South Korea (MNN) -- What began as an activity restriction in South Korea is turning into an assault on religious freedom. In early June, police stopped Voice of the Martyrs Korea from sending Bibles across the border to North Korea. Today, the ministry and its co-founder, Eric Foley, face criminal investigations. One began this week, and the first evaluation shows no misconduct. Ask the Lord to sustain Foley and VOM Korea. Pray justice will prevail as the investigations continue.

Kenya (MNN) -- Efforts to control the spread of COVID-19 have closed public spaces around the world. That’s causing unexpected problems in Kenya, where farmers rely heavily on markets to sell their goods. Without money coming in from market day, they’ve resorted to selling young girls into human trafficking and forced marriages. Pray for Kenyan families facing dire moral and economic crises. Ask God to bring hope and safety to girls trapped in these human trafficking rings.

Iran (MNN) -- In the middle of a pandemic, many Christians have only been able to communicate via digital means. Now, a new law in Iran may prevent believers from even that contact. Any religion, counseling, or teaching that contradicts Islam in any way could be labeled as criminal. Unfortunately, even local Iranians don’t always know these laws are being enacted. Pray that Iranian officials will make less exclusive decisions, and pray that the body of Christ would stay informed about the reality of persecution.

Turkey (MNN) -- Religious freedom is fading in Turkey. One of the world’s oldest churches, the Hagia Sophia, currently functions as a museum in Istanbul. President Erdogan wants it to be converted into a mosque. Turkey’s highest court was supposed to announce its decision a few days ago. Instead, the court delayed until July 17th. Middle East Concern’s Daniel Hoffman says at the local level, criminals have targeted churches more than once in recent weeks. Pray for strength as believers continue Gospel work in Turkey.

China (MNN) — Early Rain Covenant Church is an underground church in China, but one that had been getting very active online. They caught the attention of the Chinese government, who raided the church in 2018. One of the elders, Qin Defu is still being held in prison. So why is this Church such a threat to the Communist Party? Greg Musselman of Voice of the Martyrs Canada says, “Really what the government is looking to do is if you were Chinese, you'd go along with the communist government, their ideology, the church, and Christianity is often seen as Western. But it's also seen as being not conforming along to Chinese culture. So, the fact that the churches are in existence and have grown by, you know, millions, that is probably the greatest revival in all history.” Musselman cites studies saying there could be as many as 200 million Christians in China by the year 2030. Again, [with] COVID-19, we've seen how this has been used all over the church, whether it's North Korea, Iran, Pakistan, India, and you know, even in China. Christians, because they're not followers of the state ideology, they're being withheld food and aid.” Pray for Christians suffering in China, that they would know they are not alone, and that Christ would comfort them.