But another headline is unfolding in Cuba — another government hanging in the balance, and a Church preparing for whatever comes next.

Duane Friesen, Vice President of International with The Voice of the Martyrs Canada, says these two nations share a defining question.

Vinales, Cuba (Photo courtesy of Jennifer Chen via Unsplash)

“We have two different countries in different parts of the world, but facing the same challenge, and that is: what does their immediate identity look like? Will they face a radical regime change that results in a radical identity change? And…what will be the response of the Christians in those places in the midst of radical change?”

Cuba is currently experiencing shortages of food and medicine, and facing a U.S. fuel blockade. The fuel crisis has led to power outages.

“This trickles down right to every village in the country,” says Friesen. “They are now in a crisis mode. They realize that they will not have power for maybe most of the day. In many cases, they’re only getting one hour of energy to charge whatever they have to supply. But in the midst of that, they’re wrestling through: ‘What will our country look like a year from now?'”

For Cuban believers grappling with economic challenges, Friesen says they still have a supernatural joy that can only come from the Holy Spirit.

“The Church in Cuba has tried to keep a Spirit-filled expression of grace in the midst of difficulty. But the reality is they have so little and continue to have less and less. [They] are in crisis just to get basic supplies of food, basic medicine, [or] be supported at a hospital.”

A makeshift baptism (Photo courtesy of The Voice of the Martyrs USA)

When Cubans are looking for relief, the ones who often show up with food, medicine, and encouragement are the local Christians.

Friesen says, “I’ve heard where there are networks of a church community given permission out of Havana to supply medical equipment and drugs to support the local hospitals on the outer skirts of the island.

“From the Church perspective, they’re looking at ways to be ready – ready to share what Good News they have, but also ready to be part of the solution, of blessing a nation in its next chapter.”

Please pray for Cubans to find sure footing in Jesus Christ.

Friesen says of Cuban believers, “Their prayer is that the Spirit would work through them to demonstrate what courage looks like in the midst of fear, in the midst of change, and that they would be a beacon of light to see a nation encouraged and brought to an understanding. There’s hope in Christ.”

Header photo: Wonders in graffiti above a woman walking in Havana, Cuba. (Photo courtesy of Emily Crawford via Unsplash)

Rafat Samir, General Secretary of the Sudan Evangelical Alliance and an Open Doors spokesperson, says, “Even myself and many Christians have been detained and sent to court many times as enemies against the state.”

One recent case involves Dr. Yagoub Jibril Glademea, who was detained for his faith. On December 7, he went to the state Civil Registration office to obtain a national number for his niece. A security officer noticed the religious designation on his ID and detained him for interrogation. His family was denied access for three days before he was released. It’s a reality many Sudanese believers face — being treated as enemies because of their faith.

But why this label of “enemy”?

Photo courtesy of Faruk Tokluoglu via Pexels

“Both parties of the war do not like the church and do not want the Christian in the places they are ruling,” Samir explains.

Christians are often labeled traitors — seen as allies of the other side. They’re also frequently missed when humanitarian aid is distributed. Since the government chooses which NGOs can work, access for believers is often barred.

“They close the Christian schools and Christian hospitals. They kick the missionaries outside the country,” says Samir. 

When Christians flee, they face anger from local communities.  “Even in the safe areas where the Christians have been settled after this war, they face a lot of persecution because they are unwanted in those areas.”

On top of that, for many people the very idea of having a church is impossible. In many places, they aren’t allowed to build worship spaces or hold services, because local communities don’t want any churches in these new areas.

This year, dedicate your prayers for Sudanese people. Samir says, “I always believe in what Jesus said: This gates of hell will not conquer the church. This is His church, and He preserves it.”

Pray for detained Sudanese pastors. Pray also for the strength of believers to endure the trials they face.

Header photo courtesy of Michael Starkie/Unsplash.

UN officials urge global involvement as fighting spreads into previously safe areas, and neither side shows signs of backing down.

“The warring parties appear unrelenting in their resolve to pursue military objectives,” warned Martha Ama Akyaa Pobee, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Africa, in a June 27 address to the UN Security Council.

She noted that advanced weapons like long-range drones are spreading violence into previously stable regions. Earlier, UN official Virginia Gamba warned that resistance forces and their allies are increasingly targeting minority ethnic groups — a potential path to war crimes.

Darrell Templeton with MegaVoice highlights the gravity of the situation: “A lot of the genocide, a lot of the killing that the RSF is doing is very tribal in nature.”

Image courtesy of MegaVoice.

MegaVoice offers both spiritual and practical hope. First, solar-powered audio Bibles provide perspective from God’s Word. “There’s an audio series called ‘Am I My Brother’s Keeper?‘ which is all about reconciliation between the tribes in Sudan and South Sudan,” Templeton says.

“This audio has been used and is continuing to be used to provide a biblical reason for reconciliation among the people groups.”

These devices also have a tangible purpose. The most popular audio Bible model has a built-in light.

“It’s called the Ember because it has a little flashlight on it that’s brighter than a cell phone flashlight. Most of these areas have very limited electricity, and so to have a light that they can use for finishing cooking, to walk around in the dark, this has been a big benefit to our pastors and the leaders there,” Templeton says.

“To have a solar-powered audio Bible that provides not only spiritual light for their lives, but physical light is a big blessing.”

Help send more audio Bibles to Sudan by giving through MegaVoice International.

“Mission Network News has been a big help in making sure people are aware that this crisis has not gone away. The crisis is still very real, and we need to uphold our brothers and sisters in prayer,” Templeton says.

Header image is a stock photo of fighters in South Sudan (Photo by Randy Fath on Unsplash)

Vulnerable groups are coming under fire. “It’s soft targets; these are not military bases,” Darrell Templeton with MegaVoice says.

“Less than 10 percent of the hospitals and clinics in the country are even operational, and so the humanitarian crisis just continues to rise.”

Despite the scale of the crisis, few outside Sudan are aware. “The situation has gone from bad to worse,” Templeton says.

“It’s the largest displacement of people anywhere in the world, and, unfortunately, because Israel and Iran are getting all the headline news, this has dropped off the radar of most people.”

Yet the Lord hears their cries. In the midst of chaos, believers are holding fast.

“If I could get out of there, I would. And yet, we hear stories of pastors and lay leaders that choose to stay and shepherd the few believers they have and be that beacon of hope in their communities,” Templeton says.

Through partners like Samaritan’s Purse, MegaVoice audio Bibles bring both hope and help.

“They not only carry the Bible and Scripture, but they also carry different content that some of our partners will put on it,” Templeton says.

“They can add local content, be it medical information for the family on how to do wound care, or even Bible stories in the local language.”

Pray for strength and resources for medical workers, and ask God to meet urgent needs.

“The whole cholera situation is a growing epidemic this year,” Templeton says. “They think it’s going to be worse than what it was in 2023.”

Header image depicts a family in Sudan. Photo courtesy of Sudan Envoy/Wikimedia Commons.

Rev. Jason Woolford, President of Mission Cry says, “This one’s unique as we are partnering with another ministry who’s sending medical equipment, and because they are sending the medical supplies in, we’re able to add half of the container with Bibles and seminary and Christian-authored books.”

Mission Cry connected with this ministry partner through a Christian man who fled Liberia during the last civil war which ended in 2003. He escaped to America, but never lost his love for Liberian people who still need physical aid and the hope of Jesus Christ. Since then, he’s earned the trust of the Liberian government and travels between the two countries.

(Photo courtesy of Mission Cry)

Liberian hospitals receiving this medical equipment will also get some of the Bibles and Christian books sent by Mission Cry.

“Those that have traveled overseas and seen hospitals, they would remind you of something that you’d see in a war-torn country where you can’t believe that people are actually being treated in these facilities,” says Woolford.

“For them to be able to receive the Word of God, the only thing that doesn’t return void, that’s so wonderful. We’re providing the practical need with some medical equipment on these shipments which we don’t normally do; but most importantly, giving them the Word of God which is the biggest request — even bigger than the medical equipment they’re requesting.”

The rest of the Bibles, Christian books, and seminary materials will go on to Liberian seminaries and other distribution points for evangelism.

Although over two dozen languages are spoken in Liberia, English is the official language. Woolford says, “When you look at English as the financial language of the world, you look at the wars and world wars that have left English behind and then countries teaching their kids to speak English, this is very sought after — to the point that we’ll be sending nearly 120,000 free Bibles and Christian books for the country just on these shipments and they’re needed…. There’s obviously areas where they can’t read English, but we’re sending to the areas where there is and it’s coveted.”

In total, Mission Cry has sent $450 million-worth of free Bibles and Christian books to 178 nations.

Each container costs $11,000 to ship and contains half a million dollars-worth of good quality used Christian books and Bibles.

Woolford asks, “Please come alongside and support this container. We’ve had businesses or individuals or churches sponsor an entire container or just portions of it. We’re stepping out in faith for our brothers and sisters in Liberia, for those that are in desperate need…. Pray for the financial support of it and then, of course, the distribution of it.”

You can support Mission Cry’s ministry here.

Header photo courtesy of Mission Cry.

After mass protests, the Chinese government ended its zero COVID policies. But even three years after the pandemic started, China has an under-vaccinated population with little natural immunity. Hospitals have filled up with elderly patients.

Kurt Rovenstine with Bibles for China says, “I had a conversation with one of our contacts there. Just about everybody she knows is dealing with what they assume is COVID-19. Not everybody’s been tested, but many are. That is a result of the lifting of this policy.”

The future

Despite the high cases, the Chinese government says it will not bring back zero COVID restrictions. Instead, people in China are hearing a new story from the government. COVID-19 isn’t as dangerous as it once was, and people need to work to ramp up the economy.

Rovenstine says many churches are still closed. “Not because of the government’s mandate, but because of the concern of the local leaders. It would be similar to a church in the United States saying, ‘Hey, 80% of our people are sick; let’s take a couple of weeks and get better before we come back.’”

Bibles for China hopes for more ministry opportunities in 2023. Ask God to give them wisdom. Rovenstine says, “There’s a little bit more of an opening. We’re hopeful it will allow us more ease of access for the scriptures to get to where they need to be.”

“Instead of one lane of traffic, we’ve got three lanes to work in.”

Pray for the general Chinese population as they adjust to a new way of living. Rovenstine says, “I think there’s still going to be a fear of COVID-19 itself. Because it has been three years of the government saying, ‘You need to be very afraid of this disease.’”

The header photo shows health workers in Beijing checking body temperatures in 2020. (Photo courtesy of Pau Colominas, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)

Protests have raged across Iran since September. The morality police accosted a young woman for not wearing the hijab correctly, and she later died in custody.

Denise Godwin with International Media Ministries (IMM) remains skeptical. “Just a couple of weeks ago, they started killing young people who have protested. Iran has a history of saying what the international community wants to hear. And that’s regarding freedom. That’s regarding politics and other things to get what they want.”

Iranian Christians

Despite the danger, Christians are finding ways to help. Godwin says, “I know there are some organizations who are sending Iranian doctors and nurses or people who can get inside the country in to help protesters who are being injured.”

“Because if they go to the hospital, they’re arrested and not treated.”

About 60 percent of people in Iran are under 35. They know how to use social media and circumvent government restrictions. Pray many will hear about Jesus through these channels. Some will encounter IMM dramas that portray biblical stories through film.

As the Islamic government tries to crack down on protests, more and more Iranians are abandoning Islam. Godwin says, “In a country that declares itself 99 percent Islamic, only around 30 to 35 percent will claim Islam. So we’ve got a large culture of people who are not satisfied with the religion and the official storyline that’s been given to them.”

Pray for the Christians helping protesters in Jesus’ name. Godwin says, “They’re dealing with a crafty government that will do one thing and says another to the world at large.”

The header photo shows a protest at a university in Iran. (Photo courtesy of Darafsh, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)

The agricultural system, which employed three-quarters of all Tigray people, has been effectively destroyed by the war. Hospitals have run out of drugs for cancer patients, and often simply send them home.

Eric Foley with The Voice of the Martyrs Korea says, “Our friend, Pastor T, wrote saying, ‘Still, Romans 8:28. The suffering of people is high, but God is working.’ What Pastor T noted for us was that so many Tigrayans are still forced to live in Addis because of the travel limitations and the inability to return and make a living in Tigray at this point. Yet, God is at work.”

“We need to sometimes step into the shoes of ordinary Christian believers and really not think as geopolitical analysts.”

We reported previously that this group of Christians had planted 11 new churches near Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. Now, that number has jumped to 19.

Foley says in the absence of governments being able to work together, God’s people continue to show Jesus’ love. “Through the care that the Tigrayan Christians are showing to their neighbors, they’re changing the opinions of Muslim and Orthodox Ethiopians about evangelical Christians.”

How to pray

Praise God for the faith of Tigrayan Christians. Ask God to continue providing for these communities and to bring a permanent end to the war.

These believers have nothing except the community around them. Foley says, “They’re forced to cling to each other and to have all things in common just like the early church did. Because in many cases, they’re sharing apartments, they’re sharing food because their resources are so extremely limited.”

The header photo shows aid arriving in the Tigray region. (Photo courtesy of USAID, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons) 

Many civilians from Tigray have fled south towards Ethiopia’s capital of Addis Ababa. Eric Foley with The Voice of the Martyrs Korea says this includes many Christians. For example, Pastor T is a Tigray church leader who often cares for refugees from neighboring Eritrea. “Now, Pastor T and his church members have themselves become refugees.”

Nevertheless, these Christians continue to feed hungry refugees and have planted over 10 churches in the region.

Ethnic tensions

But as Tigray Protestants, their welcome in Addis Ababa hasn’t exactly been warm. Foley says, “Ethnic tensions are soaring due to this conflict in the northeast. These protestant Christians of Tigray ethnicity are viewed with deep suspicion and even hatred by the majority ethnic groups, which are of Muslim and Orthodox background.”

“It is impossible for them to just blend in.”

Ask God to strengthen these Tigray refugees. Foley says, “They even make a witness to their neighbors who are suspicious of them. As Orthodox Christians and Muslims see the Protestant Tigray Christians, pray they will be moved by their focus on the Lord and by their care for one another.”

Pastor T regularly communicates with Foley, who says, “On the one hand, he updates us on the dangers and difficulties. On the other hand, he sends us photos of the baptisms, of the kids that he’s feeding, and Eritrean refugees that he’s continuing to care for.”

The header photo shows several Christians who have just been baptized by Pastor T. (Photo courtesy of the Voice of the Martyrs Korea) 

The government has imposed a curfew and blocked several prominent social media sites like Twitter, WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram.

Economic Crisis

Sri Lanka faces a severe shortage of fuel, and many citizens can’t buy daily food either. The shortages have gotten so severe that hospitals are on the verge of closing and kids in school don’t have paper to use.

Denise Godwin with International Media Ministries says, “We’re seeing the chaos from the fallout of the fuel prices because of the crisis with Russia and Ukraine. We are standing with our brothers and sisters in Sri Lanka who are struggling against the corruption and just the basic challenges of needing fuel and resources.”

IMM ministry in Sri Lanka

IMM has trained Sri Lankans to create video content about the four Gospels. The project has encountered roadblocks in COVID-19, the economic crisis, and also other religious groups.

Godwin encourages readers to pray for these believers. “Think about this small nucleus of people who know how to use their phones and whatever they’ve got to tell a story about Jesus.”

“Then think of the chaos all around them. People are seeking something new and different and stable. What a great time to find out about Jesus.”

Pray many Sri Lankans will discover the hope of Jesus as the crisis continues. Godwin says, “I love the fact that IMM has traditionally trained locals to do the work in their own language. Because we can’t fly in there.”

Header photo courtesy of David_Peterson on Pixabay.