Asia (MNN) — A missionary supported by Gospel For Asia was recently attacked by a 50-person mob while praying over a sick child in an undisclosed Asian nation.
The missionary, Matthew Kishard, serves as a pastor in a small village. He was distributing tracts in a neighboring village when a family asked him to come and pray for their child who had fallen ill.
As Kishard was praying over the child, a mob of young men and women reportedly came to the house and began shouting at the missionary and his team. They demanded to know why the pastor was trying to convert the village.
When Kishard told them he was not trying to convert anyone but was simply praying with the family, a man in the crowd began beating him with his shoe. The attack ignited an eruption of violence as the mob began to ruthlessly pummel Kishard and the team of believers with him. They grabbed their Bibles and tracts as well.
Eventually, a few elderly people stepped in to stop the attack and the mob eased.
Kishard and his team are not critically injured, but they are still recovering from the assault. Pray for their healing.
Pray also that this would somehow be a testimony to the village in Christ's name. Pray that the attackers in particular would come to know the Lord, and that the family the missionary team was praying over would embrace Christ rather than fear the consequences of following Him.
Gospel for Asia missionaries are persecuted regularly as they attempt to contact some of the hardest-to-reach areas with the Gospel. Learn more about these faithful believers at gfa.org.
