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2014-12-11

• Young Child's Terrible Encounter with Boko Haram

  Pray that God's hand of healing and blessing will be upon this little child. Village photo: Flickr / Mike Blyth

  After a brutal attack was perpetrated against Christian worshippers on Sunday, November 22nd in Attagara, a little three-year-old child by the name of "Joel" was running back home holding onto his Children's Bible when three Islamic insurgents grabbed him and forcibly sat him down.

  According to an eye witness, one of the insurgents wanted to take the Children's Bible from Joel's hand but the little boy refused. The angered Muslim insurgent snatched the Bible by force and threw it into a nearby burning fire. Joel ran toward the fire to rescue his beloved Bible.

  While struggling with a stick to remove his Bible from the fire, Joel was hit on the head with the butt of an AK-47 and pushed into the fire. Not satisfied, the insurgent proceeded to step on the young child's head, pressing it into the burning flames, all the while railing curses and abuses on the little boy, calling him a "stubborn infidel." After causing this incident, the heartless Boko Haram member then callously walked away, leaving the wounded child at the scene.

  While we can be thankful that this young child's life was spared, let us cry out to God on behalf of Joel and others like him who have so unjustly suffered at the hands of Boko Haram...asking the Lord to bring justice in such an unjust world. Additionally, ask Him to protect and preserve His people (Psalm 140), including vulnerable children. Pray that the Lord will not only completely heal little Joel and the other victimized members of his Christian community, but that He would also bless them with a strong faith, great endurance, and an unquenchable desire to love and serve Him despite the attack.

• Humanitarian Workers Killed by Taliban Gunmen

  The Groenewald family

  Three South Africans and two Afghan nationals were killed in an attack on the Partnership in Academics & Development compound in Kabul on Saturday, November 29th. Werner Groenewald was killed along with his 17-year-old son, 15-year-old daughter, and two Afghan co-workers.

  Three Taliban gunmen had entered the compound dressed as policemen and carried out an attack that lasted for three hours. Werner's surviving wife, Hannelie, was at the clinic where she worked as a doctor when the attack occurred. Werner, who had worked in Afghanistan for 12 years, was killed while trying to protect his children.

  The Taliban later claimed responsibility for the attack by posting a message on the Twitter social networking site, stating that it was a "Christian proselytizing compound." A friend of Werner's reported that he had closed his last session with an international group of co-workers by saying, "We only die once, so it might as well be for Jesus."

  (To learn more about what Christians are facing in Afghanistan, review our online country report.)

  Please uphold the distraught families of the two slain Afghan workers and Werner's now suddenly widowed wife, Hannelie, who has tragically lost three close family members of her own. Ask the Lord to supernaturally sustain these bereaved Christians as they come to terms with their tremendous loss. Pray that as they grieve, He will give them the strength and grace needed to exemplify His love through their Godly response, as well as through their prayers for the persecutors (Matthew 5:43-48). May their tragic loss not be in vain, but rather serve as a powerful testimony -- one that will ultimately strengthen fellow believers and draw many Afghans to Christ.

• Christians Resist Hostile Takeover

  

  Following the secession of South Sudan in July 2011, Sudanese Christians have experienced escalating attacks resulting from a government policy to eradicate Christianity from the country. Since 2012, Sudan has expelled foreign Christians and bulldozed many church buildings on the pretext that church property belongs to investors. (For more information on the persecution taking place in this country, click here.)