Reports from the ground in Afghanistan: Please join us in prayer!
Even before the recent takeover by the Taliban, the 2021 Open Doors World Watch List ranked Afghanistan the second most dangerous country in which to live the Christian faith, behind only North Korea.
According to its Annual Report, “It is impossible to live openly as a Christian in Afghanistan. Leaving Islam is considered shameful, and Christian converts face dire consequences if their new faith is discovered. Either they have to flee the country or they will be killed.”
“Now that the Taliban is in power, the vulnerability of secret believers increases tenfold,” points out Brother Samuel*, Open Doors Field Director for Asia. “We are monitoring the situation, but this is the time for us to ask God to have mercy not only on His people, but on this country as a whole.”
He calls on Christians worldwide to pray for “the small group of believers in the country, the displaced, the women and the sick, and also pray that the country will not be a haven for extremists.”
Bibles for Mideast has established several underground churches in Afghanistan, but at this writing at least, Pastor Paul has heard precious little from or about them. He did hear from the pastor of one of our churches in northeastern Afghanistan, who reported that he and his people “are not yet safe, but hiding in a small room with all of our families, fasting and praying.” He then told a remarkable story about another pastor and congregation in another Bibles for Mideast church in the suburbs of Kabul. They were all together in a room, praying, when the Holy Spirit suddenly prophesied through a believer to flee immediately. Carrying only their bibles, the people fled. Within the hour, Taliban militants surrounded the place where they had been, destroying it as well as surrounding houses. While we don’t know where they fled to, we do understand they are safe.
“We have no information on any of our other churches,” Pastor Paul says.
Thanks to the work of our ministry and others, there are more Christians in Afghanistan than there were 20 years ago. With the Taliban back in control, Todd Nettleton, Chief of Media Relations for The Voice of the Martyrs, predicts the persecution will be worse simply because of those numbers.
Mikael Tunér, who grew up in Afghanistan, is a producer with a satellite TV mission ministry called Media Mission the Messengers He shared what he is hearing from contacts on the ground in areas under Taliban control.
“Our friends, our brothers and sisters in Christ, are telling us how afraid they are that their lives will be snuffed out. We are seeing the same things as before in the areas that the Taliban now control,” Tunér says. ”Girls are not allowed to go to school, women are not allowed to leave their homes without a male companion.”
Furthermore, he reports, some Christians who worked for the government now face reprisals. Many, we are also hearing, are being stopped and searched for evidence of being Christians on their phones.
We have posted several pieces on the work of Bibles for Mideast in Afghanistan, each an amazing story of God’s goodness, guidance and protection in the midst of repression, oppression and often terror. All were posted before the Taliban’s recent regaining control after 20 years of existing and continuing to operate more in the shadows. In case you missed them and/or need some encouragement, you can find them here:
With the Taliban back in control, fear reigns in the hearts of many. So we must first of all pray for the reign of the King of Peace in people’s hearts. As so many wonder, seek direction, seek help, let us pray that they will find their Answer in Jesus.
Please pray for Afghanistan and its people
Pray for all those impacted by the violence and those seeking a means of escaping the country.
Pray against the violence and the oppression of Christians, ethnic minorities and women, who all fear being singled out and targeted.
Pray for hope, mercy, justice, and healing in Afghanistan.
“Many have come to Christ from all ethnicities across Afghanistan. Please pray over the coming weeks that Jesus, Prince of Peace, will rule in many hearts.” – Mikael Tunér
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*Name changed for security reasons