Saudi woman publicly announces her faith in Christ
Last week a Saudi woman who introduced herself as ‘Maryam’ announced in a video published on the internet that she has forsaken Islam and converted to Christianity, according to Mohabat News. Apparently, she is the first Saudi-Arabian woman to publicly declare her faith in such a manner. The new convert said in the published video that she hasn’t removed her Hijab for fear of her life and to keep her identity unknown. The publishing of the video on the internet angered Saudi officials and Muftis. They highly criticized the video and called urgently for necessary measures to stop Christian evangelism in Saudi Arabia. In the short video, Maryam says: ‘I have quit the darkness of Wahhabi Islam and entered the light of Christianity. I dreamt that I needed to do this. Jesus Christ came to visit me in my dream and gave me the name of Maryam (Arabic pronunciation of Mary).’
Praise: God that He speaks through dreams and visions and pray for Maryam’s continued blessing. (Joel.2:28)
Call to Pray for Liberia
Liberia, as a nation and people, suffered a terrible past consequence of bad governance, neglect of rural communities, undermining of the rule of law, lack of respect for civil liberties and human rights, economic disparities, misuse of public funds, ethnic divisions, poverty, etc. Different parties ruled the country from Independence in 1847 until 1869 when attempts at consolidating multi-party democracy were undermined when a one-political-party system was forcibly introduced in 1870. That one-party ruled the country for 110 years until its bloody overthrow in April 1980.
Ten years later an incursion provoked a senseless civil war aimed at dislodging elements responsible for the overthrow of the 110-year oligarchy. The brute civil conflict lasted for 15 years and murdered more than a quarter-million of the 3.5 million Liberians, especially women and children, destroyed public and private properties, and increased unemployment to 85% amongst others. A ceasefire ensued and peace was obtained in August 2003 with the landing of a West African Peace Keeping Force in Monrovia, the Capital of Liberia. The peace obtained was a consequence of much prayer by the People of God in and out of Liberia.
With Presidential and Legislative elections conducted twice in 2005 and 2011 to consolidate peace, stability, and democracy in the country, the need exists to encourage ordinary Liberians not to be spectators in the historic remaking of their country but to rise up and take responsibility for the reconstruction and development of their country. The challenges facing the country are enormous. Almost every face of Liberian life was destroyed during the civil war. To rebuild the country, every facet of Liberia life must be re-engaged.
A lot of progress has been made, but a lot remains to be done. There are several concerns that cannot be overlooked. These concerns include but are not limited to:
1. Hidden political, tribal, and cultural tensions that may have the potential to spark renewed conflicts
2. The cries of judicial inadequacy and fraud, lengthy pretrial detention, denial of due process, and harsh prison conditions, etc.
3. Reports of unlawful dispossession of life, mob killings, ritualistic killings, police abuse, harassment, intimidation, etc.
4. Unabated reports of violence against women and children including rape and domestic violence, child labor allegations, etc.
5. The fear that civil war along ethnic lines could break out again once the United Nations Peace keepers leave
6. The fear that former warring factions were not completely disbanded and ex-combatants demobilized and reintegrated into normal life
7. Cross-border violence and participation of Liberian mercenaries in conflicts in neighboring countries, i.e. Ivory Coast, Guinea, etc.
8. Lack of Institutionalized political institutions, “hand-bag” or “only-election-time” political parties, “privatized” advocacy on behalf of the people
9. Increasing hard-time and entrenched poverty and its consequences on the peace and stability of the nation
10. Lingering disputes over land ownership, which the International Crisis Group in 2009 described as “the most explosive issue in Liberia today”, amongst others.
Please pray with the Liberian believers for the full healing of their nation.
For more information, contact Pastor Kortu Brown (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)
Challenge and Change in Egypt
The very fact that until the announcement on Sunday, June 24th, Egyptians had no idea who would be declared President, is proof of the remarkable change that has taken place in our country since the January 2011 Revolution! President Mohammad Morsi (who was the Muslim Brotherhood’s presidential candidate)is facing incredible challenges…
1. He needs to satisfy the aspirations of the right-wing Muslims who dream of applying Islamic Sharia law in both belief and practice in all areas of private and public life. On the other hand, he needs to demonstrate to moderate Muslims and Christians (up to 30% of the population) that he will champion freedom of expression and equal rights for all Egyptians regardless of creed or political affiliation.
2. He has already declared that the army should relinquish some of the Presidential powers it appropriated just days before his election. But he must avoid a showdown (the first of which he seems to have lost upon demanding the reinstatement of the dissolved Parliament)
3. He must quickly appease the masses by beginning to solve some of the endemic economic employment and supply crises which are escalating at an alarming rate.
While his election was a shock for most Christians, many are relieved that the tensions and violence, which could have resulted if he were not elected, have been averted. It’s now high time to “Rebuild Egypt”, but we still need to draft a constitution and re-elect a Parliament! Many fear that this process will distract us from tackling the complex immediate issues facing the nation.
As the new president tries to work with diametrically opposed aspirations of the different groups, Christians wonder what the future holds and where the priorities will be. In the next 2-3 decades, Egypt may be very different than we know it today. Decisions by the new leadership on questions related to a civil state, true democracy, freedom of religion, and rights of minorities are worrying to many.
How we want you to pray for us:
1. Pray that we in the Bible Society will continue to think of creative and appropriate ways to place God’s Word in the Egyptian marketplace and in the hearts of those who seek God.
2. Pray that Christians, instead of yearning to flee Egypt, will boldly choose to remain and be a vibrant witness and influence for good in their needy nation.
3. Pray for the Coptic Orthodox Church as they seek God’s will for a new Patriarch. (The majority of Egyptian Christians have felt bereft of leadership since the death of Pope Shenouda in March.)
4. Pray that moderate Muslims will be able to resist being forced to submit to the right-wing Islamist agenda. If they are able to resist, there is a much better chance that Christians also will continue to maintain many of the freedoms they now enjoy.
Sudan is Ranked #16 on the World List of Persecuted Countries
It is very interesting to see how the ranking of Sudan on the world list of persecuted countries changed through the 14 years of involvement with the country. Every year Open Doors bring out a list of top 50 countries in the world persecuted for their faith.
14 years ago, Sudan was number 5 on the world list. As people prayed for the country, God changed the nation. Gradually the situation changed in the country until it reached number 38 on that list in the beginning of 2011. It was the open question what spot Sudan would be placed at after the independence of South Sudan on 9 July 2011.
For a downloadable prayer map with lots of information on the topic, please go to: http://www.opendoors.org.za/downloads/pray_pdfs/our_father_wwl_2012.pdf
Currently Sudan is at number 16 of persecuted countries in the world. Important to note that there are four different categories of persecution on the list. The top category, with one country, is viewed as “SEVERE PERSECUTION”. ONLY North Korea (1) is categorized as being under severe persecution. It has been in that spot for a number of years now.
The second category is called “OPPRESSION”. This refers to countries like AFGHANISTAN (2), Saudi Arabia (3), and Somalia (4). Then the third category of the list is called “SEVERE LIMITATIONS”. That refers to countries like Mauritania (14), Egypt (15), and Sudan (16). The fourth category is called “SIGNIFICANT LIMITATIONS”. On the list for that are countries like Burma (Myanmar) (33), Tajikistan (34), and Tunisia (35).
A description about persecution in Sudan could be viewed on the website of Open Doors. Here is the link: http://www.opendoors.org.za/eng/persecuted_christians/wwl_2012/sudan/
The main persecution engine in Sudan is Islamic extremism. Sudan (North Sudan before the independence of South Sudan on July 9, 2011) jumped from position 35 to 16 in the World Watch List.
Please pray for the overthrow of Islamic extremism in Sudan and for protection over believers in Christ.
