Day: April 19, 2023

Source: Christian Solidarity Worldwide, April 7, 2023

The former President of the Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC), Reverend Dr. Hkalam Samson, has been sentenced to six years imprisonment by a court in Myanmar.

He was jailed on charges of unlawful association, defaming the State, and terrorism.

Reverend Dr. Samson, an outspoken and courageous voice for human rights for the Kachin people, was arrested at Mandalay International Airport on December 5, 2022 as he was attempting to travel to Bangkok. He has been held in Myitkyina prison since his arrest.

Reverend Samson served as President of the KBC from 2018-2022 and previously for two terms as General Secretary from 2010-2018. He is an internationally respected advocate for freedom of religion or belief and human rights in Myanmar. In 2019 he traveled to Washington, DC to participate in the International Religious Freedom Ministerial Conference, where he was among religious leaders from around the world who met with the United States President in the White House.

Read the full story. Also from this region, Human Rights Watch reports that Thai immigration officials forcibly returned three opposition activists to Myanmar.

Here’s some good news from a different part of the world. After being detained for nearly five months in Mozambique, American MAF missionary pilot Ryan Koher and two other men under suspicion of terrorism and supporting insurgents have been released and reunited with family, though they must remain in the country while their court case continues.

For your prayers: The Middle East Council of Churches reminds us that April 22 marks ten years since two Orthodox bishops were kidnapped in Syria. Their fate is unknown (Assyrian International News Agency).

Source: Global Christian Relief, April 5, 2023

Pastor Touwende was a pastor in the northern region of Burkina Faso, until recently—when he was forced to flee. In the past few years, Muslim extremists have surged through the northern region, attacking Christian communities and displacing millions. Believers have been abducted, beaten, and even killed for their faith.

[But then] the situation got even worse.

“I was afraid, because two days before, they killed someone in the village, thinking he was the pastor. Today they are looking for me! In my mind at that time, I thought I would be killed. I prayed, ‘Oh, Lord, if my work for You is finished and I will die, so be it. But if it is not yet finished, may Your will be done.’”

Then the attack came.

Read the full story. Evidently, Pastor Touwende was one of the only pastors in this region. Ask God to strengthen his people in the midst of these tensions and tragedies.

See also Jubilee Campaign’s recent Universal Periodic Review on Burkina Faso. Very detailed with much fuel for prayer.

Source: Religion News Service, April 6, 2023

Ministry organizations and church leaders from a broad segment of the global church are uniting around the 2033 Commitment: A Call to the Global Church for a Decade of Great Commission Effort. They are calling for Christians from around the world to recognize the need for Jesus Christ of the over 8 billion individuals on earth, including the 3.5 billion who have never had the chance to hear the gospel.

The 2033 Commitment will be a centerpiece of the Amsterdam2023 conference, to be held June 21-24 at the Amsterdam RAI Convention Center and Olympic Stadium. With over 150 speakers and thousands of Christian leaders from around the world, Amsterdam2023 will serve as a launch point for the decade of evangelism leading up to 2033.

Read the full story. To learn more or sign the commitment yourself, visit the 2033 website.

Source: International Mission Board, April 13, 2023

Ramadan has been different this year for one Southeast Asian family. Sela and her husband Sok live in an impoverished Muslim village tucked away in a rural corner of their country.

For every year of their lives until now, Ramadan has meant waking before the sun rises for prayer and a quick meal, then fasting all day until the sun sets again. Sela joined the other women to prepare food for the feast after sunset each day while Sok worshiped with the other men at the mosque.

This year, Sela and Sok no longer need to fast and pray to Allah during the Islamic holy month. They have both put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ.

They first heard of Jesus when Sela stumbled one morning and spilled a pot of boiling water over her baby. She had no one to call for help because her village is hours away from the nearest city with a hospital.

That same day, IMB worker Nancy Potter came to teach healthcare classes in the community, as she’d done for several years. Potter was able to rush Sela and her baby to a clinic where the burns could be treated. This clinic is run by Christian believers.

Sela and Sok were amazed that Christians would care for them. They continued talking with Nancy and her husband William in the months that followed. As they learned more about the gospel, they began having dreams about Jesus. Soon they both put their faith in Christ.

When they did, they became the first known believers in their whole province.

Read the full story and pray for new believers as they explore what it may look like to live as faithful followers of Christ even when they are the first ones in their communities.

Source: Wycliffe Bible Translators, March 15, 2023

For centuries the Keliko language was only oral. Because it wasn’t written down, Keliko wasn’t recognized or taught in schools. As a result, many Keliko who didn’t learn the majority languages couldn’t go to school. Others ridiculed them and many Keliko faced identity crises.

People continued to deride the Keliko even as young pastors were selected to become translators for the Keliko Scriptures. But as the translation team worked, first writing the language down and later completing portions of Scripture, something marvelous happened.

The translation project has helped the Keliko people gain recognition and redemption. But most importantly, the Keliko Scriptures have created something the people have desired for a long time—joy in a new identity in Christ. The people once taunted as “fools” possess wisdom beyond that of this world through the Word of God.

The full story paints a great picture of how Bible translation can transform a community—in this case, a community from South Sudan forcibly relocated to Uganda, where despite the odds, translation work continued. Looks like the Keliko New Testament was published years ago now, so this isn’t “new news,” but it’s very encouraging.

Pray for this region as fighting has flared up in Sudan. Here’s what we know (Al Jazeera).