A Message from the Chief Executive Officer

The Voice of the Martyrs Canada has established seven purposes that guide our ministry activities. One purpose we seek to attain is giving a voice to those Christians whose cries of pain and proclamation of praise go unheard. We accomplish this by sharing their testimonies of suffering and worship.

A Somali Christian ministry recently emailed me a poem which poignantly demonstrates the heart-wrenching troubles a convert to Christianity bears at the hands of those who are closest to them. Here is the poem sent by that particular ministry for the encouragement of a Somali convert:

By Levi MacGregor, VOMC's International Ministry

"I felt in my heart that he should be invited to the camp and I heard
the words, 'Do not stop the children from coming to Me.'"
~ Youth Camp Leader

Last July, a group of 25 Christian young adults in Central Asia led three separate youth camps, featuring English as a second language and sports training, with the intention of sharing the Gospel. The overnight camps provided a loving, safe environment for children from as young as 10 years old, to young people up to the age of 22, so they can enjoy sports, improve their English, and learn about Jesus.

"In love I designed you, all of the details,
Woven from My heart, I will not forget you.
Don't think the dark could hide you where I can't get to you
So know you are... Seen."¹
Lyrics by Anastasya Laverdiere
Worship leader for Alberta's Olympic Faith retreat

You and I, and our brothers and sisters in Christ around the globe, were not meant to feel at home in this world. Not really. Not completely. For we don't really belong here. Even though we are purposely planted in our various delegated and different 'soils and toils,' fulfilling ministries and roles that are intentionally chosen for us before the foundation of the world, this world is not our real home.

I was stunned when I received the news that someone I knew had been killed. Even in this work, where I am inundated with reports of persecution and martyrdoms from around the world on a daily basis, the news hit hard. This was a man I had met, shook hands with, talked with, and prayed with. At the end of our meeting we said “goodbye” and went our separate ways -- I to the relative safety of Canada and he to a country known for its anti-Christian persecution.

"Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds
of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let
the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?"
~ Isaiah 58:6 ESV

It has been said that a picture is worth a thousand words, so this time my words will be few -- allowing the images to speak directly to your heart.