gospel.
<h2>Delayed Language Access</h2>
Rob Myers with DOOR says that around 90% of Deaf kids are born into hearing families. However, many of those children’s families don’t ever learn sign language.
“The statistics that I've heard is somewhere around 80%-85%, but it's at least a majority of the parents don't learn sign language. When you think about places in a rural area, in a developing country, the percentage is going to go up even more so. So you're probably talking somewhere between 90%-95%. A vast, vast majority of hearing parents don't learn sign language, and there's a number of reasons behind that.”
This delay in access to language means both speech and written language are restricted. Myers explains that learning to read and write is really a sound-based activity. The symbols on paper are connected to a language a person already knows. So many Deaf children struggle to learn to read.
<blockquote>“So there's this huge discrepancy there in terms of what information a Deaf child will have access to, and that carries over into them knowing that they have a name,” Myers states. “Many Deaf kids, before they get access to sign language, don't have access to any language and that includes understanding their own name. So most Deaf kids grow up not knowing they have a name. It's only when they enter Deaf school and they finally get access to sign language that they begin to understand what's being communicated around them, including their own name.”</blockquote>
<h2>Discovering Identity in a Name Sign</h2>
Myers says that when a new child comes to a Deaf school, one of the first things that the other kids do is introduce themselves and look for unique characteristics of the new kid. These characteristics can be included in a name sign for the child. A name sign is a special honorific sign given by a Deaf person that incorporates some feature of the person named. For many kids understanding their new name sign is incredibly exciting.
<div id="attachment_215470" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215470" class="size-medium wp-image-215470" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/boy-6781191_1280-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" />(Image courtesy of Luisella Planeta on Pixabay)</div>
“When I visit Deaf schools kids will come running up, and the very first thing that they'll do is they'll give you their name. They'll say, I'm and then they'll sign their name. And the first thing that they want you to do then is to repeat back their name sign so that they feel seen and they know that you recognize and understood their name.”
<h2>Always Known by God</h2>
<a href="https://doorinternational.org/what-we-do" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Two-by-two teams</a> share that the Gospel often moves powerfully once Deaf children begin to understand their names.
“One of the things I've heard from them repeatedly is how powerful it is when these kids learn not just that they have a name, but that God knows their name. And that God has always known them. And that even in these isolating experiences where they're in places where it feels like no one knows their language, no one can communicate with them, no one knows who they are – God still sees them. He loves them, and He's been pursuing them.”
There are many Deaf who need to hear about God’s love for them through Christ. DOOR works in many countries with their two-by-two teams to go into schools and share the Gospel regularly with Deaf children. DOOR shares updates from these programs through their website and newsletter so people can be praying. Learn more <a href="https://doorinternational.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here. </a>
Myers also explains that while DOOR mostly works internationally there is a wonderful ministry in the US called Deaf Kids Connect. He recommends that parents of Deaf children or churches that have a Deaf child check out their resources on how to engage Deaf kids. Learn more <a href="https://deafkidsconnect.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Image courtesy of Pavel Danilyuk on Pexels]]>
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<pubDate>Tue, 24 Jun 2025 05:00:47 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/discovering-their-names-gospel-hope-for-deaf-kids/</guid>
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<title>Civil war in Myanmar is jeopardizing its future</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/civil-war-in-myanmar-is-jeopardizing-its-future/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Myanmar (MNN) — Myanmar can’t afford to lose its next generation, but it is. After the 2021 coup, the military junta soon realized that rebel fighter groups were there to stay. In February 2024, they installed a conscription law.
“Basically, it was a mandatory two-year service of men aged 18 to 35 and women [aged] 18 to 27,” says Greg Kelley with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unknown-nations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unknown Nations</a>. 
Youth in Myanmar know too well the dangers of military service. “A lot of these people are thrown into the worst of situations that experienced military people want nothing to do with — for example, being dropped behind enemy lines,” says Kelley. 
There is evidence that the military <a href="https://www.miragenews.com/myanmar-halt-child-soldier-recruitment-now-1481779/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">forces children</a> to serve as soldiers, porters, and even human shields. The rebel groups are no saints either, says Kelley, but he adds, “There's plenty of fault to go around, but these [resistance fighters] are largely people who love their country, and they're fighting for their country.”
<div id="attachment_215455" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215455" class="size-medium wp-image-215455" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/ajay-karpur-OXTUa-5PSO8-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />(Photo of Bagan, Myanmar courtesy of Ajay Karpur via Unsplash.)</div>
Young people are desperately trying to escape conscription, fleeing across borders or seeking education abroad — if they have the means. (More on their plight <a href="https://theconversation.com/myanmars-military-rule-is-crippling-hope-for-young-people-like-never-before-250128" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.) The military responded in January 2025 by issuing a <a href="https://myanmar-now.org/en/news/myanmar-junta-enacts-foreign-travel-ban-for-people-of-conscription-age/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">travel ban</a> for people of conscription age.
<blockquote>
“We've even heard cases of young people committing suicide versus the alternative of going and serving in the military and fighting against their own people," says Kelley. "This is a civil war, and so you're fighting against someone that maybe was your brother, cousin, neighbor (in rebel groups), because they are fighting for freedom. It's an incredibly difficult and complicated situation.” 
</blockquote>
The loss of this next generation puts a strain on Myanmar's churches. Yet the chaos has also opened the way for the gospel. People who used to live in hostile communities now find themselves in refugee camps — environments where gospel workers sow seeds of hope.
Recently, 35 teens at a refugee camp heard the gospel and were baptized. 
“How God uses [these young people] is going to be the million-dollar question,” says Kelley. “Yes, many of them will now probably have to serve for two years. Where God places them — whether it's in the military or they go into a church environment for evangelism — the gospel will be shared there.”
<h2>The sobering spiritual reality</h2>
"A majority of [the people in] that country — over three-quarters — literally are without access to the gospel. That in and of itself needs to make it a priority," says Kelley. 
He adds that Myanmar suffers "the worst of both worlds."
<div id="attachment_215456" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215456" class="size-medium wp-image-215456" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/z-PUgjnSEt2Y8-unsplash-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" />(Photo of child in Tambon Mae La, Kayin State, Myanmar courtesy of Z via Unsplash)</div>
“What do I mean by that? I mean they don't have access to the Gospel, which is horrific in itself. But then you go, ‘Oh yeah, and by the way, there's been a military coup. They're in the midst of a horrific civil war.’”
That's not all. Myanmar is also vulnerable to typhoons and other <a href="https://www.ucanews.com/news/flooding-hits-myanmar-after-civil-war-earthquake/109208" target="_blank" rel="noopener">natural disasters</a>. The recent March 28 earthquake <a href="https://www.reuters.com/markets/asia/earthquake-worsens-myanmars-economic-decline-world-bank-says-2025-06-12/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">killed more than 3,700 people</a>, according to the military junta.
Keep Myanmar in your prayers. Pray for God's mercy, that every person will have a chance to hear the hope of Christ. Pray also for organizations like <a href="https://www.unknownnations.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unknown Nations</a> that have networks on the ground.
"Our infrastructure consists of dozens of leaders. These are national, indigenous people who speak the various languages, who are going in — even into the war areas, into the [refugee] camps — sharing the gospel message. We just appreciate people's prayer, [and any way] they can come alongside of us as the Holy Spirit leads them," says Kelley.
 
 
 
Header image: U Bein Bridge, Mandalay, Myanmar (Photo courtesy of Alexey Komissarov via Unsplash).]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 23 Jun 2025 05:00:11 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/civil-war-in-myanmar-is-jeopardizing-its-future/</guid>
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<title>TWR broadcasts blanket Nigeria with hope</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/twr-broadcasts-blanket-nigeria-with-hope/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Nigeria (MNN) -- Christianity thrives in southern Nigeria, but the northern part of the country is another story.
When Boko Haram came on the scene <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/christians-fear-for-safety-in-islamic-violence/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in 2009,</a> they were the biggest threat to Nigerian Christians. Since then, Fulani herdsmen, the Islamic State, and <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/nigeria-labels-lakurawa-as-terrorist-organization/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">now the Lakurawa</a> have risen against believers.
“There is a force trying to take over in this place and silence Christianity, which we believe, as the Lord lives, that’s not going to happen,” says <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/trans-world-radio/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TWR</a>’s Joshua Irondi about why there is so much opposition to the Gospel.
TWR’s broadcast ministry blankets the country with hope. <a href="https://twr.org/west-central-africa">More about that here.</a>
<div id="attachment_178433" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/70338845_10151118726494986_5726628106488250368_n.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-178433" class="wp-image-178433 size-medium" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/70338845_10151118726494986_5726628106488250368_n-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>(Photo courtesy of TWR via Facebook)</div>
On-the-ground teams disciple men and youth, while TWR’s <a href="https://www.twrwomenofhope.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Women of Hope program</a> reaches moms, grandmothers, and young women.
“These discipleship programs, especially ‘Every Man A Warrior,’ are helping men to stand strong in the faith and understand that, in spite of the persecution, they still stand for the Lord. It’s expected of them,” Irondi says.
Believers also distribute helpful resources to ministry partners. “We partner with churches and Christian organizations in different parts of the nation. They use these materials in their locality to minister to souls and to win them,” Irondi says.
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“We keep sending materials, and these people use them, in spite of the risks involved, to spread the Gospel within the different locations in the country.”
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TWR recently took the “Every Man A Warrior” discipleship program to a local prison. After the team was introduced, an inmate approached them.
“He said if he had come in contact with this program earlier in his life, he wouldn’t have been in prison today,” Irondi says.
“We see God moving, touching the hearts of these people, giving their lives to Jesus.”
<a href="https://twr.org/project/west-africa-transmitting-station-broadcasts" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Help God’s message of hope and comfort remain on West Africa’s airwaves.</a>
“Pray for peace in our nation,” Irondi requests.
“Pray that God will continue to promote the Gospel [and] provide resources to move this work to places we have not reached yet.”
 
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of TWR. ]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 23 Jun 2025 05:00:24 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Hope Team lead peers to the gospel</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/hope-team-lead-peers-to-the-gospel/</link>
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USA (MNN) — The On Eagles’ Wings hope team, made up of Native young people, aims to reach Native youth around the country with the gospel. 
Brad Hutchcraft with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/ron-hutchcraft-ministries/">Hutchcraft Ministries</a> says, “These are young people who remember what it's like to be lost, to remember what it's like to not have Jesus part of their lives. And they want their peers, they want other Native people to find the hope of Jesus they have.”
The 2025 Summer of Hope will begin with the <a href="https://oneagleswings.com/warrior-leadership-summit">Warrior Leadership Summit</a> for youth. The team expects 500 warriors to attend, representing dozens of tribes. The youth will spend five days learning from God's word, hearing from great Native Bible teachers, participating in amazing worship, and learn how to live for God on a daily basis.
These conference leaders will then spend the month of July visiting tribes and proclaiming the gospel to their peers and Native American youth. 
<a href="https://hutchcraft.com/">Hutchcraft</a> says, “It's important for these local young people to learn that there is hope, there are answers, and there is healing that can take place. For that message to come from someone that looks like them and who has walked a similar road as they have is just an amazing time where walls come down and people are set free.” 
Many of the issues rural communities face are magnified in Native America. These messengers of hope, however, can touch hopelessness with their own stories and can say, “We were in the same place. We've been the abuse victims, we've been the suicide attempts. We've been the gang members, the drug dealers. We've been these things, but we found hope, and his name is Jesus.”
These Native leaders reach youth with the truth– that Jesus is for everyone. They can paint the picture of a Jesus who is more like these Native young people than they ever realized.
After 400 years of mission history with Native Americans, only 4% know Jesus. Hutchcraft believes this is changing and walls are coming down. 
Please pray that God’s hand will be in the logistics and for provision for the team. Pray for ready churches and ministries who will continue to pour into youth after the team has left. 
Pray also for the “three opens.” Open doors, so that there will be open doors to receive the team. Open hearts, so that people come to these events to be ready to hear about the hope of Jesus. Open mouths, so team members will boldly share how their life has changed and how to have a relationship with Jesus. 
 
Photo courtesy of Hutchcraft Ministries]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 23 Jun 2025 05:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/hope-team-lead-peers-to-the-gospel/</guid>
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<title>Nuclear threat runs under Iran and Israel’s conflict</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/nuclear-threat-runs-under-iran-and-israels-conflict/</link>
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Middle East (MNN) — “Nuclear" is the word on everyone's mind in the Israel-Iran conflict. On Thursday, June 12, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce3v6w2qr12o" target="_blank" rel="noopener">declared</a> — for the first time in 20 years — that Iran’s nuclear program is in noncompliance. 
The four-page report, with thirteen careful statements plus subpoints, <a href="https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/25/06/gov2025-38.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">called for a diplomatic solution</a>. The very next day, Israel opened fire on Iranian military and nuclear targets. 
Since then, an Iranian human rights group based in Washington, DC has reported <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/israeli-strikes-on-iran-have-killed-at-least-639-people-rights-group-says/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">639 killed and 1,329 wounded in Iran</a>. The Israeli government says <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-israel-trade-fresh-air-attacks-trump-weighs-us-involvement-2025-06-19/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">24 civilians in Israel have been killed</a> since Friday.
“Honesty and compassion [are a] very hard balance to have at this point, especially [in a moment] that we are all charged with the emotions,” says Fadi Sharaiha with the MENA Leadership Center. “But we need to remind ourselves that we are Christians first, that we are children of God first, and God’s call on our lives is to be peacemakers.
“At the same time, every single person right now in the Middle East is being affected, impacted — whether it's you, your family, your relatives, or your friends.” 
No one wants to imagine what could happen if the wrong strike hits the right nuclear site. Among other targets, Israeli fire has already damaged Iran’s <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/6/17/israel-strikes-iran-is-the-world-close-to-a-nuclear-radiation-incident" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Natanz</a> and <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/6/19/israel-attacks-irans-arak-nuclear-reactor-as-iran-strikes-israeli-hospital" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Arak</a> facilities. (Here's what the IAEA and other nuclear authorities <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5ykjvl1y9jo" target="_blank" rel="noopener">say about this nuclear danger</a>.)
“There is a need for some kind of peace talks about this, and then hopefully Iran will go back to the negotiation table and then sit down and have [a] good deal,” Sharaiha says. 
Whatever the outcome, he reminds us countless lives are at stake. 
“They have names, they have faces, and they have relatives; they have dreams, they have visions for their lives. And guess what? Some of them are our brothers and sisters in Christ,” he says.
“I don't want us to only feel for our brother[s] and sisters, but also to feel for the people. Those are people created in God's image, regardless of their skin color, gender, or even ethnic group.”
<div id="attachment_206035" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-206035" class="size-medium wp-image-206035" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/MLC_equip-train-leaders-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />(Photo courtesy of MENA Leadership Center)</div>
Pray for peace — and for international leaders to put the needs of their people first. 
“I also invite people to pray that whatever is happening right now will advance the gospel. I don't know how. I don't know why. But I know that this is my prayer,” says Sharaiha. 
Please pray for wisdom, patience, and endurance for the <a href="https://menaleadershipcenter.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MENA Leadership Center</a>. In the months ahead, they will offer new training on refugee trauma care as well as a program on mentorship and coaching. 
“Let's remember who we are, and whenever we talk as Christians about ‘Let's do this. Let's do that,’ let’s remember, ‘Would Jesus say this?’ This is very important, to put the filter of the Bible [on] whatever we say,” Sharaiha offers. 
“Let's focus on the most important thing, which is sharing the gospel. It's not about winning or losing; it is sharing the gospel.”
 
 
 
Header photo: a radioactive sign at Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, Ukraine (Photo courtesy of Kilian Karger via Unsplash)]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 20 Jun 2025 05:00:41 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/nuclear-threat-runs-under-iran-and-israels-conflict/</guid>
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<title>School for refugees closes as Syrian families prepare to go home</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/school-for-refugees-closes-as-syrian-families-prepare-to-go-home/</link>
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Syria (MNN) — World Refugee Day often highlights the hardships of life in exile. But what happens when the journey of refuge comes to an end?
Nuna from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/triumphant-mercy-lebanon/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Triumphant Mercy Lebanon</a> has witnessed a gradual shift in both the lives of Syrian refugees and their place in the country. “Inside Lebanon, within the Ministry of Interior, they have made a plan for the repatriation of four hundred thousand Syrian refugees,” she says. Many are returning by choice — driven by a desire to rebuild Syria and escape the growing instability in Lebanon.
Lebanon remains gripped by crisis, with conflict ongoing and international aid dwindling. The ceasefire isn’t truly holding. Hezbollah refuses to disarm, and while the Lebanese army is slowly taking over some weapons warehouses, many remain under Hezbollah’s control. Israel has targeted some of these sites to prevent drone production inside Lebanon.
<div id="attachment_215437" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215437" class="size-medium wp-image-215437" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/mostafa-meraji-SW3TtW9Ok5E-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="Unsplash" width="300" height="200" />A Middle Eastern woman standing with luggage (representative photo courtesy of Mostafa Meraji via Unsplash)</div>
In contrast, Syria is beginning to stabilize. “So there is more money flooding into Syria,” explains Nuna. “Their sanctions have lifted. People are looking with hope towards the future of the rebuilding.” That hope is calling many Syrians back.
Nuna has seen the effects firsthand: her refugee school in Lebanon is losing its students and teachers. They are packing up to return — some by choice, others under pressure. The shift has brought this chapter of ministry to an end.
“And I had to close the school, the school for refugees that we had, because there's no reason for it to exist anymore. Most of the people will be gone,” says Nuna.
Now, the team is helping students finish strong. “This week, we're sending all the kids who are in 9th grade to do the exams inside Syria and get their official papers. Then they can continue their high school education there.”
As this ministry ends, Nuna holds onto hope that the Gospel work will continue. Click on <a href="https://tm-lebanon.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Triumphant Mercy Lebanon</a> to learn more about their work!
<blockquote>
“Every seed that we have planted in any one of those teachers during all these years of ministry, and the seed that we planted in every one of those children, we expect that God will just be the One watering it,” says Nuna.
</blockquote>
But not everyone is leaving. Some refugees fear for their lives if they return. “They have become believers. So now, if they go back to their hometown, which is a radical place, they're fearing for their lives,” says Nuna.
Pray that as Syrians return home, they will hold fast to the Gospel they’ve received. Ask God to give them courage amid challenges and to guard the seeds of faith planted in exile.
 
 
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Jonathan Ramalho via Unsplash.]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 20 Jun 2025 05:00:26 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Change leads to challenge in Tunisia</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/change-leads-to-challenge-in-tunisia/</link>
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Tunisia (MNN) -- Following Jesus can sometimes be costly in Tunisia. For example, Ahlem Arfaoui’s faith put her at odds with her family.
“I come from a Muslim family, my parents and four girls. We were very committed to the rituals and religious life,” Arfaoui says, speaking through an interpreter to <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/voice-of-the-martyrs-canada/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Voice of the Martyrs Canada.</a>
<a href="https://www.vomcanada.com/cttf-videos/video/cttf-tn-risks-challenges.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Listen to the full conversation here.</a>
Arfaoui’s journey to Jesus began with a dream. “I was in a pit. He came, gave me His hand, and took me from that hole,” she recalls.
“He told me, ‘I am Jesus, and you are free. If you want to, follow Me. If you don’t want to follow Me, you can stay here.’ Those words in my heart transformed my life completely.”
She woke up a changed person, but those changes only brought challenges from her loved ones.
“I had some difficulties in the beginning with some family members, especially my oldest sister. She used to hide my Bible, but I trusted God because these difficulties are part of our faith,” Arfaoui says.
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“It’s not easy to share your faith and tell people around you that you’re a Christian. You get rejected.”
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However, not every family member resisted Arfaoui’s Gospel witness.
“I lived in one country, and my sister lives in another. God was working at the same time in my life and in her life, and we both came to Christ. I consider that a miracle,” Arfaoui says.
“I told her I had become a Christian; amazingly, she helped me find a church in Tunisia. I was discipled there and baptized. I also met my fiancé, and he became a believer, and we got married afterward. And now we have a beautiful son.”
Pray that Tunisia’s persecuted and isolated Christians will be vibrant witnesses, even to their persecutors.
“Remember that the Lord is faithful. He called us, and He is the one who protects us,” Arfaoui says.
<a href="https://www.vomcanada.com/tunisia.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Learn more about persecution in Tunisia.</a> 
 
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/black-clouds-WaW7_bLMGX8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Elena Mozhvilo/Unsplash.</a>]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 20 Jun 2025 05:00:42 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/change-leads-to-challenge-in-tunisia/</guid>
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<title>4 key points to guide your prayers for Iranians during the current war</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/4-key-points-to-guide-your-prayers-for-iranians-during-the-current-war/</link>
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Iran (MNN) — The Israel-Iran war brings deep uncertainty, but one thing is clear: Iran needs strategic prayer.
The wail of sirens echoing through traffic-clogged roads has become a grim routine in Tehran. Other regions with strategic sites are experiencing the same reality, with people either fleeing or adjusting to life under the shadow of war.
Since the war between Israel and Iran erupted on June 13, 2025, the situation has rapidly escalated. The outcome remains unpredictable, but one thing is certain: the Iranian people need our prayers. Nazanin Baghestani from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/heart4iran/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Heart4Iran</a> offers four key points to help guide intercession.
<div id="attachment_181159" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-181159" class="size-medium wp-image-181159" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/iran-map-300x277.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="277" />A map showing the countries bordering Iran. (image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)</div>
1. This conflict is more than a war between nations.
“Regimes are clashing with young, popular or religious movements in a civilizational struggle,” says Baghestani. Iran is facing a power vacuum, and if events take a different turn, the country could spiral into civil war or fall into the hands of extremist groups.
Pray for God’s will to prevail, and for wisdom and unity among the Iranian people as they seek a new future.
2. Emotions are deeply mixed.
In a historically unique moment, many Iranians feel both fear and a strange sense of hope when foreign strikes target regime facilities. Baghestani explains, “Every time Israel strikes, it increases the people's happiness while they're concerned about the nation and land. Yet, they're tired of this regime, and they become hopeful for its defeat.”
Pray that people find lasting peace in Christ, who never changes.
3. Daily life is becoming more difficult.
Casualties are rising, and vital resources like food, gas, and electricity are increasingly scarce. “The leaders are either fleeing or emptying their accounts, and they have no thought for the liberation of the people or their lives,” she adds.
Pray that communities will support one another and rebuild quickly with compassion and resilience.
4. This is a defining moment for the Church.
“Time is right for the church to both support the people and proclaim the message of salvation.” Baghestani adds, “The church should empathize with the oppressed, support the refugees, and stand against injustice — inviting people to pray for their enemies, not just for military victory.”
Don’t forget the Iranian believers who are navigating both the turmoil of war and the call of the Great Commission. Stand with them — in prayer and in action.
Find your place in the story! Visit <a href="https://www.heart4iran.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Heart4Iran</a> to learn more about the spiritual needs of the Iranian people and the ways you can help. Pray that Iranian believers and evangelists will be bold, wise, and filled with love as they share the hope of the Gospel — even under the wail of air raid sirens.
 
 
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Inimafoto A via Unsplash]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jun 2025 05:00:25 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/4-key-points-to-guide-your-prayers-for-iranians-during-the-current-war/</guid>
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<title>Glimpses of the spiritual reversal happening in Iran</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/glimpses-of-the-spiritual-reversal-happening-in-iran/</link>
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Iran (MNN) — “The Iranian nation will not surrender,” said Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei in <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/israel-iran-conflict-live-trump-leaves-g7-summit-early-says-should-evacuate-2025-06-17/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a Wednesday broadcast</a>. 
Other international voices have their own messages. As of Wednesday, the UN says <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2025/6/18/live-israel-iran-attacks-continue-trump-demands-unconditional-surrender" target="_blank" rel="noopener">diplomacy</a> still is the best path forward. Russia <a href="https://kyivindependent.com/israel-rejects-russias-offer-to-mediate-in-conflict-with-iran-kremlin-says/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">offers to mediate</a> even from its own position of three years of war. Meanwhile, the U.S. on Tuesday called for Iran’s “<a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/trump-urges-tehran-evacuation-iran-israel-conflict-enters-fifth-day-2025-06-17/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unconditional surrender</a>.”
Yet in the international cacophony, don’t miss the grand reversal happening spiritually in Iran. Brother V with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/global-catalytic-ministries/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Global Catalytic Ministries</a> at RTN Ministries (Reaching the Nations) says, “Fifty years ago, if you talk to Iranian[s], they will never hear your word. They don't want to hear about Christian[s], [or] Jesus.”
Today, disillusionment with Islam has led to a far different overtone. 
“Even through this persecution, through this evil government, people are now so open to hear God's Word and His love,” Brother V says. “Because Iranians [are] desperately looking for that love which is mentioned in the entire Bible: the love that God provided through His Son, Jesus, to us.” 
That love drew Brother V to Christ from his Muslim upbringing. “This [openness], as a Christian, make[s] me excited to share the gospel with them, because they don't want this idol Islam. This is a great opportunity.” 
If you tend to think of Iran as the enemy, remember that many, many Christians live there. Consider it as part of the Body of Christ, says Brother V. 
<blockquote>
“I believe Iran will be a great testimony for [the] world, how the dark country turn to the light through Jesus,” he says. 
</blockquote>
“Iran is a sick country right now. But when Jesus heals it, even it will be a testimony for Jews to hear that this is the real Messiah they need to believe in.”
Please pray for the gospel to shine out from the Iranian Church even in today’s conflict. Take action on their behalf as God leads. Learn how Global Catalytic Ministries is working in this space <a href="https://catalyticministries.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>. 
(Read the perspective of an Israeli brother with Global Catalytic Ministries on the Israel-Iran conflict <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/god-where-are-you-going-and-other-questions-for-this-moment-in-the-middle-east/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.) 
 
 
 
Header photo: Women in Iran wearing the traditional hijab and loose-fitting clothing required by sharia law. (Photo courtesy of mostafa meraji/Unsplash) ]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jun 2025 05:00:46 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/glimpses-of-the-spiritual-reversal-happening-in-iran/</guid>
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<title>Do you remember how you first learned about Jesus?</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/do-you-remember-how-you-first-learned-about-jesus/</link>
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International (MNN) -- Do you remember how you first learned about Jesus? Did your parents read you Bible stories as a child?
“While Deaf people may be around written Scripture, many of them have been missing information about that Scripture for many years,” <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/door-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DOOR International</a>’s Rob Myers says.
“Reading is a sound-based activity. We grew up with a language, and then we learn to read it. But that’s not true for Deaf people.”
DOOR International equips Deaf Christians to bring the Gospel to unreached Deaf communities. <a href="https://doorinternational.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
“DOOR, under various names and in various roles, has been in Deaf ministry now for 40 years,” Myers says.
<div id="attachment_215255" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/DOOR_screenshot.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215255" class="size-medium wp-image-215255" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/DOOR_screenshot-300x175.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="175" /></a>(Photo courtesy of DOOR International)</div>
<a href="https://online.anyflip.com/ejek/rnoo/mobile/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Last year</a>, “we had a celebration in Kenya where we had over 16 different African countries send representatives to partake in that celebration,” he continues.
“[It was a] wonderful opportunity to see leaders who’ve grown through the ministry and either have remained with DOOR and continued translation or discipleship work, or they’ve branched out, and God’s used them to begin other ministries and planted other seeds.”
Through church planting and sign language Bible translation, Deaf are reaching Deaf for Christ.
“We’re excited about the prospects that are ahead, and what God’s not just doing through existing Deaf work, but the seeds that have been planted that are beginning to bear fruit in some new areas,” Myers says.
Is the Lord calling you to serve in Deaf ministry? <a href="https://doorinternational.org/employment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Connect with DOOR International and see the open positions here.</a>
Pray for wisdom and discernment for DOOR leadership as they meet candidates and hold interviews to fill vacancies.
“Typically, if someone has a lot of sign language background, then we’re trying to catch them up on the biblical content,” Myers says.
“If they come with a biblical background, then we’re trying to catch them up with the sign language content.”
 
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of DOOR International. ]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jun 2025 05:00:11 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/do-you-remember-how-you-first-learned-about-jesus/</guid>
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<title>“God, where are you going?” and other questions for this moment in the Middle East</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/god-where-are-you-going-and-other-questions-for-this-moment-in-the-middle-east/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Israel (MNN) — As Israel and Iran <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2025/6/17/live-israel-iran-trade-attacks-trump-orders-residents-of-tehran-to-flee" target="_blank" rel="noopener">trade missile fire</a>, Brother Y serves in Israel with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/global-catalytic-ministries/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Global Catalytic Ministries</a>. He urges believers to lay down polarized viewpoints and seek God’s perspective instead.
“The Body of Christ needs to be engaged in fervent prayer," he says. 
Questions like these are a good starting point:
<ul>
<li>God, what are you saying? What are you doing? </li>
<li>Where are you going, and can we collaborate with you, even if it's just through prayer?</li>
</ul>
“Many times, prayers will lead to action,” he says. 
People in Israel are not naive to where this conflict could lead. Brother Y’s own family just welcomed a new grandson into a sobering reality.
“I had to run with him to the bomb shelter less than 24 hours after he was born,” he says. “That brings a whole new perspective of ‘God we really need you.’”
He describes the Iranian regime’s vague threats — statements similar to “We haven't even begun to use the weapons we own”— as psychological warfare.
Brother Y spoke this week with a friend from Iran. Despite the fear Iranians are experiencing, “They’re crying out for freedom…. Many are hopeful, hoping that this will topple this current regime and bring in freedom.”
<div id="attachment_205267" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-205267" class="size-medium wp-image-205267" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/dave-herring-B9D_jRoWiys-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />(Photo courtesy of Dave Herring/Unsplash)</div>
Brother Y believes his people have a strong calling to the nations. When the Gentiles joined Jewish-background believers in the early Church, Scripture says “the hand of the Lord was with them” (see <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%2011%3A19-30&version=ESV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Acts 11:19-30</a>). 
“I believe, as it was, it's going to be the same during our time when Jews and Gentiles collaborate together and take the gospel strongly,” says Brother Y. 
Still, there’s something he wishes more people understood. 
“We (Israel) have been faced with [the] Islamic desire to destroy us. We decided to take them at face value and just believe what they say, that as soon as they can nuke us, they will,” he says. “Many people around the world are so upset with Israel because they don't understand that we are standing against global Islam. Not against the Muslims, but Islam and its agenda [which] is to subdue every nation.”
<div id="attachment_178988" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-178988" class="size-medium wp-image-178988" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/gcmiranpray-300x280.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="280" />(Photo courtesy Global Catalytic Ministries)</div>
He adds, “Don’t get me wrong: my nation as it is now is not a righteous nation as a nation. But God still uses the nation to 'take the heat' and stop this advance [of Islam].”
"But what we've seen throughout history [is] that what brought down kingdoms is the gospel. It's as radical as elite units going into battle behind enemy lines — only the people going with Yeshua's message are the ones giving their lives, not taking other people's lives."
<h2>Please pray</h2>
Pray for God’s will in Iran and Israel. Ask Him to bring this conflict to a clear and lasting resolution.
“Definitely pray for Israel that we will not trust in our army and in our own strength,” Brother Y says. “Whenever we did that [in the past], we were severely humbled.”
Pray also that believers will be sanctified. Brother Y points to how God dealt with Jerusalem and its enemies in <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=zech%2012&version=ESV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Zechariah 12</a>. 
“He needs to cleanse and to purge so all of us — in Iran, in Israel — that we will have a spirit of prayer, grace and supplication, that we will humble ourselves so that God can show mercy and compassion."
 
 
 
Header photo of Jerusalem, Israel courtesy of Dariusz Kanclerz/Unsplash.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Jun 2025 05:00:23 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/god-where-are-you-going-and-other-questions-for-this-moment-in-the-middle-east/</guid>
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<title>Holy Spirit movement among Alawites creates urgent mission moment</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/holy-spirit-movement-among-alawites-creates-urgent-mission-moment/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Syria (MNN) — Alawites in Syria — once favored under Assad — now face violence, displacement, and deep need. But many are open to the Gospel like never before.
The Alawites, a Shia offshoot and religious minority in Syria, revere Ali, the son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad, believe in reincarnation, and teach that women are excluded from heaven. Yet today, many are eager to know Jesus as their Savior!
Pierre Houssney from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/horizons-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Horizons International </a>shares, “[Alawite] people are so curious about the gospel. We're praying with them, we're preaching to them, and they're very, very open to the message. So this is a huge gospel opportunity as well as a humanitarian crisis.”
<h3>But what’s behind the current humanitarian crisis?</h3>
<div id="attachment_215400" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215400" class="size-medium wp-image-215400" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/abd-sarakbi-wMUzleDWMxc-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="Unsplash" width="300" height="200" />Damascus, Syria (photo courtesy of abd sarakbi via Unsplash)</div>
During his time in power, Syria’s former president Bashar al-Assad — an Alawite — granted his people unfair advantages in jobs and education. Now that he’s gone, public anger has turned against them.
The crisis intensified when Sunni militant groups entered Alawite-majority areas — often shared with Christian communities — and began massacring residents.
“Now they're just getting downtrodden and massacred and driven out,” explains Houssney.
Fleeing for their lives, many Alawites escaped to Lebanon with nothing but the clothes on their backs. Some have taken shelter in graveyards, facing desperate conditions with no clear plan or hope of returning home safely anytime soon.
Local ministries are doing what they can, but resources are limited. The most urgent needs are food and hygiene supplies. Houssney adds: “As quickly as we can, as sustainably as we can, to try to run the race for the gospel and meet the people in their time of need, which also often coincides with their time of spiritual openness.”
Alawite refugees in Lebanon often fall off the global radar, but their needs are real. Among them are both new believers and sincere seekers of truth.
You can help Alawites in their search for Christ! “Find a group that can work among the Alawites in North Lebanon and support that group,” says Houssney. You can also visit the <a href="https://www.horizonsinternational.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Horizons International website</a> to join their mission of offering both physical and spiritual help.
Pray for God to send more workers, as the harvest among the Alawites is ready.
<blockquote>
“What I know is that I can't ripen a people group, but I can respond to God's ripening. I can't make the Holy Spirit move into a group at a certain time, but when I see the Holy Spirit moving, I can follow that!” says Houssney.
</blockquote>
 
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Ahmed Akacha via Pexels]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Jun 2025 05:00:46 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/holy-spirit-movement-among-alawites-creates-urgent-mission-moment/</guid>
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<title>Church-Centric Bible Translation makes the Gospel accessible</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/church-centric-bible-translation-makes-the-gospel-accessible/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
International (MNN) -- The global Body of Christ is growing, but Christians worldwide face a huge barrier: no Scripture is available in the language they understand best.
“The traditional means of translation that we’ve employed for decades has reached its limit in accomplishing the goal of having Bibles in all the world languages,” John* with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unfoldingword/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unfoldingWord</a> says.
“Most of the ones remaining are smaller language groups, and they’re in difficult-to-reach circumstances.”
unfoldingWord comes alongside church planting networks to begin Church-Centric Bible Translation. <a href="https://unfoldingword.org/about/strategic-overview/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
“The strategy here is to equip the local church to produce translations that no one else would be able to do anytime soon,” John says.
<div id="attachment_215247" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/UW_brand-image.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215247" class="wp-image-215247" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/UW_brand-image-240x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="375" /></a>There are over 7,000 languages spoken in the world. Around 3,589 have little to no Scripture. (Photo, caption courtesy of unfoldingWord)</div>
The result is indigenous Bible translation, not unfoldingWord projects. Communities welcome the Scripture their members worked on; it wasn’t handed to them by an outside group.
“The (global) Church itself has gotten far ahead of Bible translation,” John says.
<blockquote>
“As we go into these places and fully equip, invest, and teach them everything they need to know, their own energy and passion for having it in their mother tongue takes over.”
</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unfoldingword/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sign up for a free prayer calendar on unfoldingWord’s profile page.</a>
John says, “Difficult geographical circumstances in some of these locations are combined with heavy spiritual opposition, so prayer is of utmost importance as we try to progress in these areas.”
 
*Pseudonym 
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of unfoldingWord. ]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Jun 2025 05:00:15 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/church-centric-bible-translation-makes-the-gospel-accessible/</guid>
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<title>Iran and Israel in conflict, but one Church in both</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/iran-and-israel-in-conflict-but-one-church-in-both/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Iran (MNN) — Israel and Iran’s open exchange of fire has entered its fifth day. Israel’s stated goal is to <a href="https://www.cnn.com/world/live-news/israel-iran-attack-strikes-news-06-16-25-intl-hnk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"remove the Iranian nuclear program."</a> Iran in turn has called the strikes “<a href="https://www.cnn.com/world/live-news/israel-iran-attack-strikes-news-06-16-25-intl-hnk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">blatant aggression</a>,” urging the United Nations to condemn the attacks.
In the midst of rising international clamor, Samuel* with Redemptive Stories offers a Kingdom of God perspective: remember the Church is still present in the instability.
<div id="attachment_204938" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-204938" class="size-medium wp-image-204938" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/dariusz-kanclerz-MTj3H5EwiBg-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />Jerusalem, Israel. (Photo courtesy of Dariusz Kanclerz/Unsplash)</div>
<blockquote>
“[The] first thing we always should remember is that there are believers, our brothers and sisters, on both sides of this conflict,” he says. 
</blockquote>
This truth should anchor believers in love and shape their prayers — as it did for Samuel when he met an Iranian Christian this week in a neighboring country. 
“Meanwhile, his town with his family back home was being bombed. It just put a face to what we often might, as people from the West, perceive as ‘the enemy,’ but this is really my brother,” Samuel says.
The conflict may disrupt summer ministry plans in both nations. 
“I have friends currently in Israel that are not able to get out for activities that they had planned later in this year. The same is all over our region — [people] currently not able to travel smoothly. That's just one of the simple, more logistical aspects,” says Samuel. 
Believers are not specifically targeted — but that doesn’t mean they’re safer than any other person. In fact, some may be at greater risk.
<div id="attachment_207983" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-207983" class="size-medium wp-image-207983" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/khashayar-kouchpeydeh-eSOST-WeOqo-unsplash-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" />Tehran, Iran (Photo courtesy of Khashayar Kouchpeydeh/Unsplash)</div>
“Arabs, Christians, and Arab Christians that live in [Israel], often, along with other Arabs, tend to suffer more — mostly because of limited access to bomb shelters, particularly in the West Bank, compared to other spaces in Israel," says Samuel.
Like most people in the world, he is concerned about other groups or nations entering the conflict and escalating it further. But he points to another reality. 
“Ultimately, our goal here in all of this, as believers, is to seek a step of reconciliation,” he says. “It's an opportunity for ministries to model that cross-boundary unity that can often transcend politics and ethnicity.”
The cost of following Christ only grows in times like these.
“It's an opportunity for the church to be prepared to really be faithful under pressure in all of these spaces in Israel and Iran and maybe if it expands into other areas as well,” he says. “Pray that ministries would deepen roots in Scripture and prayer together and community, and [help] believers not only to endure trials, but [also] truly witness powerfully through them.
<blockquote>
“Hope must not be framed in geopolitical outcomes, but in the unshakable reign of Christ.”
</blockquote>
 
 
*Pseudonym
 
 
Header photo of Tehran, Iran is a representative stock photo courtesy of Hamid Mohammad Hossein Zadeh Hashemi via Unsplash. ]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jun 2025 05:00:23 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/iran-and-israel-in-conflict-but-one-church-in-both/</guid>
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<title>unfoldingWord equips Bible translators in Iran with tools, technology, and training</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/unfoldingword-equips-bible-translators-in-iran-with-tools-technology-and-training/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Iran (MNN) -- Translating Scripture is serious business, especially in Iran. Dane with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unfoldingword/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unfoldingWord</a> says, “The Bible is banned in Iran, so it’s a very, very difficult and dangerous environment for people to do this work.”
Following Christ often carries a high cost. <a href="https://www.persecution.com/globalprayerguide/iran/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
“If they catch you doing evangelism, translating the Bible, or leading someone to Christ, at the very least, they will put you in prison, and it could be quite worse,” Dane says.
Still, brave believers keep going – so every people group can hear God’s Word in their own language. “About half of Iran’s people speak a language other than the national language, [which] is Farsi,” Dane says.
That’s where unfoldingWord steps in. <a href="https://unfoldingword.org/about/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
“We’re handing off the tools, training, and the technology to help our partners create a movement of Bible translation and church planting to every least-reached people group in their nation,” Dane says.
<blockquote>
“It puts Bible translation into the hands of the Church, and you’re no longer dependent on Western PhD experts to do this.”
</blockquote>
The end result is worth it all. “The first time somebody hears God’s Word in their own language, they weep,” Dane says.
<div id="attachment_215321" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/UW_iran-graphic.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215321" class="wp-image-215321" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/UW_iran-graphic-240x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="375" /></a>(Graphic courtesy of unfoldingWord)</div>
<a href="https://unfoldingword.org/portfolio/eurasia/persian/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Help equip rapidly-growing church networks in Iran to translate and distribute unfoldingWordⓇ Open Bible Stories.</a>
Pray for the Lord’s favor and blessing upon church-centric Bible translators in Iran.
“As soon as they’re done with that one book of the Bible, they can begin using it. They’ll share it chapter by chapter because many of these translators are pastors or house church leaders, so they can use it right away,” Dane says.
“Our partners in Iran have completed 18 translations of our unfoldingWordⓇ Open Bible Stories, which we call our translation primer, and they’re working on four New Testament translations.”
Pray for God’s miraculous healing to cover unfoldingWord’s partner, Transform Iran’s team of servant leaders. Several crises and chronic health challenges have hindered their work lately.
“Be unceasing in prayer because there are lots of obstacles,” Dane says. “There are economic, financial, government, and cultural obstacles, and obviously, all of that is empowered by spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
 
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of <a href="https://pixabay.com/photos/iranian-architecture-isfahan-city-5243948/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mostafa meraji/Pixabay.</a>]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jun 2025 05:00:46 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/unfoldingword-equips-bible-translators-in-iran-with-tools-technology-and-training/</guid>
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<title>Wounding the Church: the strategic persecution of Christian women</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/wounding-the-church-the-strategic-persecution-of-christian-women/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
International (MNN) — Mothers, wives, and daughters are often the quiet targets of religiously motivated violence aimed at weakening Christian communities from within.
In countries where being a Christian is treated as a crime, believers are constantly on the defensive. They fight to hold on to their jobs, homes, and status — but most importantly, they fight to protect their women.
Kate, a partner with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/voice-of-the-martyrs-canada/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Voice of the Martyrs Canada</a>, says, "What we see women face is that they are often targeted and trafficked across borders or into cities because of their identity in Jesus."
The abuse is not random. There is a strategy behind the trafficking of women, forced marriages (sometimes a result of grooming), and sexual assault.
<blockquote>
Kate explains, that it happens: "Because of their perceived purity that represents their community. So, those who want to break down the Christian community know that if they violate and break down women, they break down the whole core of that very identity of that society."
</blockquote>
<div id="attachment_215384" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215384" class="size-medium wp-image-215384" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/quang-nguyen-vinh-9Hu9Gzf7JxQ-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="Unsplash" width="300" height="200" />Representative photo courtesy of Quang Nguyen Vinh via Unsplash</div>
Many of these abused women — mothers, wives, and daughters — find little refuge or support in their churches. "The reason that violating women in this way is so effective is because of the poor status and voice that they often have within the church community itself," says Kate. Shame silences them. In some cases, they are even seen as cursed.
"That's a distortion of belief systems and cultural norms that comes into that," Kate adds.
Healing begins when biblical values are restored in the heart of the community. Stories like Hagar, the Samaritan woman at the well, and Jesus’s own treatment of women break the false narrative that suffering must be hidden.
That’s why the ministry has launched Restorations training, especially in South Asia. It directly addresses harmful theology and cultural views while pointing to Jesus’s example of restoring dignity to women. "And as her pastor or brother or father, we are going to make sure, with her permission, that she has a voice, or we are her voice for her," says Kate.
Pray that as the Gospel continues to spread around the world, it will bring healing to the societal and cultural wounds that most deeply harm the vulnerable. Visit the <a href="https://www.vomcanada.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Voice of the Martyrs Canada</a> website to learn more about how they support persecuted women.
<blockquote>
"If we're neglecting to fully understand the violence that women suffer, then we're truly not understanding huge swathes of the Church around the world. Jesus very clearly demonstrated His love, His compassion, and His care for both men and women alike," says Kate.
</blockquote>
 
 
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Ron Lach via Pexels.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jun 2025 05:00:17 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/wounding-the-church-the-strategic-persecution-of-christian-women/</guid>
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<title>What it costs to be a Christian Uyghur in China</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/what-it-costs-to-be-a-christian-uyghur-in-china/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
China (MNN) — After the deportation of missionaries from Xinjiang, China, Christian Uyghurs were left to face their persecutors alone. Today, threats come both from the ruling party and from their own communities.
Between 2017 and 2019, the world was <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/us-condemns-chinas-treatment-of-uighurs/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shaken</a> by leaked reports of China’s modern reeducation camps, where nearly 3 million ethnic Uyghurs were detained. Since then, global coverage has subsided — but what is happening to them now?
Following international outcry, the Chinese Communist Party appeared to close many internment camps. However, some remain in operation.
Bob Fu, a contact with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/voice-of-the-martyrs-canada/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Voice of the Martyrs Canada</a>, says, “According to one report, there are over sixteen thousand still in the camps.”
Although the official label for these facilities is "<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-54195325" target="_blank" rel="noopener">vocational education and training</a>," the reality is far more disturbing. Detainees face forced sinicization — pressured to abandon their faith and adopt Communist ideology. Uyghur culture and language are systematically suppressed. Inmates are forced into labor and punished for minor offenses, such as owning religious books — among them, the Bible.
<h2>Persecution of Uyghur Christians</h2>
<div id="attachment_215360" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215360" class="size-medium wp-image-215360" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/pexels-cake-cat-1407142923-27183475-225x300.jpg" alt="Pexels" width="225" height="300" />Representative photo courtesy of Cake Cat via Pexels.</div>
Uyghur Christians are a small minority within an already oppressed group. Many came to faith through foreign missionaries. These workers not only shared the gospel but also supported the local economy, composed Uyghur worship songs, and translated several Bible books.
“They were not just doing evangelism, but they were helping the local people. [They] were taking care of the poor, the needy, the children,” says Fu.
These missionaries were <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2019/02/13/expulsion-foreign-missionaries-china-greatly-increased/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">deported</a> from Xinjiang, leaving Uyghur believers exposed to double persecution.
First, from the Communist Party — for being both ethnically different and Christian. “Secondly, those Uyghur Christians also face their own people,” Fu explains, referring to Muslim Uyghurs who reject their conversion. Islam is the predominant religion among Uyghurs, and conversion is often viewed as a betrayal of ethnic identity. As a result, converts face discrimination, isolation, and even estrangement from family.
One such believer, <a href="https://www.vomcanada.com/cn-2023-03-23.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pastor Alimujiang Yimiti</a>, was sentenced to 15 years in prison. His crime?
“In his own home, he was sharing with the American missionary that he was being spied on by the Chinese State Security, and that he was under surveillance,” says Fu. “So this Chinese State Security Agency basically accused him of leaking a state secret — that was the only state secured secret!”
Another believer was released from prison, only to be resentenced to an additional twelve years within days. <a href="https://www.vomcanada.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Voice of the Martyrs Canada</a> brings to light cases like this.
<blockquote>
“This is totally lawless and arbitrary, and is nothing but religious persecution in the most cruel way,” adds Fu.
</blockquote>
Pray for the freedom of imprisoned Uyghur believers and comfort for those still enduring hardship in the camps.
 
 
 
Header — representative photo: Woman kneeling near a cross (photo courtesy of Jametlene Reskp via Unsplash)]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 16 Jun 2025 05:00:51 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/what-it-costs-to-be-a-christian-uyghur-in-china/</guid>
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<title>Summer camps in Turkiye scrambling for a timely solution</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/summer-camps-in-turkiye-scrambling-for-a-timely-solution/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Türkiye (MNN) -- After a <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/deadly-turkey-hotel-fire-sparks-safety-concerns-political-blame-game-2025-01-23/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tragic hotel fire</a> killed almost 80 people in northern Türkiye this January, building safety inspections are now underway in certain regions. 
But that’s led to an urgent prayer request from FMI’s partners. 
Patrick Anthony with FMI says the investigations are definitely a positive thing, but they've had unexpected consequences. “What that's done, though, is it has closed some buildings that our partners were planning to use to house children for their Christian summer camps," he says.
<div id="attachment_215342" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215342" class="size-medium wp-image-215342" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/PHOTO-2025-06-13-13-00-51-225x300.jpg" alt="Turkiye, Turkey" width="225" height="300" />Summer camps (Photo courtesy of FMI)</div>
Camps begin next month. They are life-changing moments where kids and their families hear the gospel, many for the first time.
“Local leaders tell us they think there [are] about 10,000 Christians out of [Türkiye's] 85 million population,” Anthony says. With so few believers scattered across the country, summer camp offers a much-needed time of fellowship and discipleship for Christian children. 
Another thing gives this year’s summer camps special meaning. FMI’s partner — a pastor we’ll call Izzet —and his team are celebrating 35 years of fruitful ministry. 
“It has not been easy for 35 years,” Izzet writes. “We have experienced much oppression and cruelty, but every year we have seen the hand of the Lord protecting and providing. Sometimes our camp was attacked with axes, sometimes with guns. Sometimes we were interrogated by soldiers and police. Sometimes we were kicked out of the facility in the middle of the camp. But we never put out our campfire for 35 years. Our prayer is that one day our campfire will burn in every city of Türkiye.”
Over the decades, Izzet and his team have watched campers grow into pastors and ministry leaders. Some kids have aged out of the program return as camp counselors.
Please pray for safe solutions to this summer’s urgent housing needs. Anthony says the challenges are signs of spiritual opposition. 
“At the same time, it shouldn't surprise us and should really encourage us to be praying more and looking for the Lord to deliver in ways that perhaps we didn't expect,” he says. “The director of the ministry (Izzet) is asking for people to pray.”
To support FMI summer camps financially, make a gift to the <a href="https://forgottenmissionaries.org/donate/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tangible Resources</a> fund at FMI's website.
 
 
Header photo courtesy of FMI. ]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 16 Jun 2025 05:00:24 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Seeing clearly: eye clinics as open doors to the Gospel</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/seeing-clearly-eye-clinics-as-open-doors-to-the-gospel/</link>
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Uganda (MNN) -- A recent mission trip to Uganda hosted 13 church services in nine prisons, proclaiming the gospel to almost 5,500 inmates. 570 came to know Jesus for the first time. 
The team of seven, including <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/prisoners-for-christ/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Prisoners for Christ</a> president Greg Von Tobel, said this was possible because of widespread evangelisation in central and southern Africa.
<div id="attachment_207989" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-207989" class="size-medium wp-image-207989" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/ehsan-habashi-WxwDIuzHQxA-unsplash-300x233.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="233" />(Photo courtesy of Ehsan Habashi/Unsplash)</div>
Von Tobel says, “When we get to some of these countries, and we have people already on the ground doing the heavy lifting before we get there, the doors are quite open.”
Born-again prison superintendents can open the doors - Von Tobel says other inmates are simply waiting to hear the Gospel. 
The team also tried something new by having pediatric ophthalmologist Dr. Thomas Lenart run an eye clinic in two prisons. Between both prisons, Lenart met over 200 patients.
Lenart says, “Our main goal is for the inmates we're in front of to know the Lord Jesus Christ, and this was just another opportunity. Spiritually, we wanted them to know His love and how He cares for them, and He is the great healer. We wanted, in a small way, to just be able to be in front of the inmates and provide them some eye care.”
The team distributed 80 pairs of reading glasses in the two prisons, and Lenart was able to diagnose glaucoma and other eye issues. He later returned to the prisons to deliver eye medications, supplementing empty prison infirmary shelves. 
One patient who stuck out to Lenart was a staff member who approached the team as they left the building. The woman couldn’t read the small print of her Bible. Having distributed all of the glasses, Lenart asked another member of his team if the woman could borrow his glasses to test them. 
After testing them, Lenart asked the team member if he would part with the glasses. “Actually, I won't,” the team member responded. “They're all scratched up and she won't be able to see well - but in the van, I have a brand new pair of +2s.”
Lenart says, “He walked out and gave them to her, and when she put them on, she was able to see the small print. Tears were rolling down her face because she was so happy to be able to read, and she was extremely grateful to be able to use those now to be able to read her Bible.”
Though the ministry was welcomed in Uganda, Prisoners for Christ hopes new ministries like this could be a step into closed countries that are hostile to the Gospel. 
It's already making a difference on a personal level. At one small Ugandan prison, the team was in the middle of a church service when a Muslim inmate joined. Other inmates tried to shoo him away, but the host national invited him in. The host learned that the visitor was an imam who had been wrestling with evil dreams of his recently deceased mother. 
The team prayed with him. Lenart says, “It was a powerful, powerful prayer. All of us were supporting him, you know, in the name of Jesus, in the blood of Jesus. [After] that prayer, the imam came to Jesus right then and there."
Von Tobel says, “Our ministry is all about Jesus. We want to point people to the foot of the cross.” 
Prisoners can be an unreached people group. There are few prison ministries outside of the United States; not many people want to go to prisons in developing countries. 
As Prisoners for Christ seeks to double its global footprint, it needs more willing hands. Please pray for staff and volunteers willing to go out into the world and for the financial resources to facilitate these prison ministries. 
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Donald Tong/Pexels.]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 16 Jun 2025 05:00:47 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/seeing-clearly-eye-clinics-as-open-doors-to-the-gospel/</guid>
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<title>New law about child marriage in Pakistan, but cultural issues remain</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/new-law-about-child-marriage-in-pakistan-but-cultural-issues-remain/</link>
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Pakistan (MNN) — Last month, human rights activists <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/may/27/pakistan-sends-important-signal-of-hope-in-a-gloomy-world-of-pushbacks-on-womens-rights-child-marriage-ban-islamabad" target="_blank" rel="noopener">celebrated</a> a new law in Pakistan that <a href="https://morningstarnews.org/2025/05/bill-to-curb-child-marriages-signed-into-law-in-pakistan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sets the legal age for marriage at 18</a> — applying only to the capital Islamabad territory.
But Nehemiah* with FMI offers a sobering reality check. A similar 2013 law in Pakistan’s Sindh territory hasn’t stopped child marriages from occurring or deterred those who ignored the law. 
“Sindh police disclosed recently that from 2018 to 2024, only 30 convictions under the child marriage law were recorded out of 272 First Information Reports,” Nehemiah says. (First Information Reports are the initial legal document filed when a crime is reported to the police. They are a crucial starting point for a criminal investigation and provide a record of the alleged offense.)
Islamic leaders argue that under Sharia law, puberty — not age — is the deciding factor for marriage readiness. They’re already challenging this new law.
“The petition has been filed against the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Law and Justice, and the Council of Islamic ideology as respondents,” says Nehemiah. “The petitioner, who is a law firm in Pakistan, says that [it] is in clear conflict and objectionable to Sharia; that is why it needs to be declared un-Islamic, unconstitutional and against the fundamental[s] of Islam.”
<div id="attachment_152523" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-152523" class="size-medium wp-image-152523" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/christian-girl-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" />(Photo Courtesy FMI for MNN use.) Christian girl in Pakistan.</div>
Even if the law stands, he says, powerful religious parties have the louder voice. “The people of Pakistan, they are followers of these parties, and whatever their imams say, they follow that. So this law does not really matter.” 
Here’s the more sinister layer: Each year, <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2025/05/22/faces-of-the-persecuted-huma-younus/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">an estimated 1,000 girls</a> from religious minorities in Pakistan — including Christians — are kidnapped, forcibly converted to Islam, and married off. Consider the stories of <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2025/05/22/faces-of-the-persecuted-huma-younus/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Huma</a>, <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2025/03/17/historic-ruling-annuls-forced-marriage-of-shahida-bibi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Shahida</a>, and <a href="https://morningstarnews.org/2024/07/christian-girl-14-taken-for-sham-conversion-marriage-in-pakistan/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alina</a>.
In all these complexities, pray for God’s wisdom and strength for Pakistani Christians under intense pressures. 
“We have encouraged and educated our church planters — brothers and sisters who work with FMI — how to respond in a [kidnapping] situation,” Nehemiah says. They have connected with psychologists, human rights experts, and people who work for the Child Protection Bureau in Pakistan. 
Here are prayer requests from Christians in Pakistan:
“Please pray for [one man’s] congregation that they understand that it's not okay to let the girls go into forced marriages, into forced conversions. [Pray for] the sense of protection and the sense of identity," says Nehemiah.
“Please pray for wisdom for church planters as they address the sensitive issue of child marriage in their communities. When Muslim men come and kidnap their girls in the Christian communities, please pray for them that they handle the situation according to the Pakistani law and according to the Bible.”
One sister shared this request: “Pray [that] the church in Pakistan becomes a safe place for vulnerable girls and advocates for their well-being.”
 
*Pseudonym
 
Header photo of Christian children in Pakistan. (Photo courtesy FMI for MNN use.) ]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2025 05:00:03 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Children in crisis: Keys for Kids brings hope amid war</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/children-in-crisis-keys-for-kids-brings-hope-amid-war/</link>
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International (MNN) -- From Ukraine to the Middle East and Sudan, conflict is surging at levels not seen since World War II. The impact is devastating, especially for children.
<a href="https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/not-new-normal-2024-one-worst-years-unicefs-history-children-conflict" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to the United Nations</a>, more than one in six children globally live in war zones, and millions face starvation in conflict hot spots. Last year, the UN verified 32,990 grave violations against children — the highest number ever recorded.
“You can’t help but think, ‘Oh, my word. This is huge, and these aren’t just numbers. These are sons and daughters,’” says Greg Yoder with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/keys-kids/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Keys for Kids.</a>
Keys for Kids produces free devotionals for children and young adults, some of which help young readers process trauma. These devotionals focus on what the ministry calls “tough topics.”
<div id="attachment_215314" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/KFK_global-Gospel-outreach.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215314" class="size-medium wp-image-215314" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/KFK_global-Gospel-outreach-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>(Photo courtesy of Keys for Kids)</div>
“It might be a war-like situation. It may be an earthquake or some other natural disaster, where there was trauma throughout their community, or maybe it was through the loss of a loved one,” Yoder explains.
Each story is rooted in Scripture and points children toward healing and hope in Jesus.
The impact is already visible in war-torn Ukraine. “A young boy was reading about the peace that passes all understanding while he is in the basement being attacked by drones and missiles, yet he found hope in Jesus Christ alone because that’s what Scripture provided for him,” Yoder shares.
However, the need is far greater than the current supply. “One of the things we’re struggling with right now in hard-hit places like Ukraine is that we don’t have any more resources in our warehouses,” says Yoder.
<blockquote>
“We don’t have anything to give these hurting kids.”
</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.keysforkids.org/Get-Involved/Donate1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Here’s how you can help.</a> Pray for Keys for Kids as they bring the hope of Christ to children in desperate need.
“Pray that God will provide in the most miraculous ways financially so that we can provide the hope needed in many of these places,” Yoder requests.
 
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/silhouette-of-soldiers-Cju-BkSkM1k" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Duncan Kidd/Unsplash.</a>]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2025 05:00:40 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/children-in-crisis-keys-for-kids-brings-hope-amid-war/</guid>
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<title>Bible Clubs in India reach families</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/bible-clubs-in-india-reach-families/</link>
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India (MNN) — <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/mission-india/">Mission India</a> is passionate about reaching children with the gospel – a mission that changes the lives of families. 
Raina Miller with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/mission-india/">Mission India</a> says, “When parents have significant struggles with things like if they're abusive, they're alcoholics, or even if they're just really struggling through poverty, that affects everything, and it really affects the kids. And the opposite is true too. So when these parents get to know Jesus, it completely changes the whole household.” 
One of Mission India’s main ministries is its children's Bible clubs. Jada, daughter of a daily wage laborer, began attending one of these clubs seeking support with her education. Jada struggled not just because of her socioeconomic status but faces discrimination because of her family’s ethnic group.
“She joined a Children's Bible club, and she was just curious about it at first, and just wondered what it was all about. And she really enjoyed the Bible based skits, Christ-centered songs with fun motions and dance moves, and things like that. And she was really drawn in by the Bible verses that were shared and the stories she heard about Jesus. So the Bible club leader was really encouraging, taught her about loving God and God's purpose for her life, and that she mattered, and she ended up receiving Jesus as her Savior. And all of that led to more confidence that translated at home.”
Jada’s dad, however, became sick. Miller says, “Jada had just learned about Jesus and that he could heal, so she actually prayed in Jesus' name for her father's healing, and he was healed.” 
This miraculous healing not only opened Jada’s eyes even more to Jesus but led her entire family to Christ. 
<div id="attachment_215268" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215268" class="wp-image-215268 size-medium" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/jada_-_a_young_girl_changed_through_a_bible_club_720-1-300x192.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="192" />Jada and her family find God. (Photo courtesy of Mission India)</div>
“Although life might still be difficult in some ways, they have hope that they didn't have before this, because a little girl trusted Jesus to heal her dad, and now she's got parents who are able to lead the family in a Christ-centered way,” says Miller. 
Miller said that God revealed himself to Jada through the Bible Club, and this story can be a reminder to believers. 
“What do you do with a miraculous story like this in your own faith?” asks Miller. “What are you not trusting God for that you could? What could he be doing in a miraculous way that this feels far-fetched? This is a young girl, probably 9 or 10 years old, and she trusted God to heal her dad, and her whole household is changed because of it, so there’s a great personal takeaway for each of us to remember: God still does miracles today, and that they’re worth asking for.
Mission India invites people to come alongside their ministry with their new monthly giving program, <a href="https://missionindia.org/pathfinders/donation/?referral=MNN2506.PATH">Pathfinders</a>. The monthly contribution of $36 will provide 18 kids with Bible Club for a year. Learn more about how you can be involved by visiting their website.
Please pray for Jada, her family, and others with stories like hers. Pray that God would move in the hearts of children attending Bible Clubs and that His name would be magnified in families touched by <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/mission-india/">Mission India</a>.
 
Header photo courtesy of Mission India. ]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jun 2025 05:00:17 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/bible-clubs-in-india-reach-families/</guid>
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<title>Chinese Christians arrested for border crossings</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/chinese-christians-arrested-for-border-crossings/</link>
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China (MNN) -- As the Gospel spreads in China, authorities attempt to sever Christians from the global Church. Bob Fu, a contact with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/voice-of-the-martyrs-canada/">Voice of the Martyrs Canada (VOM Canada)</a>, says the organization's newest efforts involve categorizing international travel for church-related activities as illegal border crossings. These activities include anything from worship conferences to seminary studies.
<blockquote>“Of course, they try to use this way for accusing them as an illegal border crossing. I mean, they're afraid to cite their so-called crime is attending a Bible study conference, or a worship meeting, or kind of a praise and worship conference,” Fu says. "The Communist Party chose to use this legal term to prosecute many of those pastors.”</blockquote>
<h2>Stepping Up the Arrests</h2>
This method of punishing Christians is not new. In 2021, the government imprisoned a pastor from Shanxi Province for five years because he attended an overseas Bible study conference. More well-known is the case of Pastor John Cao, who served a seven-year sentence for “organizing illegal border crossings.” This charge was doled out because he organized Chinese Christians to help school Burmese minority children across the border. They were using the Bible as a textbook.
<div id="attachment_215288" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215288" class="size-medium wp-image-215288" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/pexels-pamanjoe-28785831-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" />(Photo courtesy of El Jusuf on Pexels)</div>
Fu continues, “In recent weeks, we have seen more cases. Like five pastors in Shanxi Province also received a criminal sentence for going to Malaysia – in Kuala Lumpur – attending a Bible conference by a preacher [nicknamed] China's Billy Graham: Pastor Dr. Stephen Tong from Indonesia. Also, in recent weeks, we have learned another four Christians were criminally arrested for going to South Korea and Malaysia, attending Christian conferences. So, they are going to be tried and sentenced to criminal imprisonment. So, this is a new trend, showing the Chinese Communist Party trying to cut off the Universal Church, the fellowship of the church.”
<h2>A National Security Threat?</h2>
This sends a chilling message to believers. Ramping up persecution for Christian fellowship across borders means Christians will need to take even greater care when deciding what events to attend. Soon, Christians may not even get to travel outside the country.
In some areas, the government has already implemented a new measure called the National Security Filter. One of the items on the assessment for this filter is whether or not a person is a Christian. Chinese Christians and especially Christian leaders would be treated as national security threats.
“You would be forbidden to travel,” Fu states. “You would be banned from obtaining a new passport or renew your old passport.”
<h2>Connected in Christ</h2>
However, despite the grim outlook for Chinese Christians’ physical presence with the global Church, Fu says there is hope.
“They will never succeed. Maybe physically, geographically, they try their way, but the Holy Spirit is our real connector, right? They can never cut off the Holy Spirit. Through the prayer of the meetings of the saints the body of Christ in China will not feel alone.”
Please pray that God would strengthen Chinese Christians as their physical isolation from the Church increases. Pray for steadfastness for those facing imprisonment. Pray for VOM Canada as they share stories and support Chinese Christians. Learn more <a href="https://www.vomcanada.com/engage.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
 
 
Header Photo courtesy of muffaddal qutbuddin on Pexels]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jun 2025 05:00:06 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/chinese-christians-arrested-for-border-crossings/</guid>
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<title>Ancient faith, modern trials: Christianity in Egypt</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/ancient-faith-modern-trials-christianity-in-egypt/</link>
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Egypt (MNN) -- Every church standing in Egypt is worth celebrating. Christianity has deep roots in the nation, going back 2,000 years to the missionary work of John Mark, a gospel worker who worked with the apostle Paul. 
But today, bureaucratic restrictions and delays challenge Christians hoping to build new churches. It’s just one of many ways they are treated as <a href="https://www.barnabasaid.org/us/long-reads/called-from-egypt-what-is-it-like-to-live-as-a-christian-in-egypt/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">second-class citizens</a>. 
“The Egyptian government for a long time had no place for [new churches],” says Erik Ouimette with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/uncharted-ministries/">Uncharted Ministries</a>. “Then a number of years ago, they changed [their] way in response to some heavy persecution from the Muslim Brotherhood and the presidential administration at the time.”
In 2016, Egypt’s parliament passed the Church Construction Law, which ostensibly created a legal path for church licensing. Critics said it <a href="https://timep.org/2019/07/29/timep-brief-church-construction-law/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">still discriminated against Christians</a>. Even so, <a href="https://www.jpost.com/christianworld/article-826914" target="_blank" rel="noopener">thousands of churches</a> have been licensed in the nine years since.
“It's a big deal to license a church,” Ouimette explains. “That means you can call a pastor, pay a pastor; you can be officially recognized and officially protected by the government. In most churches in Egypt, there are police outside if not 24 hours a day, [then] definitely any time that there are people in the building. There's government-sponsored security in front of the church to protect them. The government is not wanting there to be Muslim and Christian fighting."
Getting a church in the first place, however, is still far from simple. Corruption and bribery are common obstacles in the process. One church building project Uncharted Ministries is involved with in central Upper Egypt has come to a standstill.
“This church might be many years away from being a church in licensed legality. Or it's possible the Lord could show up in a beautiful way and get the glory for doing something that right now looks impossible,” Ouimette says. "I would love that to be the story of this church."
<div id="attachment_215295" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215295" class="size-medium wp-image-215295" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/ben-white-GNwO0I0vtvk-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />Ancient Egyptian Christian Bible (Photo courtesy of Ben White via Unsplash)</div>
But one thing is certain: if a church is built, a mosque will soon follow. 
“It's amazing how quickly mosques are not only licensed and approved, but built. They are built like crazy because the money comes in in floods,” Ouimette says. Muslims around the world often sponsor a new mosque construction. “They are leaning into part of the Islamic beliefs, both in the Quran and the Hadiths, that to build a mosque is of highest order."
He adds, “The very land [in Egypt] where churches are being built, the Muslims in the community view as Islamic land.” 
If you live in the West, chances are your church building is spacious and safe. Ouimette reminds us that such freedom is a recent anomaly, virtually unheard of for Christians in many parts of the world today, and across history. 
"All throughout the 2,000 years of our faith, the label of being a Christian has been an affront to authoritarian government, an affront to other beliefs that say, 'No, there's a multitude of gods.' Or, 'Oh no, you've missed it. Jesus is not who you believe Him to be.' Thus, from the very beginning, Christians have humbly met in homes, small groups, home churches," Ouimette says.
“I think our hearts then go out to those who are trying to build a humble church for thirty, forty, fifty people. I think we need to pray into that more maybe than we do."
 
 
Header photo of Kairo Wan, Ash Shamashargi, Egypt is a representative stock photo courtesy of Sophia Valkova via Unsplash.]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jun 2025 05:00:30 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/ancient-faith-modern-trials-christianity-in-egypt/</guid>
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<title>Reconciliation on the set of Esther: Queen of Hope</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/reconciliation-on-the-set-of-esther-queen-of-hope/</link>
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International (MNN) -- As <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/international-media-ministries/">International Media Ministries</a> works to film the biblical story of Esther, the team has witnessed it impact their own cast in powerful ways. 
“The story of Esther is one woman standing up to reconcile the Persians to their own laws, their own values, as well as to help the Persians and the Jewish people come back together. So telling that to the actors has brought tears on set, and discussions that are just amazing,” says Denise Godwin of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/international-media-ministries/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">International Media Ministries</a> (IMM).
IMM is producing a miniseries about the story of Esther as a message of hope for Iran. The film project includes people from eight different countries and common roots in the Persian culture, but wildly varying backgrounds and challenges. 
“One young man's brother was killed by the current Iranian regime. A young woman who is Persian but grew up in Israel and feels Israeli in her heart had her friend killed in front of her at an event when a bomb fell," Godwin says.
<div id="attachment_184310" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-184310" class="size-medium wp-image-184310" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/untitled-0431Web-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />(Photo courtesy of International Media Ministries)</div>
"So we're dealing with people who've experienced the opposite of reconciliation, if you will, in real life, and different people who have struggled in rejecting Islam but aren’t sure what they want to embrace.”
In the face of global upheaval involving their countries of origin, the cast of Esther: Queen of Hope is experiencing connection and reconciliation at a personal level, as they hear the biblical story of Esther and the ways it ties into their Persian heritage. 
“When you look at all the personalities and the cultures and also just our own physical challenges to do this, it's pretty incredible,” Godwin says. “It's amazing that God can overcome political barriers, even for people. We just have to keep our faith to believe He's at work.”
Godwin hopes this project will not only help bring about reconciliation for individuals but also entire nations.
“I think this is an opportunity for both Israel and for Iran to reimagine their relationship once we get this done. Clearly, we have to do editing and things after we film, but I really believe this story can reframe how people think about God and the Bible and how their relationship is between these two giant ancient cultures.”
The project began filming a few weeks ago and will continue over the next two months in varying locations and studios. However, they have faced challenges, particularly with funding. 
“We definitely need your prayers for safety, wisdom, and creativity," Godwin says. "We need your prayers to make sure the gospel is clear to these people who are involved. And we need funding. This is getting tight with the dollar changing and everything. So keep us in your prayers.”
Click to learn more about the upcoming <a href="https://imm.edu/esther" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Esther: Queen of Hope miniseries</a>.
 
 
Header photo from Esther: Queen of Hope courtesy of International Media Ministries.]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jun 2025 05:00:29 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/reconciliation-on-the-set-of-esther-queen-of-hope/</guid>
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<title>Living as a representative of Christ in troubled times</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/living-as-a-representative-of-christ-in-troubled-times/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
United States (MNN) -- Protests over U.S. immigration raids have continued in Los Angeles <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/6/9/what-is-the-national-guard-at-the-heart-of-trumps-los-angeles-standoff" target="_blank" rel="noopener">since Friday</a>, even after the controversial deployment of <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/los-angeles-police-order-immigration-protesters-downtown-go-home-2025-06-09/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the National Guard and Marines</a> to quell those protests.
“Certainly, it is disturbing and troubling, all of these things we have had over the last several years — many moments of national anger and issues between people,” says Ron Hutchcraft with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/ron-hutchcraft-ministries/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hutchcraft Ministries</a>. “The extreme feelings are the ones that seem to rule on all sides.”
No matter how this unfolds or what future history accounts say about current headlines, we may be overlooking a “Kingdom of God” perspective. 
“The question to ask ourselves [as followers of Christ] is, ‘Am I taking my cue as to how I'm going to feel and act from the headlines, from events, from comments on social media … or am I going to go with the Holy Spirit?’” Hutchcraft says.
If Jesus is your personal Lord and Savior, you have a clear calling from <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2cor5%3A20&version=ESV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2 Corinthians 5:20</a>. “It says we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making his appeal through us: be reconciled to God,” Hutchcraft quotes. “What an incredible honor we carry!” 
<h2>Living as representatives of Christ in times like these</h2>
Here are five questions Hutchcraft has asked himself:
1. Am I praying for our country and for our leaders as Scripture commands? (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20tim%202%3A1-4&version=ESV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1 Timothy 2:1-2</a>)
“Don't underestimate when you go to the throne room of Almighty God who rules the universe and billions of galaxies,” Hutchcraft says. “When you go to Him in prayer, you are impacting whatever you are praying for. There is no doubt about that.”
2. Am I basing my relationships with people in my world on anything other than the unconditional love of Christ? (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=eph4%3A31-32&version=ESV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ephesians 4:31</a>)
“[When] you step into that [chaotic world] with the love of Christ that says, ‘I'm not going to decide my love for you based on how much we agree, or how agreeable you are, or how you treat me. I’m going to treat you like Jesus treated me,’ you are part of the answer at that point, and so am I," says Hutchcraft.
3. Do I see people as a category, or do I see them as valuable individual creations of God, created in His image?
4. Am I doing or saying anything that does not represent my Jesus? (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=col3%3A17&version=ESV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Colossians 3:17</a>)
5. Have I let any cause other than Jesus' rescue orders become more important to me? Or am I defined by any cause other than the mission of Jesus? (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1cor9%3A12&version=ESV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1 Corinthians 9:12</a>)
<div id="attachment_189000" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-189000" class="size-medium wp-image-189000" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/137616364_10158490265375020_8066309484563642424_o-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />(Image courtesy of Ron Hutchcraft Ministries)</div>
“Jesus said He had come to seek and save the lost. He said, ‘Go and take the gospel to everyone in creation.’ I wonder if the things that we are bombarded with by news media and on social media have taken over more of our heart[s], time, and passions than the very cause for which Christ gave His life. Because when all of this is over, what will be left is people in eternity, forever in one of two places," Hutchcraft says.
If other things have crowded God’s call out of focus for you, would you ask Him for a course correction? Hutchcraft encourages a simple prayer for realignment: “I’m sorry, God. I have allowed some of the magnets of our time to pull me away from things that matter the most, and I want you to bring me back.”
Believers have a powerful opportunity to <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=rom15%3A13&version=ESV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">bring hope</a> as the news gets darker.
<blockquote>
“Let's not miss this opportunity, and let's make that our passion: to let people see the hope of Jesus in us, instead of the despair and anxiety of a culture around us,” he says.
</blockquote>
 
 
The header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of Lara Jameson via Pexels.]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 11 Jun 2025 05:00:49 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/living-as-a-representative-of-christ-in-troubled-times/</guid>
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<title>New resource helps families understand addiction recovery</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/new-resource-helps-families-understand-addiction-recovery/</link>
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<![CDATA[
USA (MNN) -- <a href="https://americanaddictioncenters.org/rehab-guide/addiction-statistics-demographics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More than 16 percent</a> of Americans over the age of 12 struggled with substance abuse in the past year. The five <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/alcohol-and-nicotine-top-addiction-list/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">most common addictions</a> in the United States are alcohol, nicotine, marijuana, opiates, and inhalants.
If someone you love is battling addiction, you’re not alone. “Everybody knows somebody who struggles with addiction,” Brandon Bower with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/the-lighthouse/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Lighthouse</a> says.
“A lot of times people get into [substance use] just to have fun or relax. If, 20 years down the road, they could see the wake of destruction they are causing, I think they would second-guess that (choice.) We end up hurting the people we love the most – our wives, our kids, our parents.”
The Lighthouse offers residential recovery rooted in a biblical approach, “and it is life-transforming,” Bower says. <a href="https://lhfw.org/our-services/anchored-30-day-program/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
“We are attracting men from all over the United States because of The Lighthouse’s unique approach.”
But addiction recovery isn’t just about the individual—it’s about the whole family.
“You can’t just take a man out of their family for six months and expect the family to survive. We’re offering counseling and support; we have a food bank,” Bower says.
<blockquote>
“We have a team of people behind the scenes loving on the families and supporting the families as their dads get help at The Lighthouse.”
</blockquote>
A new resource helps families understand the recovery process and the hope only Christ can offer. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/What-Do-Now-Guide-Addict/dp/B0D858Z77H" target="_blank" rel="noopener">You can order the booklet here on Amazon.</a>
“The Lighthouse recently released a publication called ‘What Do I Do Now?’ It’s a guide to help those who love someone who struggles with life-altering addiction,” Bower says.
Ask the Lord to strengthen and sustain the staff at The Lighthouse. “This is an emotionally draining field,” Bower says.
“You’re working with really broken and hurting people, and it can be exhausting. We’re dealing with some of the most broken individuals in society and seeking to restore their lives.”
Furthermore, “Pray for the families of those who have someone struggling with addiction, that God gives them the wisdom of what the next steps are,” Bower adds.
 
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/text-5xYoebAZokc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Annie Spratt/Unsplash.</a>]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 11 Jun 2025 05:00:28 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/new-resource-helps-families-understand-addiction-recovery/</guid>
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<title>Meet Mission 66, a new Bible study radio program</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/meet-mission-66-a-new-bible-study-radio-program/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
International (MNN) -- If you’ve ever wished you could sit down and understand the Bible better with a friend, a new radio program is waiting for you to discover! 
Mission 66 from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/trans-world-radio/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Trans World Radio</a> is a conversational, modern-day study through the Bible. Adapted from its original Portuguese (as created by Dr. Luiz Sayão), it now reaches the English-speaking world today, with plans for more languages on the horizon.
<div id="attachment_215237" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215237" class="size-medium wp-image-215237" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/unathi2-225x300.jpg" alt="TWR, Trans World Radio, Unathi Sithole" width="225" height="300" />Unathi Sithole is the voice of Esther Sisulu on the Mission 66 program (Photo courtesy of TWR)</div>
The two co-hosts of Mission 66 in English are eager to help Scripture come alive to you. Meet Unathi Sithole with TWR Global, the voice of Esther Sisulu on the program. 
“I'm so passionate about the work that I do with Mission 66 because of seeing the tangible change in my own life through what God has done for me,” she says. 
“You know, I have my own testimony about how God reached me, how He saved me and He set me free — knowing what it feels like being someone who was living in bondage, living in sin, struggling with insecurities, struggling with identity and all kinds of things.”
Now that Sithole has experienced the transforming power of Christ through the Holy Spirit, she wants others to know it too. Her hope is for you to discover in Scripture your freedom in Christ and His deep love for you. 
<h2>So, what is Mission 66? </h2>
Each 25-minute episode of Mission 66 covers a chapter or two of the Bible. In the first half, John Mathews (voiced by John-Paul Davies) reads Scripture and offers commentary. In the second half, Esther Sisulu (Sithole) joins in.
<div id="attachment_148112" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-148112" class="size-full wp-image-148112" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/bible-study.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />(Photo courtesy of Trans World Radio)</div>
“I ask [John] questions about some pertinent points that pop up as a result of the reading. So we discuss these things and we try to apply what we've read into our daily lives, so that our listeners can truly be encouraged to implement the Word of God in their daily lives,” says Sithole.
“It's just a journey with friends through the Word of God with some explanations on some concepts that might be difficult to understand, or even answering some of those difficult questions that we very often ask in our lives, about what the meaning of life is, or why we're here, or what we're supposed to do, what our purpose is,” she says.
You can learn more about Mission 66 by tuning in online <a href="https://twr.org/programs/mission-66-global" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>. 
“Through listening to Mission 66, I hope that you'll get a true sense, a deep sense, of how much the Lord is willing to do to just reach you,” says Sithole. 
“The Bible tells us that Jesus Christ will leave the 99 to find the one. And that's exactly what He's done for each and every one of us. It's what He's done for you.”
And if you’ve already joined the Mission 66 audience, please pray for the remaining episodes being recorded. Pray with Sithole that God prepares the hearts of those will hear, to receive His hope in the gospel, come to know Christ, and be changed. Pray also that the Mission 66 team continues to be used by God and that He will glorify Himself through this program. 
 
 
Header photo of the Mission 66 team courtesy of TWR.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 11 Jun 2025 05:00:59 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/meet-mission-66-a-new-bible-study-radio-program/</guid>
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<title>Food insecurity rising in Haiti, gospel workers respond</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/food-insecurity-rising-in-haiti-gospel-workers-respond/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Haiti (MNN) — More than two million Haitians (one in five) are at an emergency or catastrophic need for food today. Over <a href="https://www.ipcinfo.org/ipc-country-analysis/details-map/en/c/1159571/?iso3=HTI" target="_blank" rel="noopener">8,400 people</a> have crossed into Phase 5 of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification system, facing the threat of starvation. In response, the UN’s World Food Programme has <a href="https://apnews.com/article/haiti-humanitarian-hunger-food-emergency-catastrophic-appeal-3bd37012f9b15c1395fb3ac2806198c4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">appealed</a> for nearly 50 million dollars for relief for Haitians over the next six months.
But David Durance with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/teachbeyond/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TeachBeyond</a> explains the trouble on the ground: “It's not that there's a shortage of food, but there's a shortage of access to food. The problem is actually getting food to the right people and right moment.”
He explains, “One of the challenges is when the unrest really hits, it doesn't matter if we're offering free food at lunch, because we can't get people — mostly our students — to the campus when things are really bad.”
<div id="attachment_208827" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-208827" class="size-medium wp-image-208827" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/tbdcaphaitienschoolflag-300x261.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="261" />(Photo courtesy TeachBeyond)</div>
Durance says TeachBeyond receives weekly advisement from security groups that work with missions agencies. “It's incredible to see the real-time information that we can get now.”
In many cases, Durance says, Haiti’s lack of infrastructure means there are no authorities in place to work with. TeachBeyond’s local partners then must determine when and where aid can be given. 
<h2>Serving with the local church</h2>
Thanks to lessons learned during COVID, TeachBeyond’s campus easily pivots between in-person and online classes depending on security concerns. Missionaries with TeachBeyond see gospel significance in how the local churches respond to the crisis.
“We really want to be active in walking alongside the local believing community and seeing how we can be a part of that,” Durance says of their mission.
“I know many of our missionaries present in these situations are thinking about that: ‘How do we walk alongside the believing church in these moments, knowing this is actually the critical opportunity where the church can be most visible and most itself, if you will, in a community?’”
Please pray for Haiti! 
“When we see these [crises] happen, we always are praying that the local church can step into the hole, step into the void, step into the chaos as the place that provides stability and care and, of course, eventually hope that is ultimately delivered through the Gospel," says Durance.
“When I think of Haiti, it starts with the letter H — we want to pray for hope. We know there are so many people in this country that are waking up today without hope, and we need to pray that they have hope and that that is grounded in a reality that God delivers this nation from the turmoil that they've been living under.”
Another prayer point is “wisdom and deliverance for those that need to be making decisions here, both in country and those are trying to support out of country.” 
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of Miguel Caret Serra via Pexels.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 10 Jun 2025 05:00:14 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/food-insecurity-rising-in-haiti-gospel-workers-respond/</guid>
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<title>Summer of Hope brings new life to Lebanon’s children</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/summer-of-hope-brings-new-life-to-lebanons-children/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Lebanon (MNN) -- Last summer’s war left deep scars on Lebanon’s children. <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/war-in-lebanon-the-ones-who-suffer-the-most-are-children/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
“A lot of children in the Beqaa Valley and southern Lebanon went through very traumatic experiences, seeing their loved ones being killed, seeing many villages being totally destroyed,” Camille Melki of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/heart-for-lebanon/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Heart for Lebanon</a> explains. “A lot of people had to flee for their lives.”
Now, a delicate ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah is holding steady, igniting sparks of hope for a more stable future in the region.
“Children who are now finishing school are looking forward [to] a normal summer, and we’re all praying for that, [a time] where children can spend their summer not worrying where the next bomb is going to come from [or how] their parents would provide for the next meal,” Melki says.
Through its Summer of Hope initiative, Heart for Lebanon is ministering to these young hearts. “It’s a summer activity full of hope,” Melki says.
<blockquote>
“Hope for a prevailing peace that not only seizes the sounds of bombs and explosions but [also] an inner peace that we only find through accepting Christ as our personal Savior.”
</blockquote>
Each Summer of Hope program focuses on a different theme. “Right now, we’re focusing mainly on traumatized children, vulnerable kids, children who are fearful of tomorrow, who maybe have lost hope in the world they’re living in,” Melki says.
“[They are] tired of the violence, tired of the hatred, tired of the message of death and destruction that they hear around them.”
<div id="attachment_215212" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/HFL_summer-of-hope.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215212" class="size-medium wp-image-215212" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/HFL_summer-of-hope-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /></a>(Photo courtesy Heart for Lebanon)</div>
By focusing on biblical character traits, Heart for Lebanon is seeking character transformation in the lives of Lebanese and refugee youth.
“Biblical stories highlight a particular trait that we find in Christ, a particular trait that we find in the Scriptures, and the Gospel that teaches us how to live the best life Christ desires for us,” Melki says.
<a href="https://heartforlebanon.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Help Heart for Lebanon reach 1,600 vulnerable kids through the Summer of Hope.</a> “Our target is to serve 800 [children] in southern Lebanon and 800 in the Bekaa Valley,” Melki says.
“Children who are vulnerable, struggling to accept reality, but with Christ, they learn how to deal with those realities, how they can conquer those fears, and how they can be Christ’s agents of change within their communities.”
Most importantly, pray. “The news out of the Middle East is always one of war and destruction,” Melki says.
“What I’d like our listeners to pray for [is] that the new news out of the Middle East would be one of peace and tranquility, one of a new future.”
 
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of Heart for Lebanon. ]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 10 Jun 2025 05:00:35 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/summer-of-hope-brings-new-life-to-lebanons-children/</guid>
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<title>Small loans see big Kingdom impact</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/small-loans-see-big-kingdom-impact/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Southeast Asia (MNN) -- In some parts of rural Southeast Asia, farming can be the only opportunity for making any income. It provides food for families that grow it and becomes a way to make money and provide food to others as well. 
With the help of a <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/farms-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FARMS International</a> loan, Brother Somchai* in Southeast Asia was able to develop his farm where he is raising livestock, chickens, and raising crops. 
With the income from his farming and livestock, Somchai has built a small house that he uses to witness to other families. 
Somchai lives near a local school and because it’s in a rural area he houses students who would have to travel far to get to school which alleviates pressure on families having to have their kids travel to school. 
Tim Landis with FARMS International says, “While people have come there and been able to stay there as a respite, he's been able to evangelize and evangelize quietly. He's in an area of Southeast Asia where Christianity is heavily persecuted.”
In an area where Christianity is not widespread or even practiced in secret, Somchai took the opportunity to evangelize. Three different families have come to Christ through his hospitality and evangelism ministry. 
Though FARMS loans like Somchai’s are small (around $600 U.S.D.), their impact is wide and has the potential to do real kingdom impact. 
Landis says, “FARMS is just a means to the end, and the end being that more people come to Christ and God's Church, and the kingdom is continuing to be built in these really difficult areas.
Please pray for Somchai for continued provision and protection for him and his ministry. Pray that he can continue to evangelize, that the families who have come to Christ would grow strong in their faith, and that more doors would open to the gospel, especially in this hostile area to Christian faith. 
To support the ministry in other ways, <a href="https://www.farmsinternational.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FARMS</a> asks people to prayerfully consider donating to fund these interest-free loans that help Christians share the good news globally. 
 
*Pseudonym
 
 Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of Rach Teo via Unsplash.]]>
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<pubDate>Tue, 10 Jun 2025 05:00:10 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/small-loans-see-big-kingdom-impact/</guid>
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<title>Christians in India to rally in peaceful protest of increased persecution</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/christians-in-india-to-rally-in-peaceful-protest-of-increased-persecution/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
India (MNN) -- Persecution in India has <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/public-order-trumps-religious-freedom-according-to-one-indian-court/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">trended upward</a> for years. But today, June 9, India’s minority Christians were called on not to endure silently but instead to make a public stand in pursuit of peace. A group called the National Christian Front organized <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2025/06/02/christians-throughout-india-set-to-protest-persecution-on-june-9/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nationwide protests</a> against the systemic violence done against them.
"The thing about India is that in the constitution, you do have freedom of religion: to share your faith, live your faith, and even have people join your faith," says Greg Musselman with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/voice-of-the-martyrs-canada/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Voice of the Martyrs, Canada</a>.
But in many regions, that freedom is subject to anti-conversion laws that often open the door for mob rule.
<div id="attachment_203050" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-203050" class="size-medium wp-image-203050" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/prayforIndia_VCM-300x251.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="251" />(Photo courtesy of Voice of the Martyrs Canada)</div>
“It's like they said, ‘You know, we've had enough of this, and it's time to stand up together, and it's time to band together,’” Musselman says of the Christians protesting today. Other minorities and organizations also feel the brunt of these laws and support the call for true religious freedom in India.
A <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2025/06/02/christians-throughout-india-set-to-protest-persecution-on-june-9/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> states that after the protests, a memorandum will be sent to India’s president to emphasize the issue further. 
“As the violence has increased against our brothers and sisters and minority communities, they said, ‘We want to draw attention to it and to put pressure on the BJP,’ which is a radical Hindu government that states that if you are Indian, you are Hindu," Musselman says.
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"That's going to bring a profile, and it's going to put pressure, we pray, on the Indian government, that they will start to do more to protect their citizens."
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If you want to find out how to help, start with prayer!
“Let's pray that the church in India would be unified,” Musselman says, "that the persecution, the opposition that they're facing would actually —and it does in many cases — [bring] the believers of all different denominations and styles of worship together."
Pray for respect and peace in the protests, that onlookers will recognize the difference Jesus makes. 
“Ultimately, that is what we want to see happen, is that the gospel of Jesus Christ will go forward in India, even through something like a protest saying that ‘we have the right to be able to share the message,'" Musselman says.
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo of a church in Hyderabad, India. (Photo courtesy of Paul Silvan via Unsplash)]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jun 2025 05:00:40 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>SAT-7 PLUS is now a streaming platform available from any gadget and country</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/sat-7-plus-is-now-a-streaming-platform-available-from-any-gadget-and-country/</link>
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MENA (MNN) — A Christian media is making it easier than ever for people to learn about Christ — no registration, no fees, just free, high-quality content accessible from anywhere.
In countries where mosques dominate the skylines, people still have the freedom to choose what fills their screens. Responding to changing needs, <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/sat-7/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SAT-7</a> has expanded into a new format to reach more people with the hope of Christ. Now, viewers can even watch The Chosen on the platform!
People across the Middle East and North Africa can now grow in their faith through SAT-7 PLUS. The ministry has gone beyond satellite television, offering <a href="https://www.sat7usa.org/stories/sat-7-plus-and-the-global-shift-towards-streaming/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a streaming platform</a> accessible on any device — like Netflix, Disney+, or Hulu. But there’s a key difference. Joe Willey from SAT-7 explains:
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“What is unique about SAT-7 PLUS is that it is free. And so this is free Christian content across the Middle East and North Africa, and it can be accessed around the world with the SAT-7 PLUS app.”
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<div id="attachment_215195" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215195" class="size-medium wp-image-215195" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/pexels-ragu-raja-61455736-8380205-200x300.jpg" alt="Pexels" width="200" height="300" />Man checking his phone (representative photo courtesy of Ragu Raja via Pexels)</div>
Satellite TV is widespread in MENA, but so are smartphones and tablets. The region has nearly the same access to mobile technology as the West. So, it’s the Gospel brought not just to their homes, but even closer — right into their pockets.
“You can just download SAT-7 PLUS from your favorite app store, whether that's Apple, whether that's Google. Right now, the programming is available in Persian and Arabic,” Willey says.
Another standout feature of the platform is its availability. Users don’t need to log in or create an account, crucial in regions where being a Christian can be dangerous.
“There are places in the world — in the Middle East and North Africa specifically — where it is dangerous to be a Christian,” Willey says. “So we are trying to be mindful of security and ensure that people can safely access SAT-7 PLUS.”
So far, nearly 1.3 million unique users have visited the platform. And they’re not left to navigate their spiritual journey alone. A dedicated team is ready to respond to questions, go deeper with viewers, and pray alongside them.
“SAT-7 doesn't just broadcast and then leave people to figure things out. We are also there for them on their faith journey,” explains Willey.
Viewers can explore a variety of content, including discipleship programs, films, children’s shows, and more — all pointing to Christ and freely accessible. Joe Willey encourages to support the <a href="https://sat7plus.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SAT-7 ministry</a> in prayer:
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"Pray that SAT-7 — its producers and leadership — will have discernment to know which programs to create and which to air. Pray that God would move mightily in the hearts of people across the MENA region, so they may come to an understanding and true knowledge of Jesus!"
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Header representative photo courtesy of Cedric Fauntleroy via Pexels.]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jun 2025 05:00:18 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Gospel ministry deepens as child sponsorship meets community development</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/gospel-ministry-deepens-as-child-sponsorship-meets-community-development/</link>
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Uganda (MNN) -- How might child sponsorship be leveraged to change the child’s community for Christ as well? 
<a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/amg-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AMG International</a> has wrestled with questions like this for years, Brian Dennett says. The organization recently tested a new model called Participatory Integrated Planning, which Dennett says has been used in other development scenarios. 
“But we wanted to heavily modify that to be church-centered [and] gospel-focused,” he notes. 
“The idea is that we take parents of sponsored children and we help them to learn how to dream, how to plan for their future, how to take stock of the resources that they have, and then consider what the gaps in their life are in realizing those dreams and hopes.”
<div id="attachment_215181" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215181" class="size-medium wp-image-215181" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Sharing-their-plans-for-the-future-edited-225x300.jpeg" alt="Uganda, child sponsorship, Participatory Integrative Planning" width="225" height="300" />Sharing their plans for the future (Photo courtesy of AMG International)</div>
Other ministries are working with AMG to strengthen economics alongside its child sponsorships. Pilot efforts in Uganda have had outstanding results. On a recent trip to Uganda, Dennett met a family with a story to tell. After a year of making and pursuing plans, they had new crops, a beekeeping business, and much more. 
“They shared images that they had drawn of their living conditions a year ago, and then the plan they had come out with to transform their entire life, including their property,” he says. 
“It's just beautiful to see the pride they had in their property, and all of this operating alongside the child sponsorship program. Then the fact that the family was also encouraged to be a part of our local church there and are growing in their faith."
In Uganda, one woman shared at a community meeting with AMG and its partners that their local community was working together like never before, “thinking through how how to have a brighter future for the whole village, and AMG, kind of serving as a sidekick, lovingly coming alongside them, along with our partners and and leading them down this path,” Dennett says.
As always, the gospel revolves around everything AMG seeks to do among families and communities. 
“We consider these opportunities to start conversations, to love people well, and to show them Jesus through our work,” Dennett says. “To see people come from darkness to light in communities like this is just beautiful.”
Would you pray for AMG’s mission in Uganda and prayerfully consider sponsoring a child in need?
“Visit AMG kids.org and sponsor a child, and you'll not just change the life of [that] child, but the whole community,” Dennett says. 
Click to visit <a href="http://amgkids.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener">amgkids.org</a> today.
<div id="attachment_215185" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215185" class="wp-image-215185 size-medium" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/New-crops-300x225.jpeg" alt="" width="300" height="225" />New crops of a family who took deliberate stock and made plans for their future. (Photo courtesy of AMG International)</div>
 
 
Header photo of sponsored kids courtesy of AMG International.]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jun 2025 05:00:58 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Churches in occupied Ukraine press on under pressure</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/churches-in-occupied-ukraine-press-on-under-pressure/</link>
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Ukraine (MNN) — Persecution is constant for Protestant churches in Russian-controlled regions of Ukraine. A <a href="https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2980" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from a religious freedom watchdog describes substantial fines, barriers, and even church closures handed down by Russian courts this year. 
Eric Mock with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/slavic-gospel-association/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Slavic Gospel Association</a> describes the plight of these churchs as a trifecta of difficulties - and living in a war zone is only the start.
“The first part — this is dating all the way back to 2014 and the Orange Revolution — [is that] Protestant churches are seen as Western agents, Western connections,” he says. “Protestant churches are seen as those churches that undermine Russian Orthodoxy, Russian tradition. They are not to be trusted due to their relationship with the West.” 
These believers are often viewed within occupied territories as staunch Ukrainians.
“When these particular churches, or evangelicals continue to hold to their Protestant evangelical identity, and may hold to their Ukrainian identity, their lives are very complicated,” Mock says. “They don't have access to the same resources, and a lot of these churches are shut down.”
All these factors notwithstanding, these believers still step forward with a sense of God’s calling. Mock says many believers have fled occupied regions, going to Russia, Belarus, or sometimes to other parts of Ukraine. But others stay. 
“That's the key part that we need to remember when we're thinking of the believers that are struggling in these occupied territories: if they leave, who will advance the gospel? If people struggle and seek comfort, rather than to be a light in the middle of darkness, who will step up?” Mock says. 
“Even in these occupied areas, the faithful believers recognize that God has raised them up for such a time as this.”
Find your place in the story! 
“It's very difficult to serve these churches, so the primary thing we do for them right now is we pray. We passionately believe that there's much power in much prayer,” Mock says. “The greatest tool we have to see a situation transformed is to appeal to our sovereign God, who is the one true God who even allows these difficulties for the purposes of declaring His greatness among the nations.
“I think secondly, we need to appreciate the churches around the exterior of these regions that are also praying, also helping with refugees. We do our best to help them as people flood into their regions looking for answers.”
Learn more about SGA’s Ukrainian relief fund <a href="https://www.sga.org/ministries/ukraine-relief/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>. 
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Slavic Gospel Association. ]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 06 Jun 2025 05:00:40 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Partnerships fuel efforts to reach the unreached</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/partnerships-fuel-efforts-to-reach-the-unreached/</link>
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International (MNN) -- Here’s a concerning statistic that every Christian should know: “[There are] 65,000 people every single day going into a Christless eternity,” Greg Kelley from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unknown-nations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unknown Nations</a> says.
“Not because they’re Hindu, Buddhist, or Muslim, but because they will never have a single opportunity to hear of Jesus.”
People in this category are known as unreached people groups. The <a href="https://athirdofus.com/idu/">International Day for the Unreached</a>, coming up on Sunday, highlights their plight. Unreached people groups have no access to the Bible, and there are no believers among them.
“By definition, outside assistance is needed, and it starts with prayer,” Kelley says.
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“Before Jesus said ‘Go,’ He said, ‘The harvest is plentiful, and the laborers are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest.’”
</blockquote>
One-third of the world’s population is still waiting to hear the Gospel. <a href="https://athirdofus.com/#about">More about that here</a>. Partnerships make it possible to reach them by providing manpower, awareness, resources, and more.
<div id="attachment_215159" style="width: 242px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/IDU_stats.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215159" class="size-medium wp-image-215159" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/IDU_stats-232x300.jpg" alt="" width="232" height="300" /></a>(Graphic courtesy of A Third Of Us)</div>
“That (partnership) can start with advocacy because not everybody will go and have that opportunity to engage those places. Very few would,” Kelley says.
Though partnerships can include a financial aspect, they don’t often start there. “When we talk about partnership, people think it’s a code word for money. No, forget about money,” Kelley says.
“You can’t effectively use money unless you’re properly educated and your heart is burdened.”
Help us spread the word by sharing this story on your social media. Use the buttons located at the bottom of this page.
Pray for humility among ministries serving the unreached.
“Territorialism in the Church is one of the stifling elements of seeing the perpetuation of indigenous church planning movements,” Kelley says.
“We’ve got to put our pride and ego [aside] and be about seeing Jesus made known in these places.”
 
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of A Third Of Us. ]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 06 Jun 2025 05:00:36 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Want your kids to read this summer? Try this</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/want-your-kids-to-read-this-summer-try-this/</link>
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USA (MNN) -- A <a href="https://www.weforum.org/videos/teen-skills-dropping/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recent report</a> from the World Economic Forum reveals a startling trend: teenagers across the globe are struggling with reading. New data shows a sharp decline in reading scores since 2018.
It’s a familiar issue for <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/keys-kids/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Keys for Kids.</a> “Eighty percent of people around the world are oral learners, so this is not something new and unique,” Keys for Kids’ Greg Yoder says.
“I think it’s just being precipitated by more and more young people using technology in a way that prevents them or keeps them from reading.”
Keys for Kids produces daily devotionals for children and young adults. Summer reading programs for both age groups began on June 1. <a href="https://www.keysforkids.org/SummerReading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here</a>.
“We want to encourage young people to read. And not just to read our devotionals. We want them to be reading God’s Word,” Yoder says.
“If you do this for about two weeks, you’re creating a habit, and we want to create a habit where young people [are] in God’s Word every single day. If we can encourage that by giving them a small prize, we know that kids will continue to do it even after the contest ends.”
<div id="attachment_215165" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/KFK_june-prizes.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215165" class="size-medium wp-image-215165" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/KFK_june-prizes-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>June prizes (Photo courtesy of Keys for Kids)</div>
It’s not too late to join! <a href="https://wordwithzach.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Check out the prizes and get more details here.</a>
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“Even though it started on June 1, you can still sign up and earn some cool prizes as the summer goes on, all the way through the end of August,” Yoder says.
</blockquote>
Pray that reading the Bible daily becomes a new lifelong habit for kids and teens involved in the program. Pray young people will fall deeply in love with Jesus as they read His Word.
“Our kids are our first mission field, not only our kids but the kids in our lives. Nearly 70 percent of all people who come to faith in Jesus Christ do so before their 14th birthday,” Yoder says.
 
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of Keys for Kids. ]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 06 Jun 2025 05:00:32 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Severe flooding compounds challenges in Myanmar</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/severe-flooding-compounds-challenges-in-myanmar/</link>
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Myanmar (MNN) — There are disasters, and then there are disasters on top of disasters that call for deeper compassion.
Myanmar has experienced <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/01/myanmar-four-years-after-coup-world-must-demand-accountability-for-atrocity-crimes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four years of brutal civil war</a> since a 2021 coup. Then on March 28, 2025, a <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/churches-support-myanmar-four-years-after-coup-two-months-after-earthquake/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">7.7-magnitude earthquake</a> struck the country’s center. Today, unexpected severe flooding and crop loss have marked the start of the monsoon season, especially in <a href="https://www.fides.org/en/news/76429-ASIA_MYANMAR_Floods_in_the_north_of_the_country_humanitarian_situation_worsens" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Sagaing Region and Kachin State</a>.
A pastor from Myanmar connected to <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/a3/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A3</a> explains that heavy rains began in the north instead of the typical south. “The problem is that internet connection and information [get] quite restricted — or, it's hard to get the updated information,” he notes. 
Recovery efforts have been derailed by the ongoing conflict between the military junta and various opposition groups. The pastor says the military junta’s <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/world/news/2025-06/disastrous-flooding-adds-to-myanmar-s-humanitarian-emergency.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">most recent ceasefire</a> is merely lip service, meant to gain favor with the international community.
<div id="attachment_196155" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-196155" class="size-medium wp-image-196155" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/pexels-gu-bra-6478935-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />Photo of Myanmar's flag is a representative stock photo courtesy of Gu Bra via Pexels.</div>
“[The] military [is] still bombing, even the earthquake-hit area,” he says. “Still bombing!” 
He says international aid groups have observed aid ending up in the military’s hands rather than going to people in true need, leading to caution in sending aid.
“[When] something happened, [a] natural disaster or something happened, we are helping one another. This is what we are doing. But as far as I know, there is no international aid agency trying to help the flood victims currently,” the pastor says.
One A3 alumnus he was able to contact is trapped in a flooded area. But he had good news to share even in the challenging circumstances. 
“He told me that the Myanmar people, they are responding [to] the gospel very positively in this kind of situation,” says the pastor. 
By “positive,” he means that they are glad to hear about Jesus, not that they have accepted Him. So please pray that these people will take the next step and put their faith entirely in Christ. 
The pastor also asks that you pray for God to intervene “in His way” to end the military junta’s rule, “so that the Church as well as the people will rise up and advance the Kingdom of God.”
 
 
 
The header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of Lil Artsy via Pexels.]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 05 Jun 2025 05:00:53 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Remembering the unreached behind bars</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/remembering-the-unreached-behind-bars/</link>
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International (MNN) – “Billy Graham once said the inmates of the world are an unreached people group, and I totally believe that.” 
Greg Von Tobel with Prisoners for Christ says amid prisoner communities, the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Especially outside of US ministries, there is often a dirge of prison ministry workers. But Von Tobel says his team’s calling is irrevocable. 
“We stand firm. We continue to march.”
For laborers with Prisoners for Christ, that means serving prisoners in more than 160 countries. From hosting medical clinics to offering Bibles, Christian resources, and prayer support, Von Tobel says his team is taking Christ to some of the world’s darkest places. 
“There are many – especially in some of these dark jungle prisons of Africa – many people who have never heard the name of Jesus Christ before,” he says. 
The story is similar in densely populated India and its neighbor Pakistan. 
“Every country has a prison system, and many people come to know Jesus while in prison,” Von Tobel points out. 
He sees prisons as one of God’s great gifts to mankind. 
“Because it can be the last bastion where a lost soul will come to know his creator face to face,” he says. 
Please pray that prison ministries like Prisoners for Christ would be adequately resourced to serve inmate populations around the world. Pray that God would raise up volunteers to contribute to this effort and that hearts would be pricked to tell prisoners about God’s great rescue mission: one which proclaims liberty to all captives.
<div id="attachment_143104" style="width: 674px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-143104" class=" wp-image-143104" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Biblica_prison-ministry-02-22-16-300x229.jpg" alt="incarceration" width="664" height="507" />(Above photo courtesy of Biblica via Facebook; Header image courtesy of Ron Lach via Pexels)</div>]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 05 Jun 2025 05:00:23 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Stories of Russian believers</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/stories-of-russian-believers/</link>
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Russia (MNN)—When people think of Russia, they often picture Moscow and St. Petersburg. However, in small churches across Russia, the <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/slavic-gospel-association/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Slavic Gospel Association</a> is experiencing powerful stories of people going out to preach the Good News. 
“There in the southern portions of Russia that are more Islamic, you have someone like German, who is faithfully ministering in a community that is resistant to the Gospel. There is a community area where there's great tensions, and he is faithfully ministering to people one life at a time, even with threats against him for doing so,” explains Eric Mock of SGA.
In Siberia, SGA is seeing a massive ministry to orphan children, where children who have been surrounded by destructive parents or have no living parents can go to summer camps and hear the Gospel for the very first time. 
“And then these kids age out of the orphanages, and then become ministers to other orphans,” says Mock.
Then, on the far east side of Russia, is Yakutia—a huge land mass almost the size of India, with only 1 million people. Among the 1 million, there are about 1000 believers. There, in a little city, is Valery. 
“He and his wife first came to that region in 1984 after they were newly married. In fact, all their family members said, 'Whatever you do, don't go there. It's cold, it's desolate. There aren't other believers to help you.' And they went, and it was brutal. For the first six or seven years, no one was coming to faith. And then, as God would have it, 1991 the breakup of the Soviet Union, relative freedom came to Russia—they were able to be more open with the gospel. And from there, some of the first people in 1991 to 1994 came to faith, and they literally just started going up and down the tributaries. The gospel went out, and churches are being planted.”
Also on the far east side of Russia are Avel and his wife, Olessya. They used to own a major business, until they heard about a need for pastors.
“So they moved to this little church, and this little church just had this little fellowship room on the back. They had [around] eight people in the church, and they moved into the fellowship [room]. That's where they were living with their children. They went from having a two-story house to having nothing because they heard there was a village there that needed to hear the gospel," says Mock. "By God's grace, it looks more like a house now, and they've been able to improve it, because he's quite the handyman, but they still minister in a church that has about 25 people.”
The pastors and churches SGA serves often urge Mock to share their stories—not for their own sakes, but for Christians in other parts of the world.
“They're thankful for the financial support and for our prayers, but they most often tell me, ‘Tell our story, that the Americans would feel emboldened to be the same faithful witnesses in their own communities.’ So often we think of missionary work as over there, sending people over there, and certainly being a missionary is being sent. But I think we pass off the responsibility to be a gospel witness. And the so what SGA really strives to communicate is that the ministry of the gospel is all of our responsibilities. And we hope, by telling the story of what God is doing in those countries, like in Russia, that we too become the story behind the story. There are many headlines in our own country, of many difficulties, trials and confusions that are going on. But what we pray is that the people, the believers in our country, will become emboldened witnesses for the sake of Christ, because certainly he's coming again soon.”
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Slavic Gospel Association]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 05 Jun 2025 05:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/stories-of-russian-believers/</guid>
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<title>Hope on screen: How SAT-7 KIDS is reaching hurting children</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/hope-on-screen-how-sat-7-kids-is-reaching-hurting-children/</link>
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<![CDATA[
MENA (MNN) -- In many ways, children in the Middle East and North Africa are no different from the children in any other neighborhood. In other ways, they are worlds apart. 
Joe Willey of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/sat-7/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SAT-7</a>, a satellite TV ministry to the Middle East and North Africa, points out that the Middle East is a composite of countries with varying degrees of conflict and complexity. For many children, that means growing up against a backdrop of trauma. 
“There is such a need for many millions of children in the Middle East and North Africa to deal with the trauma of conflict and warfare,” Willey says. 
SAT-7 programs address this from a Biblical standpoint. 
“Really SAT-7 is bringing hope and comfort,” he says. “And it is the hope of the Gospel; it is the comfort that Jesus Christ is the son of God, not just a prophet as is explained in the faith predominant in the Middle East and North Africa.”
SAT-7 Kids is an Arabic children’s channel that broadcasts content 24/7. 
“There is content to help children that are dealing with the trauma from conflict, from warfare – as well as educational programs to help lift people out of poverty.”
Sudan alone, for example, has approximately <a href="https://www.learningpassport.org/stories/sudans-19-million-learners-are-facing-worlds-worst-education-crisis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">19 million school age children</a> lacking access to formal education. 
“That’s just one example of the need, not only for education but education that is being produced and provided by Christians out of a Biblical ethic and worldview,” Willey says. 
Through a library of educational programs, kids can practice fundamentals in reading, writing, and mathematics. Willey says these are often viewed by parents who may have gaps in their own education. 
“So it is meeting not only children, but it is also meeting adults,” he says. 
Programs are designed to be a discipleship program, but trust is being built even among Muslim communities.
“Although it is Christian content, we have people who are not Christians who watch,” Willey says. 
SAT-7 programming goes beyond proclaiming truth, as presenters help explain it and empathize with listeners experiencing great suffering.
On this <a href="https://ngofeed.com/blog/international-day-of-innocent-children-victims-of-aggression/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression</a>, would you pray for children living in the shadow of war and trauma? Please pray for children across the Middle East and North Africa, and pray for the effectiveness of SAT-7 programming to a vulnerable audience.
“Christ has a heart for children, and I believe that we as believers should care for – as we call them and as Scripture has said – the least of these,” Willey says. 
<div id="attachment_154765" style="width: 616px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-154765" class=" wp-image-154765" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/iraq-women-woman-kids-children-middle-eastern-pixabay-300x214.jpg" alt="" width="606" height="432" />Above photo: women and children in Iraq, courtesy of Pixabay; featured photo: SAT-7 kids programming, courtesy of SAT-7</div>]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 04 Jun 2025 05:00:31 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/hope-on-screen-how-sat-7-kids-is-reaching-hurting-children/</guid>
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<title>Hardship continues post-ceasefire in Lebanon</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/hardship-continues-post-ceasefire-in-lebanon/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Lebanon (MNN) -- Hardship continues in southern Lebanon six months after a ceasefire ended the war between Hezbollah and Israel.
<a href="https://www.internal-displacement.org/spotlights/lebanon-escalating-conflict-triggers-record-displacement/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nearly a million people</a> from the region were displaced at the end of last year, and <a href="https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/news-feature/2025/05/28/coping-trauma-lebanon-when-war-never-really-ends" target="_blank" rel="noopener">around 90,000 people</a> still cannot access their homes today.
“If you don’t provide the proper infrastructure – food, electricity, sewage, telecommunication, roads – it’s going to be very difficult for the citizens of southern Lebanon to return to their villages and towns,” Camille Melki with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/heart-for-lebanon/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Heart for Lebanon</a> says.
Those who have returned home are dealing with destruction and trauma. “People are still suffering silently. You have emotional scars, traumatized children [and] people who feel left alone because our government… is still not living up to the needs of many families who have suffered,” Melki says.
<div id="attachment_215121" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/HFL_aid-during-danger-2024.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215121" class="size-medium wp-image-215121" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/HFL_aid-during-danger-2024-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /></a>(Photo courtesy of Heart for Lebanon)</div>
Help from Heart for Lebanon makes it a little easier to meet daily needs. “When the ceasefire agreement was made, everybody thought this was the end of humanitarian aid,” Melki says.
<blockquote>
“Heart For Lebanon is coming alongside many families and individuals to support and walk with them on this journey.”
</blockquote>
<h2>Help for today, hope for tomorrow</h2>
Heart for Lebanon’s consistent and reliable presence speaks volumes during uncertain times, especially to those who don’t know Jesus.
“People of all faiths have been affected by this war that Hezbollah drew us into with Israel,” Melki says.
“For them to know that Heart for Lebanon is willing to stand by them is very puzzling because most humanitarian agencies and other aid groups have already quit providing aid and support.”
Questions lead to Gospel opportunities as people ask why Heart for Lebanon’s approach differs from most aid groups.
“We don’t provide aid because we have more resources than others, but we want to [show] in our actions, presence, and love that God cares. The love and care you are receiving is God’s love given to you through us,” Melki says.
<blockquote>
“It gives us so much credibility by being present, serious, and purposeful in our humanitarian aid, which leads us to beautiful Jesus conversations.”
</blockquote>
<a href="https://heartforlebanon.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">You can support Heart for Lebanon’s efforts here.</a> Most importantly, pray. “Pray that we stay purposeful and resilient, focusing on what God has called us to do,” Melki requests.
“First and foremost, centered at everything we do, is looking at every opportunity to share the Gospel and make disciples, as Christ has commissioned us to do.”
Ask the Lord to strengthen staff and volunteers affected by violence. Out of 80-plus believers at Heart for Lebanon, “30 of our staff members have been directly affected by this war. You are serving and helping people who are hurting while you are hurting as well,” Melki says.
“Prayer for the team and the recipients is very important. Focus your prayer on resilience and obedience.”
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of Heart for Lebanon.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 04 Jun 2025 05:00:14 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/hardship-continues-post-ceasefire-in-lebanon/</guid>
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<title>When God’s Word marches through the prison doors</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/when-gods-word-marches-through-the-prison-doors/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Honduras (MNN) — Catch the contrast of the scene. At a prison in Honduras, where violence and hopelessness reign, a <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/christian-resources-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mission Cry</a> shipment of over 1,000 Bibles arrived. 
“The prisoners gathered in the courtyard, and they were able to get a copy of a Bible, and they were able to do worship songs,” says Reverend Jason Woolford with Mission Cry.
<div id="attachment_215111" style="width: 236px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215111" class="size-medium wp-image-215111" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Gene-prison-director-Honduras-226x300.jpg" alt="Mission Cry, Honduras, Gene Willis" width="226" height="300" />Mission Cry missionary partner and prison director of a prison in Honduras (Photo courtesy of Mission Cry)</div>
“Our missionaries were able to share the salvation message with them and witness them reading their very own Bible. It was so beautiful. [As] the team was leaving, many inmates shook their hand[s] and thanked them for coming.”
This moment happened because Mission Cry missionary partners had favor with prison officials, which Woolford says is happening not only in South America. 
<blockquote>
“We're seeing it in Africa. We're seeing it in the Philippines. You name it — we’re seeing where doors of these prisons are starting to open. Wardens who are not even believers [are] allowing us to come in and preach the gospel by giving them the Word of God.” 
</blockquote>
If you know Christ, think of how the gospel has transformed your life. God can do the same work in a prisoner’s life and community. 
“When these men or women get out of prison and they come back and their families are able to see that God touched them and did something in their lives, how that will impact generations to come,” Woolford says. 
<h2>Find your place in the story</h2>
More Bibles await sponsorship at Mission Cry. 
“The Bible that we give, it’s very strategic. It's the Mission Cry Bible in Spanish. It's the New Testament, and it has a discipleship program in the back, and [other study helps]. We produce this Bible and get it in the hands of people around the world absolutely free for $2 a Bible.” 
Visit <a href="https://missioncry.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">missioncry.com</a> to partner with their team on their upcoming shipments. Please pray as well!
“You're making a difference in the lives of people around the world with the Word that is the only thing that doesn't return void,” Woolford says. 
“Pray for protection over our leadership, our Mission Cry missionaries on the ground and [for] favor — that God would continue to prompt and prick the right hearts at the right time so that we can continue to do what we do by people that partner with us in giving.”
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Mission Cry.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 04 Jun 2025 05:00:53 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/when-gods-word-marches-through-the-prison-doors/</guid>
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<title>Muslim holy week provides prayer opportunity</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/muslim-holy-week-provides-prayer-opportunity/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Saudi Arabia (MNN) -- Saudi Arabia stopped <a href="https://apnews.com/article/saudi-arabia-hajj-muslim-pilgrims-mecca-permits-09b5191765d1d339af63e48b28e36daa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more than 269,000 people</a> from entering Mecca this week because they didn’t have the proper Hajj permits. Officials enforce strict regulations, including fines of up to $5,000, deportation, and license revocations for violators and non-compliant Hajj companies.
Despite the pilgrimage being a sacred, once-in-a-lifetime obligation for Muslims, unauthorized attempts remain high, highlighting concerns about safety amid rising temperatures and past fatal accidents during the event.
Suzanne Heegaard of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/prayercast-2/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Prayercast</a>, MNN’s sister ministry, says, “This is a very holy week for Muslims. They prepare for months, trying to procure a seat or a ticket, with packing [and] preparations.”
Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam. <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/hajj-2025-understanding-the-hajj-pilgrimage-one-of-the-5-pillars-of-islam-8569365" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a> According to Islamic tradition, performing the Hajj pilgrimage tests patience, temperament, and devotion to Allah.
<div id="attachment_215071" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/haidan-bVuE49x-Fxw-unsplash.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215071" class="size-medium wp-image-215071" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/haidan-bVuE49x-Fxw-unsplash-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" /></a>The first Hajj ritual requires walking seven times around the Kaaba, the large black cubic structure in the middle of Mecca’s Grand Mosque. (Photo courtesy of Haidan/Unsplash)</div>
Because it depends on lunar sightings, the timing of the Hajj varies annually. This year, it starts tomorrow and ends on Monday, June 9.
“It is a spiritual pilgrimage that they (Muslims) complete once in their lifetime if finances and physical ability allow them to,” Heegaard says.
<blockquote>
“They see it as a religious duty. They believe that Hajj will earn them salvation.”
</blockquote>
Those who were refused entry by Saudi officials could feel desperation because they could not participate in the Hajj this year. Pray this desperation leads individuals to seek answers outside of Islam.
“For those who didn’t get their ticket, we’re praying that they can realize that Jesus is readily available for all Muslims everywhere to offer full hope and peace right where they are,” Heegaard says.
Now that you know, how will you respond? <a href="https://prayercast.com/prayer-topic/hajj-pilgrimage/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Join Prayercast’s email campaign to pray for Muslims during Hajj.</a>
“We would love to have you guys join us and pray during Hajj for Muslims because God created Muslims, and He loves them,” Heegaard says.
 
 
 
Header image depicts Muslim pilgrims in traditional white clothing. Photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/man-in-white-thobe-standing-on-green-grass-field-during-daytime-JGBoIaHTACI" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Afif Ramdhasuma/Unsplash</a>.]]>
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<pubDate>Tue, 03 Jun 2025 05:00:29 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/muslim-holy-week-provides-prayer-opportunity/</guid>
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<title>The story of the Hmar: unreached no longer</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/the-story-of-the-hmar-unreached-no-longer/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
International (MNN) -- June 8 is the International Day for the Unreached. Christians will rally in prayer and action on behalf of the more than 3 billion people alive today who have never heard of Jesus. 
God has already been writing awesome stories to save unreached people groups. One transformation story began 115 years ago among a notorious head-hunting tribe in northeast India, the Hmar.
“We were an unengaged, unreached people group at the time,” says John Pudaite of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/bibles-for-the-world/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bibles For the World</a>, the grandson of one Hmar young man alive in 1910.
<div id="attachment_214289" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214289" class="size-medium wp-image-214289" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/BFTW-1-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />(Image courtesy of Bibles for the World)</div>
That was around the time Welsh missionary Watkin Roberts sent a translation of the Gospel of John to the chiefs of the Hmar people. 
“There were a few [chiefs] that were semi-literate, and they knew that it was something important. So they scrawled on the back, ‘Please, sir, come and explain the meaning of this book.’” 
Roberts flouted British orders not to go and snuck away to the Hmar villages. Five days together changed everything.
“The Holy Spirit just spoke through him, is all I can say. He had found an analogy in how our tribes would come to a peaceful reconciliation," Pudaite says.
Roberts likened Jesus to the sacrificial animal whose blood brought peace at the boundary line between the Hmar and other groups — or in this case, between God and man. 
“Our people, they got it!” Pudaite says. His grandfather Chawnga was one of the first to accept Christ. Chawnga then memorized the gospel of John. That was all the Hmar had access to at that time, but it was enough.
<blockquote>
“It just spread from hut to hut and then from village to village. Our entire tribe was evangelized — and almost entirely by its own people — within one generation,” Pudaite says. 
</blockquote>
Years later, Chawnga and his wife dedicated their son Ro to leave their village and learn how to translate all of God’s Word into the Hmar language. (More on that story and the history of Bibles For the World <a href="https://www.biblesfortheworld.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.)
The transformation of this one unreached people group has impacted millions around the world. Praise God for what He has done!
Learn more about how to join the International Day for the Unreached <a href="https://alliancefortheunreached.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>. Listen to more of this conversation with John Pudaite, Ruth Kramer, and several others on the Moody Radio special, <a href="https://www.moodyradio.org/programs/special-programs/Unreached/2025/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Until All Hear.</a>
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Bibles For the World.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 03 Jun 2025 05:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/the-story-of-the-hmar-unreached-no-longer/</guid>
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<title>Those Jesus calls, He equips – the Indonesian believers receive training in church planting and leading</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/those-jesus-calls-he-equips-the-indonesian-believers-receive-training-in-church-planting-and-leading/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Indonesia (MNN) -- When the passion for sharing the Gospel overflows, it takes training to channel it into a strategic stream.
Once an Indonesian comes to Christ, their passion to share the Gospel is hard to quench. Brian Dennett from<a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/amg-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> AMG International</a> says, “They've come to Christ, and they have a burden for their own people!”
Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in the world. Its many tribes and ethnic groups differ in culture and religion, yet all share one deep need: Jesus.
“We have targeted twelve different people groups, tribes that have had literally no exposure to the Gospel, and we've done that in partnership with our local church network there,” Dennett says.
<div id="attachment_215085" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215085" class="size-medium wp-image-215085" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/pexels-photo-32329269-300x206.webp" alt="Pexels" width="300" height="206" />Indonesian family playing chess (representative photo courtesy of Daniel Lee via Pexels)</div>
In a country where Christians are a minority and often lack experience or guidance, a young believer can easily grow discouraged. To meet this need for solid, confident leadership, AMG runs a Bible training center — preparing pastors and church planters to go out in a responsible and safe way.
The strategy begins with identifying a local believer who has received a clear calling. Then, the ministry comes alongside to support and equip them.
<blockquote>
“God has clearly called [local believers] to reach their own people. They already know the context. They already know their people.”
</blockquote>
Believers build relationships with those who are open to Gospel and form study groups. “One planter team that we have over the last six months has established a regular ministry with nine family groups, and among these five have confessed their faith in Jesus, and are meeting regularly in a home church,” Dennett says.
Miracles often accompany this work.
One woman, suffering from severe vision loss, was prayed for several times by a local church planter and his wife. But everything changed one day. Dennett shares: “After sharing the Word of God and praying this one time, her vision was completely restored!” She confessed her faith in Jesus, the one who healed her, and believed in Him with all her heart.
<blockquote>
“She told [about her healing] to everybody around her! And so for her, for her family, this miraculous act not only confirmed the Gospel, but also opened the door for a lot of further ministry in their community and in their region,” Dennett says.
</blockquote>
Pray that <a href="https://www.amginternational.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AMG International</a> will continue to reach Indonesia’s unreached communities through holistic training for pastors and strategic church planting — led by the Holy Spirit.
 
 
Header photo: Fishing boats in Banten, Indonesia (courtesy of Tom Fis via Pexels).]]>
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<pubDate>Tue, 03 Jun 2025 05:00:32 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/those-jesus-calls-he-equips-the-indonesian-believers-receive-training-in-church-planting-and-leading/</guid>
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<title>Public order trumps religious freedom, according to one Indian court</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/public-order-trumps-religious-freedom-according-to-one-indian-court/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
India (MNN) — A state court in northern India defended anti-conversion laws last month with an interesting constitutional contradiction. The court argued that rights like religious freedom are “<a href="https://www.ucanews.com/news/indian-court-asserts-secularism-to-hold-up-anti-conversion-law/109059" target="_blank" rel="noopener">subject to public order, morality, and health</a>.”
Todd Nettleton with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/voice-of-the-martyrs-usa/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Voice of the Martyrs, USA</a> explains the potential ramifications. 
“So if you are sharing your religion and it's making people of another religion angry, well, then you're upsetting public order, and public order is a higher value than religious freedom, which has been guaranteed in the constitution," he says.
<div id="attachment_114950" style="width: 230px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-114950" class="size-full wp-image-114950" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/vomindiapray.jpg" alt="" width="220" height="220" />(Photo courtesy of Voice of the Martyrs)</div>
"I would love to know the discussions behind the scenes between the various attorneys and how he (the judge) came to this decision. But it does show what the Hindu nationalists believe: that 'if we let the Christians propagate their religion, if we let the Muslims grow in influence, that is going to upset the public order, that's going to bring about hassles and upset and upheaval that we don't want. So we need to stop those. Therefore, we need these anti-conversion laws that we have, even though clearly they violate the constitution that promises the freedom to freely propagate your religion."
Anti-conversion laws are used with relative impunity to justify attacks on Christians and other minority religions. One India-based monitor <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2025/04/02/attacks-against-christians-quadruples-in-india-according-to-new-report/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">verified</a> 640 violent or discriminatory acts against Christians in 2024. That’s likely only a fraction of what really happened.
“It's the government that's driving this persecution, and as I say, the trend is unfortunately much more persecution today than there was even five or 10 years ago," says Nettleton.
In 2024, Voice of the Martyrs changed how it classifies India, moving it from a hostile area to a restricted nation. (<a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/christians-wary-of-upcoming-elections-in-india/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More on that here.</a>) The ministry comes alongside Christians in India with legal assistance, help for families of imprisoned Christians, audio Bible distribution, and more.
Lawyers are frequently needed these days. Nettleton explains that Christians accused of coercing someone to change their religion can spend months, even years in prison — before a court ruling. 
“Sometimes the challenge is just enduring while you wait for the process to go forward,” he says. 
Find your place in the story with your brothers and sisters in Christ. 
<blockquote>
“We want to pray for them. We want to stand with them where we can,” says Nettleton, “and I hope that we're inspired to be bold. If a pastor or an evangelist is willing to go to jail to share the gospel, am I willing to walk across the street to my neighbor? Am I willing to strike [up] a conversation with someone?”
</blockquote>
 
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Voice of the Martyrs.]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 02 Jun 2025 05:00:35 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/public-order-trumps-religious-freedom-according-to-one-indian-court/</guid>
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<title>CCP bolsters communist foundation as believers trust their Cornerstone</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/ccp-bolsters-communist-foundation-as-believers-trust-their-cornerstone/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
China (MNN) – President Xi Jinping and his administration are clamping down on China’s only legal church, insisting that congregations <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2025/05/09/chinese-christian-media-ordered-to-include-more-communist-propaganda/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">include more communist ideology</a> in their liturgy. Erik Burklin from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/china-partner/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">China Partner</a> says the push is part of a larger movement to infiltrate communist thought across all of China. And yet, cracks are evident in the CCP’s foundation.

“When you’re trying to control a population of 1.4 billion, that gets very complicated,” Burklin says. 
Reports indicate members of the Religious Affairs Bureau are nervous. 
“Because they don’t know, ‘Well, what if I don’t enforce [new regulations] properly? What happens to me then?’”
Meanwhile, the church of China stands on a different foundation, one with a Cornerstone not fashioned by human hands. 
<blockquote>“Jesus did say, ‘I will build my church,’ and this is how we can pray for the Chinese church: we need to remember that He will build it no matter what comes against it,” Burklin says. </blockquote>
He anticipates CCP leadership and the Chinese population at large eventually pushing back against an ideology doomed to fail. 
“There’s only so far you can go with Communist ideology. We know this from history,” Burklin says.
Please pray for President Xi Jinping. As he seeks further control of his people, ask the Lord to reveal Himself as the one who holds hearts of kings in His hands. 
“He controls what Xi does and what other leaders around the world do, and so we as Christians have that hope; and that’s what we need to look to,” Burklin reminds us. 
On another hopeful note, there are over 50,000 registered churches and an equal or greater number of unregistered churches operating in China every week. Amidst restrictions on children in worship services, parents are taking shepherding to heart. 
“On top of that, they’re printing Bibles now, rather than getting rid of them under the Mao regime,” Burklin says. “So that’s what the Christians are thankful for.” 
By God’s hand, Burklin points out, Xi Jinping will continue his plans as the Lord carries out His. 
Pray that Chinese believers will stay strong in the Scriptures and their faith. Pray for the Chinese church leaders navigating new waters. Pray also for members of the Religious Affairs Bureau, who will need to work closely with church leaders to enforce new regulations.
"As a result of enforcement of that, they will get to know more pastors,” Burklin says, “and God can use this to reach those individuals as well.” 
Please pray also for <a href="https://chinapartner.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">China Partner</a> as they prayerfully consider new ministry directions both within and outside of China. 
<div id="attachment_175165" style="width: 689px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-175165" class=" wp-image-175165" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/55541926_2691066224267238_2558233768770928640_n-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="679" height="509" />(Photos courtesy of China Partner)</div>]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 02 Jun 2025 05:00:17 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Alcohol and nicotine top addiction list</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/alcohol-and-nicotine-top-addiction-list/</link>
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USA (MNN) -- Substance abuse costs society <a href="https://www.gatewayfoundation.org/blog/cost-of-drug-addiction/#financial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more than $820 billion</a> a year. Medical bills and productivity losses related to alcohol and tobacco make up the bulk of lost revenue.
The <a href="https://www.addictioncenter.com/addiction/10-most-common-addictions/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">most common addictions</a> in the United States may surprise you. “The top five are alcohol, nicotine, marijuana, opiates, and then inhalants,” Brandon Bower with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/the-lighthouse/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Lighthouse</a> says.
“Number four on the list is opioids, and we’re seeing the most deaths out of this category because of fentanyl. Fentanyl is mixed with nicotine now, and marijuana, and cocaine, and all of these other things; 70 percent of addiction deaths are coming directly from fentanyl.”
The last addiction listed caught Bower off guard. <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/huffing-to-get-high-us-sees-rise-in-inhalant-abuse/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Here’s a closer look at inhalants.</a> “I didn’t realize it would be in the top five, but it is trending up right now because it’s very dangerous,” he says.
<div id="attachment_207391" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/beer-2607172_1280.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-207391" class="size-medium wp-image-207391" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/beer-2607172_1280-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /></a>(Image courtesy of StockSnap on Pixabay)</div>
Another troublesome trend deserves mention. “One of the concerning things for us in the rehab business is seeing that Christians and churches are doing alcohol-related events,” Bower says.
<blockquote>
“They’re almost giving a free pass to the use of alcohol rather than offering cautions.”
</blockquote>
Designer drugs are problematic, too. “They’re purposely designing these things to circumvent the laws to attract certain populations – kids, young adults, college students,” Bower says.
“The thing that’s really concerning about these (designer drugs) is they’re unpredictable. Nobody quite knows what’s in these drugs. Sometimes, they’re more powerful; sometimes they’re fatal.”
The Lighthouse offers a Christ-centered solution. <a href="https://lhfw.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a> “We’re working intently with this handful of men to re-establish healthy patterns in their [lives],” Bower says.
“Everyone starts in a 30-day program where we walk beside them for an intense 30 days. They’re in groups, classes, and counseling four to five times daily, and we’re training them in life skills.”
Do you know someone struggling with a life-altering addiction? <a href="https://lhfw.org/contact-us/submit-a-question/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Contact The Lighthouse today.</a>
“<a href="https://lhfw.org/our-services/anchored-30-day-program/anchored-30-day-program-application/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fill out the application</a>, and we will call within 72 hours to make an appointment to talk to you about your loved one or to talk to your loved one. If there’s an emergency, we can get someone in, sometimes as quickly as 24 hours,” Bower says.
“Right now, we’re seeing a fairly low census, so pray that God brings the right people to our programs so we can help the right people at the right time.”
 
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/a-man-sitting-at-a-table-with-a-glass-of-beer-qMO3lEc3XH8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Luca Horváth/Unsplash.</a>]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 02 Jun 2025 05:00:20 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>While Afghanistan remains uncertain, returning refugees may find hope in the Gospel</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/while-afghanistan-remains-uncertain-returning-refugees-may-find-hope-in-the-gospel/</link>
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Afghanistan (MNN) -- Resettling after leaving your homeland is incredibly difficult. Returning is even harder — especially when your country is still in crisis. That’s the reality facing more than <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/04/1162706" target="_blank" rel="noopener">250,000 Afghan</a> refugees who have been forced to return to Afghanistan from Iran and Pakistan in recent months.
Greg Kelley from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unknown-nations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unknown Nations</a> says, “They're going back home to completely unknown circumstances. They won't have jobs, they won't have shelter.”
The challenges are staggering. Over 85% of Afghans live on less than one dollar a day, and many face ongoing persecution from the Taliban. Yet even in these conditions, the Gospel finds a way.
<blockquote>
“When the church is under such extreme circumstances, we see the receptivity to the gospel increase. And in fact, Afghanistan is one of the fastest growing churches in the world,” Kelley says.
</blockquote>
<div id="attachment_215039" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215039" class="size-medium wp-image-215039" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/lucas-sankey-jxbpuwJnZW4-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="Unsplash" width="300" height="200" />Man holding Bible (Photo courtesy of Lucas Sankey via Unsplash)</div>
One powerful story illustrates this: the son of a Taliban member became a Christian and kept it secret — unaware that his father had also come to Christ. “Once that secret was finally revealed, that they both were followers of Jesus, they just wept. They embraced each other!” Kelley shares.
As the number of believers grows, so does the need for leadership. Unknown Nations is working to meet this need.
“We are training hundreds of leaders inside of Afghanistan. These people are being equipped because that's what this church needs. This is a young church.” The ministry uses both digital tools to train leaders within the country and face-to-face discipleship for Afghans living abroad.
“We need to be creative as the body of Christ and find places where Afghans are at, and they're in dozens of countries around the world, including here in the US,” Kelley adds. These are potential future leaders of the churches in their homeland. He adds, "When they come to know the truth of Jesus, you will not be able to keep them away from Afghanistan!"
<a href="https://www.unknownnations.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unknown Nations</a> focuses especially on the 40 million Afghans still living inside the country, recognizing that their spiritual needs differ from those of the diaspora. They are born into war, living under the chaos of the Taliban regime and its conflicts with ISIS. They must protect their women and children above all. Their cries to God are shaped by daily survival.
<blockquote>
"There's nothing better than the perfect power of Jesus Christ to give you strength. And I think that would be the defining attribute of the church in Afghanistan," Kelley says.
</blockquote>
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Faruk Tokluoğlu via Pexels.]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 30 May 2025 05:00:29 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Whole Bible, Whole Nation: Iran</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/whole-bible-whole-nation-iran/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Iran (MNN) -- Women are treated like second-class citizens in Iran. When they’re from a minority ethnic group, like Miriam, they fall even farther down the social ladder.
Social rank applies even in death. Dane with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unfoldingword/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unfoldingWord</a> says, “Miriam is a Muslim background believer who always felt like a second-class citizen in Iran. She followed all the rules of Islam, but it never felt like enough.”
Death was always on her mind, Dane continues, and adds, “She just had no hope in Islam. Even when she was baking potatoes, she thought, ‘I’ll be baked in oil like this when I go to hell.’”
One day, Miriam heard the Gospel and placed her faith in Jesus. Then, she joined a team of church-centric Bible translators and received training from unfoldingWord.
“She said, ‘This is a dream come true. How can I explain sitting with my elderly mother and talking to her about Christ in the only language she knows?” Dane says.
<blockquote>
“‘Finishing the translation means reaching more hearts, saving more people, and bringing them to heaven.’”
</blockquote>
<h2>Believers translate Scripture</h2>
About half of Iran’s 90 million people use a language other than Farsi, the national language. unfoldingWord’s <a href="https://unfoldingword.org/wbwn/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“Whole Bible, Whole Nation” project</a> seeks to equip Iran’s rapidly growing church networks to translate and distribute unfoldingWordⓇ Open Bible Stories.
<div id="attachment_215025" style="width: 250px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/UW_quote-veil.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215025" class="size-medium wp-image-215025" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/UW_quote-veil-240x300.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="300" /></a>(Photo courtesy of unfoldingWord)</div>
“Church planters need the Bible in those heart languages of Iran to plant healthy churches and disciple believers,” Dane says.
“We are equipping networks already at work in Iran with the tools, technology, and training to translate the Bible into those languages.”
Translating God’s Word is dangerous in a place like Iran. <a href="https://www.persecution.com/globalprayerguide/iran/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Here’s why.</a> Ask the Lord to bless and protect Miriam and her team.
“She risks her life every time she opens her computer to help with this translation for her people,” Dane says.
Consider supporting unfoldingWord’s “Whole Bible, Whole Nation” project in Iran. <a href="https://unfoldingword.org/portfolio/eurasia/persian/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Find more information and donate here.</a>
“They’ve got 13 New Testament translations planned, but we’re waiting on funding. If God’s given you the ability and puts the call on you, we’d encourage you to give,” Dane says.
 
 
Header image is a representative photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/woman-in-blue-shirt-standing-during-daytime-REBIdR3c2DE" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Habib Dadkhah/Unsplash.</a>]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 30 May 2025 05:00:13 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/whole-bible-whole-nation-iran/</guid>
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<title>They will know we are Christ’s disciples by our love</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/they-will-know-we-are-christs-disciples-by-our-love/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
This story has been corrected from its broadcast. The exchange with the A3 team and hotel staff in Indonesia actually took place several years ago, not at A3's most recent Global Leaders Summit. 
 
Indonesia (MNN) -- In today's world, the beauty of diversity is often marred by divisions. But what happens when there’s every reason on earth for differences among Christians, and yet there’s love? People pay attention. 
The team at <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/a3/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A3</a> has seen this firsthand. A3's Joe Handley says that at a gathering a few years ago, twenty different nations and a wide range of theological backgrounds were represented. Yet these believers cared for each other and mingled freely.
“It's not like the Indians are at one table and the Cambodians are at another and the North Africans are hanging out one place. But the intermingling is a much more robust, healthy kind of environment,” Handley says. “We play volleyball, we play soccer, we do a lot of fun stuff in the afternoon between our main sessions where we're going over stuff together."
At this particular gathering, people observing from the outside <a href="https://a3leaders.org/stories/president/2179-who-are-you-guys" target="_blank" rel="noopener">noticed the difference</a>.
<blockquote>
“The hotel staff just came up to one of my colleagues and said, ‘Who are you guys? Like, this never happens, you know?’”
</blockquote>
Questions like that open the way to share the hope of Jesus. 
“When you look at the world around us, the hotel staff is thinking of the polarities. Nobody gets along with each other. We’re fighting these wars. We’re arguing with each other and throwing each other under the bus every day on the news,” Handley says.<img class="size-medium wp-image-209620 alignright" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/a3-logo-teal-blacktag-vertical-3000x1500px-300x150.png" alt="" width="300" height="150" />
“Jesus is the unifying force for the Body of Christ, and when we're at our best, we're able to show the depth of that unity because of our diversity. It's just a beautiful design that God has given for us in the world.”
He points to Jesus' prayer in <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john%2017&version=NKJV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John 17</a> that His people would be one as He and God the Father are one. Please join in similar prayers! Handley explains A3 has recently begun working with Christian leaders in new countries in Africa, Europe, and Latin America.
“[Please pray] that we could continue to be a display to the nations. The potential diversity is growing for us, and we need prayer so that we can still be on the same page and see that kind of unity,” he says. 
Pray for oneness in the global Church as well, for the glory of Christ.
“If A3 and the Church globally can display our unity, our love for each other, our care for each other despite our differences, it will be a clarion call to the world at large. I pray that more and more people will be out there that see this, and they will be saying, ‘Who are you people?’ and give us the opportunity to share the hope of Christ.”
 
 
Header photo is a representative stock image courtesy of Herlambang Tinasih Gusti via Unsplash.]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 30 May 2025 05:00:40 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Fulani attacks highlight need for missionaries in Northern Nigeria</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/fulani-attacks-highlight-need-for-missionaries-in-northern-nigeria/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Nigeria (MNN) -- 42 believers are dead after an <a href="https://morningstarnews.org/2025/05/herdsmen-slaughter-42-christians-in-taraba-state-nigeria/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">attack by Muslim cattle herders</a> in Northern Nigeria last week. Please pray for the families reeling from this devastation.
More believers are killed in Nigeria each year than in all other countries combined. In the country’s Muslim North, violence against Christian minorities has been happening for years.
<div id="attachment_214991" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214991" class="size-medium wp-image-214991" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/fulanis-4917821_1280-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" />Fulani man in Nigeria. Courtesy of Pixabay.</div>
“Unfortunately, what’s been happening more recently, is the atrocities and attacks are happening more in the middle belt states where Christianity and Islam collide,” says <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unknown-nations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Greg Kelley with Unknown Nations</a>.
While attacks on Christians have often been perpetrated by the radical Islamic group Boko Haram, Saturday’s attacks were carried out by the Fulani, a nomadic tribe of cattle herders. 
“That’s really where the tensions start. They target farmers, who are primarily Christian, and they will graze their cattle and go through their lands,” Kelley says. 
When farmers confront the Fulani, violence often precedes or subsumes negotiation. But while the world spotlights the Fulani’s aggression, Kelley points out their spiritual need. They are among a third of the world’s population unreached with the Gospel — a stark contrast to Nigeria’s Christian people groups concentrated in the South. 
“There are dozens and dozens like the Fulani, like the Hausa, like the Kanuri, that are 99% Muslim. That is where our indigenous network exclusively works," he says. 
Unknown Nations partners with over 200 believers in Northern Nigeria. Kelley says his team members are taking the Gospel to one of the world’s most dangerous areas. 
“Islam, unfortunately, in Northern Nigeria especially, just brings so much destruction, despair, aggression,” he says. “There’s just no peace in their lives, so missionaries are having a ton of fruit in these areas of Nigeria.”
<div id="attachment_215005" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-215005" class="wp-image-215005 size-medium" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/251A2555-1-200x300.jpg" alt="audio Bibles, Nigeria" width="200" height="300" />Audio Bibles offer a chance to hear God's Word in someone's heart language (Photo courtesy of Unknown Nations)</div>
Meanwhile, churches in Nigeria’s South remain vibrant and committed to Christ.
“But unfortunately, their enthusiasm for the Lord hasn’t really translated into mobilization into the North,” Kelley points out. 
He says Christian missionaries from southern Nigeria are few and far between. Yet, the most effective ministries are those based in the Middle Belt and the North. Please pray for an expansion of missionary presence in these areas, and pray for the missionaries already working in this region. 
“And as we pray for the church of Nigeria to get mobilized,” Kelley encourages, “we need to look in the mirror and say, ‘How are we mobilized?’”
 
 
Header photo courtesy of Unknown Nations.]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 29 May 2025 05:00:56 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>A snapshot of Iran’s thriving, victorious church</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/a-snapshot-of-irans-thriving-victorious-church/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Iran (MNN) -- According to global watchdog Open Doors, more than <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/christians-extreme-persecution-around-world-2038364">380 million Christians</a> today experience persecution and discrimination for their faith. 
But persecution doesn’t mean paralysis. Take the church in Iran, for example. 
“The church in Iran today is truly thriving, but also under a lot of strain,” says Lana Silk with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/transform-iran/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Transform Iran</a>. “It reminds me of the Scripture where Paul talks about us being persecuted and beaten down, but not crushed. 
<blockquote>
“It's a constant pressure on the church from the government. But that has not taken away the vibrancy of the church in Iran. It is a thriving, victorious church.”
</blockquote>
You may have heard that Iran has one of the fastest-growing churches in the world, full of Christians young in their faith. But Silk wants us to know there’s maturity there, too.
“There is definitely a different balance in the church in Iran to what we would have in the West, where we have such a rich resource of seasoned leadership for a church that is perhaps less young,” she says.
<div id="attachment_206883" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-206883" class="size-medium wp-image-206883" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/hamid-mohammad-hossein-zadeh-hashemi-LrO_cnq7aJQ-unsplash-smaller-copy-300x146.jpeg" alt="smaller version, stock photo, Unsplash, Tehran, Tehran Province, Iran September 22, 2020" width="300" height="146" />Photo of Tehran, Iran courtesy of Hamid Mohammad Hossein Zadeh Hashemi via Unsplash.</div>
“But I would also say there is a different dynamic in terms of growth. There is an accelerated growth rate in Iran, and that is a spiritual dynamic. The Lord has, through His grace, allowed Christians to grow up very quickly in Iran. Somebody who may not have even been a believer a year ago could be leading multiple churches today.” 
Transform Iran has a robust discipleship program that is one-on-one, personal, and strategic. Silk says they see new believers change quickly from receiving to giving. 
“Within months, people are witnessing to others, leading others to the Lord, inadvertently becoming pastors themselves, though not seasoned and experienced yet,” she says.
<h2>Find your place in the story</h2>
Wherever you call home, there’s something you can learn from fellow believers. If you live in a place where ministry and leadership are usually given to those with years of experience, Silk offers a challenge we can glean from Iran’s young but rising Church.
<div id="attachment_214575" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214575" class="size-medium wp-image-214575" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/zahra-amiri-dlsB8cNNpI4-unsplash-300x200.jpg" alt="boy, child, smile, Iran," width="300" height="200" />Tehran, Iran (Representative stock photo courtesy of Zahra Amiri via Unsplash)</div>
“Shouldn't we all be in ministry? Shouldn’t we all be fruitful and leading others to the Lord in every way in our lives? That's where we can learn from Iranian Christians, who are immediately thrown into a life of ministry and of fruitfulness and growing, and then pastoring comes out of that,” Silk says. 
<blockquote>
“By the grace of God, I would say that there are many hundreds, if not thousands of pastors in Iran today, serving in this way and showing through the fruit of their ministry that they are called and anointed by God.”
</blockquote>
Praise God for the “impossible” things He is doing in Iran today!
“Today, He is accelerating a growth in the church. He is investing in the people. He's growing leaders. He's leading the lost to Himself, and He's inviting us, for the thrill of the ride, to do it with Him," Silk says.
"Let's be praying that God would continue to strengthen them, encourage them, resource them, and surround them [with] other believers that will be community for them and strengthen them in their faith. Let's also be advocating for them and investing in ministries that are supporting them."
Visit <a href="https://transformiran.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Transform Iran's website</a> to learn more!
 
 
Header photo is a representative stock photo courtesy of Armin Moradi via Unsplash.]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 29 May 2025 05:00:25 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Set Free equips Christians to wage war using God’s weapons</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/set-free-equips-christians-to-wage-war-using-gods-weapons/</link>
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<![CDATA[
USA (MNN) -- The Bible portrays spiritual warfare as a real and ongoing battle between God and Satan, with believers caught in the middle. Specifically, believers’ minds and lives are the combat zone.
As described in <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=isaiah%2059%3A2&version=NKJV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Isaiah 59:2,</a> Satan can effectively cut believers off from the Lord by tempting them to sin. <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/set-free-ministries/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Set Free</a> equips Christians to wage war using God’s weapons.
“We want the ground to be revealed through a freedom appointment so that we can take back that ground from the enemy and walk in freedom,” Set Free’s Pete Noor says.
Set Free volunteers walk believers through the process of a freedom appointment using so-called “rules and tools.” <a href="https://setfreemin.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
“We use seven steps that Dr. [Neil] Anderson developed. Each one addresses an area where we may have given ground to the enemy because we’ve broken the rules set forth in Scripture,” Noor says.
<div id="attachment_214970" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/alex-shute-b7QwXDDEwv8-unsplash.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214970" class="size-medium wp-image-214970" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/alex-shute-b7QwXDDEwv8-unsplash-300x198.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="198" /></a>(Photo courtesy of Alex Shute/Unsplash)</div>
For example, “Scripture says, ‘In your anger, do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,” Noor says.
“So there’s a rule, but what if you are hanging on to a lot of anger and bitterness? You give the enemy the right to have a place of operation within you, which can manifest itself in different ways. But the tool for getting rid of any torment because of breaking this rule is to forgive.”
<h2>How to maintain spiritual freedom</h2>
An aftercare program called “Walking Free” helps people maintain their spiritual freedom. <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/aftercare-programs-meet-critical-mental-health-need/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a> Using two Freedom In Christ Ministries courses, Noor and his team help believers understand their identity in Christ and the fullness of God’s grace.
“We have recipients come up and go, ‘Pete, I’ve been going to church all my life, and I’ve never heard any of this before,’” Noor says.
“One of the gentlemen, he’s a rough and tough guy, he just came up and hugged me. He said, ‘Pete, this has absolutely changed my life.’”
Another woman who attended the Walking Free program with her husband and son wrote:
Our family has gone through a lot of hard times, and this Walking Free program and Set Free Ministries have absolutely helped us through this, and we are now living out of hope and joy. You have made all the difference in our lives through this very difficult time.
Praise God for what He’s doing through the Walking Free program. Pray that believers will grow in Christ as they learn how to <a href="https://www.gotquestions.org/go-and-sin-no-more.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“go and sin no more.”</a>
“The Holy Spirit is working in people’s lives unlike it’s ever worked in their lives before, or at least unlike they’ve ever been able to comprehend before,” Noor says.
“People have gone through freedom appointments; they now have freedom. We are teaching them identity, and now it’s sinking in. We’re teaching them how to walk by the Spirit and creating a heart-focused community.”
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/two-people-holding-hands-over-a-book-on-a-table-iIzZ0Fw8wSQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tony Lomas/Unsplash.</a>]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 May 2025 05:00:57 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/set-free-equips-christians-to-wage-war-using-gods-weapons/</guid>
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<title>Sacred music handcuffed by Sinicization in China</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/sacred-music-handcuffed-by-sinicization-in-china/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
<blockquote>“And all things as they change proclaim
The Lord eternally the same.”¹</blockquote>
China (MNN) – Music blossoming from the ground of God's Word not only reflects theology, it reinforces and shapes it. Yet in China, the government is swapping out the soil of Scripture for the soil of Sinicization, a national push to blur the lines between religion and Chinese patriotism. 
“It does reflect a trend that we’ve seen for quite some time within China: the struggle of the church to freely express, preach, teach, sing, worship as they see fit according to Scriptures,” says Kurt Rovenstine with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/bibles-for-china/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bibles for China</a>. 
According to reports from associations in Beijing, the CCP continues to entwine itself into church leadership and practice, most recently through its guidelines for sacred music. They include the following points, as outlined in <a href="https://chinaaid.org/persecution-by-province/beijing/beijings-state-approved-christian-associations-announced-a-blueprint-for-the-so-called-sinicization-of-sacred-music-of-2025/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">an article by China Aid</a>:
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">the formation of official sacred music teams,</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">the development of an original song library with “Chinese characteristics,”</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">the hosting of concerts with a “Sinicization” theme,</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">the integration of government-controlled sacred music modules into church apps, and</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">the training of core volunteers for Sinicization.</li>
</ol>
“It’s a sense of some control and direction that is coming from outside the church, which historically has not been a good thing,” Rovenstine says. 
The latest squeeze on Chinese believers has the team at Bibles for China asking, “Is the Bible enough?” Rovenstine answers with a resounding yes. 
“The Bible is central to the practice of faith,” he says. 
It is on this unchanging rock that believers can stand against the swells of political and cultural tides. For the CCP, that’s the rub. 
“Sacred music is sacred not because it is from a particular culture or from the Middle East or from great writers of the West,” Rovenstine says. “It’s sacred because it expresses the truth of Scripture.”
In terms of religious freedom, the news is concerning for brothers and sisters in China. 
“But in another sense, it affirms the work we do as being very, very important: that we’re able to distribute unaltered, unchanged, unfiltered Scriptures to people who will have the opportunity to read it,” says Rovenstine. 
After all, music is an easier target than Scripture. 
“You start with a song or two, and you add a cultural or patriotic element to it – a Chinese value alongside a Christian value – and people go, ‘Well that’s not so bad,’” he says. 
Please pray for Christian leaders facing attacks on the music of their faith. 
Pray that Chinese Christians would have Gospel-focused clarity and discernment as they prayerfully consider how to incorporate music into their worship services. 
Pray that they would stand on the firm foundation of Scriptural truth when faced with pressure to deviate from God’s Word. 
And consider singing over them words from the modern hymn "Christ is Mine Forevermore," by CityAlight: <img class=" wp-image-214921 alignright" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/zack-smith-yetxsNbHavQ-unsplash-1-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="471" height="314" />
Mine are days here as a stranger
Pilgrim on a narrow way
One with Christ I will encounter
Harm and hatred for His Name
But mine is armor for this battle
Strong enough to last the war
And He has said He will deliver
Safely to the golden shore
And mine are keys to Zion city
Where beside the King I'll walk
For there my heart has found its treasure;
Christ is mine forevermore
 
¹Charles Wesley (2014). “Wesley's Hymns and the Methodist Sunday-School Hymn-Book”, p.237, Ravenio Books
Featured image courtesy of Huynh Van via Pexels; article image courtesy of Zack Smith via Unsplash]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 May 2025 05:00:10 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/sacred-music-handcuffed-by-sinicization-in-china/</guid>
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<title>Churches support Myanmar four years after coup, two months after earthquake</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/churches-support-myanmar-four-years-after-coup-two-months-after-earthquake/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Myanmar (MNN) – Four years after a coup <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/01/myanmar-four-years-after-coup-world-must-demand-accountability-for-atrocity-crimes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ousted elected leadership in Myanmar</a>, a loose coalition of armed ethnic groups continues to gain ground against the military junta in power. Joe Handley with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/a3/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A3</a> says tensions in the country remain high, as violence continues and civilians find themselves caught in the crossfire.
“You have this ongoing local fight that’s going on,” he says. 
And two months ago, it was compounded by a magnitude 7.7 earthquake. Handley says aid teams continue to bring relief to Myanmar’s residents.
<div id="attachment_213857" style="width: 234px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-213857" class="size-medium wp-image-213857" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/2025-03-28_2025_Mandalay_Burma_Myanmar_Earthquake_M7.7_earthquake_shakemap_USGS-224x300.jpg" alt="" width="224" height="300" />Shakemap from USGS for the magnitude 7.7, maximum intensity 9.112 earthquake near en:Usgs Neic Shakemap (en:2025 Mandalay, Burma (Myanmar) Earthquake), 10.0 km depth. (By United States Geological Survey - https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us7000pn9s, Public Domain)</div>
“The local church has really stood up and been the hands and feet of Jesus in partnership with some of these teams,” he explains. 
A3 works alongside the local church, knowing it will be a force of assistance long after Myanmar has exited view on the world stage. Handley doesn’t see an easy or quick way out of national conflict. 
“But that’s the chance for the body of Christ to rise, and to show and display the hope of Christ in the midst of the pain and suffering,” he says. 
Handley is asking the body of Christ to pray for suffering people and those living in fear of the military junta. 
“Sometimes the military thinks that [people are] on the opposition side, and they can easily be thrown in prison even though there’s no proof or evidence that anything has happened,” he says. 
Global leaders are <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/asean-leaders-call-for-myanmar-dialogue-and-ceasefire-expansion/ar-AA1FynVW?ocid=BingNewsSerp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">calling for the expansion of Myanmar’s current temporary ceasefire</a>, as Handley reminds MNN listeners that hope lies deeper still.
“The long-term enduring presence of the church is where people start to ask questions,” he says. “It gives an opportunity for people to share the hope of Christ, which is the ultimate long term development goal: that they will have a hope that extends beyond the grave.” 
Handley says the A3 team hears of and feels the prayers of believers, and he thanks prayer warriors for the continued support of God’s work in Myanmar.
 
 
Featured photo of protesters rallying against the military coup in Yangon, Myanmar, Feb. 9, 2021. (Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 May 2025 05:00:11 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/churches-support-myanmar-four-years-after-coup-two-months-after-earthquake/</guid>
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<title>Promoting Christ-centered priorities for leaders in the MENA</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/promoting-christ-centered-priorities-for-leaders-in-the-mena/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
MENA (MNN) – In every country, Christian leaders face issues of priorities. However, the political and social climates in Middle Eastern and North African countries can make healthy decisions even more difficult.
Dr. Jenn Murff with the <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/mena-leadership-center/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MENA Leadership Center</a> hopes to help Christian leaders better prioritize work and home lives through general principles as well as the class “The Road to Mature Christian Leadership."
<h2>Ditch, Delegate, Draw the Line</h2>
Early in her career a CEO and mother gave Murff some helpful advice. “She goes, ‘Jenn, I want you to first know that you can't do it all, so sometimes you have to ditch it.’ And I said, ‘Well, what else?’ She goes 'Sometimes you can't do it all, so you have to delegate it. And number three, you can't do it all, so sometimes you have to draw the line and just not even try.’”
<div id="attachment_214963" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214963" class="size-medium wp-image-214963" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/pexels-kelly-1179532-29512721-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" />(Image courtesy of Kelly on Pexels)</div>
This advice changed the way Murff viewed her priorities. Now she passes on that advice to her teammates and those who come to the MENA Leadership Center. She emphasizes that God did not call His people, including those in leadership, to do everything. Every person needs to fulfill the specific roles and purposes God called him or her individually to do.
<blockquote>“Being a mature Christian leader means that you understand that you have to lead a life that is based on priorities,” Murff says. “You have to be able to develop a Christ-centered, anti-cultural approach towards leadership, and you have to learn and apply disciplines to be able to be effective in the lives of your team and your organization.”</blockquote>
<h2>A Question of Resources</h2>
One of the specific challenges that many leaders in the MENA region face is lack of resources. Those resources could be time, talent, finances, etc. Uncertain political or social circumstances often increase this strain. However, leaders in this region have learned to prioritize tasks with the resources they can access, and God is working.
“We're seeing God move in such an amazing way, where we're seeing the Gospel expanding and people coming to know Christ by the droves. We're seeing leaders that come from the majority population, that are coming to faith in Jesus, and they're accomplishing a lot of work. We have ministries on the ground that focus on humanitarian aid, trauma healing, leadership development, education. All of these leaders are doing things that even if they were told, they wouldn't have believed it. So one of the challenges that they face is those limited resources. I would just ask you to pray for our ministry partners as they are trying to stretch resources and to do the things that the Lord has called them to do.”
<h2>Get Involved</h2>
The daily struggle Christian leaders in MENA face for resources can feel removed from life in the West. However, Murff explains that these brothers and sisters need prayers. “I think about our friends in Sudan, our friends in the West Bank, or in Israel. They have not stopped doing the work that God has called them to do, and they could really use your prayers. They are still trying to accomplish the things that the Lord has put in front of them.”
Please pray that God would protect these leaders as they prioritize and continue the tasks they’ve been given. Please also pray that they will not tire of doing the good work they have to do.
If you would like to learn more about the MENA Leadership Center, <a href="https://menaleadershipcenter.com/">click here</a>.
 
 
Header image courtesy of Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 May 2025 05:00:51 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/promoting-christ-centered-priorities-for-leaders-in-the-mena/</guid>
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<title>Another church falls victim to Haiti’s gang violence</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/another-church-falls-victim-to-haitis-gang-violence/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Haiti (MNN) -- Another church falls victim to Haiti’s gang violence. Partners in Haiti tell Greg Yoder of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/christian-world-outreach/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Christian World Outreach</a> that the gangs struck a village north of the capital.
“It’s outside of Port-au-Prince, so they’re (the gangs) expanding in their territory,” Yoder says.
<blockquote>
“There was a pastor and several of the people from his church who were killed by gang members, and I believe they also burned the church down.”
</blockquote>
Estimates vary, but most agree that gangs now control <a href="https://news.sky.com/story/90-of-port-au-prince-controlled-by-gangs-as-thousands-forced-into-heaving-displacement-camps-13368885" target="_blank" rel="noopener">at least 90 percent</a> of Port-au-Prince. When gangs took over Mirebalais at the end of March, CWO partners had to shut everything down and run.
“We had one of our feminine training centers there, and that town is pretty much shut down. Everybody’s left, and the gang members have taken over,” Yoder says.
Believers sent a dozen orphans in their care to live with family members in a nearby town.
“People are migrating away from these areas, and then it adds a burden to the families and the people of other areas,” Yoder says.
The United States designated two Haitian gangs as terrorists <a href="https://thesoufancenter.org/intelbrief-2025-may-22/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">earlier this month.</a> “They’re acting very much like terrorists taking over, looting, and just advancing to more and more territory,” Yoder says.
<div id="attachment_210729" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IMG_3262-scaled-e1728423459373.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-210729" class="size-medium wp-image-210729" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IMG_3262-scaled-e1728423459373-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" /></a>Handiwork of women from CWO's Feminine Training Centers in Haiti (Photo courtesy of CWO)</div>
The activity in Haiti reminds him of terrorist actions in Burkina Faso, he adds.
“We just have to rely on the Lord’s wisdom and discernment to find ways we can help these people,” Yoder says.
Church partners in Haiti continue their work in eight locations, but the needs are growing daily. Yoder says, “We’re looking for ways we can help those we know and those in great need of food and shelter.”
<a href="https://cwomissions.org/haiti/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Send financial help through CWO here.</a>
Ask the Lord to guide and protect Gospel workers in Haiti. Pray that their daily needs will be met.
“I don’t know the answer at this point, but we just pray that God will intervene in what’s going on in Haiti and that, even during these hard times, Christ will be shared,” Yoder says.
 
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/boy-in-white-shirt-looking-down-dpmEl59lvAY" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TopSphere Media via Unsplash.</a>]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 May 2025 05:00:41 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/another-church-falls-victim-to-haitis-gang-violence/</guid>
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<title>Summer Camps: an oasis for kids in the desert</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/summer-camps-an-oasis-for-kids-in-the-desert/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Siberia (MNN) – Summer camps across 13 countries are kicking off in a network of 6,000 churches this month. Eric Mock with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/slavic-gospel-association/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Slavic Gospel Association</a> says host churches are uniquely equipped to serve their own children. 
Drenched with technology yet thirsty for in-person communication, Mock says kids attending the camps find an oasis from their social deserts. 
“They are actually having a relationship with other kids and with leaders who actually care a lot about them,” he says. 
Many of these kids come from difficult home lives. Some are orphans; others are unwanted. At the summer camps, they find camaraderie in their peers and Christ-focused generosity in their leaders. 
One Siberian child, Lena, has been placed in an orphanage by her mother, an alcoholic. Because she still has a living parent, adoption out of the situation is not an option, yet her own parents are not present in her life. Her situation is representative of many other children. 
“SGA is helping the churches minister to 84% of the kids who really will never get adopted and have a broken future: to show them something more than what they’ve experienced,” Mock says.
He calls her background a choir of chaos; yet she found an SGA summer camp to be a turning point. On the last day of a tent camp in her region, she gave her life to Christ. 
“But her world doesn’t change, and so these faithful people know that even though a decision is made in a summer camp, there is ongoing discipleship year-round through these various churches that continue to minister to these kids,” Mock points out. 
Camps start as early as May and run through August. Churches often run several camps each summer. Mock says no one camp is the same. 
“What you do when you’re on the border of Iran and you’re in Azerbaijan or Armenia and you’re doing a camp along the border, it’s going to look different than up in Yakutia above the Arctic Circle in Russia, which is going to look different than a war zone,” he says. “Even in a war zone, sometimes the air raid siren goes off, and the kids run into the basement and continue their games in the basement until there is an all clear.” 
The eternal hope of our Father in Heaven is central to every camp. 
“Food, comfort, better family: these are transient things,” Mock says. “What we need in this world is to tell people of the hope we have in Jesus, because this is a hope that can never be taken away from these children.” 
Please pray for the upcoming summer camps. Pray for salvation among the children attending, and pray for wisdom, joy, patience, and discernment for the leaders. 
<img class="wp-image-214799 aligncenter" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/pexels-rdne-8033870-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="731" height="487" />
Featured images courtesy of Pexels]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 May 2025 05:00:06 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/summer-camps-an-oasis-for-kids-in-the-desert/</guid>
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<title>In Haiti, radio ministry celebrates 75 years of God’s faithfulness</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/in-haiti-radio-ministry-celebrates-75-years-of-gods-faithfulness/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Haiti (MNN) — In all the challenges Haiti knows today, there’s also joy. This summer, Radio-TV 4VEH is celebrating 75 years of God’s faithfulness as they broadcast gospel hope to the nation. 
Storly and Kate Michel serve with 4VEH, a ministry partner of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/trans-world-radio/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Trans World Radio</a>. 
Storly serves as the station director for 4VEH. “People tell me I don’t look 75,” he jokes. “But the reality is, it's the proof that it's not me. I wasn't there [at 4VEH’s beginning]. It's been God using His servants over time … Haitians and non-Haitians, people coming from all over the place.”
<div id="attachment_192315" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-192315" class="size-medium wp-image-192315" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/4VEH_header-image-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" />Pray for endurance as believers broadcast critical updates and the hope of Christ. (Photo courtesy of Radio 4VEH)</div>
Kate says 4VEH was started by an American missionary named G. T. Bustin who felt God leading him to start a radio station, even though he knew nothing about radio. That’s how La Voix Evangélique d’Haïti, or The Evangelistic Voice of Haiti was born.
<blockquote>
“People thought he was crazy for even trying to do this, but he was faithful to what God called him to,” Kate says. “And 75 years later, generations of Haitians have come to know the Lord, have grown up serving Him, have become more like Jesus, and are making a difference in their communities and around the world.”
</blockquote>
Haitians know how to celebrate! Special church services across Haiti and also the U.S. this summer will be full of lively praise and worship. In Haitian communities they’re even planning soccer tournaments with some of the best teams in Haiti. 
Kate shares another reason they’re excited for these upcoming celebrations: “because we know we're going to hear from people who are listening, people who are watching 4VEH, and we're going to hear just how God has moved in their lives.” 
As 4VEH looks back, the team also looks forward. There’s much more ahead as they move to harness digital technologies for wider gospel reach, by God’s grace. 
“We started as a radio station, and we've been doing radio for 75 years, but over the years, the way we see it is to use technology as a tool to reach people. So whether it's radio, television, digital, we will use whatever [is] available and good to reach people where they are,” says Storly. 
“The future for us is exactly that: What do we use today to reach people for Christ?”
Would you prayerfully consider partnering with 4VEH’s mission? Learn how at their website, <a href="http://4veh.org/en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">4veh.org/en</a> (English). 
“That gift will be used to broadcast the gospel across Haiti and beyond, and broadcast the gospel in a way that is Christ-centered, is compelling and is culturally relevant to the people who are listening,” Kate says. 
“So God will use that to reach people, to disciple them to become more like Jesus, and to help them serve Him in their communities where they are.”
 
Header photo courtesy of 4VEH.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 May 2025 05:00:39 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/in-haiti-radio-ministry-celebrates-75-years-of-gods-faithfulness/</guid>
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<title>Women and girls in Yemen disproportionately impacted by crises</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/women-and-girls-in-yemen-disproportionately-impacted-by-crises/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Yemen (MNN) — A new alert from UN Women last week calls attention to <a href="https://arabstates.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2025/05/gender-alert-facing-crisis-upon-crisis-impact-of-airstrikes-on-women-and-girls-in-yemen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the plight of women and girls in Yemen</a>. Recent airstrikes and the nation’s <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/03/1161536?utm_source=UN+News+-+Newsletter&utm_campaign=4a1890155f-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2025_03_26_03_53&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_fdbf1af606-4a1890155f-107503926" target="_blank" rel="noopener">decade of conflict</a> disproportionately impact them. The report says that today, an estimated <a href="https://arabstates.unwomen.org/en/stories/press-release/2025/05/airstrikes-push-women-and-girls-in-yemen-to-the-brink-un-women-warns-in-new-gender-alert#:~:text=%E2%80%9CThe%20situation%20for%20women%20and,be%20ignored%2C%E2%80%9D%20said%20Dr" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2.3 million</a> women and girls are displaced in Yemen. (Read the full report <a href="https://arabstates.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2025/05/gender-alert-facing-crisis-upon-crisis-impact-of-airstrikes-on-women-and-girls-in-yemen" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.)
One woman we’ll call Isabel works with nonprofit organizations that meet humanitarian needs in Yemen. As a Christian in that field, she sees glimmers of hope.
“I think it's easy in a place like Yemen to think of how oppressed women can be, and so it's even more encouraging and beautiful to hear how God is working through the lives of women there.”
<div id="attachment_206605" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-206605" class="size-medium wp-image-206605" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/pexels-lara-jameson-8828585-200x300.jpg" alt="yemen, map, Ethiopia" width="200" height="300" />(Photo courtesy of Lara Jameson/Pexels)</div>
She knows one woman who grew up deeply questioning her status. After searching earnestly for answers, she discovered Christian resources that opened her eyes to life in Christ. 
“What I love about her story is that in the end, her husband ends up meeting Jesus first and totally changing. Then she does as well shortly afterwards, and their whole family, and part of their community too,” says Isabel. 
“I love that because of her courage to question and to journey through that and share with others, she ends up not only just changing her life, but changing everyone around her's life as well.” 
<a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/03/1161536?utm_source=UN+News+-+Newsletter&utm_campaign=4a1890155f-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2025_03_26_03_53&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_fdbf1af606-4a1890155f-107503926" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stories</a> of devastation in Yemen are real and sobering. But you can pray in faith for God to bring hope and salvation to women in that nation. He sees every one of them.
"God sees the injustice, the inequality, the effects that these things have. He's there, and He's encouraging and speaking to even those in the lowest of these situations," Isabel says. “That continues to be encouraging to see God's character in that way that He has not forgotten the women. He's not forgotten the children."
Learn more <a href="https://www.opendoors.org/en-US/persecution/countries/yemen/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a> about the specific challenges many Christians in Yemen face.
 
Header photo of children in Yemen courtesy of Irwan Zahuri via Pexels.]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 26 May 2025 05:00:32 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/women-and-girls-in-yemen-disproportionately-impacted-by-crises/</guid>
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<title>Beaten for bearing a Muslim name: the harsh realities facing Iranian refugee children</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/beaten-for-bearing-a-muslim-name-the-harsh-realities-facing-iranian-refugee-children/</link>
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Iran (MNN) — Iranian believers often flee their homeland in search of safety. But for their children, the journey doesn’t end with escape — it begins a difficult process of adjusting to a new country, often filled with hostility.
"One of our young people, a fourteen-year-old boy, was in the hospital for a long time after being severely beaten. He suffered internal bleeding, organ failure, and other complications — simply because his peers, other teenage boys, decided he shouldn’t be a Christian because he has a Muslim name."
<div id="attachment_214932" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214932" class="size-medium wp-image-214932" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/atiyeh-fathi-SfIsx9FCyt0-unsplash-200x300.jpg" alt="Unsplash" width="200" height="300" />Iranian boy (photo courtesy of Atiyeh Fathi via Unsplash)</div>
This is just one of many heartbreaking stories Lana Silk from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/transform-iran/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Transform Iran</a> has encountered in her ministry to Iranian refugees. This particular incident happened in a Muslim-majority host country, but the harsh experiences of refugee children are often universal.
That’s where Transform Iran steps in, with a ministry specifically focused on children. Silk explains, “We work very hard to minister to them and surround them with love and community to help strengthen them.”
The need is urgent. “I was speaking to someone [who told me about their] nine-year-old child. The teacher was spitting on his face, insulting him,” she adds.
Out of this growing crisis, a ministry was born.
<blockquote>
“This is one of the reasons we've been so active in the children's ministry lately — because we've noticed that children need a strong, loving, non-judgmental, non-oppressive community around them that will hold them tight and love them,” Silk says.
</blockquote>
Transform Iran hosts weekly gatherings for refugee children, filled with activities, games, and therapeutic exercises designed by psychologists to support their mental health. “And of course, it's always the Gospel,” Silk says, “with worship and prayer to help these children cope with the pressures that are on them.”
Another heavy burden these children carry is the fear of sudden deportation. “We have children in our group who have said that they'll be sitting in class, and suddenly the police will turn up and take children out of class and send them to deportation camps,” Silk shares. There’s a constant fear among the children that, at any moment, authorities might come and take them away. These overlapping layers of anxiety and trauma severely impact their mental health and well-being.
The first thing you can do to help Iranian refugees is this: do not forget them. This is one of the reasons <a href="https://transformiran.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Transform Iran</a> provides a monthly newsletter with updates that you can subscribe to. Knowing that the global community of believers cares gives strength to both parents and children in asylum as they endure immense suffering.
Pray for the safety of Iranian believers and their children, and for the resolution of their cases. Pray that the trauma these children face won’t drive them away from God — but draw them closer to Him. 
 
 
 
Header photo: Iranian boy in a green jacket (photo courtesy of Hiva Sharifi via Unsplash)]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 26 May 2025 05:00:09 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/beaten-for-bearing-a-muslim-name-the-harsh-realities-facing-iranian-refugee-children/</guid>
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<title>“If they arrest me, I will deny You” — but then the unexpected happened</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/if-they-arrest-me-i-will-deny-you-but-then-the-unexpected-happened/</link>
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Iran (MNN) — Christians in Iran are people like you and me, not superheroes. But when the pressure comes on, God comes through in extraordinary ways and they find He’s right there with them. 
Reverend Shah Ahmadi with <a href="https://iranalive.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Iran Alive Ministries</a> says discipleship for new believers in Iran includes this message: “If you want to follow Christ, you should be ready to lose everything.” 
But one of Iran Alive’s contacts was honest with God after she and her husband first became Christians.
She would cry in bed at night. “I love you, Jesus. I love what you did. I accept you. But it's very hard for me practical[ly] to go to [the] Iranian regime and prison, whatever [could happen]. So don't test me, don’t put me in that kind of place.”
<div id="attachment_213678" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-213678" class="size-medium wp-image-213678" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/mahshid-saberpour-_qmrx3EWaLE-unsplash-300x211.jpg" alt="prison, Iran, black and white, B&W, Unsplash" width="300" height="211" />(Representative stock photo from Iran courtesy of Mashid Saberpour via Unsplash)</div>
Then what she feared came true. Her husband was arrested and so was she. Then came the moment she stood before a judge. 
“Are you a Christian?” he asked her. 
It was her chance to say no and claim she had been deceived. She was ready to do just that… but suddenly she found she was mute! 
In her heart she recognized God giving her a choice to deny or not deny Him. She realized she would rather speak and go to prison than remain mute and perhaps go free. 
“During that time, I receive[d] a special grace and boldness I never had — scared like a baby! Suddenly my lips start opening, and I start testifying: ‘Yes, I am a Christian. I used to be afraid of sharing, and now God gave me grace to share with you.”
<div id="attachment_214500" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214500" class="size-medium wp-image-214500" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/soroush-O37fZ4blRUc-unsplash-200x300.jpg" alt="Iran, woman, serious, Tehran," width="200" height="300" />Representative stock photo from Tehran, Iran (Photo courtesy of Soroush via Unsplash)</div>
God gave her a word of knowledge about the judge: “You [are] going through marriage problem,” she told him. “If you want to save your life, you need to give your life to Jesus Christ.”
Later, the judge visited her one-on-one in a prison cell, asking how she knew what he was going through. The presence of God came to her again. She said it was God-given knowledge and only Jesus could save the judge’s marriage. 
“I’m going to help you and your husband get out of the prison," the judge told her, "and you help me and my wife to be disciple of Jesus Christ.”
Ahmadi says these two couples are now disciples of Christ inside Iran. 
“This is one of the most brave [stories], because I see their weakness, and I see a power of God. I see a grace of God in our most vulnerable area, [when] we are unable to do anything,” Ahmadi says. 
Please take a moment and pray for strength for Iranian Christians under <a href="https://articleeighteen.com/country-profile/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">extraordinary pressure</a> today. During 2024, nearly 100 Iranians Christians were sentenced to a combined 263 years in prison, a massive uptick compared to 2023 (source: <a href="http://www.apple.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Article18</a>).
Connect with <a href="https://iranalive.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Iran Alive Ministries</a> for more stories and opportunities to stand with the Iranian church. 
 
 
Header photo is a representative stock photo courtesy of Aliata Karbaschi via Unsplash.]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 26 May 2025 05:00:15 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/if-they-arrest-me-i-will-deny-you-but-then-the-unexpected-happened/</guid>
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<title>Jordan shuts down branch of Muslim Brotherhood</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/jordan-shuts-down-branch-of-muslim-brotherhood/</link>
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Jordan (MNN) — One wrong step led to a government <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4w8prpkepo" target="_blank" rel="noopener">crackdown</a> on the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan last month.
“The Muslim Brotherhood, for a long, long time, [has] been a recognized [political] party in Jordan,” says Samuel* with Redemptive Stories.
<div id="attachment_196914" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-196914" class="size-medium wp-image-196914" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Emblem_of_the_Muslim_Brotherhood-300x300.png" alt="" width="300" height="300" />Emblem of the Muslim Brotherhood (Wikimedia Commons)</div>
After Jordan’s 2024 elections, nearly one fourth of the nation’s <a href="https://apnews.com/article/jordan-politics-muslim-brotherhood-parliament-unrest-02d78750d626506f3b989f9a241e6782" target="_blank" rel="noopener">parliamentary seats</a> went to the Islamic Action Front, political party linked to the Muslim Brotherhood. Samuel believes this shift toward Islamic leadership comes from Jordanians' frustration over the war in Gaza.
But things changed in April when security forces sniffed out <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/jordan-outlaws-muslim-brotherhood-group-confiscates-its-assets-offices-2025-04-23/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a Muslim Brotherhood cell</a> that had been building short-range rockets for unstated purposes. The group denied ties to the alleged plot, but the government still banned it and stripped all its assets. It is basically eliminated as a legitimate organization in Jordan, says Samuel.
<blockquote>
“It’s been a long time coming that the king and others have wanted to get rid of the Muslim Brotherhood here in Jordan, and then this recent planning of the terrorist activity on its own soil has given them the impetus to be able to do that. They view them as an extremist organization, which they are.” 
</blockquote>
Even though the Muslim Brotherhood is no longer a legitimate political entity, Samuel doesn’t expect there will be significant changes in what gospel ministry looks like in Jordan. “There's one less player on the table to fight against the work of the gospel in the region, but many of those people that still had leanings that direction are still here,” he says. 
With that in mind, please pray for God’s mercy on those aligned with radical Islam. (Learn how to pray specifically for the Muslim Brotherhood <a href="https://prayercast.com/prayer-topic/muslim-brotherhood/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.)
“[Pray] that people will be put in their path to be able to share with them what the true picture of the Kingdom of God looks like, and ultimately that this would create more space for boldness, bold sharing, and bold testimony for the gospel in our region,” Samuel says. 
 
*Name changed for security
 
 
 
Header photo of boy walking on street in Jordan. (Photo courtesy of Craig Boudreaux/Unsplash)]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 May 2025 05:00:41 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/jordan-shuts-down-branch-of-muslim-brotherhood/</guid>
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<title>No end in sight to Ukraine war; Keys for Kids addresses trauma</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/no-end-in-sight-to-ukraine-war-keys-for-kids-addresses-trauma/</link>
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Ukraine (MNN) -- <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/one-killed-kyiv-region-russia-steps-up-attacks-after-peace-talks-ukraine-says-2025-05-18/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Russia ramps up</a> military action in eastern Ukraine as it tries to solidify control in four key regions.
Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts have reached a standstill. US President Donald <a href="https://kyivindependent.com/trump-admits-to-european-leaders-that-putin-doesnt-want-peace/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Trump says</a> Russian President Vladimir Putin believes he is winning and is not ready to end the conflict.
Partners tell <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/keys-kids/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Keys for Kids’</a> Greg Yoder about extensive suffering in Ukraine. “What we’re hearing on the ground is that kids, teens, and families are all in crisis trauma right now. They don’t know what the next day will bring,” Yoder says.
<a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/russia-ukraine-war/child-casualties-worsening-in-ukraine-with-50-rise-in-2024-compared-to-2023-unicef/3489112" target="_blank" rel="noopener">One in five children</a> has lost a close relative or friend since the war began three years ago.
Since 2022, “we’ve sent in over 600,000 Keys for Kids and Unlocked devotionals; they’re gone. The resources are empty,” Yoder says.
<blockquote>
“The spiritual need is amazingly high right now. There are so many kids looking for some hope.”
</blockquote>
<div id="attachment_214878" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/KFK_Ukraine-unlocked-teens.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214878" class="size-medium wp-image-214878" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/KFK_Ukraine-unlocked-teens-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="169" /></a>Ukrainian teens receive copies of the Unlocked devotional in their language. (Photo courtesy of Keys for Kids)</div>
Keys for Kids is working on a special edition to address trauma in kids and teens.
“We’ve had stories about conflict, war, and tragedy in some of our devotionals before; we call them ‘tough topics,’” Yoder says. “This will be a compilation of those intermixed with the hope we have in Jesus.”
Every day, families in Ukraine face questions like how to “cope with having missing fathers, uncles, and brothers? How do you deal with that kind of trauma when you have death in families or near-death experiences?” Yoder says.
“Those are some of the issues that we want to talk about, and hopefully, God will use, through His Spirit, to bring many families to Himself.”
<a href="https://www.keysforkids.org/ukraine" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Connect with Keys for Kids here</a> to help this project get off the ground.
“We’re going to need some significant funding, I would say between $25- and $50,000 to make this happen,” Yoder says.
Most importantly, pray. “Be praying for the situation right now in Ukraine and Russia,” Yoder requests.
“We just want people to stop dying and to have an open heart to hearing the liberating power of the Gospel.”
 
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of Keys for Kids.]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 23 May 2025 05:00:42 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/no-end-in-sight-to-ukraine-war-keys-for-kids-addresses-trauma/</guid>
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<title>World Missionary Press booklets support evangelism in Guinea</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/world-missionary-press-booklets-support-evangelism-in-guinea/</link>
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Guinea (MNN) -- Reaching a whole nation for Christ is monumental. Partnerships make it possible.
Helen Williams of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/world-missionary-press/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Missionary Press</a> says they’ve been co-laboring with the same believer in Guinea for 22 years. “This man has been with us since 2003. We sent him a box, then in 2006, we sent him a pallet, and then we started sending full containers,” she explains.
“The work has grown. He’s very responsive and aggressive in trying to reach the entire country.”
Scripture booklets from World Missionary Press help Gospel workers introduce people to Christ when they go door-to-door.
<blockquote>
“They’re able to take the Word, share it, explain it, leave it there, and then the Spirit makes the Word known to the reader. When they go back to follow up, there is interest,” Williams says.
</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/news/training-series-equips-hundreds-of-guinea-evangelists/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Earlier this year,</a> WMP’s primary contact used Gospel literature in a three-month training series designed to equip dozens of Guinea evangelists.
“It (the training) will be divided into three groups of 50 trainees on how to evangelize and make disciples. They will do multiplication, so we would see a vibrant Christian community in every part of Guinea,” Williams says.
<div id="attachment_214884" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/WMP_guinea-scripture-delivery2.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214884" class="size-medium wp-image-214884" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/WMP_guinea-scripture-delivery2-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /></a>(Photo courtesy of WMP)</div>
Other believers use the material as part of their outreach events. “Much of it is done open air,” Williams says.
“[Believers will] have a gathering in the street, and they’ll have music [to] draw people, and then a little preaching, and then everybody in the crowd gets a booklet. It depends on the evangelist and the church.”
WMP Scripture booklets effectively address life topics using God’s Word. You can help World Missionary Press send lifesaving material worldwide by giving or volunteering. <a href="https://www.wmpress.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Visit the WMP website to learn more.</a>
Williams says, “We have a great staff of volunteers, several hundred a month, and that helps us put every booklet out on the field for less than five cents.”
Pray for World Missionary Press to increase its production to meet partner needs and for WMP partners to have wisdom and strength in pursuing Gospel growth.
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of World Missionary Press.]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 23 May 2025 05:00:23 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/world-missionary-press-booklets-support-evangelism-in-guinea/</guid>
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<title>Syria released from EU economic sanctions</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/syria-released-from-eu-economic-sanctions/</link>
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Syria (MNN) — Another windfall comes to Syria this week as <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/20/eu-agrees-to-lift-all-economic-sanctions-on-syria-diplomats" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the EU lifts economic sanctions</a> against it. One report explains some EU measures <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/20/eu-agrees-to-lift-all-economic-sanctions-on-syria-diplomats" target="_blank" rel="noopener">remain in place</a> as the bloc closely watches where Syria’s new government takes the nation. But EU diplomats say lifted sanctions will reestablish the ties of Syrian banks to the rest of the world.
This development comes a week after the president of the United States made <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2025/5/16/trumps-decision-to-lift-syria-sanctions-fuels-dreams-of-economic-revival" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a similar pledge</a> to remove sanctions on Syria. 
“It sounds like the push is for other Arab nations — like Saudi, like Qatar — to make a huge push of investment into Syria to reestablish, rebuild infrastructure, recreate jobs, create opportunities for Syrians once again,” says Samuel* with Redemptive Stories. 
“Syria, before the war, was very self-sufficient. They have a lot of industrial experience and skills. Even before the war, [they were] quite tied off from the rest of the world and able to exist very comfortably in that kind of environment.”
<div id="attachment_200760" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-200760" class="size-medium wp-image-200760" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/pexels-ahmed-akacha-6929741-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />Boy sitting in a broken car in Syria. (Photo courtesy of Ahmed akacha/Pexels)</div>
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/new-syrian-leader-sharaa-says-killings-alawites-threaten-unity-vows-justice-2025-03-10/">promised</a> to make Syria a place where all communities are protected. But episodes of sectarian violence have challenged that. Hundreds were killed in the early <a href="https://apnews.com/article/syria-alawites-latakia-tartous-assad-hts-1c6ec79a752ac0fe3da454b5a774a4df">March attacks</a> on predominantly Alawite villages. Syria’s Druze community has also been <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clywl4nz2zjo">impacted</a> by violence.
“The Christians are asking themselves, 'When will our turn be?'” says Samuel. “So there's still deep concern and fear among all the minorities that this new government does not have the right visions of what a pluralistic society could look like for them.”
<h2>Find your place in the story</h2>
It’s a new economic season for Syria, but there’s a deeper reality facing the global Church. 
“It is a great opportunity for the Church to stand with the Syrian church and say, ‘No, we will walk with you through these waters, and we will help you and invest in you,’” says Samuel. “We're already seeing that change in some way, shape, or form occur. More organizations have been able to go in after the fall of Assad's [regime] to help, and [the fact of] these sanctions being removed will even help more.”
Pray for Syrian believers. Years of economic challenges have pushed many Christians to leave their homeland. Today, the threat of persecution adds another layer of impetus. Yet Samuel says many who could leave instead choose to stay for the sake of Christ. 
“They're saying that more than ever, they're seeing other minority groups like the Alawites and the Druze respond to the gospel — and the Kurds in the North.” 
 
*Name changed for security
 
 
Header photo: A gathering of the people and residents of Daraa city in Al-Karama and Al-Hurriya Square after the fall of Bashar Al-Assad (Photo, caption courtesy of Mahmoud Sulaiman via Unsplash).]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 22 May 2025 05:00:39 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/syria-released-from-eu-economic-sanctions/</guid>
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<title>Remember believers in Russia even as ceasefire talks stall</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/remember-believers-in-russia-even-as-ceasefire-talks-stall/</link>
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Russia (MNN) — After a direct phone call between the presidents of the United States and of Russia this week, the potential for a Russia-Ukraine ceasefire is <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/21/are-direct-talks-between-russia-and-ukraine-likely-to-lead-to-peace" target="_blank" rel="noopener">still uncertain</a>. 
You might be following the conflict from only one side, so what is the perspective of believers in Russia?
“They are the story behind the story,” says Eric Mock with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/slavic-gospel-association/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Slavic Gospel Association</a>, “because the headlines are ‘What [are] Putin and Trump doing?’ The war [and] everything that's going on, that saturates the headlines, and we miss these faithful believers … who through brutal winters are visiting orphanages, who are visiting communities, who now are preparing for summer camps.”
SGA supports the quiet ministries of hundreds of churches seeking to share Christ, not only in Russia but across Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and elsewhere. 
“I wish that people would understand there's a difference between the overall picture of a country and the people that are actually in these cities and villages,” Mock says. 
Of believers in Russia, Mock says, “It’s amazing to serve churches that do so much, to meet pastors that study through the night to be sure that they can minister in three or four churches, to [meet people willing to] be in communities where they don't want them there.” 
For example, some areas of Russia have a strong presence of shamanism or of Islam, which are resistant to the gospel. Please pray for believers in Russia serving the Lord in these remote, unseen places.
“Regardless of your political views, regardless of your views on leadership of other countries, we labor under the kingdom of heaven,” says Mock.
Read inspiring stories of these men and women by visiting <a href="http://www.sga.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener">www.sga.org</a> and scrolling to the bottom of their homepage. The stories you'll find can stir you to press harder after God’s Kingdom wherever He’s placed you.
“Wherever you are, be the ambassador of Christ that God has raised you up to be.”
 
 
 
Header photo is a stock image courtesy of Aliaksei Lepik via Pexels.]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 22 May 2025 05:00:25 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Good News for the Cape of Good Hope</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/good-news-for-the-cape-of-good-hope/</link>
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<![CDATA[
South Africa (MNN) – Consider the number of Bibles in your home. Is it more than one? More than five? What about the number of Christian books you have shelved?
Jason Woolford with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/christian-resources-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mission Cry</a> says most American Christians have a surplus of Christian resources. If you’re looking to downsize during spring cleaning, here’s an opportunity for you: the team at Mission Cry accepts donations of Bibles and Christian reading materials in good condition. 
“They get palletized, boxed, sorted; and then we put them on sea containers and send them out to our distribution points around the world,” he says. 
South Africa receives four such containers each year, containing Bibles, Christian books, and seminary materials. On the most recent shipment to Cape Town, Mission Cry’s Jason Woolford shares the story of a gang member whose mother came across a Bible with specific commentary intended for prisoners. 
“She told this young man that it came from American Christians, and it came just for him.”
He was skeptical of the Bible, asking his mother how much it cost. She told him it was given as a gift.
<img class="size-medium wp-image-214804 alignright" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/0-26-1-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" />
“He started to cry because he said it was the first time that a stranger had done anything for him, and now he’s reading this Bible,” Woolford says.
This account stands among other testimonies of God’s Word not returning void. Even those on the periphery of this effort, like a Muslim man who delivers the shipments, have been affected by the work. After declining an offer of a Bible on the first container, this man accepted one from the second shipment and said he would read it. 
Woolford says it’s especially encouraging to see God’s Word going out in dangerous places. 
“The Word of God is going to change things there,” he says. 
From the distribution post in South Africa, Mission Cry has been able to distribute Bibles into Zimbabwe, Zambia, Mozambique, and other nearby nations. 
Please pray for safety of the team and for changed hearts of those who receive Bibles. Woolford is asking people to pray or give according to the Holy Spirit’s leading. 
“As they do, in both of those areas, I pray a blessing back on them: 30, 60, and 100-fold in the spiritual, physical, and financial areas of their life,” he says. 
Find out more at Mission Cry’s <a href="https://missioncry.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">website</a>. 
<div id="attachment_214806" style="width: 609px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214806" class=" wp-image-214806" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/DSCF0031-1-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="599" height="449" />Photos in this article courtesy of Mission Cry</div>]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 22 May 2025 05:00:38 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/good-news-for-the-cape-of-good-hope/</guid>
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<title>Malaysian believers targeted by subtle Islamization tactics</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/malaysian-believers-targeted-by-subtle-islamization-tactics/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Malaysia (MNN) – Christians are the minority in Malaysia, a nation dominated by Islam. There, believers are often marginalized by Muslim ethnic groups and pressured to convert to Islam. Most often, these Islamization efforts are coercive or violent, but <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2025/04/30/betrayal-of-faith-identity-and-the-shadow-of-systemic-islamization-in-sabah-malaysia/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a new report shows the tactic may be changing</a>.
Recently, without consultation or knowledge, Christians' identity cards have been marked with a new religious designation. 
“They’re legally being changed to become Muslim so their identity now is Muslim,” says Floyd Brobbel with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/voice-of-the-martyrs-canada/">Voice of the Martyrs Canada</a>. “It’s a more forced conversion through what I would see as administrative manipulation.” 
<div id="attachment_214783" style="width: 290px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214783" class="wp-image-214783" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/pexels-irwan-zahuri-259816440-19551402-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="280" height="420" />Courtesy of Irwan Zahuri via Pexels.</div>
Brobbel says the agenda is clear: to strategically shift the religious and political landscape toward Sharia law. 
“So now these Christians who were immune from Islamic courts are now going to have to follow Islamic tradition, Islamic law – there’s no recourse for them.” 
Brobbel points out that whenever organizations or governments try to pad numbers, things fall flat.
“Just because these Christians now are going to be classified as Muslim doesn’t mean that they’re Muslim in their heart or faith level.” 
He says the church is still the church and will carry on its work. 
“Christians will continue to do the work of evangelism and living out a Biblical worldview.” 
Please pray for Malaysian believers facing this opposition. 

“We can pray that the Lord will give them wisdom to be able to navigate these circumstances and that if they have a chance for legal action, that they would be able to do that,” Brobbel says. 
Pray that regardless of legal outcomes, they would stand firm in their faith and continue to live out and share the Gospel.
 
 
Featured image courtesy of Ihsan Adityawarman via Pexels]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 21 May 2025 05:00:15 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/malaysian-believers-targeted-by-subtle-islamization-tactics/</guid>
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<title>Filming by faith: How one ministry is pressing on despite a dropping dollar</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/filming-by-faith-how-one-ministry-is-pressing-on-despite-a-dropping-dollar/</link>
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<![CDATA[
International (MNN) – The team at <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/international-media-ministries/">International Media Ministries</a> has kicked off the filming of a miniseries about Esther, an ongoing project that has faced setbacks due to conflict in the Middle East and Russia’s war on Ukraine. IMM’s Denise Godwin says the obstacles are expected. 
“We are fighting not against flesh and blood, not against the economy, but we are fighting to get the good news out; and the enemy will use anything to slow that down, delay it, discourage us.” 
She says discouragement in the midst of God’s work is not from the Holy Spirit. Still, financial setbacks pose practical problems. For the IMM filming team, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/dollar-sellers-pause-with-eye-us-jobs-2025-04-28/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">America’s dropping dollar</a> has diminished buying power on the filming set in Europe, making this project a journey of faith beyond comfort zones.
“It seems like we are on this journey where the flood waters are in front of us, and yet God is saying ‘Go forward,’ and we must step in, and He is going to show up,” she says. 
Godwin asks MNN listeners what steps of faith God is asking you to take in your own circumstances. 
“He shows up in ways we can’t think or imagine.” 
On a small and large scale, believers can walk alongside and encourage one another during volatile economic times. 
“I don’t use the word ‘urgent’ very often, but this is it. This is when the Body of Christ comes together,” Godwin says.
In the midst of uncertainty, we must cling to our faith, the promises of God, and the Holy Spirit’s leading in our lives. 
<blockquote>
“Does the economy dictate our faith? Does the exchange rate of the dollar dictate our faith? Do government decisions dictate our faith? Or do we listen to God and what He is calling us to do?” Godwin asks. 
</blockquote>
Please pray for the filming team at IMM. Pray for wisdom in financial stewardship, multiplication of buying power in Europe, and for sensitive hearts to help with this effort. 
“We just need God to show up every single day during all 53 days of shooting,” Godwin says. 
<a href="https://imm.edu/esther" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here</a> to learn more about the Esther miniseries or to financially support its production. 
<div id="attachment_214789" style="width: 724px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214789" class=" wp-image-214789" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Screenshot-2025-05-19-104203-300x169.jpg" alt="" width="714" height="402" />Images courtesy of IMM</div>]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 21 May 2025 05:00:17 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/filming-by-faith-how-one-ministry-is-pressing-on-despite-a-dropping-dollar/</guid>
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<title>The Lighthouse offers a Christ-centered approach to addiction recovery</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/the-lighthouse-offers-a-christ-centered-approach-to-addiction-recovery/</link>
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<![CDATA[
USA (MNN) -- Nearly 20 people in Florida face drug trafficking charges as <a href="https://cbs12.com/news/local/operation-burn-baby-burn-nets-17-arrests-over-15m-in-drugs-50k-in-cash-drug-bust-florida-central-florida-uthmeier-orange-county-florida-crime-fentanyl-cocaine-may-19-2025" target="_blank" rel="noopener">authorities seize</a> over six pounds of fentanyl and four pounds of cocaine worth more than $1.5 million.
Charges against the suspects carry <a href="https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2025/05/19/orange-county-sheriff-fdle-florida-attorney-general-to-announce-results-of-major-investigation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mandatory minimum sentences</a> ranging from 15 to 25 years.
<div id="attachment_214839" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Orange-County-Sheriff-Office.avif"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214839" class="wp-image-214839" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Orange-County-Sheriff-Office.avif" alt="" width="300" height="169" /></a>(Photo courtesy of Orange County Sheriff’s Office)</div>
“Anytime we can get drugs off the street is a huge win. Cocaine is coming up from our southern border in droves,” Brandon Bower with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/the-lighthouse/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Lighthouse</a> says.
“Where [we are] in Fort Wayne is kind of a drug highway because we’re between four major cities: Chicago, Detroit, Cincinnati, and Indy (Indianapolis).”
Cocaine is one of the most popular drugs in the United States, second only to marijuana.
“Cocaine tends to be a working man’s drug. It’s popular because it doesn’t have the massive side effects like methamphetamine does, and it’s not as addictive as heroin,” Bower says.
<blockquote>
“It’s estimated that there are two million people in the United States using cocaine at any given time.”
</blockquote>
Although there were 8,659 fewer <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/nchs_press_releases/2025/20250514.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cocaine overdose deaths</a> in 2024 than in 2023, cocaine abuse is still most common among young adults, with <a href="https://www.legacyfreedom.com/understanding-cocaine-abuse-by-age-group-key-statistics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">approximately 1 in 20</a> reporting use in the past year.
“Cocaine is probably not one of the most dangerous drugs out there, but now they’re mixing it with so much other stuff that you don’t know what you’re getting,” Bower says. “People are dropping dead because it’s mixed with fentanyl and other things.
<h2>Cocaine vs. Christ</h2>
The Lighthouse is a 28-bed men’s residential program with a Christ-centered approach to addiction recovery. <a href="https://lhfw.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
“Cocaine, like any other drug, has root issues in the heart,” Bower says.
<blockquote>
“If someone’s had a past of abuse or neglect or abandonment, those things have to be addressed in biblical counseling so they understand their value lies in Christ as a child of God, rather than things of this world.”
</blockquote>
Lives change as men find satisfaction in Christ instead of cocaine. “Alfonso* has been addicted to cocaine all his life. He met his wife in rehab, and they have struggled for the last 20 years with his cocaine addiction,” Bower says.
“His cocaine addiction led to pornography, which led to alcohol, which led to theft, which led to him selling all their possessions just so he could continue his binges,” he continues.
“When he came to The Lighthouse, he met Jesus, and it radically transformed his life. He’s been sober for about two years now and is doing fantastic. We’re seeing God restore this man to his family from years and years of cocaine abuse.”
<a href="https://lhfw.org/contact-us/submit-a-question/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Contact The Lighthouse here</a> to learn what the Bible says about addiction recovery.
“We would love to connect with the audience today, and if you know someone struggling with addiction, we have resources available for you,” Bower says.
 
*Name changed 
 
 
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/white-and-black-owl-figurine-c3m56pq0J1M" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Colin Davis/Unsplash.</a>]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 21 May 2025 05:00:37 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/the-lighthouse-offers-a-christ-centered-approach-to-addiction-recovery/</guid>
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<title>Layers of challenges and ministry in Mozambique</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/layers-of-challenges-and-ministry-in-mozambique/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Mozambique (MNN) — Reports of <a href="https://www.defenceweb.co.za/african-news/terror-attacks-continue-in-northern-mozambique/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">insurgency</a> continue in Mozambique’s northern Cabo Delgado province, despite the government’s <a href="https://www.trt.global/afrika-english/article/c5b813849807" target="_blank" rel="noopener">efforts</a> to quell it.
A string of attacks starting on March 31 and leading into April displaced 15,000 people, according to <a href="https://reliefweb.int/report/mozambique/unhcr-mozambique-protection-update-forced-displacement-ancuabe-district-cabo-delgado-april-2025-enpt" target="_blank" rel="noopener">one report</a>. For some people, it was their third or fourth displacement. 
Paolo*, a partner with MegaVoice, explains that the insurgency started small in 2017 after the discovery of massive natural gas reserves. It has now become a seven-year-old conflict that has <a href="https://www.fpri.org/article/2025/05/navigating-political-crisis-and-conflict-in-mozambique-quads-interest-and-strategy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">killed</a> more than 4,000 people and <a href="https://www.fpri.org/article/2025/05/navigating-political-crisis-and-conflict-in-mozambique-quads-interest-and-strategy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">displaced</a> 800,000.
“Anyone in front of them, they were killing. They were burning house[s],” Paolo says. 
“[It] was not necessarily a religion conflict. [It] was because there's a financial possibility in the region. But definitely these affect a lot of the [religious] work, especially because many missionaries moved from there because of security issues.” 
But MegaVoice’s local partners have stayed. This is a good thing! Paolo says these people are essential for distributing audio Bibles. 
“They have access to the people. They know the language, they know the necessity, where people [have] needs,” he says. 
<h2>A gift people ask for</h2>
Paolo says many people in northern Mozambique have had no chance at education. “So the only way to have access for the Word of God is through the audio Bibles.”
<div id="attachment_145841" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-145841" class="size-medium wp-image-145841" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/MegaVoice04-274.png-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />Image courtesy of MegaVoice.</div>
One woman received an audio Bible and listened to it while she worked in her croplands. She was playing it loud, and someone overheard.
“What’s that?” the man asked her. “Because this is in our language — I’ve never heard something in our own language!”
She told him, “This is the Bible. This is the Word of God." The man went to the missionary house where the audio Bible had come from and said he wanted God’s Word, too. 
<h2>Layers of challenges and need</h2>
Mozambique is also enduring lingering <a href="https://www.fpri.org/article/2025/05/navigating-political-crisis-and-conflict-in-mozambique-quads-interest-and-strategy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">political unrest</a> after its contested 2024 elections. In the midst of these dynamics, the MegaVoice team and its partners hope to see many things happening. 
“We want people groups receiving discipleship, learning about God's Word, growing [in] God's Word,” Paolo says, “and they could be missionaries. They can share the gospel with others. That's the most important for us, because we are looking for not just church-planting, but we want to see [a] reproducing church among these people.”
Paolo invites you to stand with them in this work. 
“[Our partners] see how important the Bible is for them [themselves]. They understand the Bible is important for others, and they are participating. They are praying for access. They are praying for people that are able to go there. They are investing. They are supporting the Bibles. We can make this happen,” he says. 
“It's not one or two organization[s], [it] is not one or two people. Is an entire body of Christ involved to make this happen.”
Learn more about MegaVoice’s mission <a href="https://megavoice.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>. 
 
*Name withheld for security
 
 
Header photo of children in Mozambique courtesy of Hidlson via Pexels.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 20 May 2025 05:00:26 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/layers-of-challenges-and-ministry-in-mozambique/</guid>
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<title>Translation project leads to Gospel opportunities in Chad</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/translation-project-leads-to-gospel-opportunities-in-chad/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Chad (MNN) -- Tensions simmer between locals in Chad and refugees from neighboring Sudan.
There aren’t enough essentials like food and shelter to go around. Now, <a href="https://eastleighvoice.co.ke/sudan/152008/sudan-tops-global-displacement-record-with-11.6m-forced-from-homes-amid-escalating-conflict" target="_blank" rel="noopener">as fighting picks up</a> in Sudan and thousands of refugees come across the border, tensions could erupt into conflict. <a href="https://eastleighvoice.co.ke/sudan/151674/chad-struggles-to-cope-as-over-47,000-refugees-arrive-amid-sudan-conflict" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Over 47,000 refugees</a> fleeing violence in Sudan have arrived in Chad in the last 30 days.
There’s at least one silver lining: “When you have Sudanese refugees coming over into Chad, and you’re translating unfoldingWordⓇ Open Bible Stories into one of the Sara languages, the number of people that you [can] reach with the Gospel expands exponentially,” Dane with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unfoldingword/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unfoldingWord</a> says.
“There are several different dialects in Sara, but they can all understand each other, and there are various people groups in the Sara language.”
unfoldingWord partners with church planters in Chad to bring the Gospel where it’s never been. <a href="https://unfoldingword.org/portfolio/africa/chad/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More about that here.</a>
<div id="attachment_214816" style="width: 250px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/UW_WBWN-Chad-stats.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214816" class="size-medium wp-image-214816" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/UW_WBWN-Chad-stats-240x300.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="300" /></a>Through collaboration, dedication, and a shared vision, communities are gaining access to God’s Word like never before. (Graphic, caption courtesy of unfoldingWord)</div>
“Chad has about 80 unreached people groups, [which] totals about 10 million people who don’t have God’s Word in their language,” Dane says.
“Church planters need the Bible in all the heart languages of Chad to plant healthy churches and disciple believers.”
<h2>Whole Bible, Whole Nation: Chad</h2>
<a href="https://joshuaproject.net/countries/CD" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to Joshua Project</a>, roughly half of Chad’s population identifies as Christian, while the remaining half is a mix of Muslims and animists.
The latter groups have posed a significant challenge for unfoldingWord partners, creating an opportunity for growth and innovation in their collaboration.
“Those groups have been very difficult, almost impossible, for these church planters to penetrate until now,” Dane says.
<blockquote>
“The ‘Whole Bible, Whole Nation’ strategy equips our partners to create a movement of Bible translation and church planting to reach all of the least-reached people groups in their nation.”
</blockquote>
While believers now have a proven strategy, this doesn’t mean the process is simple. One people group in Chad shunned believers simply because they were different.
“They would just block you out. They wouldn’t even eat with you,” Dane says. “Everybody [who] doesn’t practice their religion their way is considered unclean.”
Then, church planters asked this people group to review some unfoldingWordⓇ Open Bible Stories they had translated into the people group’s language. This review led to a lunch invitation. “That was just extremely important,” Dane says.
“It (eating together) means familiarity; it means friendship. Now, that door is open.”
<a href="https://unfoldingword.org/portfolio/africa/chad/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Here’s how you can help unfoldingWord reach more people groups in Chad.</a>
“We have some future translation work planned, but we need funding for that,” Dane says. “It’s a group of eight languages that want to get into Scripture translation.”
 
 
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of unfoldingWord.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 20 May 2025 05:00:18 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/translation-project-leads-to-gospel-opportunities-in-chad/</guid>
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<title>Sign language in Central Asia finds new voice across generations</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/sign-language-in-central-asia-finds-new-voice-across-generations/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Central Asia (MNN) — Like any other language, sign language evolves with each new generation.
When the USSR collapsed, Central Asia entered a profound historical and cultural transition. For many nations, it marked a slow but determined journey toward shaping their own national identity and reclaiming their native languages. While older generations still commonly speak Russian, younger people — shaped by a different historical reality — often long to speak in their own languages. The same is true within the Deaf community.
Rob Myers from <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/door-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DOOR International</a> explains, “During the former Soviet Union times, Russian Sign Language was actually taught in countries throughout Central Asia.” But things have changed. The ministry began to see the need for a generational approach.
<blockquote>
“There's a desire for them to really have their own language, not just be adapting Russian Sign Language,” Myers says.
</blockquote>
<div id="attachment_214820" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214820" class="size-medium wp-image-214820" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/pexels-rdne-7157625-300x200.jpg" alt="Pexels" width="300" height="200" />Two women (representative photo courtesy of RDNE Stock project via Pexels)</div>
To meet this need, DOOR International is adapting its training programs to serve both older and younger Deaf generations. The organization equips local leaders and sends workers to connect with emerging sign languages across the region. “Once enough leaders have been raised up,” Myers continues, “they’ll begin doing Bible translation work in that sign language, and they’ll empower local leaders to share the Gospel and make disciples themselves.”
Still, the biggest challenge remains: how to communicate the Gospel to Deaf believers in a way that helps them understand. It’s not uncommon for Deaf individuals to attend church for years without fully understanding the message — simply because they feel out of context.
“Just having an interpreted hearing service isn’t enough,” Myers says. “Deaf people often miss information... Part of it is how Deaf people process communication — it’s different. For many hearing people, we listen to a sermon and reflect individually. But Deaf people often process information best in community.”
Myers shares a powerful example: two girls who had regularly attended church for years but never fully understood the meaning of Christ’s sacrifice. That changed when they met trained workers who spoke their heart language and spent time answering their questions.
<blockquote>
“Both of them ended up giving their lives to Christ. The passion that came out of finally understanding, finally having access — it was incredible and contagious.”
</blockquote>
Pray for the Deaf workers from <a href="https://doorinternational.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DOOR International</a> across Central Asia who are faithfully bridging the gap — helping both the older and younger generations encounter the Gospel in their own language and on their own terms.
 
 
Header representative photo courtesy of Thiago Baretta via Unsplash.]]>
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<pubDate>Tue, 20 May 2025 05:00:31 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/sign-language-in-central-asia-finds-new-voice-across-generations/</guid>
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<title>Lifting sanctions in Syria would change the game for gospel ministry</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/lifting-sanctions-in-syria-would-change-the-game-for-gospel-ministry/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Syria (MNN) — <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/may/16/now-my-kids-have-a-future-syrians-dare-to-dream-again-after-years-as-a-pariah-state" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hope surges</a> in Syria after last week’s announcement that the U.S. intends to lift sanctions on the beleagured nation. 
The U.S. legislative process <a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-lifting-syria-sanctions-al-sharaa-8bcf421edddad122780a56e7f2b63187" target="_blank" rel="noopener">will take time</a>. But the potential has already <a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-lifting-syria-sanctions-al-sharaa-8bcf421edddad122780a56e7f2b63187" target="_blank" rel="noopener">increased</a> the value of Syrian currency and stirred attention from international <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/too-good-be-true-investors-eye-syria-after-trump-sanctions-move-2025-05-14/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">investors</a>.
“We did not expect this coming in this way and so abruptly," says Nuna* with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/triumphant-mercy-lebanon/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Triumphant Mercy Lebanon</a>. “With that change, I can only imagine a boost in every part of Syria. We heard [recently] of people celebrating when they heard the news. People were dancing on the streets.”
Nuna explains that rebuilding Syria has been impossible. “You are not allowed to do any work because there are so many sanctions. If the U.S. discovers that any money goes into Syria, then there is a ban on you.” (Read more about the 2019 Caesar Act here.)
For years, Triumphant Mercy has found small ways to legally be the hands and feet of Christ in Syria. But now if the Syrian families they work with in Lebanon eventually return home, there will be deeper ways to help rebuild.
<div id="attachment_142076" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-142076" class="size-medium wp-image-142076" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Flickr_Syrian-peace-talks-via-Eoghan-Rice-01-28-16-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />Syrian refugee children at a half-built apartment block near Reyfoun in Lebanon, close to the border with Syria, give the peace sign, 2016 (Photo courtesy of Eoghan Rice via Flickr)</div>
<blockquote>
“So now [it] is a different game,” says Nuna. “It's a huge ministry opportunity to just go in the land and work.”
</blockquote>
Syria’s new government and its stance toward religious minorities is unpredictable. It’s much too soon to tell if these ministry hopes will come to pass. But God is up to something! Please pray for gospel light to spread in Syria. 
“Let's pray that the motives will not be just economic or just so that the Abrahamic Accord will come to pass, but more so that the people of Syria will rise again, and that they will really see that God had mercy on them,” says Nuna. 
“Really, I think this is an act of mercy from God, and I want to see people recognizing it. Let's pray for the Syrian people, who have been oppressed for so long, that they will recognize God's appointed time for them, and they would come to know Him.”
Learn more about Triumphant Mercy Lebanon’s mission <a href="https://tm-lebanon.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>. 
 
*Pseudonym
 
 
Header photo of child holding a Syrian flag courtesy of Ahmed Akacha/Pexels.]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 19 May 2025 05:00:19 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/lifting-sanctions-in-syria-would-change-the-game-for-gospel-ministry/</guid>
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<title>Meet Vlad, a pastor in Odesa, Ukraine pursuing Bible training</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/meet-vlad-a-pastor-in-odesa-ukraine-pursuing-bible-training/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Ukraine (MNN) — Meet Vlad, a pastor stepping into Ukraine’s church leadership vacuum. Today, Vlad is running hard in ministry in <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russian-forces-stage-mass-drone-attack-ukraines-odesa-governor-says-2025-04-21/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the battered port city of Odesa</a>. 
“There [are] 100 homes that he tries to minister to. He's in a sea of broken children,” says Eric Mock with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/slavic-gospel-association/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Slavic Gospel Association</a>.
On Sundays, kids cram into Vlad’s van to go to church. He is working to transform a ramshackle building into a center where kids and parents can hear the gospel. But he needs training so that as they come, he can teach God’s Word faithfully and fully! 
Many of Ukraine’s previously trained pastors are no longer in churches, explains Mock. Instead, they are fighting on the front line or have left the country. That’s why SGA works to provide church-based training — not only in Ukraine but in the 12 other countries in which they serve — so that leaders can be equipped right where they are. It's known as the Antioch Initiative.
<div id="attachment_207478" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-207478" class="size-medium wp-image-207478" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/SGA_Ukraine-church-service-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" />Ukraine church service, 2024 (Photo courtesy of SGA)</div>
“By God's grace, He has raised up people like Vlad to do [in Ukraine] what we cannot do. But we can do what he cannot do, in caring for him, praying for him and, and supporting him,” says Mock.
<blockquote>
Please pray for pastors like Vlad. Because you know what? Mock says, “This is the common resounding comment from all the churches we serve overseas: They pray for you.”
</blockquote>
“So my heart for all those that are hearing this message is, don't wait for chaos and trial and war and difficulty to come to your life or to your family. Grow in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ now. Be a witness for the gospel. Tell the world of the hope that we have in Christ, because here in the U.S., we need it more than ever.”
Mock says the faithful, fruitful, sacrificial life we pray that believers overseas will have is the same life Christ calls us to live. 
“Pray that we're able to train more men and women for gospel ministry,” Mock says. “There's more work to do."
Consider <a href="https://www.sga.org/pastors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">connecting and partnering with SGA</a> to strengthen the hundreds of churches they serve across more than 10 countries. 
 
 
 
Header photo of pastors training students in a seminary located in Irpin, Ukraine, 2020. (Photo courtesy of SGA)]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 19 May 2025 05:00:57 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/meet-vlad-a-pastor-in-odesa-ukraine-pursuing-bible-training/</guid>
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<title>Newspaper offers hope to prisoners from prisoners</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/newspaper-offers-hope-to-prisoners-from-prisoners/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
USA (MNN) – As a prison sentence begins, many inmates face hopelessness. However, Yard Out, a publication of Prisoners for Christ, offers testimonies and hope from prisoners for prisoners.
Peyton Burkhart with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/prisoners-for-christ/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Prisoners for Christ</a> says, “The first few issues, I was doing interviews with ex-cons who were sharing their testimonies, and I was writing an article for it. But after they [the newspapers] started getting into the prisons, we had inmates send their stories to us to use. We found that that was a really great way to connect with the prisoner.”
<h2>A Wide-Reaching Impact</h2>
Now after around 30 years of producing Yard Out, the publication is in 1160 prisons across the country with a print run of about 51,000 as well as online copies. There are three issues a year, one of which includes a special art contest for prisoners. Each issue clearly presents the Gospel with Scripture references and then shares testimonies, poetry and letters to the editor from prisoners. This powerful publication is spread through inmates and chaplains.
<div id="attachment_214769" style="width: 254px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214769" class="size-medium wp-image-214769" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/newspaper-244x300.png" alt="" width="244" height="300" />(Image courtesy of Prisoners for Christ)</div>
Burkhart says time and time again they've heard stories of how Yard Out has impacted incarcerated men and women. “There's so much drama and conflict in their lives. They're broken and lost. It's just amazing how God reaches into that circumstance and touches them. And we get letters from inmates who are gang members. They're tough men covered with tattoos, and they go into a chapel service, or they find a Yard Out under their mattress in the solitary confinement, or some expression where God reaches out to them. And they're just broken by the discovery of grace and forgiveness. They may be in front of their old gang members who they used to fight with and do drugs with, and they're just shamelessly crying for Christ, touched by the presence of God in their life. So it's very transforming for them.”
<h2>Encountering Miracles</h2>
Many stories stand out to Burkhart after years with the publication, but one of his favorites is from a prisoner who planned to kill himself with a shiv he’d made. He was hopeless and around two in the morning one night he was ready to end his life.
<div id="attachment_214768" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214768" class="size-medium wp-image-214768" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/pexels-ron-lach-10461522-300x200.jpg" alt="https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-in-black-shirt-and-black-pants-holding-paper-10461522/" width="300" height="200" />(Image courtesy of Ron Lach on Pexels)</div>
Burkhart says, “Suddenly there was a guard, a prison guard at his door. He asked him, ‘Do you believe the Bible?’ And he replied, ‘Yes, I do.’ And the guard asked him, ‘Why don't you do what it says?’ And he quoted a verse out of Leviticus. It says, ‘Do not cut yourself.’ So the inmate looked that up and he described it as a neon sign that was flashing off the page at him, ‘Do not cut yourself’.
“So he realized God reached out to him. He asked about that officer the next morning and wondered where the tall thin black officer that was on duty the night before. They said, ‘Well, we don't have a tall, thin, black officer who works here.’ He realized that he had seen an angel who had intervened to keep him from taking his life, and he consequently committed himself to Christ.”
<h2>Get Involved</h2>
The ministry continues to share the Gospel and see men and women commit their lives to Christ. However, they are not working in a vacuum. They need prayer and support from the Church.
Greg Von Tobel also with Prisoners for Christ says, “We pray for everything in this ministry, everything from just the normal everyday needs of the ministry all the way up to major gifts to continue to financially support this ministry. So we're always looking for new supporters. We're always looking for new volunteers. We're always looking for how we can creatively get in front of the inmate population with the Word of God.”
Consider joining Prisoners for Christ as they present the Gospel to incarcerated men and women. Learn more on their website at <a href="https://www.prisonersforchrist.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">prisonersforchrist.com</a> or request a copy of Yard Out <a href="https://www.prisonersforchrist.org/for-inmates-and-their-families/p/yard-out-inmate-newspaper" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
 
Image courtesy of RDNE Stock Project on Pexels.]]>
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<pubDate>Mon, 19 May 2025 05:00:38 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/newspaper-offers-hope-to-prisoners-from-prisoners/</guid>
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<title>Pray for peace in Kashmir</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/pray-for-peace-in-kashmir/</link>
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India (MNN) – A ceasefire between India and Pakistan is fragilely holding, though both countries have reported violations by the opposing side. The most recent conflict between the countries involved a terrorist attack that claimed 26 lives in India’s Kashmir region, answered by India’s retaliatory missile attack on Pakistan, the suspected terror sponsor. The Kashmir region is<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c30q09638n8o" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> known for being hotly contested</a>. Todd Nettleton with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/voice-of-the-martyrs-usa/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Voice of the Martyrs USA</a> says the dispute goes back to the division of India when Pakistan was created.
“The idea was that Pakistan would have mostly Muslim people. The nation of India that was left would have mostly Hindu people. Kashmir is mostly Muslim people, but India claims the territory as their own,” he says.
<div id="attachment_214702" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214702" class="size-medium wp-image-214702" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Kashmir_map.svg_-300x236.png" alt="" width="300" height="236" />Map of Kashmir region, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.</div>
India’s Hindu nationalist government has been exerting more control over the region in recent years. 
“And I think that has brought fresh attention to some of the scars and the wounds from the decades past,” Nettleton points out. 
The recent conflagration escalated quickly. 
“By the same token, it also seems to have been settled very quickly, and hopefully this ceasefire will hold,” he says. 
Nettleton says this particular border is often the site of international tensions. 
“I think it’s sort of dry tinder all the time, and then you have something like the terrorist attack that happened, and it’s very easy for that dry tinder to catch fire.” 
The situation affects the body of Christ in Kashmir, who are often caught in the crossfire. What’s more, Nettleton says unrest such as this can serve as cover for religious targeting. 
“If there are missiles being dropped and a church building is destroyed, you don’t think the church was targeted for persecution. You think there were missiles falling and a church got hit,” he says.
<div id="attachment_214698" style="width: 210px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214698" class="size-medium wp-image-214698" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/samed-AWLIB6ycySQ-unsplash-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" />Kasmir is known as "India's Switzerland" for its natural beauty. (Photo courtesy of Samed via Unsplash.)</div>
Please pray that this kind of persecution will not happen as a result of ongoing tensions. Pray for Christian brothers and sisters affected by the violence, that they would continue to hold out the Gospel of hope to their warring neighbors. 
“They have so many reasons to lay low and not be involved in ministry, and yet so many of them are stepping up and actively being involved in ministry,” Nettleton says. 
Pray for peace in the region of Kashmir. 
 
 
 
Featured photo courtesy of Divya Agrawal via Unsplash]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 16 May 2025 05:00:21 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/pray-for-peace-in-kashmir/</guid>
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<title>How the gospel transcends barriers even in the Israel-Hamas war</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/how-the-gospel-transcends-barriers-even-in-the-israel-hamas-war/</link>
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<![CDATA[
Gaza (MNN) — As the horrors of the Israel-Hamas war continue, Tom Doyle with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/uncharted-ministries/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Uncharted Ministries</a> says there are gospel stories we need to hear. 
“You could never think, by watching the news there, that there could be any peace there or any humanity whatsoever — and [yet] there truly is,” says Doyle.
“As far as Jesus’ church reaching through the political, ethnic boundaries, all of that, so many things are happening that are good.”
<h2>Israeli believers on rescue missions</h2>
He says one Palestinian family with four kids is trying to escape an incredibly dangerous area in Gaza. 
“Israeli believers are trying to get them out and save their lives. It's truly, truly amazing,” says Doyle.
<div id="attachment_205062" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-205062" class="size-medium wp-image-205062" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/UCM_israel-gaza-300x200.jpeg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />(Photo courtesy of Uncharted Ministries)</div>
“One Palestinian believer showed us a note that flew out of a helicopter saying, ‘Move from this area. IDF is going to be trying to find some Hamas terrorists.’ They say it's snowing in Gaza, it's snowing. It's the notes coming [down].”
<h2>Messages of peace from Palestinians</h2>
Meanwhile, Palestinian believers are sending messages like these: “We don't want war with Israel. We don't have anything against them. Please get rid of Hamas. Please keep us safe, though.” 
This heart for peace has been there from the beginning. Back in October 2023, one Palestinian believer was forced by Hamas to watch the parade of hostages into Gaza. Doyle says he sent the message, “I'm crying here. This should not be happening to human beings, and I'm so sorry. Please tell the Israelis we’re sorry about this.”
“Even sending that message on his phone was so incredibly risky if he got caught,” Doyle says. "But that's what happens. The gospel transcends all those barriers.”
<h2>Believers in Gaza share hope of Jesus</h2>
Other believers in Gaza from Muslim backgrounds are standing in faith, too.
<div id="attachment_205523" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-205523" class="size-medium wp-image-205523" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Christians_from_Gaza-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" />Christians from Gaza circa 2021 (Wikimedia Commons)</div>
When the Uncharted Ministries team asked them if they had been able to share Jesus amid this horrible war, they said, "With hundreds of people, hundreds.’”
“They're just sitting, hoping to not get caught in the crossfire, and so they're with other families," Doyle says. "The question they're asked is, ‘Why do you have so much peace? How can you smile in the midst of this?’ And they tell them, ‘It's because of Jesus, how He changed our lives.’”
<h2>Let the peace of Christ rule</h2>
Because the gospel of Jesus overcomes all human barriers, please let Him rule your prayers about this war. Consider basing your prayers in <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Colossians%203%3A12-15&version=ESV" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Colossians 3:12-15</a> as a starting place.
“Pray for the Muslims that have become believers there (in Gaza) and meet together in small groups. They're in incredible danger," says Doyle. "Pray for the Israelis in the surrounding cities — in kibbutzim (small communities) — and [for] soldiers that are believers. They're doing their best to keep people safe and help despite all the destruction.” 
Pray also for the remaining hostages and their families, and that peace will come to Gaza instead of Hamas terrorism and war.
 
 
 
Header photo: Israeli pastor and a Palestinian missionary praying over the Gaza Strip from Israel. They love each other as brothers in Christ and they love both people groups. (Photo, caption courtesy of Uncharted Ministries)]]>
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<pubDate>Fri, 16 May 2025 05:00:53 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/how-the-gospel-transcends-barriers-even-in-the-israel-hamas-war/</guid>
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<title>On Eagles’ Wings class of 2025 prepares for full-time ministry</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/on-eagles-wings-class-of-2025-prepares-for-full-time-ministry/</link>
<description>
<![CDATA[
USA (MNN) -- Spring is full of graduation day ceremonies and open houses in the United States.
Every new grad, whether finishing college or high school, is closing one chapter and starting a new one. However, the story looks slightly different at the On Eagles’ Wings Leadership Center.
<a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/ron-hutchcraft-ministries/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hutchcraft Ministries</a>’ Ron Hutchcraft says, “Graduation Day is ‘launch day’ here, and we call this a launching pad for leaders.”
This year’s graduates completed 245 hours of coursework in a nine-month gap year program. “They represent 10 major tribes in North America, everything from Apache to Lakota, Sioux, Mohawk, Ojibwe, Hopi, and others,” Hutchcraft says.
“They have just completed a very intensive year of discipling and equipping for ministry and living for Christ in difficult circumstances.”
<h2>From new believer to leader</h2>
Graduation is the latest step in a longer journey. “This launch day is a celebration of a journey that begins for Native American young people in something we call the Warrior Leadership Summit,” Hutchcraft says.
“It is a Native discipleship conference, although I will say that often a quarter to one-third of the young people who attend there begin a relationship with Christ.”
Following the conference, an On Eagles’ Wings team will bring the Gospel to several Native American communities during the Summer of Hope.
<div id="attachment_214739" style="width: 250px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/OEW_wls-2024.jpg"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214739" class="size-medium wp-image-214739" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/OEW_wls-2024-240x300.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="300" /></a>(Photo courtesy of On Eagles’ Wings via Facebook)</div>
“This team is usually made up of about 30 to 40 young Native Americans, maybe 20 tribes represented. When they go to the reservation, they see young people coming to Christ. That has usually never happened before on that reservation in anybody’s memory,” Hutchcraft says.
<blockquote>
“When the messengers are young, Native, and their message begins with their hope story, it’s very hard to argue with the Jesus that they will tell you has become their hope.”
</blockquote>
The Summer of Hope leads to a new class of students at the On Eagles’ Wings Leadership Center.
“Out of those team members come young men and women who aspire to be leaders for their people and to be strengthened in their faith. They are considered to be students here at the Leadership Center,” Hutchcraft says.
<h2>A new season</h2>
<a href="https://www.evidencebasedmentoring.org/half-of-college-graduates-have-jobs-that-dont-use-their-degrees/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to recent studies,</a> many college alumnae work in fields unrelated to their major. Will the same be true for these Gospel grads?
“This has Great Commission implications because every one of them is now planning on ministry life,” Hutchcraft says.
<blockquote>
“They will be messengers and models of hope planted in a Native community, in a Native ministry.”
</blockquote>
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/oewofficial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Follow the On Eagles’ Wings page on Facebook for more updates.</a>
“We appreciate the prayers of Mission Network News listeners for these young men and women. They are God’s warriors and the enemy’s target,” Hutchcraft says.
“Every warrior in Christ’s army is another proof of His power to save and His victory over death and hell.”
 
 
 
Header and story images courtesy of On Eagles' Wings.]]>
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 May 2025 05:00:50 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/on-eagles-wings-class-of-2025-prepares-for-full-time-ministry/</guid>
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<title>Spiritual realities behind India-Pakistan tensions should call us to prayer</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/spiritual-realities-behind-india-pakistan-tensions-should-call-us-to-prayer/</link>
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<![CDATA[
India/Pakistan (MNN) — Next steps for India and Pakistan remain fragile in their <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/14/what-did-india-and-pakistan-gain-and-lose-in-their-military-standoff" target="_blank" rel="noopener">days-old ceasefire</a>. 
Greg Kelley with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/unknown-nations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unknown Nations</a> says their indigenous partners in both nations are feeling the effects of uncertainty and travel restrictions. Regions of northern India outside of Kashmir — Jammu and Delhi, Kelley says — are also impacted. 
“Then you add in the fact that you've got nuclear powers — so you've got people with historical hatred towards each other, and the ability to wipe out thousands and thousands of people. [It] is a very precarious situation,” Kelley adds.
“For so many different reasons, a ceasefire couldn't have come quick enough, because this is a tinder box just ready to explode.”
<div id="attachment_200846" style="width: 250px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-200846" class="size-medium wp-image-200846" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/WMI_India-serious-240x300.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="300" />(Photo courtesy of Unknown Nations)</div>
<blockquote>
But Kelley says that as Christians, we must look through the spiritual lens, not merely the physical. 
</blockquote>
Hindu-majority India has the world’s highest concentration of unreached people groups. Meanwhile, Pakistan is the second largest Muslim-majority nation in the world. 
“As with any issue that's country to country where hatred is so deep, it's a matter of the heart, which means the only answer is the gospel,” says Kelley. 
So, how can the Body of Christ position itself for spreading the gospel? Unknown Nations’ partners are already on the ground in this border conflict. “These people are deployed on a daily basis. They're distributing our solar-powered audio Bible[s]. We do water projects. We train these leaders, and then second-generation leaders,” Kelley says.
“When we're talking about countries like India and Pakistan, we have to build a ground game where there [are] leaders on the ground that are properly equipped to share the gospel and multiply. That’s where a lot of our efforts are at.”
Kelley recognizes that people who have lost everything will quickly begin to question their worldview.
“This (situation in Kashmir) is beginning to get to the place of an insecurity among the people where they are questioning,” he says. “Both of those worldviews (Islam, Hinduism) — that’s the second and third largest religions in the world — are going to be open to the gospel now.”
<blockquote>
As a member of the global church, consider how you might deploy your resources to hotspot areas like the India-Pakistan border, starting with your prayers. 
</blockquote>
“We need to pray intentionally, but with the right kind of vocabulary: not country-oriented, but people-group oriented,” Kelley says.
<div id="attachment_174888" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-174888" class="size-medium wp-image-174888" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/hands-2168901_1920-300x157.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="157" />(Image courtesy of congerdesign via Pixabay)</div>
Don’t know where to start? Visit Joshua Project’s webpages for <a href="https://joshuaproject.net/countries/IN" target="_blank" rel="noopener">India</a> and <a href="https://joshuaproject.net/countries/PK" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pakistan</a>, and choose one of the unreached people groups on their lists. You can start with the <a href="https://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/16187/IN" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Yadav</a> people in India, or the massive <a href="https://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/14256/PK" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pashtun</a> people in Pakistan.
Learn more about <a href="https://www.unknownnations.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unknown Nations</a> here.
 
 
 
Photo from Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, India (Courtesy of Jannes Jacobs via Unsplash).]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 15 May 2025 05:00:49 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>When faith marches to the Ukrainian front lines</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/when-faith-marches-to-the-ukrainian-front-lines/</link>
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Ukraine (MNN) — Military chaplaincy is when the church’s walls stretch all the way to the battlefield.
The war shakes the very foundation of people's mental state, leaving them weary from the weight of pain, grief, and the constant threat of attack. This is why military chaplains are irreplaceable during the war in Ukraine. Eric Mock from the <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/slavic-gospel-association/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Slavic Gospel Association</a> says, “The role of the chaplain is to be an ambassador of Christ, to be an ambassador of hope in a situation that might seem hopeless.”
Military chaplains are pastors who choose to serve those affected by war: defenders, their families, civilians, and children. Some minister in field or civilian hospitals, while others risk their lives on the front lines.
<blockquote>
“They go because there may be one soul that may perish apart from the gospel, and the ache on their hearts over the one soul is enough to compel them to go to the front lines,” says Mock.
</blockquote>
<div id="attachment_214728" style="width: 235px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214728" class="size-medium wp-image-214728" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Chaplain-Praying-and-Preaching-with-Soldiers-225x300.jpeg" alt="" width="225" height="300" />Chaplain praying and preaching with soldiers (photo courtesy of SGA)</div>
SGA partners with Ukrainian chaplains, especially from the Ukrainian Baptist Union, providing leadership training, hospital aid, summer camps for children, and more. There are currently more than 300 Baptist union chaplains that are on the front lines, and that includes, in addition to that, another 500 volunteers.
Chaplains are there with soldiers who might never have thought to ask questions about eternity or faith — until the fragility of life and the threat of death confront them daily. Field hospitals, remote clinics, rehabilitation centers, and even families who have lost loved ones are asking for chaplains. “It made a tremendous impact, and we see the demand for even more chaplains coming. This is religious freedom. They're not being blocked. They're not being told, ‘Please don’t talk to our troops.’ They're openly saying, ‘Please come.’ Even [some of the] doctors who do not believe in God, who may reject the idea of salvation by grace, are welcoming them,” says Mock.
One might assume that a chaplain’s ministry ends with the war, but the reality is far different. The scars of war run deep, and the chaplain’s ability to empathize with suffering and help carry burdens remains essential long after the fighting stops.
“These chaplains wade into the storms of their life, and if today the fighting stops, the peace in their soul is still missing,” Mock says. “We can foolishly think that if we stop this war, the difficulties will end and life won’t be hard anymore. And it’s just not true.”
Pray for soldiers, their families, and civilians in occupied territories. Pray that chaplains will find ways to bring hope despite the darkness. Pray for the salvation of souls facing death. And pray that many men will come to faith.
Consider how you can get involved, visiting <a href="https://www.sga.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SGA website</a> — helping war widows, supporting summer camps for their children, meeting the needs of field hospitals, and more!
 
 
 
Header photo courtesy of SGA.
 ]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 15 May 2025 05:00:35 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>They named her “Worm” — today she creates worship songs for God</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/they-named-her-worm-today-she-creates-worship-songs-for-god/</link>
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This story contains graphic elements. 
 
Indonesia (MNN) — Everything changes when fear of the spirit world turns to faith in Christ. Nathan Fagerlie is a pilot with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/mission-aviation-fellowship/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mission Aviation Fellowship</a>. He shared a story about an Indonesian community where MAF was a lifeline for local missionaries. 
“Often, without the airplane and without missionaries coming into a village, the infant mortality rate is about 80%, meaning four out of five kids do not make it past the age of two,” he says.
<div id="attachment_214718" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-214718" class="size-medium wp-image-214718" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Papua-Indonesian-Photo-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" />Papua, Indonesia (Courtesy of Mission Aviation Fellowship)</div>
One couple in the village had lost five children. When their sixth child was born, a girl, the father said she would die too and rejected her. 
But her mother believed that naming the child Madhu (meaning “worm”) and disfiguring her would keep evil spirits away. 
“She took a knife and cut off both pinky fingers off this beautiful infant baby, and then took the knife and just made multiple cuts on her face and body,” Fagerlie says. “The whole point was to try and make this child as unappealing as possible, so maybe the spirits would leave her alone and that she wouldn't die.
“The gospel comes in, though, and it changes. It changes people, changes the cultures. In this area now, instead of feeling like they've got to mutilate or harm their kids in order to keep them alive, they start using the names of the kids as a way to celebrate the attributes of God.” 
<blockquote>
Today, parents in the area might give their children names with meanings like “God hears us” or “Compassion.” And that little baby girl, Madhu? ...
</blockquote>
“This girl that her father rejected, that was mutilated, is now a strong, faithful believer, and she's known in the village for producing some amazing songs that glorify her Father in heaven, who hasn't rejected her,” Fagerlie says. 
Praise God for his redemption in hard stories like these, and pray for missionaries that MAF supports in other spiritually dark communities!
“They're in a constant battle in that sense, too, spiritually, as they're trying to bring light into a place that resists it,” says Fagerlie. 
Pray that these missionaries would be protected and see the gospel change people’s lives.
<a href="https://maf.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener">You can learn more about MAF here. </a>
 
 
 
Header photo of Papua outdoor education, 2025, courtesy of Mission Aviation Fellowship.]]>
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<pubDate>Thu, 15 May 2025 05:00:23 -0400</pubDate>
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<title>Gang activity in Haiti intensifies the country’s need</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/gang-activity-in-haiti-intensifies-the-countrys-need/</link>
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Haiti (MNN) – The US has designated <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/haiti-gangs-us-terrorism-designation-risks-harming-most-vulnerable-ngos-warn-2025-05-08/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">two Haitian gangs as terrorist groups</a>, deeming them a threat to national security and warning of criminal charges for activity that supports the gangs. Meanwhile, in Haiti, the situation continues to decline.
Makenson Saint Fleur is an attorney with <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/for-haiti-with-love/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">For Haiti with Love</a>. He says gangs carry on their criminal activity regardless of international designation. 
“The US tries to help Haiti with the situation, but for now, nothing is well. Everything is getting worse and worse every day.” 
Gangs have expanded their reach from Port Au Prince and are now trying to take over the entire North. 
“They take Mirebalais, they try to take Plateau centrale, they try to take Cap-Haïtien. They want to take all the country,” Saint Fleur says. 
Up to now, For Haiti with Love has been helping the needy of Cap-Haïtien with a burn clinic, food, and housing assistance. But Saint Fleur says if gang activity worsens in the area, the ministry will be forced to vacate. 
“If they take the city, you can do nothing - just leave the city,” he says. 
Currently, the burn clinic remains in place; but Saint Fleur says the ministry has had to cease meal distribution due to the unrest. 
“We can’t do everything we used to do,” he says. 
Even now, the Gospel remains central to FHWL’s efforts. 
“We always pray with them, and we teach a part of the Bible in every activity we do,” Saint Fleur says of their interactions with Haitians. 
As the team at For Haiti with Love cares and prays for their people, would you pray for them? 
“We need help. We need prayer,” Saint Fleur petitions. “We need every single prayer because Haiti is getting worse and worse again.” 
<div id="attachment_199364" style="width: 688px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-199364" class=" wp-image-199364" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/FHWL-header-300x131.png" alt="" width="678" height="296" />(Photos in this article courtesy of For Haiti With Love)</div>]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 14 May 2025 05:00:32 -0400</pubDate>
<guid>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/gang-activity-in-haiti-intensifies-the-countrys-need/</guid>
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<title>Religious minorities suffer in overflow of Bangladesh social unrest</title>
<link>https://www.mnnonline.org/news/religious-minorities-suffer-in-overflow-of-bangladesh-social-unrest/</link>
<description>
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Bangladesh (MNN) – In Bangladesh, Christians make up a tiny fraction of the population — less than one percent. As political instability and social unrest surge, vulnerable religious minorities increasingly find themselves under attack.
Since early August, Bangladesh has been under an interim government after the former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country.
Bruce Allen of <a href="https://www.mnnonline.org/mission_groups/forgotten-missionaries-international/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FMI</a> says, “Anytime you have this social upheaval, it's usually the minorities that bear the brunt of that in terms of society's anger over the situation. You know, it's kind of like kicking the lowest rung on the social ladder.”
For Christians in Bangladesh, persecution takes many forms. Some believers are harassed, some are forced to flee their homes, and others face violent attacks. 
Christian leaders are being specifically targeted – like Pastor Rajiv*, a local partner of FMI on their leadership team.
<div id="attachment_166419" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-166419" class="size-medium wp-image-166419" src="https://www.mnnonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/new-evangelist-300x202.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="202" />New evangelist, Bangladesh (Photo courtesy of FMI)</div>
<blockquote>
“On the eastern edge of the country, Pastor Rajiv...was attacked and his property set on fire,” Allen recounts.
</blockquote>
“A few weeks prior to that, his two dogs were poisoned and killed. He had these dogs on the premises to protect his family and his property, so the poisoning was intentional so that later attacks could go unnoticed in the night.”
Despite these challenges, God’s work in Bangladesh continues.
“Even in the midst of such darkness, people are looking for: ‘Where is our hope?’” says Allen.
FMI supports <a href="https://forgottenmissionaries.org/our-fields/%23Bangladesh" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bangladeshi church planters and evangelists</a> taking the Gospel to the 99% of Bangladesh’s population that doesn’t know Jesus.
“Last year…through the testimony of our partners, church planters, [and] evangelists in Bangladesh, 2,500 people placed their faith in Jesus Christ across 40 ministry sites that we support, and nine new churches were planted!”
Local Christian leaders are not praying for ease or comfort – but for endurance.
“[Pastor Rajiv] says, ‘Pray for our strength and our resilience,’” shares Allen. “And I just go, ‘Wow, what an amazing testimony that you're not giving up, you're not withdrawing. You say this is the time that we need to serve our neighbors, our countrymen, and show them where hope can be found.’”
You can <a href="https://forgottenmissionaries.org/our-fields/%23Bangladesh" target="_blank" rel="noopener">support Christian leaders in Bangladesh with FMI.</a>
 
*Name changed for security.
 
 
Header photo of Christians praying in Bangladesh (Photo courtesy of FMI)]]>
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<pubDate>Wed, 14 May 2025 05:00:10 -0400</pubDate>
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