It started when a local Imam visited the motorbike repair shop. Nehemiah with FMI says, “Once he had done his job, this Imam refused to pay him. Because in Pakistan, Christians are being treated like dogs. I’m sorry to use this word. But literally, people use Christians like animals and dogs, like outcasted people. And he refused to pay him.”

“And he said, ‘You are living in our country. That is enough for you.’”

People from the local mosque beat the mechanic and framed him by saying he blasphemed against the Prophet Muhammed. In Pakistan, people can be accused of blasphemy and sentenced to death without any real evidence. This law often gets used against Christians for financial advantage and to get rid of them.

Nehemiah says, “When his family heard the news, they were in the tears, screaming and crying. Because they know there’s no way he can come out now.”

Targeting Christians

This isn’t happening to Christians in just a few isolated places. Lahore is the capital of Pakistan’s Punjab province and is the second largest city after Karachi. Nehemiah says, “This is just one news item we’re hearing about. There are multiple incidents like this happening in Pakistan, which are being unreported due to the control of the media by the government and military authority.”

Plus, Pakistan’s new government has a history of targeting Christians, Nehemiah says. “All the Christian colonies were burned down, and Christians were being targeted and killed. This happened during their tenure when they were in the power previously. And it’s happening again. Christian girls are being kidnapped and forcefully converted to Islam.”

Ask God to strengthen FMI partners in Pakistan.

The header photo shows the Christian mechanic in chains. (Photo courtesy of FMI)

The government hasn’t yet revealed the details of the deal. But the TLP continues to exert great influence over the government. Nehemiah with FMI says, “They have become the third-largest political party in Punjab, and the fifth-largest party in the country. They have become very, very popular across Pakistan.”

Protesting France

Nehemiah says these protests have paralyzed Pakistan, clogging up highways and streets. “The TLP has demanded that the government expel the French ambassador, endorse a boycott of French products, and, most importantly, impose strict Sharia law in Pakistan.”

The TLP has protested France due to cartoons of the Prophet Muhammed published by a French satirical magazine. Now, the French embassy has warned French people and businesses in Pakistan to leave.

Nehemiah says the TLP started in 2015, but its popularity soared in 2018 as many expressed displeasure over the Pakistani Supreme Court’s acquittal of Asia Bibi. Read more about that here.

Pakistani Christians

Nehemiah says the TLP also believes Christians should not live in Pakistan. “This is a hardcore Islamist organization. One of their core ideologies is to protect Pakistan’s blasphemy law. And when we talk about the blasphemy laws, we can’t forget Christians in Pakistan. Because they are the ones highly targeted by this law. That is the reason many Christians are leaving Pakistan.”

Pray for the safety of Pakistani Christians, including FMI partners. Ask God to turn TLP members away from violence and towards the Prince of Peace.

The header photo shows the TLP flag. (Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

Now, this movement of oppression has spread throughout hospitals in Pakistan. In Lahore, Muslim nurses and medical staff have taken over the chapel of a mental hospital. Nehemiah from FMI says, “They [are keeping] Christian staff from coming to this chapel anymore. They’ve taken over this chapel, and they started offering their Muslim prayers there. They have threatened these Christian staff, nurses, janitors, and paramedical staff, telling them to leave their jobs or embrace Islam.”

The mental hospital has a chapel because the British constructed the building in the 1800s. Today, Christian hospital staff still use it to meet and worship.

The TLP

Nehemiah says this persecution has the support of the TLP, a far-right Islamist political party. In recent weeks, the TLP has been encouraging unrest in major cities. It has become an increasingly popular party in Pakistan’s elections.

Nehemiah says, “Pray for the brothers and sisters, who are working in these hospitals. And [pray for those] not only in hospitals, but anywhere in Pakistan: the nurses, Christians, janitors, and domestic staff. Please pray for their lives, for their safety, and for their security. Pray not only for them, but for their families as well.”

Pray also for all FMI partners working in Lahore. As the TLP stirs up anti-Christian sentiment, many worry they could be targeted for arrest or even murder.

The header photo shows a protest in Pakistan in April. (Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain)

“They wanted to use sheer force to say we are now occupying this land and it is ours. It was intended to instill a lot of fear and traumatize the congregation,” Bruce Allen with FMI says.

Preparation Brought Prevention

However, this story is a double-edged sword. On one side is the heartache of persecution, but on the other is the incredible providence of a faithful God. In the last several months FMI has put security measures in place to prepare for attacks like this. Along with installing security equipment at FMI support churches, FMI also provided security training.

“We had met with the volunteers from congregations that were becoming trained to be the security detail for their churches. We met with the pastors and gave them training about evacuations and lines of communication, and prevention of attacks, and all sorts of things,” Allen says.

This training was put into action on Sunday when security detail identified attackers and prevented them from reaching the sanctuary. Allen says most of the “scuffle” happened outside of the actual church building. No damage or harm was done to either the building or the worshippers.

Corruption Against Christians

CCTV Camera Installation (Photo courtesy of FMI)

The police who responded to the church attack made commitments to investigate. They detained Pastor Asad and the church elders at the police station for six hours. Then on Monday, when the pastor returned to the police station with the FMI National Director for Pakistan, the police refused to fulfill their promise to investigate.

“It was evident that the assailants had actually paid the police a bribe to not investigate. And the police are just dragging their heels on the situation and said they refuse to investigate unless a court compels them to do so,” Allen says.

But if the case is taken to court, it is likely the judges and others on the case will be corrupt as well. Also, the church would need to hire a lawyer who is willing to represent an oppressed and marginalize minority—a difficult find in Pakistan. Furthermore, the lawyer fees could cost upwards of $5,000.

Allen says this attack does highlight a challenge Christians face in the country. Corruption is common in Pakistan and as a minority, Christians are often targeted for land-grabbing.

Defining Land-Grabbing

Allen describes land-grabbing as “theft of real estate and done by bribes, coercion, physical force, [and] forged documents.” People who land-grab sometimes gain their information from local authorities through bribes to discover what properties belong to Christians, other minorities, widows, or even a landlord who does not live in the area.

“Sometimes the land grabbers will make forged documents such as the title deed, and present them to the court as if they’re authentic, but they’re not. Then the court, especially if they see that, oh, this land, you know, Christians are using it, awards it to the Muslims. Judges are known to take bribes as well,” Allen says.

Pastor Asad was the victim of a land-grabbing attack four years ago. Land-grabbers came to his home and physically forced pastor Asad and his extended family out, rendering them homeless. Allen says when Pastor Asad went to the police, they refused to investigate or bring charges against the attackers.

Land-grabbing has been used as a way to force religious conversion. Allen says that he recently received a report that a group of mosque leaders forced about 40 Christian families to convert to Islam. The leaders had threatened to illegally confiscate their homes and even kill the families. Through conversion, the families were able to hold onto their property.

“It really is a difficult situation for Christians regarding property, whether it’s their own homes, or it’s their worship site, it’s their church. Many will say no, we don’t convert to Islam, we remain true to the gospel, and sometimes like in pastors Asad’s by sheer physical violence, he is evicted from his own premises,” Allen explains.

Faith in God, Not in Man

The Joshua Project reports 0.7 percent of the population are professing Christians. Despite having constitutional rights as citizens, Christians are often intimidated and discriminated against by the majority population

“Christians really feel like they have no recourse and no reason to rely on the government or the authorities. We’ve already seen from our own past experiences, judges being bribed, judges allow[ing] weapons in the courtroom to attack Christians,” Allen says.

(Photo courtesy of FMI)

But even with the discouragement of a country that has turned on its own people, there is a sense of something greater going on in Pakistan than what man could ever accomplish alone.

“The Christians really say, all we have left is the body of Christ, who will intercede for us before the throne of the one who is sovereign over all the nations. They really just rely on God to continue to protect them and allow them to engage in Christian activity, and worship and fellowship,” Allen says.

On the same day the attack against the church in Lahore was unfolding, Allen says he also received reports of baptisms in the country with other FMI partners. In a sense, ministry in Pakistan is a rollercoaster of intense joy and extreme heartache, and God is present and faithful through both.

Will You Pray?

Will you faithfully be the body of Christ to our brothers and sisters in Pakistan? If yes, start by praying. Pray for Pastor Asad’s wisdom, his elders, and a congregation that has been traumatized by this experience. Pray that these church leaders would remember their FMI security training and put it into practice.

“Pray for [Pastor Asad’s] personal growth and the protection of his Spirit. Remember, he’s someone himself who has experienced significant loss, he lost his home to land grabbers. Now he’s seeing it happening in one of the churches that he shepherds,” Allen asks.

Also, pray for the Lord’s sovereignty and justice in the aftermath of this church attack. Finally, pray for these Christians’ courage and perseverance following this attack.

Want to help financially support Pastor Asad’s church following Sunday’s attack? Then click here to give to FMI’s project advocacy account.

Header photo courtesy of FMI.

Drive-by Shooting

“Gunmen, on motorcycles, opened up fire on Christian worshipers as they were exiting the worship services on Sunday,” FMI’s Bruce Allen shares.

At least two Christians were killed, and three others were injured in the drive-by shooting. On Monday, funerals were held for them. The attack didn’t target any individual in particular, but the Christian congregation as a whole.

Funeral today for victims of church shooting in Quetta, with Islamic State claiming responsibility. (Photo Courtesy FMI)

Allen says it’s feasible this attack is a follow up from the recent threat of Christian genocide in the region. The threat came in the form of a note left at a crime scene earlier this month where a family of four was killed by gunmen on motorcycles. ISIS has claimed responsibility for both drive-by shootings.

However, no government or local officials have acknowledged either of these attacks. In fact, the Pakistani government has taken a stance of ignorance and refuses to acknowledge ISIS’ presence in the country. Some believe this is why the government has chosen not to acknowledge these attacks.

Failing Human Rights

Yet, the government’s actions fall in line with the contents of a recent report by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP). The report states that Pakistan continues to fail when it comes to human rights. It also indicates that attacks against minorities,  including Christians, is rising.

Frustrated, thousands of people staged protests following the shooting on Sunday. Demonstrators set up tires and lit them on fire, preventing others from passing. Then, as the evening continued, the demonstrators suddenly ended their protest. Allen says many Christians in the area fear for their lives. They feel unprotected by their government.

Arson Attack

“The second attack was arson, in Lahore, [in the Punjab province]. There are just charred remains of a church in the city, when Bibles and other contents in the church, that would have been combustible, were set ablaze in hopes of destroying the whole church,” Allen says.

Remains of the church whose contents were torched today in Lahore, Pakistan. (Photo Courtesy FMI).

This church is located in the Paracha colony of Shahdara in Lahore. Several unidentified people participated in this arson attack. Thankfully, there have been no reports of injuries. However, it’s hard to know what the future holds.

Yet, despite the attacks, Allen says God is at work in Pakistan. People are spiritually hungry and many are turning to Christ.

Just last year, FMI ministry partners in Pakistan saw 3,855 people place their faith in Jesus. God is at work in Pakistan, so let’s pray.

Pray for the Christian Pakistanis to have creativity and wisdom when engaging in ministry, and pray for their encouragement. Ask God to give them strength to persevere, and for His hand of protection to be over them.

Want to tangibly help believers in Pakistan? Then help support a church planter or pastor through FMI.

Find ways to donate or support a church planter/pastor here!

Watch video of torched Pakistani church here.

(Photo courtesy of FMI)

The attacker was part of a new Taliban faction known as the Taliban Special Group (TSG), which consists of well-trained suicide bombers. Reports say the attacker was targeting law enforcement, but FMI’s Bruce Allen says that’s not the whole story.

“What the mainstream media is not reporting is that this is the second-largest Christian colony in Pakistan where this blast occurred,” Allen says. “And while this Taliban Special Group claimed that it was targeting police, the fuller story is that they’re targeting police, or security, in Christian colonies.”

Allen says the most recent incident happened less than two miles from a gathering center for FMI-supported pastors,

“The incident took place about a mile-and-a-half from where FMI pastors in Pakistan meet on a monthly basis, where they receive their monthly financial support, where they get together for sharing prayer requests and have some ongoing training centers and things like that,” Allen says. “And they’re concerned because that’s the main and only road to get to the place where they need to monthly, and so they’re concerned about what happens for their next meeting and what sort of security would be available for them.”

Pakistan has faced numerous attacks over the past few months, including three separate bombings in late June that killed 83 civilians. Allen says the continual violence is taking a toll on believers.

“It just puts the Christians at this heightened state of alert, and they have been for some time,” Allen says. “We recall last Easter, a time of great celebration, and there’s an attack against Christians in the parks. And that’s what they live with constantly.”

Pakistan flag (Photo courtesy of FMI)

FMI supports several pastors throughout Lahore and the surrounding vicinities. Allen says he often receives messages from them asking for prayer for an end to the violence.

“You have the pastors and church planters who are ministering to those people, and it’s very wearing on them because they want to encourage people to persevere in the midst of hardship, and yet the people are crying like the children of Israel in Egypt regarding their 400 years of slavery, ‘Lord, how much longer? When will we be delivered?’

“You know, we talk about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder with people in combat,” Allen says. “Well, here you have a whole population of people who that’s what their life is: combat. And so it has psychological, spiritual, and emotional wearing. So pray for their wholeness and their ability to continue to do ministry, and not shrink back and just kind of retreat, but that they will still engage their culture.”

You can learn more about FMI’s work, as well as how you can support it financially, by clicking here.

A view of Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, Lahore, Pakistan.
(Wikipedia)

With 67 acres, Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park is one of Lahore’s largest parks. It’s a place where people with differences in class and religion can mingle comfortably. On the evening of March 27, it drew both low-income earners and those with greater means. It drew Christians celebrating Easter and Muslims enjoying the crisp evening air, in a country where 96% of the population is Muslim.

At a section of the park for children’s rides, the suicide bomber’s explosion did not discriminate, tearing apart bodies and leaving survivors devastated beyond words. At least 362 people were injured. Many of those released from local hospitals are still nursing broken bones and internal injuries.

“There are people in the hospitals who are still in critical condition,” the director of a ministry based in Lahore said. “We were told that the attack was targeting Christians, but the majority who were affected were Muslims.”

Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a splinter group of the Pakistani Taliban (Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP), took responsibility for the bombing. Jamaat-ul-Ahrar spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan said in a press statement that the suicide bomber deliberately targeted the Christian community.

“We claim responsibility for the attack on Christians as they were celebrating Easter,” Ehsan said, adding that the attack had been carried out under an operation code-named Saut Ul Raad (Sound of Lightning) that:

“will continue throughout this year…. It was part of our annual martyrdom attacks we have started this year…. We had been waiting for this occasion…. We want to convey to the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz [PML-N] and the prime minister that we have arrived in Punjab, and we will reach you.”

More than 150 Muslims are still receiving hospital care, along with about 50 Christians, including 23 who are under 20 years old, the ministry director said. About 50 of the Muslims are in critical condition, as well as 18 of the Christians–mostly children, he added.

Is anyone helping?

Many victims of terrorist attacks in Lahore, Pakistan, are still in critical condition.
(Photo, caption courtesy Christian Aid Mission)

Punjab Province officials have said they provided financial assistance to the injured at one hospital–300,000 rupees (US$2,835) to the seriously injured and half that amount to those with lesser injuries–and that assistance will be provided to the injured at other hospitals and to families of those who were killed. Promises of such aid have gone unfulfilled in the past, however, and reports have already surfaced that the financial assistance is being withdrawn.

In any event, the indigenous ministry director said hospital care is expensive in Pakistan, and that medical costs of many go beyond what the government has promised.

“There are three hospitals, and one of them is a government hospital,” he said. “At the government hospital, there are costs involved for food and special medical tests, and the other costs are covered by the hospital. The other two are private hospitals, and the families have to cover their own costs.”

Indigenous ministries lend a hand

Indigenous ministries that Christian Aid Mission assists are reaching out to injured Muslims and Muslim families who have lost loved ones. They seek to console them and help cover medical costs for victims, regardless of religion.

“We are praying that we will have an opportunity through this to build further relationships, and through this very practical expression of the love of our Lord for others, the ministry will be encouraged to love their neighbors, that many would come to know their Savior,” the director said.

Most victims of a suicide bombing on Easter Sunday in Lahore, Pakistan are unable to cover medical costs.
(Photo, caption courtesy Christian Aid Mission)

The ministries are listening to survivors as they process their grief. A Christian father of four, identified only as Daniel, told one ministry director that his 15-year-old son asked him for some money to go to the park after their Easter church service.

“His son took his three friends…to Gulshan-e-Iqbal Park, and at around 6 p.m. the terrorist attacked, and his son was hurt in his leg, back, and stomach,” the director said.

“His three friends were together during the attack. One died at the park right after the attack took place, while the other died as they reached the hospital, and the third friend is battling for his life at the hospital.”

Visiting victims in hospitals or in their homes, ministry members are counseling and praying with survivors–both Muslim and Christian, he said. They are also helping them with practical needs such as meals.

“Several people are daily wage workers, and right now they are going to work while dealing with the trauma. They need a one-time meal or meals for a month, and then we’re providing counseling to overcome the loss and trauma,” he said. “We are working with both Muslim and Christian communities. We are praying for everyone; each day we take a different pastor from a different denomination, Catholics included.”

The suicide bombing was the deadliest attack in Pakistan since the December 2014 massacre of 134 schoolchildren at a military-run academy in Peshawar.

A history of terror

Jamaat-ul-Ahrar has carried out other large attacks, and investigators have reportedly found evidence at the blast site that matches evidence from three other attacks over the past 18 months. In March of last year, two suicide attacks hit churches in Lahore’s Youhanabad area — just eight miles from the park crime scene — that left at least 17 people dead, including two policemen.

(Photo courtesy Open Doors)

The gun-and-bomb attacks on March 15, 2015 targeted Christ Church Youhanabad and St. John’s Catholic Church. At least two young suicide attackers blew themselves up — one at each church building — just when services were ending. Both attacks were foiled by Christian security volunteers, who laid down their lives to protect the 2,000 people worshiping at the two churches.

The attacks, which took place almost five minutes apart, killed 16 people, including two policemen deployed for church security, and the next day a wounded Christian died at a hospital, raising the number of dead to 17. Immediately claiming responsibility for the attacks was Jamaat-ul-Ahrar.

The director of the Lahore-based ministry said his team is assessing needs following the park attack.

“If we are able to have access to enough resources, then we would like to expand this help to Muslim and Christian families,” he said.

Click here to help victims of the Easter bombing through Christian Aid Mission.

(Photo courtesy FMI)

Over 50 Christians died on Easter Sunday when suicide bombers targeted a park. A break-away faction of the Taliban, the Jama’at-ul-Ahrar — an alleged “enemy” of the Pakistani government — quickly took credit for the attack.

According to the Institute for Conflict Management, last week’s attack was the second-worst targeting of Christians inside Pakistan.

This week, Asia Bibi — a Christian woman accused of blasphemy — has Pakistan’s government caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place.

“The national government in Pakistan, they have these protestors on one side of them demanding her execution,” explains Bruce Allen of Forgotten Missionaries International (FMI).

“They want to ‘pacify’ the radical Muslims. But, then they have the worldwide community saying, ‘What are you doing? Why would you allow that even to happen?'”

Meanwhile, Allen says things on the ground are heating to a boil.

Asia Bibi “offenses”

(Photo courtesy of Voice of the Martyrs Canada)

From the beginning, the intensity surrounding Asia Bibi’s case has garnered a high level of attention.

“Her case has been a ‘lightning rod’ regarding blasphemy law abuses. Hardline Muslims want her dead,” Allen shares.

“Only her family is allowed to see her, and her husband prepares all of her meals for her.”

As explained here, Bibi was charged with blasphemy in 2009, when defending her faith during a conversation with Muslim co-workers. The following year, Asia Bibi became the first woman in Pakistan to receive a death sentence for blasphemy.

Despite years of international outcry on her behalf and numerous appeals, Asia Bibi remains a captive of the state. Please ask the Lord to intervene on her behalf.

“Life in prison has gotten very difficult for her…. She’s been shuffled from one secure location to another.”

Asia Bibi’s life also happens to a concern for Mumtaz Qadri supporters, who swarmed Islamabad last week.

“They have a list of 10 demands,” says Allen. “One of them is the immediate implementation of Sharia law. [Another] is the execution of Asia Bibi.”

Mumtaz Qadri
(YouTube)

Qadri was executed earlier this year — a punishment set forth by Pakistani law — for assassinating his employer, Salmaan Taseer, in 2011. Formerly the governor of Punjab province, Taseer was a known supporter of Asia Bibi and a critic of Pakistan’s blasphemy laws.

It was for these two “offenses” that Qadri shot the governor multiple times. Today, “People are making him [Qadri] a martyr and a hero.

“There were a few thousand people in Islamabad for several days, marching in protest and [starting] riots.”

What YOU can do about it

Meanwhile, national pastors and church leaders supported by FMI are helping Christians in Lahore overcome the horrors of Easter Sunday.

“A day that was supposed to be one of rejoicing turned into one of mourning,” shares Allen.

“Pastors and other church leaders are dealing with their grieving communities, their churches. They’re [also] thinking about [church security]; ‘How do we deal with security issues so that people can feel free to worship?'”

(Photo courtesy FMI)

Click here to send a note of encouragement to Pakistani Christians via Facebook. Allen says the comments will be collected and shared with believers in Pakistan.

“Those words, those prayers, carry a lot of meaning because it helps people know that they are connected to the Body of Christ and they are not forgotten.”

You can also help by clicking here and contributing to FMI’s Tangible Resources fund. “I have a request right now for several cartons of Bibles; they want to use them for evangelism and discipleship.”

(Image courtesy Forgotten Missionaries International)

Pakistan (MNN) — Brutal persecution is putting Pakistan back in the headlines. At least two Pakistani Christians in Lahore were recently targeted by Muslims.

“If they identified themselves as Christians, they were attacked,” reports Bruce Allen of Forgotten Missionaries International (FMI).

Friday fires

On Friday, while on their way to the mosque, two Muslims stopped 14-year-old *Fodor in the streets and asked him what religion he followed.

When Fodor said he was a Christian, “They pursued him on their motorbikes; they threw kerosene on him and then lit him [on] fire,” Allen says.

“He was burned over 55% of his body.”

“Fodor” suffered burns on 55% of his body.
(Photo courtesy of Forgotten Missionaries International)

FMI supports national church planters and pastors as they carry the Gospel to their countrymen. The ministry’s National Director for Pakistan, *Nehemiah, informed Allen of this attack shortly after it happened.

A few hours later, when Allen was passing the news along to FMI-supporters via e-mail, Nehemiah called again: another Christian boy had been set on fire.

“We were wondering if we were going to be seeing a spate of these [attacks] over the weekend,”recalls Allen. “So I quickly alerted Mission Network News and said, ‘Can you help us get the word out to be praying for God to protect these people, who are not denying His name?'”

A prayer request went up on MNN’s Facebook page, and prayer warriors responded.

“We are so grateful for the thousands of prayers that were offered, and over the weekend, those attacks have abated,” Allen reports.

That doesn’t mean Pakistani Christians aren’t safe, though.

Pakistani persecution

No connections have been made between last month’s Youhanabad attacks and the recent burnings. But, Allen says, the attacks DO point to a rising trend.

“There has been a swelling of anti-Christian sentiment in recent weeks, especially in Lahore,” he states.

“You must embrace Islam
or be ready to be killed.”
(Photo courtesy of Forgotten Missionaries International)

“As you watch in society and you see pamphlets endorsing terrorism, you see threats against Christian schools, you see bombings against the churches: it’s just growing there, absolutely.”

Pakistani Christians can’t turn to the government for help: they’re part of the problem. Over the weekend, Nehemiah updated Allen about one of the Christian men kidnapped by police following last month’s riots.

“He just died on Saturday due to the torture his body received in the days since his arrest,” shares Allen. “The beatings were severe enough that it caused him to die.”

Although the Youhanabad mastermind has been arrested and confessed that the riots were pre-planned, dozens of Christians are still being held captive.

What can you do?

You might not live in Pakistan, but there are a few things you can do to help through FMI.

PRAY
Intercession isn’t just important — it’s a lifeline. In the Comments Section below, write your prayer for Pakistani Christians.

(Photo courtesy of Forgotten Missionaries International)

“As members of one another, as Paul says in Romans 12, we are to be upholding one another,” says Allen. “One of the best ways we can do that, even across the continents and across the miles, is to pray for one another.”

Not only have Friday’s Facebook prayers reached God’s ears, they’ve been encouraging oppressed believers, too.

“So many of the prayers that’ve been offered, we’ve been able to relay to our team in Pakistan,” Allen shares. Those Gospel workers are then able to tell their congregations, “The Body of Christ around the world is lifting them up before the throne [of God].”

Please keep praying for the safety of Pakistani Christians. Pray also for their boldness.

“The forces of evil are very strong and not subtle. It is just very overt, and the Christians need courage,” Allen says.

GIVE/GO
Traveling to Pakistan might not be possible for you, but you can help indigenous pastors and evangelists “go” instead.

An elder of a Pakistani village church. It is estimated that only about 2% of the nation’s population claim to be Christian.
(Photo, caption courtesy FMI)

For $100 per month, you can empower a national church planter with income, opportunity for on-going training, and emergency medical expenses. Your partnership helps the pastor focus on the crucial task of pioneer evangelism and discipleship, until his church matures to the point of being able to independently support him.

Learn more here.

Your financial gifts could also help FMI’s “safe house” ministry. What began as a single safe haven for persecuted Pakistani Christians has expanded to a second safe house for persecuted women, and a third safe house for “overflow.”

As oppression rises, so does the need for safety. At the hyperlink above, you can help FMI keep their safe house ministry afloat for $200/month.

* Name changed for security purposes

Pakistan is no stranger to unrest.

Pakistan (MNN) — The truth is surfacing in Pakistan.

Forgotten Missionaries International (FMI) contacts recently sent Executive International Director Bruce Allen an update concerning the twin church bombings and deadly riots in Youhanabad.

“It wasn’t the Christians who started these riots,” Allen reports. “It was, in fact, the Muslims.”

Truth revealed

According to The Daily Nawaiwaqt, a national Urdu-language news source, police have apprehended the alleged mastermind behind March’s attacks: Ghulam Hussain.

(Screenshot courtesy Forgotten Missionaries International)

“From what we understand, neither of the two suicide bombers blew themselves up,” says Allen. “Ghulam had remotes to activate [the bombs].”

Along with planning the Youhanabad church bombings, Hussain has confessed to pre-planning the burning of two Muslim men.

“He wanted to initiate clashes and riots between Christians and Muslims in order to create upheaval in society,” explains Allen. “[Police are] wondering if those two Muslim men, who were burned, were simply pawns.”

According to Nawaiwaqt, Hussain was captured on April 5. Thus far, the news of his capture hasn’t surfaced in any English-language reports.

Seeking justice

FMI’s partners in Pakistan say the Nawaiwaqt report is driving many wives and families to action.

(Photo courtesy Forgotten Missionaries International)

“Many, many families have gone to the police station with photocopies of this newspaper article and said, ‘Look! We have the confession; it’s made public now. Would you please release our relatives?” shares Allen.

Following the riots, over 100 Christian men were arrested and detained by local police and anti-terrorism forces. Many were tortured into making false confessions; some have already been indicted for crimes related to the riots.

The accused will have their cases tried in military court, thanks to a recent decision by the Interior Minister.

For those who are innocent yet still detained in an unknown location, a murky future awaits. Will you surround these men and their families in prayer?

“The Christians are still [asking], ‘How can we get justice?'” Allen says.

“In the meantime, this man [Hussain] who’s confessed to his involvement [in the bombings and riots] is being held in a police safe house.”

Hope for tomorrow

This situation creates an abundance of frustration, but FMI-supported Gospel workers aren’t letting it stop them. Later this month, FMI and their partners will be hosting a 4-day conference for pastors and their families.

“It’s going to be a very dynamic conference,” Allen notes. “We have sessions coming up that are focused on continuing the development of communication skills [and] how to live as a minority in a pluralistic society.”

Two Pakistani Muslim-Background Believers (MBBs) will be speaking at the conference, sharing outreach strategies and insights.

“They’ll be sharing their own testimonies and how to effectively engage the Majority population,” says Allen.

(Photo courtesy of Forgotten Missionaries International)

There will also be sessions specifically geared toward pastors’ wives and children.

“A pastor’s whole family is really involved in this ministry of church planting and evangelism,” Allen says. “They’re on the frontlines [too], and they need encouragement.”

Can you help make it happen?

“We’re looking to raise scholarships for the families to attend this conference,” says Allen. “Scholarships are $100 apiece.”

Get involved by clicking here and selecting “Education and Training” from the drop-down menu.