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Fifteen Years in Prison

Published on May 23rd, 2019

Fifteen years ago today, at 5:00 in the morning on May 23, 2004, police in Eritrea arrested Dr. Kiflu Gebremeskel and Mr. Haile Nayzgi. The men, who were leaders in their Christian churches, did not belong to any of the Eritrean government’s approved religion groups. Eritrea imprisons hundreds of people because of their religious beliefs.

Dr. Gebremeskel and Mr. Nayzgi have been in prison for 5,480 days. In the past, Dr. Gebremeskel earned a degree in mathematics from the University of Chicago. He has a wife and four children.

Dr. Gebremeskel

Mr. Nayzgi used to be an accountant. After his wife was warned that she might also be arrested, she and their four children escaped to a safer country. In a message smuggled out of Eritrea, Mr. Nayzgi thanked The Voice of the Martyrs for helping his family. He is happy that they are safe.

Mr. Nayzgi

Visit prisoneralert.com to learn more about these courageous Christians and to find out how to send messages of encouragement to Dr. Gebremeskel and Mr. Nayzgi.

To learn more about Christians in Eritrea, download Bold Believers in Eritrea from the Downloads section.

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Six Additional Torchlighter Resources and Features

Published on May 22nd, 2019

Have you enjoyed the stories about Christian heroes on the Torchlighter DVDs? Get the most out of your DVD collection with the Torchlighter supplementary resources and features below.
(Source: Torchlighters.org)

1. Documentaries
The 30-minute animated Torchlighter episodes share the main parts of each faith hero’s story, but there’s so much more to tell! Torchlighter documentaries are intended to equip adults to answer questions kids might have, but once their interest is piqued, many children also enjoy the documentaries. Livestream the documentaries here.

2. Leader’s Guides
Free Bible-based lesson plans help teachers and parents make the most of the Torchlighter videos. The lessons begin with a Scripture focus, then weave together the elements and tools to make lesson planning easy. The guides include ice-breakers, applications, and everything in between. Find them in the Downloads section or on Torchlighters Curriculum Page.

3. Student’s Guides
Torchlighter student’s guides coordinate with the leader’s guides, but can also be used independently by kids. The guides feature puzzles, crafts, thought-provoking questions, coloring-pages and more. Find them in the Downloads section or on Torchlighters Curriculum Page.

4. Spanish Language Tracks
All Torchlighter episodes come with a professional Spanish language track. Many are translated into additional languages as well, with more to come. The producer of the Torchlighters is from Costa Rica, and many of the episodes are hand drawn in a studio there.

5. Subtitles
Torchlighter DVDs include subtitles in both Spanish and English, allowing you to use them in multiple ministry settings. Native speakers are cast for in-country roles as often as possible, which means some characters have accents that may be difficult to understand on the first viewing. Subtitles make it easier.

6. Quizzes, Puzzles, and Coloring Pages
Find online quizzes and activities on the “Heroes” pages on Torchlighters.org.

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A Lesson from The Story of St. Patrick

Published on May 20th, 2019

Katherine P., a homeschool mom, blogger, and co-op teacher in Virginia, recently sent this comment to Kids of Courage about the books in the Courageous Series.

“I teach a class of 5-7 year olds every week, and every time I’ve brought out these books, I’ve asked, ‘Are they going to be able to handle this?’ And every time, they have such a beautiful response to these stories. So… I will continue to spread the word and teach them.”

Katherine has developed lesson plans based on some of the books in the series. “Friends, I want my kiddos to learn to do hard things,” Katherine wrote in her plan. “As a Christian, I pray for a revival of the gospel in our land, I truly do. But at the moment, it looks like Christians and all that we believe are increasingly being made fun of, mocked, and rejected. This is the world our children are growing up in. They’re going to face the darkness soon enough, why not show it to them early, and let them hear of these heroes of the faith who faced the darkness head on with Christ, and triumphed victoriously. And I will tell you – they can handle it. They really can.”

To Talk About
Part of Katherine’s lesson plan about The Story of St. Patrick  included the following comments and questions to share with kids.

*Patrick grew up in a Christian family that loved Jesus. But even though Patrick’s parents loved Jesus, Patrick hadn’t discovered Jesus for himself yet. Your parents take care of you and tell you about Jesus, but one day, you are going to have to decide for yourself, “Am I going to follow Jesus even when mom and dad aren’t around?

*Well, Patrick basically ignored God and didn’t think much about Him. Until something really bad happened. His choice: Just because you have a Christian family, doesn’t make you a Christian. At some point YOU must choose on your own to become a Christian. This is what Patrick did when he was alone on the island.

Share Your Ideas
Click on “Contact Us” at the bottom of this page to send your ideas about sharing The Voice of the Martyrs/Kids of Courage resources with children.

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Kids of Courage VBS

Published on May 17th, 2019

Parents and Teachers

The Kids of Courage VBS connects your students to other young Christians around the world. The curriculum introduces students to real Kids of Courage at risk for their faith today in five countries: China, Egypt, Nigeria, North Korea, and India. Students learn how bold believers around the world live, worship, and play.

The lessons teach children how to pray for those who risk everything for their faith, and how to become Kids of Courage themselves. They learn that Kids of Courage: Trust God, Get Prepared, Remember Persecuted Christians, Forgive Others, and Witness Boldly.

For more information and feedback from VBS directors, visit kidsofcouragevbs.com. The curriculum is also appropriate for Sunday schools, homeschool co-ops, and other kids’ groups.

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Pakistan: Christian Girl Kidnapped

Published on May 16th, 2019

Pakistani girl

Thirteen-year-old Sadaf lives in Pakistan. Her Christian family recently made a video about her. But the video does not tell about a happy family celebration or vacation. It is a plea for help.

A few months ago, three Muslim men kidnapped Sadaf. Her family was able to contact the kidnappers and tell them they wanted their daughter back. The kidnappers said they would return Sadaf to them.

But eight days later, instead of giving Sadaf back to her family, the men gave them a marriage certificate. The certificate falsely said that Sadaf was 18 years old. It said she had converted to Islam, the religion of Muslims, and that she had married a Muslim man.

Christians say that hundreds of girls in Pakistan are kidnapped every year and forced to change their religion and marry Muslims. Sadaf’s family has requested help from the police, and they made a video about her situation in an effort to pressure the authorities to act. But so far the police have ignored their requests.

Read below three prayer requests for Sadaf and her family.

*Ask the Lord to directly intervene to ensure the release of Sadaf and other captives, either through His miraculous hand or through the work of the local authorities. Pray that Sadaf’s case will be taken seriously and that she and her family will be looked upon with compassion.
*Ask the Lord to comfort, protect, and strengthen Sadaf and her family during this very difficult time.
*Pray that the Lord will bring change to the hearts of the captors to bring true repentance.

(Source: VOM Australia)

Read more about Christians in Pakistan in the book Bold Believers in Pakistan, available in the Downloads section.

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