1/6/2022   Bangladesh   (VOM) After worshiping peacefully together in a tin hut for more than 10 years, a church of more than 20 families from the Chakma people group recently began constructing a church building in their village. Shortly after construction began, a mostly-Buddhist organization known as the Underground Army destroyed the church building’s windows and threatened to torture or kill the men of the church, who fled into the jungle for several weeks. Frightened, the women and children of the church lived together in one home for safety. Eventually, the Underground Army found the women and beat them with canes. The militant Buddhists then looted the believers’ empty homes, stealing their crops and livestock. For their safety, the Christian children have not attended school since the initial attack.   Please pray … Pray for the families to remain strong in their faith despite the pain they’ve endured and the uncertainty they face. Pray that the Buddhists will witness the gospel in the lives of those they are persecuting and repent. Pray for the completion of the church building’s construction.

10/7/2021   Bangladesh   (VOM) Believers in a particular community in Bangladesh are requesting prayer after assailants destroyed their homes and attacked the women in the community in the last week. During previous attacks, the men from the village had fled, and the assailants did not bother the women and children. This time, however, the attackers targeted the women, and many were injured. The assailants then called Christian leaders in the region and threatened to kill them if they visited the community again. Afterward, the army arrested village leaders, but they were not able to identify the attackers. The victims are now being housed in a temporary place and are living in great fear.   Please pray … Pray that God will calm the victims’ hearts with his supernatural peace. Pray that their attackers will be found and will receive justice. Pray that the Christian leaders in the area will have wisdom regarding how to continue their ministry there.

7/8/2021   Bangladesh   (VOM) After Mannan left Islam to follow Jesus Christ, area Islamic leaders called for villagers to ostracize his relatives, even telling local vendors to deny them food. As animosity toward Mannan and his relatives grew, the Islamic leaders and angry Muslim villagers called for police to arrest him and his relatives, falsely accusing them of causing trouble. As a result, village police called Mannan, his relatives, and the Islamic leaders to the police station. In front of about 100 villagers, the police called for peace and coexistence, and worked to calm tensions. The police official said there were no grounds for an arrest to be made and stated that Bangladeshi law allows for freedom of religion.   Please pray … Praise God for the police officers, who prioritized peace and religious freedom. Pray for Mannan to remain firm in Christ and for his relatives to decide to follow Jesus as well. Pray that the hearts of the Islamic leaders and villagers will be softened, and that they turn toward Jesus for forgiveness, salvation and everlasting life.

6/3/2021  Bangladesh  (VOM) On April 13, several Christians were worshipping God and having fellowship when some Muslim men blamed them for disturbing their fast on the first day of Ramadan. An angry mob of Muslims soon formed and started beating the four Christian men with sticks and stoning them. The four brothers in Christ suffered head wounds, and their lives are still in danger.   Please pray … Pray for these men to have courage as they heal from the attack, and pray for them to grow bold as they continue to follow Jesus. Pray for the attackers to find salvation through Christ as they seek God during Ramadan. Pray that the Lord Jesus will appear to them in dreams and visions. Pray for the church in Bangladesh — that the Lord would strengthen them and help them to live as His lights in the darkness.

8/9/2018  Bangladesh  (VOM) Thirty families turned back to Islam after facing intense community pressure, said local church planter Sujen, who became a believer through a Bible correspondence course several years ago. After becoming convinced Jesus was the Way, the Truth and the Life, he began gradually sharing with others in his community. Though his parents rejected him, Sujen went on to lead all his brothers and their spouses to Christ. Over time, he baptized almost 100 families in four villages.  Last year, a wealthy Muslim patron hired a thug to go around intimidating the new Christians. Several lost their jobs, and those who had small businesses lost all their customers. Eventually, a group of 30 families were taken to the mosque and asked to reconvert to Islam, and they gave in.   Please pray … Pray for the families who have turned back to Islam, that they will see the error of their decision and turn back to Jesus. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s work in their life and community. Pray that Sujen will not become discouraged as he continues to be a witness for Jesus in his community.

2/15/18  Bangladesh  (VOM) After focusing on an unreached area for the past 11 months, an evangelist has seen hundreds of Muslims come to faith in Christ. As a result, some have experienced persecution. A young married couple took shelter in a VOM-supported safe house for several months when they were kicked out of their family because of their Christian faith. After receiving training in how to study the Bible and how to live every day with Jesus, they moved out of the safe house and are now supporting themselves. Since January 2017, the safe house has served 65 persecuted believers. Let’ pray… Pray for those still in the safe house as well as for those who have moved on after receiving instruction there. Praise God for all those coming to know Christ through the work of this evangelist. Pray that the Lord would protect the evangelist and use him to lead many more Muslims to Christ.

11/30/17  Bangladesh (VOM) Imam Fedu, a Muslim scholar and teacher in Bangladesh, recently placed his faith in Christ after receiving a Christian tract and hearing the gospel from a Christian worker. “Jesus is the Savior,” Fedu said. He immediately resigned from his Muslim work and made plans to be baptized. “In Scripture, Nicodemus was a big Jewish scholar, but he didn’t know how to be born again,” the Christian worker said. “It is the same with my friend. When I came back home, Fedu called and he had already led another imam to Christ, and that he gave him a New Testament.” Fedu hopes the other imams who served with him at the mosque will all come to know the truth of Jesus. Let’ pray… Pray for the bold Christian worker who is sharing the gospel with Muslim scholars. Pray that Fedu will grow in faith and that God will use him to reach other imams, who will then share the gospel with many Muslims.

2/21/2017 Bangladesh (Asia News) An inter-religious dialogue took place at St. Michael’s Church, Chalna parish where 65 representatives of the Christian, Hindu, and Muslim faiths met together to discuss religious tolerance. They pointed out that misunderstandings and religious differences often bring about conflict, so they all need to know each other better to restore peace and harmony. One Muslim leader vowed to protect Christians and Hindus from persecution as they have often been the target of attacks because they are religious minorities in a dominantly Muslim culture. Let’ pray… Pray that more people in areas prone to persecution would be willing to restore peace among different faith groups. Pray that the government of Bangladesh will recognize the need for protection of religious minorities in the country. Pray for those who face persecution in Bangladesh; pray that they would not walk away from the faith.

11/13/2016 Bangladesh (Asia News) A clash took place in Bangladesh’s northwestern region between police and a small tribal group (the Santal), who are also Christians, due to a land dispute. Some consider this attack to have been “premeditated” as local police and Muslims tried to take the Santal Christians’ land away from them. A couple deaths and several injuries resulted from this clash, and the police have arrest warrants for 300 Santal Christians. Christians now fear leaving their homes, expecting that further retaliation will take place. Let’s pray… Pray that the Santal Christians will be able to stay in their homes and claim their rightful land. Pray that further retaliation would not be brought against the Santal people. Pray for the Santal people to remain firm in their faith during this time.