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Rocks in Church and a New Roof

Published on March 29th, 2012

Pebbles

A team of Christians recently traveled to a country where Christians are not always treated well by the government or by non-Christians. A report from the team said:

“At one church we visited, they did not have a roof. The neighbors would go up on their taller building and throw rocks into the church. The rocks hit the Christians during their worship services. The team of visitors bought metal for a roof, and the church had a new roof the next day!”

“It is incredible to see how much they appreciate such small things we take for granted!” the report said.

(Sources—Story: Vision Beyond Borders / Photo: Steve Shattuck, Flickr.com)

To Think About: Would you keep coming to church if rocks were falling on you during the service?

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Iranian Dress Code

Published on March 29th, 2012

IranIranian Girls

Young children in Iran often dress in the same kinds of clothes worn by children in America. Older girls wear clothes that cover them up more.

Some girls and women wear chadors. “A chador is like a tent,” said Ruth, an Iranian teenager. “It’s usually black. It covers a girl from head to toe. Some of them cover their mouth and part of their nose, too.”

Girls sometimes wear long, loose coats with slacks and scarves instead of chadors. Morals police check to see that girls and women are well-covered. “Once my cousins were taken by the police and whipped because their hair was showing,” said Ruth.

Last summer, the morals police took thousands of women and girls to police stations for not having on clothes that covered them well enough. Many who were arrested were under 15 years of age.

Please pray for Iranian girls who will have to wear long, hot clothing this summer.

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Countries in the News

Published on March 28th, 2012

China

Xinjiang, China: Did you know that millions of Muslims live in China? Xinjiang [SHIN-jyang] is in western China. About 8 to 10 milliong Uygurs [WEE-gurs] live there, and most of them are Muslims. A few days ago, police raided a house church in Xinjiang and took away more than 70 Christians.

Learn more about Christians in Xinjiang in the book Bold Believers Among the Uygurs, free in the Downloads section of this site.

Uzbekistan: Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia. (Do some research to find out what “doubly landlocked” means.) Police are raiding house churches in Uzbekistan, too. Open Doors has named Uzbekistan one of the top ten countries on its World Watch List of persecuting countries.

Learn more about Christians in Uzbekistan in the book Bold Believers in Uzbekistan, free in the Downloads section of this site.

Turkey: A U.S. commission is recommending that Turkey be named a “country of particular concern.” Turkey does not have religious freedom for non-Muslims, the commission says.

Learn more about Christians in Turkey in the book Bold Believers in Turkey, free in the Downloads section of this site.

Pray for Xinjiang, Uzbekistan, and Turkey.

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Anong

Published on March 27th, 2012

LaosMother and child in Laos

The Voice of the Martyrs recently learned about a Christian school teacher in a communist country who is standing for the truth in a difficult situation. The teacher, Anong, takes care of her elderly parents with the money she earns at her job. She also pays for her younger brother to attend college. At her church, she teaches children and youth.

Anong was pleased when the principal at her school told her that he wanted to give her a raise. He said that the government would also pay for her to get more education.

But then she learned that the government expected something from her in return. Officials said she must stop being a Christian! If she did, she would receive their rewards. If she did not give up her faith, she would lose her job and get nothing. “I will not deny Jesus,” said Anong. “I believe God will help me, and he prepares good things for me.”

The Voice of the Martyrs will help Anong. Thank God for Anong’s faithfulness, and pray for her and her family.

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Homework Help

Published on March 26th, 2012

USAMother and daughters around computer

Are you looking for a topic for a homework assignment, geography or social studies report, or oral report? Enter the name of a country, religion, or other term in the “Search KOC” box on this site to find all the stories and activities related to the topic. Then check the Downloads and Videos sections for additional information.

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