Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body. Hebrews 13:3
We live in a blessed nation, one where we are free to worship God and meet together as a church community. Even though we have had many restrictions lately due to the pandemic, we have it pretty easy compared to other countries.
Many countries, especially Middle Eastern, Northern African, and Asian countries, do not have the same freedom we have to worship and meet together. They face persecution above and beyond anything that we can imagine. Christians in these areas are truly called to risk their very lives to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to follow Him.
Recently I received a map from Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) urging us to pray for persecuted nations. I was amazed at how many were considered restricted or hostile towards Christianity. We live such a sheltered life that we can’t even imagine the atrocities some followers of Christ face. A map hangs in my bedroom to remind me of just how lucky I am to live in the United States with freedom to worship as I please.
Just to give you some insight, the map shows 35 countries that are restricted to Christianity. VOM defines restricted as including countries where government-sanctioned circumstances or anti-Christian laws lead to Christians being harassed, imprisoned, killed or deprived of possessions or liberties because of their witness. This also includes countries where government policy or practice prevents Christians from obtaining Bibles or other Christian literature. In addition to government persecution, Christians may also experience persecution from family, community members, and extremist groups.
An additional 12 countries are considered hostile towards Christianity. This includes nations or large areas of nations where national governments attempt to provide protection for Christian population, but Christians are routinely persecuted by family, community members and extremist groups because of their witness.
Why should this be important to you?
Jesus commanded us to “go and make disciples in ALL nations” (Matthew 28:19). Some of us are called to physically go to these nations, and some of us are called to support people who go to these nations. How do we support people who go to these nations? We give to missions.
After God gave Moses the Ten Commandments, the Israelites were given additional instructions. One of these instructions involved widows and orphans. God said, “Do not take advantage of the widow or the fatherless. If you do and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry. My anger will be aroused” (Exodus 22:22-24). Widows and orphans hold a special place in God’s heart.
We would like to introduce you to two Missions that support widows and orphans in areas that are prone to violence towards Christianity. One mission is located in Kenya, an area hostile to Christianity. The other nation is located in Pakistan, an area restricted to Christianity. We have been supporting both missions and have been in constant contact with the administrators of these orphanages, praying for them, and providing financial support as needed.
Nyatara Children’s Orphanage is located in Kenya. The orphanage was started in October 2017 after severe ethnical wars were brought about by political differences. Dozens of people lost their lives due to political instability. These political wars led to many people and poor orphans fleeing to the church for safety. The members felt pity for these kids and gave them shelter. The goals of the orphanage are to shape the way these children live their lives and teach them the fundamentals of social responsibility, healthy living and cultural acceptance. This orphanage is ran by Pastor Alex Magara and Rebecca Magara.
Joy of Heaven Ministries is located in Pakistan. This ministry helps support orphans and widows in the area. This ministry is ran by Pastor Yasaya Masih. Due to the crippling effects of extreme poverty and disease in Pakistan, millions of children are orphaned, often falling victim to human trafficking or forced labor. According to a Unicef report, Pakistan is home to 4.2 million orphaned children. The current adoption process in Pakistan discourages the taking in of orphans, who are left to the mercy of the state, or private charities. Joy of Heaven Ministries is one of the private charities that supports these orphaned children providing them with food and other necessary supplies. Joy of Heaven Ministries also gives support to widows providing them with necessary supplies and teaching. They share the love of Jesus with the children in a country that restricts the preaching of the gospel.
I have provided links at the bottom of this blog so you can personally see what each mission does and meet the pastors who run these organizations. You can also meet the children that you will help support.
Giving isn’t always easy for us, but God tells us to put Him to the test. He tells us, “Bring the whole tithe (our giving to the church or to missions) into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it” (Malachi 3:10).
God doesn’t need our money. He’s God and He has everything He needs. But God wants us to give to others so He can bless us and pour out the floodgates of heaven. Our money goes to helping those who cannot always help themselves and to helping those missionaries who provide services and teaching to restricted and hostile areas.
Would you like to receive the blessings of heaven? Consider supporting a mission and see what God will do in your life.
If you would like to donate to either ministry, click on the links below to go to their page on our website and click donate. If you would rather send your donation to us to send to them on your behalf, please send donations for Joy of Heaven Ministries to paypal.me/antoniomoreno5454. Donations for Nyatara Children’s Orphanage can be sent to paypal.me/amwhitwk76. We will forward your donations to each Mission.
We will keep you updated on each mission and how your contributions have affected the lives of the widows and orphans.
To the people in China who visit our website regularly, know that we see you and we pray for you. We know how very dangerous it is for you to follow Christ and meet together. If there is anything we can do to support you or your church family, please reach out to us at tonyontheborder@gmail.com. We love you and are thinking about you.
Tony on the Border 