Barnabas prayer March April 2015

BARNABAS FUND – AID AGENCY FOR THE PERSECUTED CHURCH

barnabasprayer To help you pray for the persecuted church

March /april 2015 barnabasfund.org

Thank you for your prayers for our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ, which make such a difference to them. We sometimes have to change or omit their names for security reasons, and we have only limited space to share their stories.

But the Lord knows the people and places we are praying about. Thank you for your understanding.

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Please do not feel limited by the specific prayer requests, but pray as you feel led. On each Sunday we have provided a set prayer; please feel free to use these in their current form, to adapt them as you prefer, or to use the information they contain to frame your own prayers.

March Sunday 1 Father God, we ask You to bring peace to north-eastern Nigeria, where the murderous violence of Boko Haram jihadists reached new depths in the first week of January, as they attacked the city of Baga. We are grieved to know that the number of people killed could be as many as 2,000 - mainly women, children and elderly.

Please comfort those who mourn, and help our Christian brothers and sisters, who are so often targeted by Boko Haram, to be channels of peace and hope to all affected by the violence. We ask this in the Name of Your Son Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

Monday 2 Syrian parents are very worried at the signs of trauma that they see developing now in their children as the conflict in their country enters its fifth year. Many of the children

have lost their homes, schools and everything that was familiar; some have lost relatives or seen with their own eyes barbaric horrors being committed. Next week a course funded

by Barnabas will train a group of Syrian church leaders in trauma counselling with a special emphasis on helping children, teenagers and families. They will then teach these skills to others, so that the youngsters can be helped. Pray for God’s blessing on the course and that the ripples that spread out from it will bring healing and wholeness.

Tuesday 3 Praise God for blessing a microfinance project in South Sudan, which Barnabas has supported in this country so grievously afflicted with poverty, conflict and near-famine. Eva, a member of one of the microfinance local groups, started a restaurant with her microfinance loan but it was destroyed in civil conflict. However, the other members of the group rallied round and, because of the small businesses they had started with their loans, they were able to club together to give Eva enough to pay back her loan and open another restaurant. Thank the Lord for their generosity in helping to share Eva’s burden (Galatians 6:2).

Eva cooking in her new restaurant Wednesday 4 “Yustina” is a Tanzanian Christian who left Islam to follow Jesus.

Last October, after discovering his

wife’s conversion, Yustina’s husband beat her till she collapsed. Yustina, who was seven months pregnant, was rushed to a health centre. Four days later she was discharged and returned home, but her husband kicked her in the abdomen, demanding that she renounce her faith on pain of death.

Yustina was brought back to the health centre, but soon afterwards her unborn baby died. Please pray for Yustina’s recovery. Pray also that Yustina’s husband will be filled with remorse for what he has done and may seek to know Jesus Christ, for whose sake his wife has endured so much.

Friday 6 A congregation in Bangarapet, Karnataka state, India, were at worship on Sunday 23 November 2014 when around 25 Hindu militants attacked them. The intruders vandalised the church building, beat the worshippers and warned them not to rebuild the church. Pray for courage and confidence for all the Christians and complete

Saturday 7 “I was beaten and humiliated in broad daylight just because I belong to the Christian community,” said Elishba Bibi, a Pakistani Christian woman. She was talking of what happened to her on 16 November 2014 when she was beaten and had her clothes stripped from her by two Muslim brothers whose family employed her as a maid. The attack followed an alleged argument between Elishba and the mother and sister of the men who attacked her. Elishba, a 28-year-old mother of four, was pregnant at the time and suffered a miscarriage after the attack. Although Elishba was able to name her attackers, the Pakistani authorities have not filed charges against the two brothers. Pray that Elishba will heal from her assault and that the two brothers will be brought to justice.

Sunday 8 Heavenly Father, we lift to

you our brothers and sisters living in Pakistan who face growing pressure.

As we hear reports of increasing violence and discrimination against them, we pray that You, O Lord, will sustain Your Church during this time of trial. Protect them from false accusations of blasphemy, which have cost many Christian lives, and guard

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Thursday 5 Two Christian pastors were attacked by a mob of 200 people after baptising converts from the majority religion on 9 November 2014 in Lalmonirhat, Bangladesh. The pastors were arrested and now await trial. The Constitution of Bangladesh guarantees to all religions equal status and equal right to practise their religion. In Section 41 (1) (a) it also gives any citizen the right to propagate any religion. Pray that the two pastors will be released from prison and will not face any criminal charges. Pray also that the Bangladeshi government will ensure that its citizens have full freedom of religion in practice as well as in principle.

healing for eight who were injured, including two – Krupakar and Wilson – who had to be hospitalised with broken legs. When the police arrived, they did not intervene; rather, they took Pastor Robert Solomon D’Souza for questioning. Continue to pray for protection for our Indian Christian brothers and sisters, especially those in Karnataka, where anti-Christian feelings are particularly strong.

especially the women and girls who are so often kidnapped. We ask that You will act in power to thwart the plans of those who work to harm our sisters and brothers. We pray in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

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Monday 9 President Thein Sein of Burma (Myanmar) has approved a bill that infringes on religious freedom.

Amongst other things, the new bill requires anyone who wishes to convert from one religion to another to seek permission from the authorities or face punishment. Please pray that the Burmese Parliament will strike down this law and grant true freedom of religion, including the freedom to choose and change their religion.

in the area to start and sustain their own small fish farm businesses in the last year, while still keeping time for Biblical studies. Pray that the Lord, who blessed His disciples with a bounty of fish (John 21:11), will continue to bless the work of this farm.

Bible training and fish farming combine to help strengthen Christians both spiritually and practically

Tuesday 10 Assailants, allegedly hired by the Vietnamese government, broke into a Christian centre in the Binh Duong Province of Vietnam late last year and tried to intimidate the Christians. Meanwhile police filmed the whole incident. Nine of the Christians at the centre were arrested for not having their identity cards or temporary residence papers; the Christians, however, said these had already been taken from them by police on a previous occasion. Pray that the Lord will protect those Christians who were arrested and that He will heal those who were injured.

Thursday 12 Al-Shabaab Islamist militants singled out and killed 28 of 60 bus-passengers during an attack in Mandera county, Kenya on 22 November. After spraying the vehicle with bullets, they lined up and shot all the passengers who could not or would not recite the Islamic creed; many of these were Christians. Only one individual survived, by pretending to be dead. Pray that the assailants will be brought to justice; pray also that the God of all comfort (2 Corinthians 1:3) will give comfort to those who have lost loved ones in this tragedy and to all Christians living in the area, knowing themselves to be vulnerable to attack.

Wednesday 11 Give thanks to God for the ministry of a fish farm and Bible school located in a South-East Asian country where Christians are severely persecuted. With funding from Barnabas, the manager “Sarah� and four other staff helped around 300 impoverished Christian families

Friday 13 In the early hours of 2 December Al-Shabaab militants in Kenya killed 36 non-Muslim stone quarry workers, mostly Christians.

Around 50 assailants descended upon the camp and separated the Muslims from the non-Muslims. Some nonMuslims were ordered to lie on the

ground and were shot in the back of the head, while others were dragged out of their tents and beheaded. Please pray for those who lost friends and family in this attack; pray also that the violence will end and that the Kenyan government will succeed in stopping the murderous activities of Al-Shabaab.

Sunday 15 Lord, we pray today for Syria,

which has now endured four years of bitter civil war, causing around half the population to flee their homes. We read in Your Word that you hate those who love violence (Psalm 11:5) and we ask that You will have mercy on that suffering country and bring peace and justice there. We remember especially our Christian brothers and sisters, who have been targeted for a long time by the Islamist rebel groups and in recent months even more severely by the Islamic State group. Thank

Barnabas Fund is providing food and other basic needs for Christians in Syria Monday 16 Pray that the Lord will have His hand over Egypt as its people vote in a parliamentary election that starts on 21 March. In recent months the Egyptian government has moved to a more moderate attitude towards Christians with constitutional and legal moves towards lifting restrictions on the construction of church buildings. Please pray that the newly elected members of parliament will use their powers to make further progress towards equality and full religious liberty for all in Egypt.

Tuesday 17 Lift up in prayer Bishoy Boulous Armia, an Egyptian Christian journalist and convert from Islam, who was arrested on 4 December 2013 for airing a report on the persecution of Christians in Egypt. After spending a year in prison, he was released when his lawyer filed a complaint that Bishoy had not been set bail in accordance with the judicial code; nevertheless, the following day, Bishoy (whose former name was Mohammed Hegazy) was re-arrested and remains in prison for blasphemy charges filed against him in 2009. At the time of writing, no trial

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Saturday 14 “In spite of the silence of the media about Syria and mainly Aleppo, we are back to the early days of the war, where there is a lack of every essential thing: electricity, water, gas and fuel for heating in such a bitter winter. Just imagine how the families with kids and elders are surviving and continuing their lives. The explosions and mortars are increasing and causing more damage in our midst.� This was an email message to Barnabas Fund from a Christian leader in Aleppo on 26 December. A few days later he wrote again to say that the temperatures were now as low as -7°C. And they had nothing but blankets to try to keep warm. Please continue to lift up our suffering brothers and sisters in Syria, that the Lord will protect them and provide for their needs.

you that many have found their faith strengthened in these times of constant hardship and danger and have grown in their love and commitment to You. May they shine for You in these dark times.

We pray in the Name of Jesus.

date had been set for these accusations.

Pray that the Lord will protect Bishoy and that the charges will be dropped.

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Wednesday 18 Reports from the formerly Christian-majority city of Qaraqosh in Iraq, speak of Christians being forced to convert to Islam, perhaps by the use of torture, while held in two church buildings that have been turned into prisons. And at least two churches in Mosul, Iraq are being used as prisons by Islamic State (IS) jihadists, while others have been turned into mosques, IS logistical command centres or destroyed. Pray that the Lord will bring liberation to this area and that He will protect those who are currently imprisoned.

Thursday 19 Please pray for the speedy and safe establishing of “Sawra (Hope) Village” to provide comfortable tented accommodation for up to 1,000 displaced Christians in Iraqi Kurdistan.

The tents, formerly used by the British army in Afghanistan, have been bought

by Barnabas Fund and transported by land and sea to a plot of land generously provided by the Governor of Dohuk.

Pray that the Christians living in Sawra, who have lost everything they owned and have no expectation of ever being able to return to their homes, may be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer (Romans 12:12).

The bitter Iraqi winter: Sawra Village will provide warm shelter for displaced Iraqi Christians

Friday 20 Islamic State (IS) is seeking to eradicate from the area it controls everyone who does not follow its brand of strict Sunni Islam. It now seems they are trying to do this not only for the present and future but also for the past. They are confiscating and burning any books imported into their territory of which they disapprove, including a 900-page encyclopaedia of the history of Christians in Iraq.

“Haven’t Christians suffered enough killing and displacement? I do not know what scares terrorists about this book!” commented the Muslim publisher.

Observers comment that IS are trying to cleanse history of Christians, Yazidis, Shias and all others who disagree with them. Ask the Lord Jesus, who said “I am the Truth,” (John 14:6) to stop this process. Thank Him for the many Iraqi Muslims who have affirmed the important place of Christians (the indigenous people of the land) in their society.

Saturday 21 The Maleme ostrich farm, which provides employment and skills training for local Zimbabweans through its Ebenezer programme, is under threat. At the time of writing, the authorities are in the process of seizing the land, ordering its Christian owners to abandon everything. The farm generates enough income to sustain the Shalom facilities, a much-used campsite for Christian organisations that has been running since 1958. Both Ebenezer and Shalom would have to be closed down if the land is taken. Pray for wisdom for the leaders of Ebenezer and Shalom as relate to the authorities over the injustice they are suffering. Pray that God’s justice will prevail and that the land will be kept for His purposes.

Sunday 22 Lord God, we lift to you the 37 young Christians arrested on 2 December at a church in Khartoum Bahri, Sudan, while they were praying and fasting together. Oh God of peace, heal them from the trauma of experiencing the police storming their building with bulldozers and starting to demolish it. Oh God of wisdom, may the testing of their faith develop perseverance, making these young believers mature and complete (James 1:3). Oh God of justice, touch the hearts of those who charged these prayerful youngsters with “breach of peace, public nuisance and obstruction of a public servant during the course of his duty” and lead them to see the injustice of these accusations.

Tuesday 24 A fire broke out in Istanbul’s Bible Correspondence School on 7

Wednesday 25 Cry out to the Lord on behalf of Farshid Fathi, an Iranian Christian who was arrested in December 2010 for illegally distributing Bibles. He is still in prison and since August 2014 has been held in to Rajai Shahr prison, Karaj where he is sharing an open cell with hardened criminals and drug addicts. Pray that the Lord will protect him from harm and that he will be a bold and effective witness to those around him.

Thursday 26 Give thanks to our Heavenly Father for the release of Iranian Pastor Matthias Haghnejad and Deacon Silas Rabbani – both of whom have been cleared of all charges.

Although they were at one point potentially facing the death penalty for “spreading corruption on earth” and “enmity against God”, these charges were dropped and were replaced with “action against national security” and “creating a network to overthrow the system” which have less severe punishments. Then on 9 December both men were informed that all the charges were dropped and were released to return for their families.

Thank God for keeping these men from harm and watching over their lives (Psalm 121:7).

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Monday 23 Last December Pastor Yat Michael from South Sudan travelled to Sudan with his family so that his son could have surgery. While there Pastor Yat visited the Khartoum Bahri Evangelical Church to stand with them in their time of persecution (see 22 January) and was arrested at the end of their Sunday worship on 14 December.

He was detained without charges and without being allowed to see his family.

“He chose to be humiliated with the children of God who are suffering without help at the hands of the Islamic government in Khartoum,” wrote a fellow-pastor, urging prayer that the Lord would glorify His Name in the situation facing Pastor Yat and his family. Pray that our brother may soon be released and may rejoice that he was counted worthy to suffer disgrace for the Name (Acts 5:41).

December that destroyed roughly 20,000 books. It is thought to have been the result of an arson attack, and security camera footage showed a man leaving the building just after the fire started. At the time of writing, the Turkish police have a suspect in custody.

Thank the Lord that no one was hurt in the blaze and pray that the School’s ministry may soon be fully active again.

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Friday 27 Two church congregations in Azerbaijan have been told by the authorities that they must dissolve themselves and re-register as religious organisations. Otherwise they will not be able to be registered, which is a legal requirement. The churches had been trying hard to get registered, but the applications, submitted in 2009, were recently rejected. Currently, they are not allowed to rent premises to conduct meetings. Pray that the new applications from these congregations will be quickly processed and accepted. Pray also that they will be able to meet together for worship without danger of harassment.

Saturday 28 Continue to pray for Aasia Bibi, a Pakistani Christian mother who has been on death row since November 2010. The Lahore High Court rejected her appeal at the end of last year, thereby confirming the death sentence. Aasia was accused of “blasphemy” – a crime that carries a mandatory death sentence – by her Muslim co-workers after an argument where they attacked Aasia’s Christian beliefs. Aasia’s husband, Ashiq Masih, has written to Pakistan’s president, Mamnoon Hussain, asking him to pardon Aasia Bibi so that she can be released and allowed to leave the country. She is also making an appeal to the Supreme Court. Pray that the life of this innocent Christian woman will be spared.

Sunday 29 Our Father in Heaven, we

lift before you Iranian Pastor Behnam Irani, who has had his prison sentence extended by six years under the charges of “actions against the state” and “actions against national security”.

We thank You, Lord, that Pastor Irani no

longer faces the death penalty, as the courts found him innocent of “enmity against God”. We ask that You, Oh Lord, will put Your healing hand upon Pastor Irani, who continues to struggle with health issues, and that he will not lose heart as the long years of imprisonment stretch ahead of him. We ask all this in the Name of the Lord Jesus.

Monday 30 The Syrian Orthodox Cathedral in Aleppo, Syria, was attacked by Islamist militants at Christmas and badly damaged. To attack such a building at such a time sends a very threatening message to all the Christians of Aleppo as well as causing them great sorrow. While Christians in Syria are frequently targeted by Islamists, Christian holy days, such as Christmas and Easter, are often periods where believers are most vulnerable. Ask the Lord to show mercy to His people, rescue them from the hands of their enemies and enable them to worship and serve Him without fear (Luke 1:72-74).

The damaged cathedral in Aleppo Tuesday 31 Noah McMahon attends La Costa Heights Elementary School in California, USA. Noah and his grandparents were told by school officials that he could no longer take his Bible to school for “free reading time” as it is a religious text. The National Center

for Law & Policy has issued a letter to the school district on behalf of Noah’s family stating that this policy violates the Constitution and threatening the district with legal action unless a formal apology is issued, granting permission for students to read religious texts during free reading times. Please pray that the school district will relent, allowing all students the option to read the Bible in school if they choose.

April

Thursday 2 Praise God for the newly reconstructed Christian school in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo. With a total of 393 pupils, this school provides a safe, clean environment as well as a sense of normality in this war-torn country. Before Barnabas aided in the reconstruction of the school, the building was severely dilapidated

Friday 3 As we think today of the death of the Lord Jesus, let us thank God for His unceasing love and mercy towards sinners and for the gift of salvation.

Let us intercede for those whose faith is being tested even today through persecution. Pray that they may be strengthened by remembering that Christ too endured great opposition.

Pray that we and they may fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:1-3).

Saturday 4 Roughly half the population of Syria has been forcibly displaced since the start of the conflict in 2011.

Last year it was estimated that 9,500 more were displaced each day. Amongst them are many hundreds of thousands of Christians. As we remember the day between our Lord’s death and His resurrection, when His disciples were hopeless and fearful, having lost the anchor of their lives and not knowing what would happen in the future, pray for our Syrian brothers and sisters who have fled their homes in the face of terrible threats and violence. Some are in neighbouring countries but most are within Syria itself. Their past is gone, and the future looks hopeless. Pray that in this time of calamity, they will yet rejoice in the Lord (Habakkuk 3:16-18).

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Wednesday 1 Please pray for Sudan as the country holds Presidential and National Assembly elections on 2 April.

The current president, Omar al-Bashir, who has been in office since 1993, has made clear his intention to make Sudan a fully Islamic state. Sharia has been in place for many years and, since the secession of the mainly Christian South Sudan in 2011, the process of Islamisation has accelerated. Sudanese Christians have been arrested, interrogated and detained without charge; churches are being demolished and Christian institutions closed. Please pray that Sudan will elect a president and assembly who will guide the country in a fresh direction, towards greater freedom and equality for all.

with its roofs dotted with bullet holes.

The new complex has two offices, 20 toilets, a chapel and twelve classrooms, which are filled with new desks and blackboards. Pray that the Lord will bless and protect this school and all who study or teach there.

Sunday 5 Father God, on this Easter

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Sunday, we praise you for Your mighty strength and power that raised Christ from the dead. We pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters that they may be encouraged as they remember the hope to which You have called us and the riches of Your glorious inheritance. We pray that your resurrection power and the hope of glory may sustain those suffering today for Your Name’s sake and that they may live in the light of that eternal hope.

In Christ’s Name, we ask. (Ephesians 1:17-20)

Monday 6 Sixteen Christians were attacked in Singareny Colony of Sarurnagar in India’s southern city of Hyderabad by a group of Hindu radicals. The attack took place on the evening of 13 December, while Pastor Bhim Nayak and 15 members of his congregation were singing carols while visiting other Christian families.

The group of radicals surrounded the church’s hire vehicle, smashed its windows and dragged out the Christians, while beating them with sticks and clubs. The Hindu group claimed that the carollers were attempting to convert people by force: a crime in many parts of India. Please pray for healing as Pastor Nayak and four other Christians were hospitalised.

Pray also that the Lord will bring the assailants to justice.

Tuesday 7 Give thanks to the Lord for another 282 houses built for Indian Christians in Kandhamal, Orissa state.

The massive anti-Christian attacks carried out by Hindu extremists in 2007-2008 not only killed many Christians but also left about 60,000

homeless. With the aid of our supporters, Barnabas Fund has been helping to repair or construct new homes for the Christians affected. The total completed is now 1,226. Some of the houses have been built with labouring help from Hindus who had attacked the Christians in the 2007-8 riots and have now apologised. Praise God for their change of heart and for showing it in such a practical way.

An Indian Christian family and their new home Wednesday 8 Lift up in prayer a congregation in New Delhi, India whose church was set on fire on 1 December, reducing the interior to ashes. Because empty kerosene cans were discovered at the site, the members of the church believe that the fire was a result of an arson attack. They also believe that an attack in a church in India’s capital city sends a significant message of threat to the Christian community. Please pray that the police will conduct an unbiased investigation into this fire; they have suggested it may have been due to a short circuit.

Thursday 9 Many of the poorest Christians in India are denied government benefits due to their faith because they are not given the

normal government benefits provided to Dalits. Dalit Muslims suffer the same discrimination, but Dalits who are Hindus, Buddhists or Sikhs are eligible for preferential treatment in jobs and education. Dalits are the lowest level of India’s stratified social system in India and used to be known as “untouchables”. Please pray that our Dalit brothers and sisters will know themselves to be the Lord’s “treasured possession” (Malachi 3:17) even though they are despised by the majority of Indian society.

Saturday 11 Pray for the friends and family of Dr Magdy Sobhy Tawfiq, his wife Sahar and their eldest daughter Catherine, following the murder of the Egyptian Christian family, who lived in Libya. Magdy and Sahar were killed in their home; Catherine was abducted

Sunday 12 Lord Jesus, we lift to You our brothers and sisters in Algeria.

Thank you for the wonderful way in which the Church there is growing in this generation. In a country where it is illegal for a Christian to share their faith with a Muslim, we thank you for the boldness of the believers. We ask that you will protect them from harassment by the authorities, by local communities or by their own unbelieving relatives.

We also ask that you will protect Your people from al-Qaeda, who has been active in the country. We ask in Your Name, Lord Jesus Christ.

Monday 13 Praise God for the Indonesian police’s new policy towards religious freedom. Under the administration of the previous Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, religious intolerance issues were largely neglected resulting in violence towards Christians and other religious minorities going unpunished; however, under the influence of the new administration of President Joko Widodo, who is an advocate for religious diversity and tolerance, the police chief General Sutarman announced that the police would not tolerate any groups who used religion as an excuse to act as vigilantes or attack houses of worship. Pray that the new policy will be upheld equally for all religions and that all Indonesians will be to worship freely and safely.

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Friday 10 Pray for 13 Egyptian Christians who were kidnapped in early January while working in Sirte, Libya, a city controlled by Islamist militias. The Christians were taken at gun point from a residential compound in the middle of the night. According to local residents, the masked gunmen separated the Christians from their Muslim coworkers before handcuffing them and taking them away in cars. Shortly afterwards the Islamic State group’s branch in Libya announced that they had captured 21 Christians. At the time of writing it is unclear exactly who has been kidnapped and who released, but our Heavenly Father knows. Ask Him to protect His children in Libya. Eleven months before the kidnapping, seven Egyptian Christians were shot dead and their bodies found near Benghazi, the second city of Libya.

and her body found two days later on Christmas Day. Pray especially for Catherine’s two younger sisters to be comforted in their grief. The attack came after Catherine (14) had been threatened by Muslims for not wearing the Islamic veil.

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Tuesday 14 Last Christmas the Brunei government banned all public celebrations and even Christmas decorations lest Muslims should be led astray. The tiny, oil-rich state on the island of Borneo, ruled by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, is strictly Islamic.

A year ago the Brunei government announced the phased introduction of a penal code based on sharia law, eventually to include penalties such as amputation and death by stoning.

Please pray that the Lord will protect His Church in Brunei and that the Sultan and his government will grant freedom of religion to its citizens.

Wednesday 15 "In the Bible God says that he can talk to people, even in their dreams… I pray that they find that God is forgiving and merciful and that they stop doing what it is that they're doing." These were words of Mercy, one of the 200+ mainly Christian school girls from Chibok who were abducted by the Nigerian Islamist group, Boko Haram, exactly a year ago. Mercy jumped from a truck into which the girls had been forced by their kidnappers, but most of the girls did not manage to escape.

Boko Haram says they have now been converted to Islam and married to its fighters. Please continue to lift them up in prayer as well as all others who have been abducted by Boko Haram. Add your prayers to Mercy’s that the Lord will speak to the Boko Haram jihadists and bring them to repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thursday 16 Tohar Haydarov, a Christian from Tashkent in Uzbekistan, was given a ten-year jail sentence on false charges of selling drugs. Tohar is

currently serving his time in a labour camp near Karshi, which is roughly 250 miles away from his home.

Because of this long distance, friends from Tohar’s church are unable to visit him very often. Please pray that the Lord will keep Tohar safe as he serves the rest of his jail sentence and that the Lord, who sets the lonely in families and leads out the prisoners with singing, will comfort him during this time (Psalm 68:6).

Friday 17 Give thanks to the Lord for His wonderful provision as a Kyrgyz congregation’s twelve-year-long fervent prayer for a church building has been answered. The impoverished congregation’s savings, combined with Barnabas Fund’s contribution, was enough to buy a building that, after some repairs, will become their place of worship and ministry. The congregation has been evicted three times from rented properties because they are active in evangelism amongst Muslims.

Pray that the Lord will protect them, their building and their ministry.

Saturday 18 Lift up in prayer “Iskandar”, a pastor in Central Asia who was tortured by the police for owning a Bible. Just before he was due to leave to take part in a Barnabasfunded Bible seminar, Iskandar was arrested and held at the police station for three days. After beating him, the police tried to pressure him to reject Christ and write false accusations against other church leaders. When he refused, they undressed him and exposed him to minus 25C temperatures outside. Upon release, Iskandar’s family was slandered on television, the community turned

against them and Iskandar lost his job.

Barnabas Fund has helped with his medical expenses.

Sunday 19 Lord Jesus, we lift up to you Noreen, a 14-year-old Pakistani Christian girl who was abducted, forcibly converted to Islam and married to a 35-year-old Muslim man. We thank you for the courage of your servant, Dr Rafaqat Masih, who managed to coordinate the return of Noreen to her family by meeting with local influential Muslims. Please protect Noreen, now in hiding in a Barnabas-funded refuge. She cannot return to live with her own Christian family as Muslims have threatened to kill her for apostasy if she does. We praise you for Noreen’s declaration that she wants to “remain in Christ” and ask that You will send Your Holy Spirit to comfort Noreen and also to teach her more of what it means to follow You. We ask in Your Name.

(John 14:26)

Tuesday 21 Aimujiang Yimiti, a Uighur Christian from Xinjiang province in north-west China, is serving a 15year sentence in a labour camp for “preaching Christianity among people of Uighur ethnicity”. Uighurs are a mainly Muslim people-group and Alimujiang was himself brought up as a Muslim. In 2008 local authorities accused Aimujiang of using his business as a cover for his preaching, and he was later arrested. Although he is legally entitled to one visitor every month, the prison authorities have restricted him to one visitor every three months. Pray that Aimujiang will remain strong in the Lord and that his wife and children will not lose heart as the long years pass.

Wednesday 22 A Barnabas Fund supported Christian hostel in the Kandhamal district of Orissa state in India provides accommodation for Christian boys and enables them to attend a school located next to the hostel building. In August 2008 Orissa experienced massive anti-Christian riots leaving many children orphaned

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“Iskandar” and his daughter

Monday 20 North Korea is regularly named as the worst country in the world to be a Christian. All North Koreans are expected to follow Juche (self-reliance), an extreme cult of personality that venerates the ruling Kim family. Other belief systems are viewed as a threat to the regime’s authority, and it is illegal to be a Christian or take part in any Christian activity. Those caught may be detained in prison labour camps, where they are abused, tortured and worked to death.

Pray that the Lord will sustain His growing North Korean Church.

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and impoverished. The 39 boys at the hostel have all suffered discrimination and persecution. The staff are seeing very positive changes in the boys as they learn to feel more confident and no longer see themselves as inferior, even though society may despise them. Pray that the Lord, who blessed children (Luke 18:16), will continue to pour out His favour upon those who live in this hostel as learn and grow in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Thursday 23 Pray for the many tens of thousands of displaced Christians in northern Iraq. These Christians ran for their lives last year to escape the terror of Islamic State militants; most arrived at their places of refuge with just the clothes on their backs.

Barnabas Fund provided food, hygiene kits, water tanks, medicines, tents, beds, pillows, mattresses, kitchen utensils and cookers. During the winter they received warm clothes, heaters, kerosene oil, rugs and blankets. Pray that the Prince of Peace will protect His church during this time of severe testing and that He will continue to meet their physical needs.

Friday 24 Pray for displaced Syrian Christians currently living in a refuge shelter under a church hall in the Wadi al-Nasara (Valley of the Christians), which Barnabas helped to build and equip. Despite all that they have lost, these families have bonded together and created a loving community within the shelter. “We have almost everything we need here,” said J., the 13-year-old daughter of one family, “So I want to thank everyone who supported building this shelter and help us during the war to have a place

to live in.” Please pray that this shelter remains safe and that the Lord will continue to provide for these families.

Displaced Christian families in Syria Saturday 25 Praise God for answering prayer for “Benjamin”, a Cameroonian convert from Islam to Christianity. In order to punish him for his decision to follow Christ, he had been falsely accused of being a member of Boko Haram, to ensure that he was arrested and ill-treated by the Cameroonian army. “It is thanks to the prayers of brothers and sisters mobilised across the world,” said a local church leader to Barnabas Fund, at the same time thanking us for the grant we gave to help “Benjamin” and pay his lawyer’s fees.

Sunday 26 Father God, we cry to

you for Christians in Somalia who live constantly under the threat of death either from the jihadist group, al-Shabaab, or from other Muslims outraged by their decision to leave Islam and follow Your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. We pray that You will hinder the plans of all who work to find ways to eradicate all Christian presence from Somalia. Protect Your faithful children and deliver them from evil. We ask this in Christ’s name.

Monday 27 The last few years have seen a sharp rise in the number of state-sponsored violations of religious freedom in Cuba. Church members and their leaders have been beaten, detained and harassed. Pastors have been arrested for preaching and congregations discouraged from gathering for worship. Christian human rights activists have been targeted and prevented from attending services. Despite Cuba’s attempt to control Christian activity, Christianity has grown in the past few years. Give thanks to the Lord for Church growth in Cuba despite the restrictions and harassments that Christians endure.

Wednesday 29 Pray for Munir and Ruqqiya, a Pakistani Christian couple who were falsely accused of blasphemy by their Muslim neighbours. The accusations came after Munir and

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Tuesday 28 Lift up in prayer the new president of Sri Lanka, Maithripala Sirisena, who was elected on 9 January. He heads a coalition that includes both moderates and the radical Buddhist party which proposed an Anti-Conversion Law (shelved in 2005). Under his predecessor, President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who ruled over the country for a decade, Sri Lankan Christians have suffered greatly. Sri Lanka’s constitution gives Buddhism “the foremost place” and there is a violent, Buddhist extremist movement which targets churches and their leaders. Pray that the Lord will use the new president to end the oppression of His people and other non-Buddhists in Sri Lanka and that the new administration will implement true freedom of religion for all.

Ruqqiya’s children had an argument with some Muslim children. The Pakistani courts found the couple innocent; however, they are now outcasts in their society. Munir was previously an oil trader, but now he can only find work as a daily labourer a few days a month, reducing his family to permanent poverty. Although Barnabas is providing food for the family, please pray that the Lord will protect and provide for Munir and Ruqqiya’s family.

Munir and Ruqqiya Thursday 30 In Pakistan, the government has issued a new law concerning the punishment of terrorists. After the terrible Peshawar Army School bombing in December 2014, in which 141 people (mostly children) were killed, the Pakistani government passed a law calling for stricter punishments for terrorists who target individuals for religious purposes, who will now be tried in a military court. Pray that this law will be effective in providing a level of protection for Christians and other Pakistanis who have faced violence at the hands of radical Islamists.

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Front cover: Armenian Christian deportees on their long journey.

Syria. 1915 Barnabas Fund is a Company registered in England Number 4029536. Registered Charity Number 1092935 © Barnabas Fund 2015