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2.22.2005

Persecuted Church Prayers - Feb. 22, 2005

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by Aaron

This is something I did over at my blog. I posted the weekly prayer request list from VOM. I will be posting that here from now on. If you want to see some of the older prayer request look on the sidebar of TWD.

Prayers for February 22, 2005 from The Voice of the Martyrs

CHINA (ASSIST News Service)
Ms. Liu Xianzhi, 34, a member of the South China Chuch, told a press conference about her experiences of torture, sexual abuse and arbitrary imprisonment by Chinese police, experiences that still continue to haunt her. She escaped from China last month after serving her sentence in a labor camp, making Christmas lights and rugs. In 2001, police arrested Ms. Liu and tortured her into falsely testifying that the pastor of the South China Church, Gong Shengliang, raped her. She is one of 8,903 members of the South China Church whom police have arrested for their religious beliefs, including Pastor Gong, who is serving a life sentence in prison based on multiple confessions obtained through torture.
Pray God will strengthen Liu, take away her painful memories, and bring His peace and healing into her heart. Pray those still in prison will remain strong in their faith and have opportunities to share with those who have never heard of Jesus. Pray Liu's witness at the press conference will bring about a change in U.S. policy toward China and her suffering will not have been in vain.

EGYPT (Compass Direct)
Shafik Saleh Shafik, a Christian director of a home for troubled Coptic girls, is being tried this week in a criminal court. He was charged with holding a 16-year-old girl against her will, beating her and attempting to rape her. He dismisses the charges as a "contrived" attempt to halt his recovery ministry among young Coptic girls who are being enticed to leave their families and convert to Islam. Shafik, 57, holds both Egyptian and American citizenship. After returning from his U.S. business four years ago, he and his wife returned to Egypt to minister among poor and disadvantaged youth in the Coptic Christian community.
Pray the fabricated evidence against Shafik will be exposed and he will be set free. Pray God will use this situation to alert Christians around the world to the lack of religious freedom in Egypt. Pray for the young girl who lied, perhaps was forced to lie, about Shafik's treatment of her.

ERITREA (Compass Direct)
Another 31 Christians have been jailed recently, making a total of 187 arrests for "illegal" Christian activities since the beginning of the year. A doctor was arrested the last week of January, and a professor of the agriculture faculty at Eritrea University was put under arrest on February 3rd, in Asmara. The next day, 14 believers were apprehended during a Bible study at the home of their pastor. On February 12th, 15 Christian women were jailed at the police station in Keren, as "a threat to national security," even though they had gathered merely for the purpose of prayer.
Pray the Holy Spirit will comfort and strengthen all Christians imprisoned in Eritrea. Pray the Lord will bring peace to the troubled minds of the families and friends of those who are suffering in prison. Pray our omnipotent Father will move in power to change the hearts of Eritrean authorities toward Christians.

INDIA (Press Trust of India)
On Sunday, February 13th, six trainee evangelists of the Believers Church were beaten up, allegedly by RSS workers in the District of Kerala. The attackers forced the evangelists to board an auto-rickshaw and roughed them up after taking them some distance. They were later admitted to a private hospital. No arrest has been made in connection with the incident.
Pray God will fill these believers with His forgiveness and love. Pray He will give them great peace, heal them quickly, and allow them to use this experience to His eternal glory. Pray Hindus will long for the God of love who wants to know them and fellowship with them.

IRAN (Compass Direct)
On February 16th, a military court sentenced Hamid Pourmand, an Assemblies of God lay pastor, to three years in prison for deceiving the armed forces about his faith. Although Pourmand, who converted from Islam to Christianity nearly 25 years ago, had documented proof that the army knew he was a Christian before he was given officer rank, the court ruled the documents were falsified. He faces automatic discharge from the army and forfeits his entire income, pension and housing for his family. His lawyer plans to appeal the case before the Supreme Court and block any efforts to try Pourmand before a Shariah (Islamic) court on charges of apostasy and proselytizing.
Pray God will work a miracle of His grace to give Pourmand supernatural peace concerning his family. Ask God to give him opportunities to witness to his faith while in prison. Pray Christians worldwide will find a way to help his wife and children. Pray God will even now prepare the hearts of the Supreme Court judges to see the truth in this situation, release Pourmand, and block any attempt to have him tried under Shariah law.

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