'Brazen' attacks continue in Egypt

Christian Aid Mission supports Gospel work in Egypt.

Egypt (MNN) ― The sounds of firing guns and the accompanying shouts and screams have become commonplace background noise for a ministry leader and his wife supported by Christian Aid Mission.

"We just dream of peace and a stable situation, but each day is worse than the day before," reports the leader. "People die each day in our blood-covered streets. We try to distract our children from the noise of gunshots that constantly ring out."

Though they, along with their missionary coworkers, have been spared from harm thus far, they live and work with the idea that every day could be their last.

"They want to get rid of us Christians in any way possible. Maybe tomorrow they will burn our home, or kidnap, or attack us."

Throughout the horror that has unfolded since the election of the Muslim Brotherhood and the new Islamist-backed constitution in December 2012, the ministry leader has provided glimpses into his world, turned completely upside-down.

Brittany Tedesco, Africa Director of Christian Aid, your link to indigenous missions, says attacks against Christians are unprecedented. "They're very brazen. We're talking women being raped in broad daylight, men being attacked, or the homes of Christians being ransacked. And really, they have no recourse."

Tedesco says even the police, who work for the Muslim Brotherhood, are part of the persecution effort against believers. Often it is the victim of an attack who is arrested.

As part of the Islamic regime's radical control of Egypt, nearly all independent media outlets have been shut down, and concerted efforts are being made to essentially dispose of the judiciary system.

As their country darkens, tens of thousands of Egyptian Christians have fled the nation. Yet the ministry leader and his co-workers are determined to remain, taking every opportunity to share Christ with the hurting and confused masses.

Attending the frequent political gatherings and protests in Egypt's public squares, the missionaries start conversations and distribute gospel literature. They have successfully attracted university students to the discipleship and missions training sessions they hold two to three times per year, depending upon financial resources.
In addition, the ministry's evangelical parties have proven highly effective in attracting Copts (nominal Orthodox Christians) to hear the true gospel message.

Beginning as an outreach to Muslims and Copts in 2005, the ministry has continued to expand its outreach with help from Christian Aid. To date, these native missionaries have led more than a thousand Egyptians to Christ, taking care to provide solid discipleship to new believers. Dozens of home churches have formed each year since the ministry's inception due to the consistent effort of these gospel workers to build God's kingdom in Egypt.

Prayer requests:
• Pray for protection for the ministry workers and their families.
• Pray for wisdom, guidance, and increased opportunities for the workers to share Christ with the lost in Egypt.
• Pray for financial resources to cover the increasing costs of personal and ministry expenses in a country suffering from rampant inflation.

Christian Aid Mission has a missionary sponsorship program. Tadesco says, "Sponsorships start at $50 a month. To get behind them financially would just be a huge encouragement to their work."

Stakes raised in religious hostility

International (MNN) ― 75% of the world’s population lives in countries and/or societies with religious hostility, according to a report last year from The Pew Research Center.

That number is up from 70% the year before.

Of the five specific religions cited in the study, Christians were ranked with the highest number of nations harassing them.

However, Tom Elliff, President of the International Mission Board, says persecution of Christians will not dampen the Gospel. “That’s what persecution proves in a country. There are those who totally abandon the faith, and then there are those to whom the Gospel IS them. It is their life. It is their salvation. They understand it is only Christ, and only in Him is there eternal life.”

Although there is more hostility to the Gospel, there is also a greater need for people to hear the name of Christ.

“The world’s population is not declining. It is growing,” says Elliff. “It took until 1804 to reach the first billion [people] in our history, and now we have 7 billion on this globe. It’s not just that they’re being born, but they are dying at 2 [people] per second. That means an entire city disappears from this globe every 24 hours.... These are people who, for the most part, do not know Christ, and many of them right now--1.27 billion of these people--could die without ever hearing the name of Jesus.”

Elliff says in a world’s growing opposition to the Christians, the Church’s response will be defined. “Does that mean we’re going to pull in our dollar, go back home and say, ‘Well, let’s find the 25% of the [world’s population] that are friendly to us?' Or are we going to find creative ways like global strategic mobilization? Are we going to find creative ways to share the Gospel with people who are in this dark, broken world?”

For the IMB, creatively mobilizing the Gospel last year resulted in almost 30,000 churches planted and hundreds of thousands coming to know Christ.

Get involved with IMB missions or give to support their work.