(UN Photo/Fred Noy. unmultimedia.org/photo/

“What we’ve seen over the past year is a real increase in the amount of persecution of Christians,” says Matt Parker of Kids Alive International. “There’s real intimidation.

“There’s a lot of fear, a lot of concern about what the future holds.”

Oft-quoted philosopher George Santayana once said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” If that statement holds true, the coming months will hold more of the same for Sudan.

Back-to-back civil wars killed approximately 1.5 million people, and violence continues today in Darfur. Persecution of Christians has been steadily increasing since 2011 when the Christian-majority south seceded from northern Sudan, where Muslims hold an upper-hand.

Last year, President Omar Hassan al-Bashir made abundantly clear his intentions for Sudan to become a strictly-Islamic state.

“We want to present a constitution that serves as a template to those around us. And our template is clear: a 100% Islamic constitution, without communism or secularism or Western (influences),” Bashir told a group of Islamic Sufi leaders in July 2012.

“And we tell non-Muslims: nothing will preserve your rights except for Islamic sharia, because it is just.”

Areas known to hold a high population of Christians are increasingly targeted by government forces. In the Nuba Mountains, “there are regular bombings…carried out by government forces; they’re not allowing food, medicine, [or] fuel in,” Parker says.

Abiye, a region near the Sudan-South Sudan border, holds many Christ-followers. They’re facing a great deal of pressure from the government, too.

“This is part of a country-wide persecution of Christians,” states Parker. He says the Sudanese believers they work with in Khartoum are facing indescribable hardship.

“Christians that I know, that we have contact with, have been imprisoned; some have been deported. There are stories of believers being beaten,” he says. Some believers are facing death threats.

A Christian worker recently told Parker that he’s being required to check in daily with police. Churches are being closed down and destroyed. Heavy restrictions are imposed on congregations, limiting the hours they are allowed to meet and hold activities.

Parker says one of the churches he worshipped in while visiting Sudan was recently attacked.

“The security forces broke into the compound and beat people, and then they’ve handed some of the land over to a Muslim businessman,” he shares.

The purge isn’t limited to buildings and people clearly belonging to Christ. Many Christian organizations are also being forced to shut down, including “schools and orphanages that are providing care and support to the vulnerable.”

Kids Alive cares for over 30 vulnerable children at their Boys’ Home.
(Image courtesy Kids Alive)

Thankfully, Kids Alive has a boys’ home that’s still up and running, providing a safe haven for street kids and other vulnerable children. At the Boys’ Home, kids receive Christ-centered care and education. You can learn more here.

“We have staff that is committed to caring for them and enabling each of these kids to reach their full potential,” says Parker.

“The problem that we’re facing at the moment is just the level of pressure that our staff has been under. It’s been a really tough year for our ministry there. Pray for our staff, for the strength, for the energy and wisdom to carry on.”

Pray also for the children they care for.

“Pray that despite all that’s happening, they would have a real sense of God’s presence, and that they would come to put their trust and their faith in Jesus,” Parker requests.

While you’re at it, pray for all of Sudan’s believers.

“There are many Christians that are fearful, many Christians that are facing persecution,” says Parker. “Pray for them, that they would remain strong in their faith.”

Riots began when Sudan's government lifted fuel subsidies on September 23, a move that nearly doubled the price of gasoline. Demonstrators quickly took to the streets in protest, and unrest spread throughout Sudan, reaching the capital city of Khartoum in record time.

Some 700 people have been arrested so far, and dozens of protestors were injured when national security forces stepped in. The death toll stands at 34, according to Sudan's government, but rights groups and a few diplomats have said over 100 were killed.

Jed Hamoud of Kids Alive International says the riots put children they care for at high-risk.

"Our biggest concern is that the rioters [and] demonstrators do not intrude on the property and put the children at harm," says Hamoud."Our top priority is really the safety of our children and the safety of our staff, in situations like this."

Tight security has largely shut down protests in the capital city of Khartoum, where the Kids Alive Boys' Home is located.

"What they will lead to, in terms of the overall country's stability, is very unpredictable," Hamoud says.

An estimated 10% of Sudan's children are orphans; many of them live on the streets or in refugee camps. Hamoud says the boys' backgrounds play into how they respond during times of crisis.

"Their abandonment sometimes plays into their fears and insecurity. And when we provide them with love and care and attention…we're living the message of the Gospel," he states.

"Our hope is that they come to see Christ through this ministry and they, too, will then change and turn their life to Christ."

Pray for this transformation to take place.

Kids Alive fulfills the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of children through Christ-centered care, education, and ministries, helping children become faithful followers of Jesus and pillars of their community.

To learn more about the work of Kids Alive in Sudan, click here.

"We're there to shelter them, to give them protection, to give them safety, and to minister to them," says Hamoud.

Would you take a moment to pray for them?

"We covet your prayers in terms of…the protection and safety for the children…for the staff there," Hamoud says. "Pray that the schools will stay open so we can continue to send our kids to school."

The needs of Kenya's children are huge: over a million are orphaned, many as a result of HIV/AIDS, and there are large numbers of kids who have no one to care for them. As a result, staggering numbers of children hit the streets, desperately in need of care.

Kids Alive International helps nearly 60 boys–all between 9 and 18 years of age–find new life in Christ at their home for former street kids.

Most of them graduate from high school and have the chance to attend college, an opportunity that wouldn't have been possible otherwise. The Boys' Center also provides education support for approximately 60 kids from needy families in the nearby community.

Boys at the home receive residential care and the Gospel. New on the docket are farming activities, which would allow the boys to grow most of the food they eat.

But to keep everyone safe, they need to put a fence around the land.

Funding is needed…can you help? Click here.

In the West, fences are often used to keep livestock within a designated area. In Kenya, fences stand as an important barrier between wildlife and humans.

According to a recent article from AllAfrica.com, long stretches of fencing are being constructed in Kwale to protect locals from attacks by elephants and other wildlife.

"When it is raining, the forests are slippery and elephants go to the farms," stated Kenya Wildlife Service official Nathan Gatundu.

Fences are first being constructed in Lukore where wild animals commonly access residential farms and destroy crops.

Pray that Kids Alive will receive the funding they need. Pray that by learning to grow food, kids will learn how God cares for them.

"As much as God has His hands over these children, the enemy also wants to snatch them from our hands," says Sister Mary, a missionary supported by Gospel for Asia.

She heads up a boys' home in northern India which rescues boys from the streets and tries to reunite them with their families, if possible. The home currently cares for over 40 young men, ranging in age from 4-14 years old.

"When I see the staff pouring out their hearts and just giving their time and their energy, their love–everything for these children," Mary says, "when I see one of the children wrap his arms around another child who's not feeling well, or bringing food to a child who's feeling sad… then I know the [Lord's hand] is over them, [and] He's working in their lives."

Each boy has his own story of life before the center, but none of them are happy.

"Many are working; they come as child laborers. Many are abused, so they run away from home," explains Mary. "A lot of our boys are living on the streets, begging in the streets, or their families are very poor.

"They come from many different backgrounds, but most of them come from very dark places."

One 10-year-old boy worked at a motor factory, trying to earn enough to support his five younger brothers and a sister. Another young boy with a developmental disorder was kicked out of his home when his mother died.

In each case, a woman missionary supported by GFA comes to the child in the streets and asks him if he wants to be helped. She and other women missionaries then work with the Indian government to restore each boy with his family.

"They're coming from poor backgrounds," says Mary. "They're malnourished, some of them coming [are] abused, so they need healing: spiritual, physical healing."

Ask God to heal any emotional or physical wounds these children may have. Along with attending to their medical needs, feeding them, and keeping them clothed, the boys' center is also helping young men get an education. Some have never even been to school.

"We want to get them in the school, we want to get them educated. So you could pray that God would give them [the] ability to learn," Mary requests.

"Pray that God would give them grace and wisdom," she adds. "Pray that they would come to know Him, have a personal relationship with Him."

Click here to learn more about the boys' home in northern India. (Click on the right arrow by the photos 4 times, then select the video titled, "Rescuing the Children.")

Kids Alive International has a boys' residential home in Beirut, Dar El Alwad. The boys are all safe there, but fear can sometimes get the better of them.

"There is worry amongst them," says Kids Alive's Mat Gregory. "Sometimes the resident boys will ask me, ‘Is there war coming?'"

Some of the boys have found solace–not to mention worth and talent–in a unique arena: photography.

Kids Alive developed a Photography Club at the Beirut-based home to give the children an outlet for creative expression. The kids come from difficult backgrounds, and healing may even be found as they express themselves through photography.

As the boys take pictures of life in Lebanon through their eyes, they are given a voice–just one more way of showing them how much Christ loves them and cares what they have to say.

To even further reinforce their talents, Kids Alive created a photo exhibition. "A selection of those pictures were put together to make postcards and greeting cards. We also developed a calendar," says Gregory.

Valuing the boys' work in this way has meant a great deal to these young photographers. "These children don't have many opportunities outside of our campus here to express themselves. They're often overlooked by the society as a whole," explains Gregory. "To have their work put in print really boosted their self-esteem and gave them a sense of pride and a sense of accomplishment as well."

You can help acknowledge these talented boys and show them their value by purchasing cards, prints, and calendars yourself. Click here to get calendars of some of the best photos.

Browse the pictures these Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese boys have taken at their Web site when you click here.