Last week CNN ran a story about Christians being tortured in the Sinai. It stated that Bedouin tribes are conducting human trafficking trade on a massive scale and they are focused on Christians. It hardly seems possible that as I sit here is a fine air conditioned office; my brothers and sisters in Christ are literally being tortured around the world and even killed for their faith.

To update myself on the facts, I took a look at the website called Voice of the Martyrs.This ministry was started in 1967 by Richard Wurmbrand. He was imprisoned for 14 years in Communist Romania for his faith in Christ. Years ago, I read his book Tortured for Christ and it had a significant impact on my early years as a Christian. (It has been updated and would still be a great read today.)

VOM (Voice of Martyrs) is a vibrant ministry that has five main purposes. They want to encourage and empower Christians to fulfill the Great Commission. They provide practical relief for the families of martyrs. They want to equip persecuted Christians to love and win the world to Christ. They have all kinds of projects that help believers rebuild their lives. And finally, they want to help inform the world of the faith and courage of these persecuted Christians. This is a great organization.

Groups like VOM can help you and I stay informed and involved in loving and helping our persecuted brothers and sisters. We dare not just reside in our safe ivory towers and ignore the plight of thousands of pastors, church leaders, and ordinary families around the world who are suffering because of their faith.

Hebrews 13:3 states: “Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.”

This week might be a great opportunity to refresh your awareness of the persecuted church. There are any number of websites that can provide you with prayer lists, current information, projects to accomplish, activities to join and ways to be a practical blessing. You might look at www.persecution.org, or www.opendoorsusa.org, or www.christianfreedom.org or www.onewiththem.com. (I do not have firsthand experience with all of these groups, but it appears that they can help keep the sheltered church aware of the persecuted church.)

A few weeks ago, a Catholic Archbishop addressed the United Nations Human Rights Council and reported that 100,000 Christians die violently every year for their faith. Those stats do not include the rape, torture, and kidnapping of believers, nor the massive destruction of their places of worship.

This is a topic that deserves all our attention.

By His Grace and for His Glory,
Sherry L. Worel