Kaew placed her trust in Christ through the prayers of her parents, who became Christians after her marriage. Her husband and his parents, as well as their village, opposed her decision to follow Christ and tried repeatedly to make her recant. On December 30, 2023, Kaew’s husband and other villagers berated and beat her until she passed out. When she regained consciousness, she was given one more chance to recant, but she insisted on following Christ. In anger, her husband threw her out of the house.
Read MoreCote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) has a population of nearly 30 million people. Muslims are its largest religious group, representing around 40% of the population. Around 37% of the population identifies as Christian. The remaining 33% of the country are mostly followers of local ethnic religions, found mainly in the north of the country. While the Christian population is significant, Bibles are hard to access or afford for many people, and roughly 30% of the population is illiterate. Front-line workers recently delivered 500 solar-powered audio Bibles to northern parts of the country.
Read MoreAkhilesh led his family to faith in Christ after being physically healed through prayer. As others joined in their family worship and placed their faith in Christ, a church grew. Eventually, 2,000 people were meeting for worship during the week. A radical Hindu leader warned Akhilesh that he would face serious consequences if he did not close down the church, but they continued to meet. Then, in September 2022, police arrested Pastor Akhilesh for his gospel work and confiscated the family’s Bibles.
Read MoreFor 15 years, Pastor Mahesh Mukhiya has led a congregation of 70 Christians for worship and fellowship in a rented house in their village. In September 2023, Hindu extremists threatened the owner of the rented house, demanding he cancel the rental agreement. After a second threat, the landlord agreed to evict the congregation. Pastor Mahesh searched for a new building in which the Christians could meet, but the extremists had issued warnings throughout the village.
Read MoreIn February 2024, Islamic insurgents with the self-proclaimed Islamic State (ISIS) in Mozambique destroyed 18 churches and killed many people in a sustained attack against Christians in the northern part of the country. The Islamists recorded videos of themselves destroying Christian symbols, including crosses. More than 700,000 people, most of them Christians, have been displaced by radical Islamic militants in the Cabo Delgado province of northern Mozambique. One Christian leader said that the church is currently experiencing “a moment of tribulation.”
Read MoreMuhammad placed his trust in Christ two years ago. When his employer recently learned of Muhammad’s decision to follow Christ, he began to harass him. After Muhammad asked his employer to stop the harassment, Muhammad’s boss forced him to work 14-hour shifts and ultimately fired him. Muhammad is now looking for a new job.
Read MoreWhile Ethiopia is a majority-Christian nation, Islam is a growing force. Muslims now compose nearly 40 percent of the population, and Islamic extremists actively persecute Christians, sometimes violently, especially in areas close to the Somali and Sudanese borders. Sometimes the extremists destroy churches, and they recently set fire to one in Homosha, located in the far western part of the country near the border with Sudan. “Now the Christians in that area don’t have a place to meet for worship,” said a front-line worker.
Read MoreKolbars are Kurds who live mostly along the Iranian border with Iraq. For generations, they have carried items over high mountain passes between the two nations. Their name means “those who carry loads on their back.” It is extremely dangerous work – every year, kolbars are killed by freezing temperatures, from falling off precipitous heights or after being shot by Iranian border guards. Desperation and a lack of job opportunities drive many Iranian Kurds into the life-threatening career: “They are a neglected people group,” said a front-line worker.
Read MoreIn early March 2024, Islamic militants raided several boarding schools in northern Nigeria and abducted more than 300 people. “I spoke to a pastor who personally knows an elderly Christian woman who was among those abducted,” a front-line worker shared. “Her son was shot in the arm when trying to protect her and is currently hospitalized.” Officials do not know if the attackers were members of Boko Haram or ISWAP, two Islamist groups active in the area.
Read MoreAnura and Ayesha lead a church in western Sri Lanka that has been repeatedly attacked in recent years. Some of the perpetrators of these attacks are facing charges in court. However, Ayesha reported, every time the court dates near, groups in the village try to stir up trouble by breaking Buddha statues or throwing human feces on them and then blaming the church for dishonoring Buddhism. So far, no progress has been made in these cases. In 2023, attackers threatened new converts from the villages and pelted stones at their houses.
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