All week I planned to write about Grandparents Day — for the grandkids out there, it’s Sept. 13 — but I can’t let go of the horrifying news out of Nigeria. Check out these stories to understand the full extent.
The information itself is not breaking news, but that fact makes it even more heartbreaking to me.
It’s been happening for years, and I’m not sure we completely grasp the reality of it.
More than 12,000 Christians have been killed in the last five years in Nigeria alone — 1,200 of those during the first half of this year.
While Christians in the United States experience various religious liberty violations and criticism in some cases, we know nothing of the types of unspeakable tragedies Christians in many other parts of the world suffer day in and day out.
True persecution is happening in places like North Korea, Afghanistan, Somalia and Libya as well as Nigeria.
Nigeria is No. 12 on Open Doors’ 2020 World Watch List, and look what’s taking place. It’s not even in the top 10.
Organizations like Open Doors USA and Voice of the Martyrs work to keep us updated on what is happening around the world and provide suggestions for how we can help and pray for persecuted Christians.
We at TAB Media also regularly report on persecution taking place around the world in our Persecuted Church column found here.
While the information comes in the form of a news report, we do hope you are taking the knowledge to another level and using it as a guide for prayer.
Our brothers and sisters around the world need us lifting them up daily. The leaders we hear from typically ask for prayer for wisdom, strength, peace and assurance they are not alone. They never ask for harm to be done to those persecuting them.
They want to shine for Jesus amid the horrible darkness surrounding them. They understand the only true solution is to win the blind to Christ.
Still, no one should have to live in such intensely difficult circumstances.
Is it possible to stop the bloodshed once and for all? Probably not totally because of the evil that will always exist in this world, but an act of solidarity by believers around the globe would go a long way in making a noticeable difference.
Religious freedom advocates say religious news outlets like TAB Media are really the only ones reporting on what one researcher called “an emergency.”
I’m not sure why that is the case, but instead of spending time trying to figure out the why, what if we look for ways we can help stop the slaughter?
Maybe it means a phone call to your U.S. representative or senator to discuss what efforts are in place to help. Maybe it means chatting with your local newspaper editor to ask if he or she would consider coverage on persecution in other countries. Let the editor know TAB Media is glad to share our content.
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