1/25/2024　Egypt　(VOM) Pastor Maged was planting a church in a rural area of Egypt when his family came under severe persecution. They fled many times, and everywhere they went they were opposed. Eventually, they were forced to live underground, but that place had raw sewage seeping into their basement living quarters. After some time, they moved to another Arab nation where Pastor Maged is now active in church leadership. Pastor Maged is asking prayer for his wife and newborn child, who has serious medical needs.   Please pray… Pray that the Lord will heal Pastor Maged’s child and provide the funds needed to pay for any medical treatment that might be needed. Pray that the Lord will bless the ministry that Pastor Maged is now involved in. Pray that the Lord will provide for all his family’s material and financial needs.  

4/18/2022   Egypt   (Morning Star News) The Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Alexandria has declared a priest who was stabbed to death on April 7 a martyr, while Egypt’s most influential Islamic institution condemned the attack. Archbishop Arsanious Wadid, 56, had been distributing Ramadan gifts to passers-by with a group of youths from the church prior to being stabbed three times in the neck with a knife. The assailant was caught and taken to the police station where he was pronounced “mentally unstable,” a common assertion after attacks on Christians in Egypt. The assailant confessed to intentionally killing the victim, but later changed his confession claiming that he was not aware of what he was doing on the day of the incident until he was arrested.   Please pray… Pray that this attack will result in other “copycat” attacks of Christians in Egypt. Thankfully, Islamic leaders in Egypt condemned the attack. Pray that the Lord will comfort Archbishop Wadid’s family members and church members. Pray that Egypt’s Christians will remain faithful despite being a persecuted minority.  

10/15/2020  Egypt  (VOM) Egypt has a small Christian population, and life is not easy for Muslims who choose to convert to Christianity. John, a committed hardliner Muslim, came to faith in 2014 after studying the Bible in order to convince Christian friends to convert to Islam. His wife, Malika, also became a Christian after observing his changed life for three years. John knew how his family felt about converts: one cousin who came to Christ died after being thrown from a fourth-floor apartment, and another was imprisoned in a psychiatric hospital. When his family realized John had become a Christian, they imprisoned and tortured him for four months before John escaped. Each time John has found a job over the past three years, his family has followed him and had him fired. About a year ago, his wife and daughters were home alone when family members burst through the door, beat Malika and abducted their two girls. They intended to kill both husband and wife. Christian friends intervened, however, and the family is now safely living with other believers, though they still suffer trauma from the attack.   Please pray… Pray that John and Maliki will remain faithful and be able to raise their two children in the Christian faith. Pray that […]

10/8/2020  Egypt  (ICC) On October 5, a group of extremists attacked the homes of Coptic Christians in the Egyptian village of Dabous. The mob attack followed an incident at a neighboring village’s wedding. Two young Muslim adults bullied and beat a 10-year-old Coptic Christian child after the wedding, and some Christian adults subsequently confronted the two attackers. The confrontation became violent and resulted in the Muslim men being injured. One of the Muslim individuals involved in this incident retaliated by beating a Coptic man and his son with a hose and in the end all the Muslims gathered to beat the Copts, injuring five or six Christians. The situation in Dabous remains tense, and the outcome uncertain. The village is located within an area heavily populated by Christians, and community-based violence toward them by Islamic extremists is common.   Please pray… Pray that those injured in this attack would heal quickly and that tempers on both sides of the conflict will cool down. Pray that the Christians will be able to show the love of Jesus to their persecutors. Pray that the Christians will be able to live and worship freely.

7/30/2020  Egypt  (VOM) A young man was beaten, held captive and later disinherited after becoming interested in Christianity. Ahmed was 16 when he found a scrap of paper on his bus seat that said, “The Lord Jesus has chosen you for Him.” This piqued his curiosity and he began to seek Jesus. When his family found Christian books in his room, they beat him and brought in an imam to try to change his mind. Later, they decided to send him to Saudi Arabia, where his father owned a factory. There he was imprisoned in a small room for seven years before his family allowed him to return to Egypt and then forced him to marry a cousin. In Egypt, Ahmed was able to access Christian media on the Internet, and his faith grew. His family cut him off and disowned him so he would not inherit his father’s business. Last year, Ahmed started a small restaurant business to support himself, but when the neighbors found out he was a Christian, they burned it down.   Please pray… Pray that Ahmed will be protected and blessed by the Lord Jesus in the midst of this persecution, and that the Lord will provide for his needs. Pray that he will grow in […]

11/20/2019  Egypt  (Morning Star News) A Coptic Christian is in critical condition after he, his mother and brother were stabbed in Egypt by a Muslim neighbor because they were sitting outside their home. He first shouted at them to go back in, saying no Christians were allowed outside, and when they refused, he went home, came back with a knife, and attacked the family. The adult son in critical condition at a hospital’s Intensive Care Unit with several wounds to the stomach. His mother and younger brother were stabbed in the head and face. Security forces have reportedly arrested the suspect and are questioning witnesses.   Please pray… Pray that the Lord will heal Shinoda Aziz, his mother and his younger brother physically and emotionally. Pray that the police will deal appropriately with the attacker and not release him on bail. Pray for the other Christians in the village to be filled with the Lord’s peace and love.  

10/3/2019  Egypt  (ICC) On September 25, 2019, an Egyptian Christian man, Maged Fathi, died after being beaten by at least six Muslims. His neighbor, who witnessed the incident, said that it all started when Maged’s son accidentally dropped a dead chicken in front of their neighbor’s house. The Muslim neighbor came outside, and hit the boy on his face with the dead chicken. Maged came outside when he heard his son crying, and he has hit on the head with a cudgel and stabbed with a knife by his neighbor. As they were beating Maged, some Christians began to gather in the street, and they were then attacked by Muslims who had also gathered, injuring five. Maged leaves behind three sons and two daughters. The family has asked the police to hold the attackers accountable.   Please pray… Pray that Lord will comfort Maged’s family and provide for their material needs. Pray that the Lord will heal and comfort Maged’s son’s heart Pray that the police will deal with this case properly, and that the murderer will not be set free. Pray that the Christians in this village will show the love of Jesus to their Muslim neighbors despite this tragic incident.  

1/22/2019  Egypt  (ICC) A Coptic Christian man traveling on a microbus in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula was kidnapped by Islamic militants on January 18. Abeed Nakhla Yassa was traveling to the city of al-Arish, his home city, which he originally left in 2017 after Islamists killed seven Christians in a span of three weeks. According to his nephew, Abeed was traveling back to al-Arish in order to follow up on a personal business matter. Christians in Egypt have been under severe persecution for several years. Buses are often attacked or stopped to search for Christians, who are killed or kidnapped.   Please pray… Pray for the Lord to protect Abeed while his is in the hands of his captors. Pray for Abeed’s release, and that the Lord will comfort his family at this time. Pray for those responsible for this kidnapping, that the Lord will convict them of their sin and show them that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  

11/15/2018  Egypt  (ICC) On November 11, an intruder entered a church in Cairo and injured two Christians while shouting “Allah is great.” The 22-year-old man was arrested by the police, but the authorities are saying that he did it because he is mentally ill and a drug user. Many Christians are worried that the police are covering up the attack as a religiously motivated attack by someone who is not actually mentally ill. The incident occurred just over a week after a deadly attack on Christians traveling to a monastery that killed 7 people.   Please pray… Pray that the Lord will fill the Christians in Egypt with His peace, and that they will remain faithful in the midst of regular and often severe persecution. Pray that the Lord will comfort and strengthen those who have lost loved ones to Islamic terrorism. Pray that the government of Egypt will do more to protect its Christian citizens from terrorist attacks.  

7/25/18 Egypt  (WWM) Seven years ago, security officials closed a church in the community of Kom el-Loufy, citing security reasons. This week, the church was finally able to hold its first church service in seven years. The Christian community had to withdraw their compliant against arson, which was committed by local Islamic extremists, in order to get permission to open the church.   Please pray … Pray for protection for this community of believers as they face threats from the surrounding Muslim community. Pray for opportunities for this church to reach out into their community and share the love of Christ. Pray for God to bless the members of this church as they endure persecution.