Afghanistan - Urgent prayer request

 Afghanistan. Urgent prayer request for believers in Afghanistan. Update * "Taliban going door to door seeking Christians"

"A person who works with house church networks in Afghanistan reports its leaders received letters last night from the #Taliban warning them that they know where they are and what they are doing. The leaders say they aren't going anywhere. So it begins." (Mindy Belz, tweet)

Voice of the persecuted (15 August, 2021): "Urgent prayer request for believers in Afghanistan."

https://voiceofthepersecuted.wordpress.com/

"Almighty God, no one is hidden from Your sight. In Jesus Holy name, may these dear ones be held in Your mighty hand protected and given the strength to endure this great trial. Let your glory be their light and as You guide them. Have mercy on the Afghan people, the children who are terrified. Hear their cries Lord God and reveal Yourself to these people. May they come to know You and the greatness of Your Love. Transform the hearts and minds of all those with wicked plans of oppression, death, destruction. Glory to You, forever and ever."

Voice of the persecuted 10 August, 2021 "Praying for the nation and believers in Afghanistan"

 "Facts and hope" (full text in the link)

https://voiceofthepersecuted.wordpress.com/2021/08/10/praying-for-the-nation-and-believers-in-afghanistan/

"Thoughts of Afghanistan bring images of war, violence, and terror. In the face of decades of suffering, it can be easy to forget the many people who live this reality day after day. Seventy-seven people groups, both tribal and nomadic, dot the beautiful Afghan countryside. This diversity is also shown in landscapes that vary from grassy and arid mountainous regions, to plains with lush valleys, and even cities like Kabul with bustling open air markets. Though their history is plagued by instability, the unique culture of Afghanistan continues to thrive. --- "The Afghan people have suffered greatly from over thirty years of conflict both from internal factions and external groups. A devastating civil war, followed by the oppressive rule of the Taliban, an extremist Islamic group, has created a society where over half the population has known nothing but war. --- Under the oppressive Taliban reign (1996-2001), girls were often forced to marry as children, could not receive an education or be employed, were required to wear a full burqa in public, and could not leave the house unless accompanied by a male chaperone. --- One of the least reached nations on earth, Afghanistan is 99.9% Muslim with 72 unreached people groups. There are roughly 48,000 mosques and zero church buildings. Afghanistan is one of the world’s most persecuted nations, where any belief contrary to Islam is illegal." 

Hope: 

"Though impossible to document, it is undeniable that the Church is growing, and Muslims are turning to Christ. Some have encountered Jesus in dreams and visions; others have heard the Gospel through Christian radio. Christian relief agencies also manifest the love of God through meeting the nation’s immense physical needs. Some of these humanitarian workers have even died as martyrs. But amid great persecution, there are perhaps several thousand believers in Afghanistan today!"

See Prayercast video (3:41 in the link) 

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Sat7.org: "Praying for Afghanistan as fighting intensifies" (11 August, 2021) Full text in link: 

https://sat7.org/pray-for-afghanistan-as-fighting-intensifies/

"The Shia Hazara ethnic minority in Afghanistan have also been the target of many atrocities by militants, including the Taliban. The Hazara are also the community that has seen the largest number of Afghans turning to Christ, including those who watch SAT-7’s Persian and Dari programs. Worryingly, SAT-7 has heard stories of Hazara being stopped to see if they have any evidence of being Christians on their phones.  

Pastor Shoaib Ebadi, who presents one of SAT-7’s weekly Dari-language programs for Afghans, says that Afghanistan’s Shia Hazara minority has already faced a “genocide” by Taliban and Islamic State jihadists. The 16 May 2021 bombing of Sayed Ul-Shuhada High School in Kabul and the horrific shootings at Dasht-e-barchi maternity clinic on 12 May 2020 were two of the worst attacks on the Hazara community. "

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DW (Daily wire): "Taliban going door to door seeking Christians, searching through phones for Bible apps: Report" (full text)

https://www.dailywire.com/news/taliban-going-door-to-door-seeking-christians-searching-through-phones-for-bible-apps-report

"The Taliban are going door-to-door taking women and children. The people must mark their house with an “X” if they have a girl over 12 years old, so that the Taliban can take them. If they find a young girl and the house was not marked they will execute the entire family. If a married woman 25 years or older has been found, the Taliban promptly kill her husband, do whatever they want to her, and then sell her as a sex slave. --- Taliban are also reportedly rifling through people’s phones to look for any apps that would give them away as Christians."

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Psalm 13 (ESV) "How long, O Lord..." 

"Afghanistan remains the second highest country on the World Watch List, and persecution is only very slightly less oppressive than in North Korea." (Open doors)