1. Uzbekistan: Student Prays for Teacher Who Threatened Her

Ruth and her family have been through many years of struggle. People in their town make fun of them for their faith in Christ. “Please pray for me,” Ruth wrote in a 2008 e-mail to a VOM worker. “At school the teacher asked me to tell about the ancient Greek gods. I said, ‘There are no gods. There is only one God.’

“The teacher said to me, ‘Be quiet. And quit telling your fairy tales at school or I will take you to the principal and you will be expelled.’”

Ruth’s e-mail continued, “I feel sorry for the teacher. She is a good person, but she does not know that Jesus loves her. She has her own children. I wish I could tell them stories from the Bible. Please pray for my teacher.”

2. Eritrea: Students Protest

High school students in Eritrea are required to spend time working for the military. Rules at the military camps say that students cannot read the Bible, pray at meals, or talk about their faith. People who break the rules may be punished harshly.

Yet many bold Christian students brought Bibles to one of the camps in 2008. Officials gathered all the Bibles and set them on fire. But eight of the Christians refused to be silent. They objected to the burning of the Bibles. Authorities locked up the eight protesting students in metal shipping containers.

3. Bangladesh: Safe From Threats

Mamota lives at a hidden camp. Christians who are at risk of persecution stay at the camp. They live in dorms, go to school, and worship together. Mamota helps with chores at the camp, and she likes to jump rope for fun. Here is what she told a worker from The Voice of the Martyrs in 2008:

“I was born in 1992. I have three sisters and one brother. My father is an evangelist. He preaches the gospel to Muslims. Many Muslims do not want to hear the Good News about Jesus. They try to stop my dad from preaching. They threaten him to make him afraid so he will stop his work.

“One thing the Muslims said to him is that they could take me and marry me off to a Muslim boy and my father would never see me again. So my father brought me to this camp to live safely and to study. Here I am learning more about Jesus each day.”

4. ID Card Hassles

Dina is a 14-year-old Christian who lives in Egypt. “She loves Jesus so much,” said her father, Peter.  When Dina is 16, she will be required to get an official ID card like other youth in Egypt. The card will tell her religion. Dina’s card will say she is a Muslim, unless her father can get their cards changed.

Peter was born a Muslim, so his ID card says “Muslim” on it. Peter went to court to try to change his card after he became a Christian. Few Christians in Egypt have tried to change their cards. Those who try to leave Islam are often persecuted in Egypt and other Muslim countries.

The children of Muslims are considered Muslims even if they become Christians. Dina has been forced to take classes on Islam at school like Muslim students have to do. It will be difficult for her to marry a Christian someday if she is officially a Muslim. Dina and Peter hope Christians will pray for them while they continue their fight in court.
(Sources include: Compass Direct and Daily News Egypt)

5. North Korea: College Kids Share Secret DVDs

Anyone caught reading, selling, or passing out Bibles in North Korea can go to jail. Christians smuggled Bibles and Christian DVDs in sacks of flour shipped to North Korea. Students at a college watched the DVDs, read the Bibles, and shared them with friends. Ten students were arrested, just for seeking the truth about Jesus.

6. India: VBS Interrupted

About 60 children attended a three-day Vacation Bible School in India’s state of Karnataka. As the children worshipped, 35 Hindu radicals forced their way into the VBS hut. The invaders chanted Hindu slogans as they tore up the hut. They accused the pastor of “forcing” Hindu children to become Christians.

The radicals chased the children and damaged Bibles. The Christians did not complain to the police. They were afraid that the Hindus and the police might cause them worse trouble if they complained.

7. Blessing and Goodness

Blessing Justine is 13 years old. She lives at the Stephen Center in Nigeria. The Stephen Center helps children who need a place to live and a school to go to. Blessing Justine came to the center six years ago. But she was not happy there. She tried to go to the police station to ask the police to take her home. Blessing said, “I was a little girl and I cried all day and said, ‘Take me back home!’”

The kind Christians at the Stephen Center helped Blessing Justine learn to like her new home. The other children helped her, too. They understood her feelings. Like Blessing Justine, many of them have no father. They were left fatherless after radical Muslim rioters attacked their Christian neighbors. The Voice of the Martyrs started the Stephen Center to help these children.

Blessing is a good student. She would like to be a veterinarian someday. But she has not forgotten what it is like to be new and scared. Now Blessing is helping a younger student, 5-year-old Goodness Akalonu. She helps Goodness get used to life at the Stephen Center. Blessing said, “She likes to be talked to with a soft voice. She is a quiet and gentle girl, and she is brilliant.” Blessing calls Goodness her “school daughter.” When Goodness gets older, maybe she will help a younger student.

8. United States: Student Stopped from Sharing Scripture

Fifteen-year-old Stephen C. of New Jersey traveled to China with his grandfather in 2008 during the Olympics. But they didn’t go to the Olympics. Instead, they and two others in their group carried Bibles into the country to share with Christians. China’s government prints Bibles, but there aren’t enough for all the Christians there.

Stephen carried about 100 Bibles in his suitcase. The Bibles never got to the Chinese Christians. Airport officials stopped Stephen’s group and refused to let them take the Bibles out of the airport. They took Stephen and the others into a room and questioned them. The Americans stayed in the airport for more than 20 hours. They left after they found out about a 2007 law that says visitors may bring only one Bible into China. The Word of God tells Christians to share the gospel with people in all nations (Matthew 28:19, 20).

Stephen hopes to be a professional skateboarding photographer someday. He would also like to visit other countries in the service of the Lord. He says the trip to China helped him grow spiritually, and he recommends that other kids go on missions trips. “It helps you see things differently,” Stephen said.

9. Indonesia: Kids of Courage Help a Friend

In 2003, radical Muslims attacked four Christian villages in Indonesia. Masked men shot guns into the home of 7-year-old Hagasi and her family. A bullet shattered Hegasi’s left knee.

Hegasi has had several operations to repair her leg. Faithful Christian kids have helped her through her struggles. They sat by her bedside while she recovered from her surgeries. Sometimes they carried her outside so she could see the birds and the sky. The time they spent with her helped her get better.

Today Hegasi walks with special shoes that add inches to her shortened leg. “I surrender all to the Lord Jesus who provides all we need in life,” said Hegasi in 2008. She is thankful that the Lord even provided loyal friends to help her.

10. China: Bold Christian Families

The 2008 Olympics began on August 8 in Beijing, China. On August 10, Faan Yeen’s father, Hua Huiqi, was arrested on his way to church.  On the same day, President Bush was in China visiting the church. According to Chinese Christians, ordinary Christians were not allowed at the church that day. Most of the people in the congregation were security officers, political workers, and people trained to pose as believers.

Faan Yeen is 12 years old. Her family has been bothered by the government many times before because they stand up for Jesus and for their rights as Chinese Christians. In 2002, their house was torn down to prepare for the Olympics.  In 2007, Faan Yeen’s dad and grandmother were arrested and jailed. The police wanted Mr. Hua to help them spy on Chinese house church Christians. During the arrest, Faan Yeen’s grandmother held up her walking cane to protect herself. Her cane accidentally struck a police car. She was charged with “damaging public and private property.” Mr. Hua was released, but the police kept Faan Yeen’s grandmother in jail.

Faan Yeen no longer lives with her parents. The government has kept them from having a permanent home. Her parents do not know if she would be safe with them. A bold Christian family is taking care of her.

To protect their identities, the names of some of the people on this site and some identifying details have been changed. Some of the quotes and stories have been edited and paraphrased from the original sources for clarity.