Category: News Briefs

Source: Christian Today, October 11, 2025

At the end of 2021, YouVersion marked its 500 millionth download. In a blog article dated November 2011, they wrote, “Imagine a day in the near future when 1 billion people have installed YouVersion.” Well, they have just announced the billionth download.

That is not necessarily the same as one billion people with access, because some may have downloaded it multiple times on different devices, or again when upgrading their mobile phones. Others might have downloaded it and later deleted it. Whichever way we look at it, though, a billion downloads is an incredible statistic for a Christian app—for any app, actually.

In terms of apps, applications like Google and Facebook will have more users, but YouVersion is the most downloaded and most used Christian app in the world.

Today, YouVersion hosts Bible translations in many languages. YouVersion will be holding an event at Life.Church in Edmond, Oklahoma, on Monday, November 17, to celebrate this milestone.

Read the full story to learn more about the growth of this app or another with more information about the upcoming celebration (which will be streamed).

Did you know November is Global Bible Month?

Source: Morning Star News, October 28, 2025

A 22-year-old Christian man in Pakistan has won a seven-month legal battle to have his religious designation corrected on his national identity card.

Attorney Lazar Allah Rakha said that [Rahul] Masih’s original identity card, issued in June 2022, carried his correct name and faith, but that when he applied for a duplicate card after losing the original, NADRA issued him one stating his name as Sufyan Ali and his religion as Islam.

“Masih made repeated visits to the NADRA office, but his pleas to rectify the mistake were not entertained,” Rakha told Morning Star News.

A Catholic working in an office of a private housing society, Masih had no option but to seek the court’s intervention in the issue with the support of legal advocacy organization ADF International, Rakha said.

During the court proceedings, NADRA representatives claimed that Masih had willfully converted to Islam and registered himself as a Muslim, though they failed to substantiate their claim with documentary evidence, Rakha said.

“Noting that the defendants had failed to discredit Masih’s stance, the judge ordered NADRA to issue him his national identity card as per his correct name and religion,” he said.

During the proceedings, Masih presented his baptism and school certificates and also brought his Christian parents to testify about his faith, he said.

For more on why this matters, read the full story.

Also from Morning Star News, see Oppressed Christian in Pakistan Charged with Blasphemy, which quotes the same Christian attorney—a man who could also use our prayers.

Source: Beyond, October 31, 2025

Javeria, a Muslim background woman, met Jesus through a Discovery Bible Study (DBS). Disciples from the movement visited her village, and through their witness, she encountered the life-changing truth of Christ.

At that time, her son, Abbas was gravely ill. She had taken him to countless doctors, yet no one could heal him. When she began attending the DBS group, the women gathered around her prayed fervently for Abbas. God answered and Abbas was healed—completely and miraculously.

This miracle transformed Javeria’s family. She shared the gospel with all her children, and they too are coming to faith. But her strong faith has brought opposition. Many in the village treat her harshly, and local Muslim leaders repeatedly demand she abandon Jesus. Yet Javeria stands firm, serving the Lord with unwavering courage and boldness.

Despite being uneducated, she has planted seven house churches and is mentoring three new leaders. Today, her ministry spans three generations of disciples actively walking with the Lord and multiplying His kingdom.

Join us in praying for Javeria—for her protection, for boldness, and that God will continue to use her to raise even more disciples who make disciples.

Pray that God will continue to raise strong, fearless women throughout India who will not be ashamed of the gospel and will proclaim the Good News to those around them despite possible persecution.

Read the full story, Three Women, Fierce Persecution, Unstoppable Faith.

For another encouraging tour of a series of ministries, join a ministry leader as he takes a train trip to visit and encourage everyday disciplemakers from Boston to Washington D.C. (Navigators).

1. China: A Crackdown on the Influential Zion Church
2. World: New Bible Access List Reveals Global Scripture Crisis
3. Sudan: Christians Call for Safe Route Out of Besieged City
4. Egypt: The Story of the Largest Evangelical Church in the Arab World
5. India: Forced Out for My Faith in Christ

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Source: Global Christian Relief, October 13

In early October 2025, police across several provinces in China moved before dawn, knocking down doors, cutting power, and storming homes where believers were gathered for worship or rest. Among those taken was Pastor Ezra Jin of Beijing’s Zion Church, one of China’s most influential unregistered congregations. Within three days, nearly 30 pastors and staff had been detained or gone silent.

Founded in 2007 with fewer than 20 believers, Zion Church grew into one of the nation’s largest house congregations, more than 1,500 members and 20 pastors meeting in the heart of Beijing.

Then came 2018. New religious regulations effectively outlawed unregistered churches. Hundreds of police flooded Zion’s sanctuary, confiscating everything. Pastor Ezra was placed under surveillance and forbidden to leave the country. His wife and children fled to the United States. He has not seen them in seven years.

You’d think that would end the story. But instead, it began a new one.

“We moved from one sanctuary to hundreds,” Pastor Sean said. “Online gatherings, small fellowships, new church plants. God grew us wider, not smaller.”

What they called the online sanctuary soon connected more than a thousand screens each week. From the ashes of one building rose a hundred new fellowships in 40 cities.

“This is God’s work,” he said. “No one could have imagined it.”

By 2025, the authorities had taken notice.

Read the full story and watch a video (also below). This story was widely covered by other news sources. Sounds like some of those taken were released but about 20 remain in detention.

Source: Open Doors, October 2, 2025

When Wesley first held a Bible in his own language, everything changed. Growing up in a remote Malaysian village where Christianity was just a mark on his birth certificate, he had heard of Jesus but never truly met Him. “I had heard about Bibles, but not about Jesus,” Wesley says. “In my village, there was so much reliance on cultural practices and beliefs that no one really mentioned anything about Jesus.”

Wesley’s story illustrates a crisis facing millions of Christians worldwide—a crisis now documented in the first-ever Bible Access List.

The Bible Access List identifies the countries where access to Scripture is most restricted and Bible shortages are most severe. After several years of research, including hundreds of interviews with country and mission experts, the data reveal an alarming reality: persecution and Bible access are intimately connected.

“Where Christians face the greatest persecution, they also face the greatest barriers to accessing God’s Word,” says Open Doors US CEO Ryan Brown. “This isn’t coincidence—it’s strategy.”

Read the full article. The study ranks Somalia, Afghanistan, Yemen, North Korea, and Mauritania as the countries with the most severe Bible restrictions. Other nations with significant Bible shortages include the Democratatic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Ethiopia, India, and China.

Interested in Malaysia? Hear about believers in that country struggling to get their identity cards changed (Voice of the Martyrs Radio).

While Bible access has its challenges, Bible translation is on the rise. See Bible translation accelerates as millions receive Scripture in their own language (Christian Today).

Recently, we highlighted a biography of Bible translation leader Katharine Barnwell. She passed away on September 29. Read one of many tributes (Wycliffe Bible Translators UK).

Source: Christian Solidarity Worldwide, October 3, 2025

CSW has joined 100 organizations and humanitarian actors in calling for the establishment of safe, voluntary, and dignified passage for civilians trapped in the city of El Fasher in Sudan’s North Darfur State, where an estimated 260,000 people, including 130,000 children, have endured a 17-month siege by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Reports from those who have managed to leave the city indicate that men and boys are being targeted and killed on the road out of the city, making it more dangerous for them to leave than to stay.

The city has been under siege since April 2024, despite a United Nations Security Council  resolution calling on the RSF to lift it. In April 2025, the RSF  seized  the Abu Souk and Zamzam camps for internally displaced persons. The two camps form the largest IDP settlement in Sudan, housing over 700,000 people between them. Both camps have been turned into military bases by the RSF.

Places of worship have been targeted during the siege. Between May and September 2025, the Sudan Episcopal Church was hit six times by RSF shelling. On September 19, at least 70 people were killed when the RSF attacked a mosque near the Abu Souk Camp.

Read the full story and please pray. According to a later report, at least 60 people, including 22 children, were killed in an attack on one of the IDP camps on October 10. The people have no safe way to get out.

Read or watch a video about an effort to free people enslaved in Sudan. Since 1995, they have rescued more than 160,000 people (video just under 13 minutes long).

Source: Mission Network News, October 3, 2025

Kasr El-Dobara Evangelical Church (KDEC), located in Egypt, was founded by Dr. Ibrahim Said in 1949 with a “missions DNA.” Since then, the church has grown into the largest Arab Evangelical congregation, with 12,000 members.

KDEC’s Pastor Sam emphasizes, “It’s not about the number, actually. It’s about the Kingdom. We are Kingdom-minded, not church-minded.

“We the Church exists for the Great Commission, to continue the message that Jesus Christ started, and help people to get to the knowledge of Jesus Christ. We pass the message of hope for people.”

Out of Egypt’s 118 million people, Pastor Sam says, “At least 20 million are Christians. The majority are Coptic Orthodox—93%. Five percent are Evangelicals, and the rest are Catholic. So we are a minority among minorities—but thank God that we can reach the multitude!”

KDEC meets people where they are through creative outreach. Pastor Sam says, for example, “We have the largest sports ministry program in the Middle East. We serve around 750,000 per year across Egypt and also in the Middle East. We are using sports to reach people [with] the knowledge of Christ.”

Another outreach draws thousands to music festivals. “We developed a program called Count It Right in partnership with Palau’s organization. We have a festival, and people come from different backgrounds to watch the shows. In each station, we share…the gospel.”

Whatever the method, Pastor Sam says it all comes down to one goal—telling as many people as possible about Jesus.

Read the full story with photos and prayer points. How encouraging! See also God at Work at Christian Festival in Egypt, a report on last year’s Count It Right event (SAT-7).

Source: International Christian Concern, October 8, 2025

On Saturday, September 27, my mother came to me with a troubled expression. Her voice trembled as she spoke to me.

“You must leave the village!” she urged. “I heard it with my own ears—the villagers are plotting to kill you and attack your family. You need to go now to save your life!”

I was shocked but remained calm.

“I believe in God, the same God who healed my wife from her sickness and gave us peace and hope,” I told her. “No one can take my life without his will.”

A few minutes later, my younger brother came to me, tears rolling down his face.

“Please, leave. If you stay, we may never see you again,” he pleaded. “They are planning to kill you. If you go, at least we’ll know you’re safe somewhere.”

The concern in his voice moved me deeply. I turned to my wife and told her about the situation. I said I would leave for now and return once things settled down. That evening, I quietly left my village in Central India.

The next morning, I received a phone call from my brother.

“The entire village is at your house,” he said. “They’re demanding to know—will you deny Jesus or let your house be destroyed?”

I told him with a firm heart, “When my wife was on her deathbed and we had no hope, Jesus healed her. He gave us life. How can I deny him now? Even if I must give my life, I will not deny Christ and his rule in my life.”

Soon after, the mob destroyed our house.

Read the full story and watch a similar report from another believer forced from his village (2.5-minute video).

By the way, many are praying for the world’s Hindus at this time (15 days of prayer coinciding with several major Hindu festivals).

• Check out prayer materials from Beyond and consider attending their online prayer session on Thursday night if you can.
• See also 60 Second Prayers for the Hindu World streaming on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.
• Get a 15 Days of Prayer for the Hindu World booklet (World Prayer Guides).

1. World: Assemblies of God Launches Largest Mission Initiative in More Than 70 Years
2. USA: “Jesus: A Deaf Missions Film” Makes TV Debut
3. Nigeria: Bible Institute Trains Inmates to Be Chaplains
4. Papua New Guinea: Pacific Island Nation Declared a Christian Country
5. Jewish World: Yom Kippur, The Day of Atonement

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