“Just over a decade ago, Open Doors ranked India as number 32 on its list of the 50 most persecuted nations, and now India is all the way up at number 11,” Miller says. Learn more here.

“It’s definitely a very bold and courageous thing – to follow Jesus in India.”

Millions of people in India have never heard the name of Jesus and have no access to a Bible or church. Those who do follow Jesus risk everything for Him.

“When people become a Christian, they’re often cut off from their family,” Miller says. “They are prevented from getting jobs, and people have even lost their lives in India for their faith.”

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Mission India’s new devotional will introduce you to the faces behind these facts.

“It’s a seven-day devotional starting on October 27 through November 2, which is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church,” Miller says.

“Each day, we’re including stories and prayer points to help guide your prayers as you learn about this difficult situation,” she continues.

“We are providing stories of events that have taken place in the past year – real people who have been affected by real issues of persecution in India.”

Request yours here, and learn how persecution affects families. For example, “Bulesh and Maria became Christians after they attended one of Mission India’s adult literacy classes,” Miller says.

After these new believers made their new faith public, “Bulesh’s mom, along with other women from the village, chased the family out of their home. It’s hard to comprehend what that means for this woman to do that to her granddaughter at nine months old.”

Header and story images courtesy of Mission India. 

Recently, a group of anti-Christian activists threatened Shukar saying if he didn’t stop teaching the Adult Literacy Class, they would kill his son.

Regan Miller with Mission India says, “In response, Shukar went ahead and filed a complaint with the police. But before anything could come of that, the activists actually showed up at Shukar’s house and his son was asleep.

“Ten people took this 20-year-old son out of the village and beat him to death. They actually brought him back into the village afterward and put his body on display.”

(Representative photo, courtesy of Mission India)

It is a parent’s worst nightmare. Devastatingly, this extreme persecution is a reality for many believers with Christian persecution in India on the rise.

Miller says, “Our partners in India know that when they choose to share the Gospel and are compelled to live for Jesus, they’re taking a huge risk.”

Mission India is supporting Shukar and his family as they grieve. Pray that Shukar and his family would know the Holy Spirit’s comfort. Ask God to gird up Shukar’s faith, that he would be a steadfast example for Christ in persecution.

The ministry also asks Christians to pray for the mob of extremists who killed Shukar’s son. Miller says, “We’ve seen miraculous situations where the worst persecutors that you would never expect to follow Jesus end up coming to faith in Christ because the Holy Spirit works a miracle in their hearts.”

Mission India’s Adult Literacy Classes both share the Gospel and give adult students lifelong skills to enrich their lives. “Teachers like Shukar end up praying over the students [and] discipling them. It’s so much more than education,” says Miller.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

“So a lot of times by the end of the class, graduates not only have a fifth-grade level of education, they know how to save money, they have become entrepreneurs, they know how to take care of their health, and they know who Jesus is and a lot of them choose to follow Him.”

Ask the Lord to strengthen the faith of Adult Literacy Class teachers who may face persecution. Pray they would be faithful witnesses for Jesus.

Mission India is releasing a 7-day devotional highlighting Christian persecution in India. It’s all leading up to the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church on November 3.

Sign up here for Mission India’s IDOP devotional and learn more about praying for persecuted believers like Shukar.

Representative header photo of a church in India, courtesy of Mission India.

But when Sundar’s life recently experienced a downturn, Jesus met him at rock bottom.

Regan Miller with Mission India says, “[Sundar] could not save his business. He couldn’t figure out how to turn things around, and it really affected his mental health.”

During this time, God led a Mission India church planter to connect with Sundar. The church planter shared the Gospel with him.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

“Sundar made fun of it at first,” Miller says. “But the more that Sundar heard about Jesus, something shifted in his heart, and he received Christ as a Savior!”

Sundar also shared his newfound faith with his wife and children. Although they were skeptical at first, eventually, they began attending church together as a family.

Unfortunately, it didn’t take long for Sundar to also begin facing persecution.

Miller says, “You can imagine this was a big surprise to the local community. Sundar’s parents and brothers stopped speaking to him. There were usual customers at the grocery store that they still had to come out of necessity for groceries, but they just treated him poorly because he had come to Christ.”

Currently, there is still one problem — the shrine.

Miller says, “He’s planning to remove the shrine from his yard soon. He’s making plans to remove it. He’s aware of the risk that would be involved with it and what people might think and the potential response from his neighbors.

“[Sundar] would love prayer that this goes over well, that he could even lead people to Christ in the process, and that this whole situation can move by peacefully.”

Pray for Sundar’s faith to be strengthened amid persecution. Pray for his new life and the lives of other Indian believers to be a testimony to their communities of joy following Jesus.

IDOP Devotional

Stories like this are included in Mission India’s 7-day email devotionals leading up to the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP).

Mission India’s IDOP devotional series starts October 27, and IDOP is November 3.

Sign up today for Mission India’s IDOP devotionals!

Miller says, “This year, what makes our devotional really special is that we’ve got church leaders from around the US that have each taken a day and written out that day’s devotional…. Then after each church leader’s reflection, it’s followed by a story from India about someone who was persecuted. It includes action steps you can take [and] prayer prompts.

“It’s a great way to engage and not only learn about persecution in India but learn how you can find strength in your own suffering through the stories of people in modern-day India and also back in Scripture as well.”

Header photo courtesy of Mission India.

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“I’ve been going there for a couple of decades now, and it (persecution) seems to be getting worse and worse,” Greg Musselman with The Voice of the Martyrs Canada says.

“Yet in the middle of all that, we also see how God is working. The number of Muslims coming to Jesus is overwhelming.”

Even though political and economic challenges threaten national stability, hope remains for Nigeria.

“Fuel prices tripled in just a few months. People can’t afford fuel; they can’t afford food; there have been threats of national strikes,” Musselman says.

“When there is a lot of uncertainty, people tend to be more open to the Gospel.”

(Photo courtesy of VOM Canada)

The International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church is on Sunday. We shared yesterday how believers in the United States are preparing, but U.S. churches aren’t the only ones involved in this annual awareness and intercession event.

“For those [reading this report] in Canada, [you can] find all the information” you need to participate on IDOP.ca, Musselman says.

“One of the countries we’re focusing on this year is Nigeria. It is the most dangerous place in the world in terms of the deaths of believers.”

Share these IDOP resources with your church family, and remember – we know the One who holds Nigeria in His hands.

“The number one thing that we can do is to pray,” Musselman says.

“As the Holy Spirit gets a hold of our hearts, we can practically help in whatever ways the Lord directs us.”

Header and story images courtesy of VOM Canada.

“One of the things I find most important about this day is that it wasn’t the idea of The Voice of the Martyrs. It wasn’t the idea of American Christians,” Todd Nettleton with The Voice of the Martyrs USA says.

“This is what persecuted Christians asked us to do.”

VOM USA serves persecuted Christians in the world’s most difficult and dangerous places. More about that here. It’s too late to order print resources, but you can get free sermon notes, study guides, bulletin inserts, and more by request.

Fill out the form here to download digital resources from VOM USA.

(Photo courtesy of VOM USA)

“Voice of the Martyrs has a plethora of resources for the International Day of Prayer available digitally. Share them with your pastor, whoever leads your small group, and tell him, ‘Hey, this is coming up; I want to make sure our church is involved,’” Nettleton says.

“Pastors like to hear from people in their congregation about things that are important to them. Let your pastor know this is important to you.”

Watch the IDOP 2023 video here.

Nettleton says, “The goal of the video is simply to put a name and a face on the people we’re praying for so that we can pray more knowledgeably and effectively, rather than [saying,] ‘God bless persecuted Christians,’ and we don’t know what they’re going through, who they are, or what they look like.”

It’s not too late to involve your church or small group in prayer for persecuted Christians.

“If you’re in leadership at a church, maybe you’ve already planned everything that will happen on November 5. Okay, pick November 12 [or] November 19,” Nettleton says.

“Make sure your church is praying for our persecuted family in November.”

Header and story images courtesy of The Voice of the Martyrs USA.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Mission India’s Regan Miller says, “[Raxit] had a group of believers over to his house to celebrate his son’s birthday, and a group of anti-Christian extremists just barged in loudly and were aggressive and using inappropriate language and behavior. They were just about to start pelting people with stones, and they only stopped because they saw a security camera.”

Unfortunately, it didn’t stop there.

“The police in the area actually favored the anti-Christian activists and filed a case against Raxit,” says Miller. “He’s had his church disrupted on Sundays before or just had people protest his services. But this is kind of a next-level event.”

Threats and targeting of Christians has grown more common in India over the last decade. Raxit’s story hits home for Mission India as they support local believers in ministry.

The International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP) is coming up Sunday, November 5. It’s really a key time to focus prayer for our persecuted Christian brothers and sisters as they proclaim the Gospel in extremely difficult circumstances.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Leading up to IDOP, Mission India is releasing a week-long devotional prompting prayer and support for persecuted Indian believers like Raxit and his family. The first daily emailed devotional will go out on Monday, October 30.

Sign up for Mission India’s IDOP devotional here!

You can also download a free church resource packet to get your church involved with IDOP at Mission India.

Miller says, “It’ll be a great way to show people just what’s going on with persecution in India that might not make our headlines and might not be front-of-mind very often.

“But it’ll also be something that can help people grow in their own faith. The story that we’re sharing through this devotional is one where over and over, we’ve seen people be impacted personally and convicted by the Holy Spirit in how they can grow in their own faith too.”

Finally, please pray for Raxit and his family as they deal with the fallout of this incident with local anti-Christian extremists. Ask the Lord to infuse Raxit with wisdom and confidence as he represents Christ in his community. Pray for their protection and perseverance.

Header photo courtesy of Mission India.

On Thursday, the United Christian Forum based in New Delhi reported 525 violent incidents against Indian Christians within the first eight months of 2023 — up from 505 incidents over the entirety of 2022.

Notably, the report doesn’t even include incidents from Manipur as many parts of that state are still inaccessible. Tribal Christians in Manipur are being targeted and killed by the majority Meitei ever since conflict erupted in May this year.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Regan Miller with Mission India says Christian persecution in India takes many forms. “Some people lose their lives in the worst case scenario. Other times, pastors are attacked [and] churches are burned down.

“[There are] some things we don’t think of too. Like if someone becomes a Christian, the locals might cut them off from the village water supplies so that they can’t access water. Or I’ve heard stories where someone becomes a Christian and the village leaders tell everyone not to hire that person for a job or not to allow them in the local shop to buy groceries.”

To help you learn and pray, Mission India is releasing a week-long devotional leading to the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP) on November 5.

Mission India works with and encourages Christians in India suffering for the name of Jesus.

Miller shares, “They don’t say that their prayer is for persecution to end. They say that their prayer is for courage and for the ability to keep spreading the Gospel. They’re so confident in their faith and so strong in following Jesus that it’s all worth it for them.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

“That’s what you’ll find in this devotional as we highlight the story of one of these families. I won’t give too many spoilers but it’s really amazing to see how they respond.”

Sign-ups for Mission India’s devotional are open now! Click here to sign up.

Churches can also register for Mission India’s free devotional and receive a Church Resource Pack. It includes videos, announcement slides, a bulletin insert, and the study itself.

In the meantime, pray for our persecuted Christian brothers and sisters in India. Ask the Lord to give them the courage and strength they desire to witness His love to their oppressors. Pray for softening hearts to the Gospel across India.

Header photo courtesy of Mission India.

Mission India works with believers in India to conduct Children’s Bible Clubs, Church Planter Training, and Adult Literacy Classes. They are releasing a 4-day devotional from November 3-6 for IDOP 2022.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Bartholomew* with Mission India explains, “The whole goal of this devotional is to show you the issues of persecution and how persecution is being rolled out, if you will, throughout [India] towards Christians — but also then in the midst of that, how believers in India are standing up with tremendous faith in Jesus to that persecution, and doing so in a loving and gracious way.”

Each day, those who signed up will get the next part of the 4-day devotional from Mission India sent to their email.

“Our hope…with this devotional is to educate those who may not know what goes on in India in terms of persecution, but also to give hope and encouragement [and] to showcase how God is still moving amidst this persecution.”

Many of the local believers Mission India works with have experienced persecution — sometimes severely. It can look like everything from job loss to physical attacks.

Bartholomew says, according to the annual World Watch List, “Back in 2012, India was ranked number 32 in the entire world for the most persecuted country on earth for Christians. As of today in 2022, India now ranks 10th.

“For various reasons, India has moved up that ranking, and believers in India have seen a tremendous amount of persecution just simply for who they believe in and who they worship. So because they worship Jesus, they’re being persecuted more intensely and more often than they have been in the years prior.”

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

That is why it is more important than ever to persist in prayer for our persecuted Indian brothers and sisters in Christ. Furthermore, we should be praying for those who persecute them! (Matt. 5:44)

Along with their 4-day devotional, Mission India is also releasing a new video. “It’s about reconciliation through persecution,” Bartholomew says. “What God is doing through our partners and our programs is tremendous, and it is very complex and nuanced. So as persecution is taking place, reconciliation and transformation are taking place as well.”

Your prayers really do have an impact. As Bartholomew points out, “Often, people can feel alone when they’re being persecuted…. So when they know brothers and sisters around the world are lifting them up in prayer, they may not know them or what their prayers are, but just knowing they’re being supported when they’re feeling alone is tremendous.”

Click here to sign up for Mission India’s 4-day devotional!

Then, commit to praying for persecuted Christians in India and around the world leading to IDOP this Sunday, November 6.

*Last name omitted for security.

Header photo courtesy of Mission India.

Yesterday was the annual International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP) – a time for concentrated prayer for the encouragement and perseverance of believers who are attacked because of their faith. Although IDOP 2020 is over, Frontiers USA president Bob Blincoe has some thoughts on how we can continue to meaningfully support the persecuted Church.

Frontiers USA supports Gospel outreach in the Muslim world. Blincoe says rather than pull the Church out of persecution contexts like the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), believers need to recognize that persecution is a hopeful sign that the Gospel is present in hostile regions.

(Photo courtesy of Imani Bahati via Unsplash)

“There are places in the Muslim world where the Church is not persecuted because there is no Church,” Blincoe says. “There are no churches gathered in many Muslim countries.

“Let’s keep pressing on, sending missionaries, and not be simply shocked and paralyzed because there is a persecuted Church. [Let’s] not simply feel sorry for the persecuted Church. Although our sorrow and grief are real, let us push on until the witness of the Gospel has gone to the Afghanistans of the world [and] the Pakistans of the world.”

When facing persecution, Jesus commands His followers in Matthew 5:44 to “pray for those who persecute you.”

For example, take Ronnie Smith, an American Christian who moved to Benghazi, Libya as a teacher and was killed for his faith in 2013. Ronnie went on a morning jog and was gunned down, leaving behind his wife Anita and their young son.

After Ronnie’s martyrdom, Anita bore witness to her husband’s legacy of faith.

“[Anita] was subsequently interviewed on Muslim networks all over the world, including American English language networks, expressing her forgiveness for the men who took her husband’s life,” Blincoe says.

“People had no category for what she was able to do. So God has borne witness to the love of Christ, even in the midst of her terrible loss.”

Please commit to regular prayer throughout the year for the persecuted Church. A good place to start is Frontiers’ prayer guides for both believers and non-believers in the Muslim world.

Click here for prayer guides with Frontiers!

Blincoe says, “We pray that the good news that has come to us will prevail in the Muslim world and they will be part of the free world now and part of God’s eternal Church in the life to come.”

Header photo courtesy of Amaury Gutierrez via Unsplash.

Persecution appears in the headlines more often than we’d like. “But the silver lining, or the good side, of that story is the Church is growing in hostile and restricted nations. More people are following Jesus Christ in China and Iran; even places like North Korea,” Todd Nettleton with Voice of the Martyrs USA says.

“There is more persecution, but part of the reason is there are more Christians, more potential targets for persecution.”

Long ago, Nettleton says, ministries set aside November 1 with the persecuted Church in mind. This Sunday is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP).

“This is a response to what our brothers and sisters ask of us, but it’s also a response to what Scripture calls us to do,” Nettleton says. In Hebrews 13:3, the unidentified author instructs believers to “remember those who are in prison.” Paul writes extensively about the Body of Christ in 1 Corinthians 12.

“We’re all connected; we’re all part of the same body. This is what [persecuted Christians] asked us to do to help and support them.”

Use these resources to get your church involved. Wondering what happens when people pray for persecuted Christians? Ask Petr Jasek.

Every day is IDOP

Dedicating an entire day to the persecuted Church is undoubtedly right. However, persecution is a year-round reality. Shouldn’t our prayers go beyond November 1?

“Persecution happens every day. There are Christians who need our prayers every day,” Nettleton agrees.

“We hope this (IDOP) leads people into a habit and a pattern of prayer for our brothers and sisters who suffer for the Gospel.”

(Photo courtesy of VOM USA via Facebook)

Incorporate prayer for the persecuted into your daily routine. Start by receiving MNN’s daily emails; you can sign up here. Each report includes prayer points to guide your intercession. You can also use VOM’s Global Prayer Guide to pray for entire nations.

This Sunday, please remember persecuted believers in your prayers. Use the buttons below to tell others about the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.

“Pray that the Lord will supernaturally let [persecuted Christians] know they are not forgotten; they are being prayed for,” Nettleton asks.

“Pray for the persecutors that somehow, someway, God will break through their hearts, and they will come to know Christ as well.”

Header image courtesy of Voice of the Martyrs USA.