Prayer needed for Christian worker caught in turmoil

(Cover image courtesy @vynguyenhoang via Twitter)

Egypt (MNN) ― Is there more than meets the eye in Egypt?

Ephesians 6:12 says, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."

Reports of chaos and violence seem to stream regularly from this Arab Spring nation. Aimed first at the government, frustrations now seem to have found a new target: Egyptian Christians.

Rody Rodeheaver with IN Network USA says there's more under the surface.

"Right now, there is a battle going on," Rodeheaver states. "It may not be a physical battle, but it's a spiritual battle, and it's a political battle for who's going to control the country of Egypt."

One of IN Network's workers is smack-dab in the middle of things, with Muslim Brotherhood literally around every corner.

"He is deeply concerned about the chaos and where all of this is going to lead," says Rodeheaver.

"He's seeing this whole thing through the eyes of an evangelical Christian who's doing ministry…and he is Egyptian. It is his country, and it is his future."

The worker, whose name we're withholding for security reasons, sees both sides of the political coin. He understands why it was important for the military to step in, Rodeheaver explains.

"However, he also realizes that when that happens, the cycle of reconstructing the country is really starting over," adds Rodeheaver.

IN Network's worker and his family, along with fellow believers throughout Egypt, are caught between a rock and a hard place. Unrest is causing the need for ministry to grow.

Rodeheaver gives IN Network's ministry to street kids as an example. As chaos grows, he says, more people are unable to care for their children. Either abandoned or forced out, many kids find themselves on the streets; this is where IN Network workers focus on bringing a message of hope and new life through Christ.

But venturing into the streets right now could put a Christian's life at-risk.

"You can't travel very far in your neighborhood without being stopped at a Muslim Brotherhood checkpoint," Rodeheaver says. "There's great danger in that.

"If they discover that you're really a Christian, and if the right people are at that checkpoint, it could [become] very dangerous."

The ripple effect is restricting many aspects of ministry. A conference for young leaders was supposed to start this week.

"We're having to postpone it because people can't get around the city," Rodeheaver says. "People can't come in from other cities because the train service is being disrupted.

"All of those kinds of things make it hard to do ministry."

In the face of great needs come pronounced opportunities to respond.

"This [need] demonstrates that we, as the Church of Christ, are really connected through the Spirit and the movement of God," states Rodeheaver.

"We have the call to pray, the call to stand with our brothers and sisters in Christ. It could be just encouragement. It could be sending some funds to really help the ministry."

"God has His people there, and we need to pray a hedge of protection around them. This is critical," Rodeheaver adds.

"Over and over again, we see how limited we are in terms of being able to control the situation. We can't control it, and it really takes us--forces us--back to our knees."

Escalating violence could threaten progress

Cover & story image courtesy of
 Vision Beyond Borders.

Burma (MNN) ― Violence could threaten so-called "progress" in Burma. The country is under a state of emergency following rising unrest between majority Buddhists and minority Muslims in central Burma.

"It's just continual upheaval for the people over there, and there's little protection for them from their government," says Dyann Romeijn of Vision Beyond Borders (VBB).

At least 20 people have been killed and more than 6,000 driven from their homes in Meikhtila, Burma. The conflict began Wednesday after a disagreement between a Muslim business owner and Buddhist customers quickly turned into a rampage.

Mobs are setting fire to mosques, homes, an Islamic religious school, and many businesses as thousands of minority Muslims take to the streets in fear. About a third of Meikhtila's 100,000 residents reportedly follow Islam, and before the violence started there were some 17 mosques in the city.

Concern grows as the scene begins looking more and more like last summer's violence in the Rakhine state. Sectarian violence between the Buddhist Rakhine people and the predominantly-Muslim Rohingya killed hundreds and displaced around 100,000 people.

When asked if the Meikhtila unrest could develop into a similar situation, Romeijn replies, "Absolutely. That's always possible in Burma. There have been over 2 million displaced over the last 25 years-30 years of the civil unrest."

Over the course of his presidency, Thein Sein has ushered in a series of reforms to move the country toward democracy. But in trying to change the face of Burma, Sein continues to face challenge after challenge. Along with the current unrest in Meikhtila, there's been an upsurge in fighting between the Burmese military and the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO).

Romeijn says that in recent days, "There were 2 churches that were burned to the ground in Kachin state, and there's been a lot of violence against the Christians."

Around 90% of the ethnic Kachin people are Christ-followers.

"Pray that that will have an influence on the Muslims, and the Buddhists, and the Animists, and those around them--that they will see the light of Jesus in the Kachin," requests Romeijn.

VBB works with partners on the ground in Burma to help refugees and orphans. You can help provide food, clothing, medicine, and the love of Christ by clicking here.

"Through all of the conflict and the genocide...it leaves a lot of orphans in that country, and so there's a lot of work to be done," Romeijn says.

Ask God to protect His people in Burma. Pray they would shine the light of Christ as they endure dark and troubled times.

"What the enemy means for harm, God can turn for good. Pray for protection for the people and that God would use that to reach many more," Romeijn asks.

Tensions serve to unite the Body of Christ in Egypt

Egypt (MNN) ― There's been an uptick in tensions between Egypt's Muslims and Christ-followers.

The alleged conversion of a 36-year old Muslim teacher lies at the heart of recent unrest. She's been missing for several days and was reportedly seen outside a church in southern Egypt with a Christian friend.

When police used force against hundreds of Muslims trying to overtake the church last week, the crowds pushed back - resulting in over 10 injured officials.

While the divide dates back to biblical times, Egypt's Christians and Muslims have been increasingly at-odds since Mubarak fell from power two years ago. National instability adds another layer of anxiety.

"Things are going down and there's no real vision, and the people in Egypt are very angry. It's very bad," says Mike*, a representative ofIN Network in Egypt. He says many Egyptians who voted for Morsi this summer have now turned against him.

"[Morsi] gave a big promise, and said that he had a great plan to change things in Egypt to move the economy and…he gave many promises," Mike says. "But now it's about 6 months since he took over and the people find out that he didn't have a plan.

"He's not qualified to lead the country, and there's no stability. The people are depressed and it's a big disaster."

How's it affecting the Church?

"Because of the pressure and because they are not sure about the future, there is a spirit of prayer arising in all the churches," he explains. He says it's also serving to bring churches into a new spirit of unity.

"The churches are going to a new season," says Mike. "We've never experienced this before, so we need to train the leaders of the churches."

That's exactly what IN Network is doing: equipping pastors to reach an ever-changing Egypt. For three to five days, hundreds of church leaders are equipped with training and the skills they need to reach their communities for Christ.

Mike says they also put a curriculum together for Sunday School teachers who work with kids between the ages of 4 and 11.

"Many families are very poor, are not able to take care of their kids," explains Mike. "So we train Sunday School teachers how to reach the children, how to help poor children and even how to support some of their needs."

The training is given free to church leaders, but it costs IN Network approximately $15 per attendant to provide this type of resource. President of IN Network USA Rody Rodenhaver says they hope to raise $5000 to cover their training needs for the next two years.

Can you help? Click here .

"Egypt is a very important country, and whatever happens in Egypt, it affects the whole Arab world," says Mike, "so please pray for wisdom to the leaders, pray for stability in the government, and pray for resources, so the people do not suffer more than this."

Syrian Forces Massing for Another Crackdown

Syria protests continue.
 (Photos by Zeinab Mohamed)

Syria (MNN) ― Sectarian violence is on the rise throughout Syria, a troubling addition to the tension-filled uprising.

The European Union is considering new sanctions to try to quell the brutality. However, over the weekend, the government massed troops for an apparent assault on a Sunni town near the Iraqi border.

  

The looming confrontation follows a bloody Friday in which Syrian security forces opened fire on large protests around the country. E3 Partners spokesman Tom Doyle says the latest threat of violence has disillusioned many Syrians. "They're seeing Muslims killing Muslims, and some of the Muslims are reaching out to believers saying, ‘We don't see this anger and hatred with you. We need your prayers. Can you talk to us?‘ And in some cases, Muslims have prayed to receive Christ."

Passions are high, and that can mean trouble for believers caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. "We do know of some Christians that have escaped from situations where there were riots against the government, and all of a sudden, the Christians were targeted." With a sectarian split between the government's Alawites and Sunnis and ethnic Kurdish protesters as one possible outcome, Gospel work has seen a slowdown. "[Christians] just are kind of staying low, at this point, to stay out of the fray. Even though this is against the government, it could easily turn on them at a moment's notice like it has in some other cities."

Many of E3's partners in the region have nowhere to go to escape from the upheaval. Doyle explains that "it's virtually all over Syria. We're hearing from national leaders [that] it's everywhere. They're in it. They're trying to be smart and careful, but yet they can't really go anywhere to escape from it. And so they are just praying that God uses them in the midst of the uncertainty and the violence."

There's also concern for the future of the Christian Community should President Bashar al-Assad's government fall from power. Dolye says, "There's no way to predict if this dictator was removed, who would be the next one...would he be any better, would he be any worse?" Already, believers have noted the involvement of Islamists like the Muslim Brotherhood.

Given this scenario, Syria's 1.4 million Christians could be facing the same position as Iraq's annihilated Christian community. Doyle asks us to "pray for the believers in Syria in above-ground churches and house churches and parachurch ministries that are there trying to bring Jesus in to this very dangerous and chaotic place."

Because Syria has been stable and calm for 30 years, the last four months have turned everything upside-down for believers. Doyle urges other Christians to "[pray] that they would remain bold during this time, filled with Christ's love and sharing wherever they go. In times of uncertainty, there's a high receptivity rate to the Gospel."