International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church

This Sunday, November 14th, is set aside as the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. While we may find this hard to believe as Christians living in the freest nation in the world, our brothers and sisters in Christ continue to be persecuted and many live in daily fear for their lives.

The nations that we are most concerned about with in 2004 are North Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Laos. These nations continually violate the human rights of both Christians and their citizens. Christians are routinely arrested and placed in prison for no crime other than worshiping God. They are tortured and may serve years without any hope of parole or even a trial. Recently in China, a crackdown on house churches ended up with hundreds of Christians being arrested and with the death of at least one house pastor in police hands. I saw a picture last week of believers in China huddled in an alleyway for a worship service because their house church had been closed. And, of course, we are all familiar with the horrific persecution of Christians in the Sudan, persecution which includes crucifixion, torture, and the sale of children into slavery.

As you go about your daily life this week and especially as you freely enter a sanctuary to worship God, remember your brothers and sisters in Christ around the world who daily suffer persecution for Christ's sake. Pray for their strength and that they would stand firm in the face of persecution. And pray that God would change their nations through them, just as He changed the Roman empire from a persecutor of Christians into a Christian nation. And pray for the day when Christ will return in His glory and when peace will finally reign in our world.