MC – Page 27 – Missions Catalyst

World: Top Countries Where Christians Are Persecuted the Most

Source: Global Christian Relief, March 24, 2025

Though it may seem impossible in our modern era, a great number of Christians are killed for their faith worldwide. Globally, the levels of persecution that believers face have been rising since 2014. In 2022 alone, thousands of Christians lost their lives for their faith.

Whether from Islamic extremism, political oppression, or turbulent unrest in the region, our brothers and sisters are in danger.

Infamous terror groups like Boko Haram have wreaked horrific violence on Christians worldwide. Christian populations in the Middle East are drastically declining. Christians elsewhere are bombed, imprisoned, kidnapped, or even killed for their faith.

Our 2025 GCR Red List reveals the top 25 countries where faith in Christ can be a death sentence. In just these 25 countries, many millions of Christians face very high to extreme levels of persecution.

Read the full story and pray for the persecuted (and their persecutors).

See also the Global Persecution Index (International Christian Concern) and World Watch List (Open Doors).

On another note, read about the newly released 2025 World Happiness Report and, in particular, an article highlighting Afghanistan, the unhappiest country (Financial Express).

Iran: Three Believers Sentenced to 40 Years in Prison

Source: Article18, March 10, 2025

Three Christian converts, including a woman pregnant with her first child, have been sentenced to over 40 years in prison on charges related to their religious beliefs and worship meetings.

Abbas Soori, Mehran Shamloui, and Narges Nasri, who is approximately halfway through her pregnancy, were sentenced by notorious Revolutionary Court judge Iman Afshari on March 8—International Women’s Day.

Narges, who is 37 years old, received the stiffest sentence—10 years for “propaganda activities contrary to Islamic law,” five for membership of an “opposition group” (house church) and an additional year for “propaganda against the state” for having posted on social media in support of the Women, Life, Freedom movement.

Read the full story.

Article18 is dedicated to the protection and promotion of religious freedom in Iran and advocating on behalf of its persecuted Christians; explore their site for more stories on these topics.

See also Feeding the Underground Churches of Iran (Back to Jerusalem).

Middle East: Celebrating a New Turkic-Arabic Field

Source: Global Partners, March 18, 2025

With more than three billion people in the world living without access to the gospel (or more than 4 in 10), it’s vital that we are continuously sending more people to new places to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

That’s why, as Global Partners, we have felt the urgency to launch new mission fields in unreached areas of the world. And praise God that doors are being opened to do so!

We’re so excited to share more about Kethra, our newest field in the Turkic-Arabic Area.

“Kethra” [a pseudonym] is a location that is more than 99% Muslim, with very few Christians. Any current Christian missionary presence there is very small. Historically, this people group has been difficult for outsiders to reach due to a lack of permission to live there.

Strict religious laws (and punishment for breaking religious laws) have kept missionaries from entering the country—even as a marketplace multiplier.

It simply seemed impossible to get to this people group, let alone tell them about Jesus. Recently, some of the obstacles that have kept this country’s “doors closed” have started to fade, ultimately creating an openness among the people there.

Now is the time to go! Currently, we have five individuals who are appointed to go and start this new work, with two or three others prayerfully discerning how God might be leading them to join.

Read the full story. Always interesting to see how agencies and mobilizers talk about sensitive places.

World: The 25 Greatest Problems and What You Can Do About Them

Source: Radical Living by Seth Barnes, March 27, 2025

The book The Fourth Turning tells us Gen Z is the Hero Generation. They just need a cause.

To help them find their cause, our team has compiled a new app called The World’s 25 Greatest Problems. We show you the reason the world’s greatest problems exist and what you can do to address it.

Please check it out. If you know a young person who wants to help change the world, please show it to them.

I’m excited about the tool and would love to get your feedback on it. What do you think? What can be improved? What did we miss? What can help young people learn more and begin to make a difference?

Explore The World’s 25 Greatest Problems (Adventures in Missions).

New Mission Books, Podcasts, Articles & Events

In this edition of Resource Reviews:

Read or share the email edition.

Invitation: Join a Scripture Memory Challenge

Source: Navigators

Dawson Trotman said there is no other spiritual discipline that gives you more bang for your buck than Scripture memory.

You can do it on your own, but it’s more fun (and often more effective) with a bit of accountability.

For the last year, Navigators has been offering a seven-day Scripture memory challenge. Want to join them? It’s just one verse a month.“Our community has slowly grown as people have discovered how helpful this method is,” they write. “Now thousands of people are committing to memorizing one verse a month together.”

Don’t have a U.S. number or rather not sign up for anything new? Here’s the verse for April:

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” – Hebrews 11:6

Roundup: Resource for Parents, Families, and Young Adults

Sources: Various

Short training courses for parents

Via Families is releasing easy-to-use online courses designed to help busy parents raise children who love Jesus and love the nations. So far, Frameworks includes three, half-hour courses and they are free. More courses are on the way.

Spiritual Development Ages 2-3
Creating Meaningful Family Traditions
The Power of Everyday Moments

Poke around the Via site for other great resources relating to raising globally minded kids.

Podcast on mobilizing families

Mission mobilizer Dave Jacobs and his son, Pastor Sam Jacob, recently shared a fun conversation about experiences that helped set the direction of Sam’s life direction and obstacles he’s faced, along with eight things you can do to mobilize families to the nations.

Two podcast episodes on engaging the next generation

On her Leading Tomorrow podcast, Jolene Erlacher recently interviewed Jayelle Dolan about Encouraging Spiritual Disciplines in the Next Generation. I found this episode inspiring and practical, especially given the distractions and fragmentation so many of us wrestle with now, no matter our age.

I encourage you to listen to an episode of the One Collective podcast, Innovate for Good. In The Decision Dilemma: Why Too Many Options Leave Us Stuck, Jenny Collins of Taylor University shares how young adults can break free from indecision, take meaningful steps forward, and trust that God will guide them along the way.

Two articles about training young adults

Ted Esler of Missio Nexus recently wrote about trends in missionary training. As Bible colleges close or close their missionary training programs, unaccredited residential training programs have helped fill the gap. He includes a short list and readers suggested a few more in the comments. Read The Jesus School.

Similarly, Andrea Kroeze, a youth ministry leader with Touch the World, wrote Why a Gap Year Might Be the Right Step for Your Young Adult.

Know someone who could benefit from the gap year program at Touch the World? Or maybe you’d like to learn from their model and set up something in your context. Go for it! As the Lord leads, that is.

Book: Worlds Here and There—A Handbook for International Transition

Sources: Worlds Here and There

Worlds Here and There: A Handbook for International Transition, by Paul Snider and Donna Kushner, Lulu.com, 2024. 65 pages.

If you’ve moved to another country, you know it can feel like entering a new world. Your culture, climate, and community all change drastically. And in transition, it can feel like you’re stuck in between different worlds.

This activity book provides ways to identify and process the differences between those worlds and helps the reader develop self-understanding, connect with their team, family, or community, and take steps towards healthy transition.

The book includes six different activities, prompts for reflection, questions for discussion or sharing with others, and instructions for leading the main activity as a family or for a large group. It’s meant for missionaries, military personnel, and international workers and can be used with families, individuals, and teams.

Learn more or buy the book (US$15.99; paperback only). I have not seen the book myself, but it comes with good endorsements. Take a look. The authors serve TCKs/MKs through Cru. Check out their MK resource list.

You might also be interested in this collection of books on preparing and sending missionaries (William Carey Publishing) or this informative article: When Counseling Missionaries, Please Remember These Six Things (Jonathan Trotter, Remnant Counselor Collective).

Bible Study: God’s Heart for the Nations, 30th Anniversary Edition

Source: 16:15 Outfitters

Since its original release, God’s Heart for the Nations has helped churches, small groups, and individuals explore God’s purpose for the world through Scripture. Now, to mark three decades of impact, this refreshed edition includes enhanced content, updated insights, and a modern design to make it more accessible and engaging than ever.

In addition to the printed study, this edition also features a brand-new digital curriculum, providing:

Introductory videos for each lesson
An optional digital course with additional resources
Interactive features to help individuals and groups apply biblical truths to their lives and ministries

Learn more or place an order at discounted, pre-release prices. The study and additional resources are due to be released March 31.

See also: Why Should We Care About Missions? (Global Missions Toolbox).

Events: Mission Conferences and More Coming in April

Source: Missions Catalyst Calendar

April 2, Digital Missionary Conference (online). Participate live online and through virtual reality. Provided by theChurch.digital.

April 4-6, Catalyze Salem (Salem, OR). A mobilization/training event from Frontiers.

April 6-10, Training in Formational Debriefing (Aurora, IN, USA). What if you could offer debriefing to missionaries in a way that furthered their spiritual formation?

April 7-8, Support Raising Bootcamp (Austin, TX, USA). Provided by Via, formerly Support Raising Solutions. More classes held around the world throughout the year.

April 7 to August 10, Perspectives on the World Christian Movement (online). New online classes begin regularly. A Spanish class begins April 21.

April 8-10, Sahara Challenge (Raleigh, NC, USA). Training to serve unreached Muslim people locally and globally. Provided by Crescent Project.

April 10-13, Haven Retreat (Buenos Aires, Argentina). For kingdom-minded women serving overseas from various nations; offered in different locations each year. Provided by Azmera.

April 14-18, Storytelling Training (online). Offered regularly by StoryRunners, a ministry of Cru.

April 15, Contend: Monthly Day of Prayer For Mission Mobilization (global). Coordinated by GMMI and held on the third Tuesday of each month.

April 22-25, COMIBAM (Panama City, Panama). Large Ibero-American mission congress from a network of the same name.

April 29 to May 1, Standards of Excellence introductory workshop (online). Provided regularly to help short-term mission leaders and mobilizers make their mission trips better.

View the complete calendar, updated throughout the year. Your submissions are always welcome.