frontline faith...frontline faith sharing the inside story of the persecuted church write to a...

FRONTLINE FAITHSHARING THE INSIDE STORY OF THE PERSECUTED CHURCH

WRITE TO A BELIEVER Encourage Lao Teachers

9

IMPACT REPORTYour Global Impact

Page 4

RISE IN INDIA Persecution Is Increasing

Page 16

NORTH KOREAMyoung-Hee’s Escape

Page 14

THE BOOK OF ACTSTHANK YOU EDITION

2016 IMPACT REPORT INSIDE

www.opendoors.org.au www.opendoors.org.au2 | Open Doors Australia | Frontline Faith, 2017 Issue No.4 – Thank You Edition Frontline Faith, 2017 Issue No.4 – Thank You Edition | Open Doors Australia | 3

We serve them. Through building long term relationships with local believers, we ask about the needs of their local church. They know and understand best what is needed to see their church and community strengthened and the gospel proclaimed.

We build people. A Bible is life-changing, but the job doesn’t end with Bible delivery. Training and discipleship is essential for new Christians, pastors and evangelists. Trauma counselling and preparing for persecution is also an important part of what we do.

We grow the church. While we provide practical support and emergency relief, everything we do is to see their church strengthened and the gospel spread.

We believe Jesus is the only solution to this world’s brokenness and it’s a long term vision for the local church within countries to transform their nation from the inside out.

Brother Jamal* leads a church in Lebanon and cares for Syrian refugees.

“ Thank you,” he said. “Without your support we could do nothing.”

“ We as Christians are the ambassadors of Christ. Our message for us as believers is to reconcile with God. We see broken people running away from Islamic extremists. This is the time to show them the real love of Christ. Many have never had the chance to hear the gospel.”

*Name changed for security purposes.

As we come to the middle of the year, I want to share our ‘Thank You’ edition of Frontline Faith with you. This is all about celebrating the impact your support has made in 2016 through this ministry. Inside this edition, you’ll find our 2016 impact report. These numbers tell the story you have been part of with us over the last year.

The beautiful thing about this ministry is our celebration goes beyond the dollars and numbers, to a different kind of impact. Yes, we celebrate the innocent prisoners now cared for, the housed orphans and the comforted widows. But, beyond that we also celebrate the spiritual impact that these Christians make for the gospel in their families, communities, and their nations. Your support for the persecuted church allows them to impact their country for the name of Jesus.

Arrested For Christ Recently I was in India hearing about the challenges of facing Christian ministries in that country – a place that I have a unique connection with, but as many of you may not know, it’s also the country of my birth. Sadly, persecution in India is rising. This year alone there has already been 248 attacks against Christians.

I remember sitting with a brother called Samuel*, who showed me a photo of a pastor in a prison cell. He told me a man had come into this pastor’s church and asked the pastor to pray for him, so he did. After the pastor prayed, the man said he had friends waiting outside the church that would also like prayer. As soon as the pastor stepped outside, the “friends” grabbed him, beat him, and dragged him to the police station where he was arrested.

He now shares a cell with a criminal. It broke Samuel’s heart seeing men and women of God being considered as criminals. But it reminded him of Christ, crucified between two thieves.

Isaiah 53:12 says “because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.”

Mike GoreCEO Open Doors [email protected]: @_MikeGore

Samuel* finished telling me this story by saying, “But we really praise God.”

Passion For Jesus The persecuted church is so passionate about Jesus that they are willing to be counted amongst criminals, and pay the price for Christ. This is a thought I am continually humbled and challenged by.

The word ‘passion’ is probably one of the most used in our Christian vocabulary. What I didn’t realise was that the word finds it’s origin in the Latin word for ‘suffering’. This, I guess means that passion is not so much about what you love but rather your willingness to suffer for what you love. So what does that mean for you and I?

If passion and suffering are linked in how it is echoed throughout the persecuted church, what does it mean for me here in Australia? As I thought about this I realised I often live as though Jesus isn’t returning in my lifetime. This has a crazy impact on my faith and my passion. People like Samuel* and the imprisoned pastor live as though Jesus is coming back in their lifetime, with a willingness to suffer for God. It’s almost as though in the valley of the shadow of death, they find the river of life, the one true God – Jesus; who suffered because He was passionate for you, even before you were passionate for Him.

Your Help Makes a Difference I pray this magazine shows you how much we appreciate and rely on your support. Thank you for partnering with us in serving our brothers and sisters in Christ who share our faith but not our freedom. *Name changed for security purposes.

A Dif ferent Kind Of Impact

A LETTER FROM MIKE GORE

What We Do

We unite. We believe the local church is stronger when united with the global church, because ultimately we are all part of one church. As local churches in Australia support persecuted Christians overseas, we see believers become bolder and inspired to become more passionate, generous and evangelistic.

We share their story. Through news, prayer resources and personal stories, we share the testimony of the persecuted church. We believe these stories need to be told, and as people encounter an expression of radical faith, their faith is made more radical.

We inform. Each year we release our annual World Watch List– an authoritative and widely referenced list, ranking the top 50 most dangerous countries to be a Christian. It also helps us see how God is working in some of the most confrontational places on the planet, and building His Church.

“ Thank you for the regular updates around the world of our suffering brothers and sisters in Christ. It is a privilege to be able to partner in prayer, writing letters to encourage them and support in many practical ways. In many ways... my own faith is constantly being challenged... as we in Australia don’t seem to “need” Jesus as much as they do. It keeps me grounded!”

- Cheryl, Open Doors Supporter

We work in over 60 countries to support Christians who are persecuted for their faith in Jesus. At Open Doors we have a ‘two-fold’ mission – we are

the partnership between persecuted Christians and the Australian church.

OVERSEAS AUSTRALIA


Your Help Made A Difference In 2016 Welcome to the 2016 Impact Report! This report is a summary of your impact in 2016. When you support the persecuted church, you are putting your faith into action and declaring to be part of the global Body of Christ. On behalf of our persecuted family, thank you!

“If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.” – 1 Corinthians 12:26


Global Impact

2,512,470 BooksBIBLES & CHRISTIAN LITERATURE DELIVERED

453,560 TrainedPEOPLE BENEFITED FROM TRAINING

Globally, Open Doors comprises of more than 20 development bases who’s combined income funds our field work in more than 60 countries.

In 2016, your gifts contributed to the global effort of this ministry to impact hundreds of thousands of persecuted believers worldwide.

Field bases are made of local churches, partners and believers who listen to and respond to the need of persecuted Christians. This support is divided into three main categories below: 1. Bibles & Christian Literature 2. Training 3. Practical Support 2,247

People trained in Trauma Support and Counselling

2,422 People sheltered

through Safe House Projects

34,917 People helped with

Medical Care

879,379 SupportedPEOPLE BENEFITED FROM PRACTICAL SUPPORT

26% 20% 39% 11% 4%

28% 21%26% 25%

2%75% 10% 13%

Bibles

Discipleship Bible Training Persecuted Related Training

Other (Leadership, Family and Counselling)

Training Materials Christian Literatu re CDs & DVDs Other

Community DevelopmentSocial ServicesRelief Aid Livelihood Support

Micro-loans, financial support for pastors, church leaders and new believers.

Literacy courses, job training, health care, prison ministry, orphan care.

Church restoration, school support, community building support, women economic empowerment.

Safe houses, emergency food and medical care, widows ministry, persecuted family.


Mission Statement

Falkland Islands (UK)

Uruguay

Argentina

Paraguay

Chile

Bolivia

PeruBrazil

Ecuador

ColombiaPanama

Costa Rica

NicaraguaEl Salvador

Guatemala

Honduras

Belize

Cuba

Jamaica Haiti

Dominican Republic

Venezuela

Barbados

Trinidad & Tobago

GuyanaSuriname

French Guiana

The BahamasMexico

United States Of America

Canada

Alaska (USA)

Greenland (Denmark)

Faroe Islands

Ireland United Kingdom

Norway

Sweden

Denmark

Germany

Luxembourg

Belgium

Netherlands

Poland

Czech Rep.

Solvakia

Hungary

SloveniaCroatia

Bosnia & Herz. Serbia

Romania

Bulgaria

MacedoniaAlbania

Greece

Montenegro

Italy

Malta

SwitzerlandLiechtenstein

Austria

Lithuania

Latvia

Estonia

Belarus

Ukraine

Moldova

Turkey

Syria

Iraq

Armenia

Azerbaijan

LebanonIsrael

EgyptLibya

SudanChadNiger

Central African Republic

Cameroon

NigeriaBenin

BurkinaFaso

CoteD’IvoireLiberia

Guinea-Bissau

The Gambia

Senegal

Guinea

Mauritania Mali

Algeria

Morocco

Iran

Turkmenistan

Uzbekistan

Afghanistan

Pakistan

India

Nepal

Bhutan

Myanmar

Thailand

CambodiaAndaman & Nicobar Islands (India)

Philippines

Guam

Papua New Guinea

Solomon Islands

Vanuatu

Fiji

New Caledonia

New Zealand

Australia

Japan

China

MongoliaKazakhstan

Russian Federation

Mauritius

Madagascar

Mozambique

Zimbabwe

ZambiaMalawi

Angola

Nambia

Botswana

South Africa

Swziland

Lesotho

Tanzania

Uganda

Rwanda

Burundi

Democratic Republic ofthe Congo

South Sudan

Kenya

Ethiopia

Somalia

Yemen

Saudi Arabia

France

SpainPortugal

Sierra Leone

Togo

Ghana

Gabon

Republic of Congo

Kyrgyzstan

Comoros

Oman

Bhutan

Laos

North Korea

Djibouti

Bahrain

Eritrea

Maldives

Qatar

Palestinian Territories

Brunei

Malaysia

Bangladesh

Kuwait

UAE

Indonesia

Tajikistan

Jordan

Vietnam

South Korea

Tunisia

Sri Lanka

STRENGTHENStrengthen the Body of Christ who are suffering persecution by providing Bibles, training and practical support. To encourage the Body to become involved in world evangelism.

PREPARETrain and encourage the body of Christ in threatened or unstable areas. To prepare believers to face persecution and suffering, and equip them to maintain a witness to the gospel of Christ.

MOBILISEMotivate, mobilise and educate the church in Australia to identify with and care for the persecuted church, with the belief that when one member suffers, all members suffer with it (1 Corinthians 12:26).


NORTH KOREA Each year you support and train between 150-200 trafficked North Korean women who now live in China. (Read Myoung-Hee’s story on page 14)

Falkland Islands (UK)

Uruguay

Argentina

Paraguay

Chile

Bolivia

PeruBrazil

Ecuador

ColombiaPanama

Costa Rica

NicaraguaEl Salvador

Guatemala

Honduras

Belize

Cuba

Jamaica Haiti

Dominican Republic

Venezuela

Barbados

Trinidad & Tobago

GuyanaSuriname

French Guiana

The BahamasMexico

United States Of America

Canada

Alaska (USA)

Greenland (Denmark)

Faroe Islands

Ireland United Kingdom

Norway

Sweden

Denmark

Germany

Luxembourg

Belgium

Netherlands

Poland

Czech Rep.

Solvakia

Hungary

SloveniaCroatia

Bosnia & Herz. Serbia

Romania

Bulgaria

MacedoniaAlbania

Greece

Montenegro

Italy

Malta

SwitzerlandLiechtenstein

Austria

Lithuania

Latvia

Estonia

Belarus

Ukraine

Moldova

Turkey

Syria

Iraq

Armenia

Azerbaijan

LebanonIsrael

EgyptLibya

SudanChadNiger

Central African Republic

Cameroon

NigeriaBenin

BurkinaFaso

CoteD’IvoireLiberia

Guinea-Bissau

The Gambia

Senegal

Guinea

Mauritania Mali

Algeria

Morocco

Iran

Turkmenistan

Uzbekistan

Afghanistan

Pakistan

India

Nepal

Bhutan

Myanmar

Thailand

CambodiaAndaman & Nicobar Islands (India)

Philippines

Guam

Papua New Guinea

Solomon Islands

Vanuatu

Fiji

New Caledonia

New Zealand

Australia

Japan

China

MongoliaKazakhstan

Russian Federation

Mauritius

Madagascar

Mozambique

Zimbabwe

ZambiaMalawi

Angola

Nambia

Botswana

South Africa

Swziland

Lesotho

Tanzania

Uganda

Rwanda

Burundi

Democratic Republic ofthe Congo

South Sudan

Kenya

Ethiopia

Somalia

Yemen

Saudi Arabia

France

SpainPortugal

Sierra Leone

Togo

Ghana

Gabon

Republic of Congo

Kyrgyzstan

Comoros

Oman

Bhutan

Laos

North Korea

Djibouti

Bahrain

Eritrea

Maldives

Qatar

Palestinian Territories

Brunei

Malaysia

Bangladesh

Kuwait

UAE

Indonesia

Tajikistan

Jordan

Vietnam

South Korea

Tunisia

Sri Lanka

NIGERIA You have helped Open Doors have delivered over 17,000 Bibles, books and training material to Christians wanting to grow in their relationship with God.

SYRIA You have helped provide practical support for over 400,000 people from Syria, including emergency housing, food and health care.

INDIA “I want to thank all those who supported me through prayers, financial help and standing with me in all my struggles and whatever I went through. It is because of all your help that I am a recovered person today.” – Reena (see page 16 for full story)


77%

23%

Ministry DistributionOPEN DOORS AUSTRALIA

20%23%

6%5%

12%

8%3%

20%

3%

We have a small, passionate team who are committed to serving the persecuted church. We meet daily to pray for everyone who supports the ministry, and work tirelessly to ensure costs are kept low and the persecuted church become part of the DNA of every Christian.

We are devoted to Jesus Christ and the Great Commission, motivated solely for the glory of God. Our mission is to strengthen and prepare Christians living in persecution, and to mobilise the Australian church to identify with the global body of Christ.

Thank You! 23%

Other

77%Ministry

Thank You!


Income DistributionOPEN DOORS AUSTRALIA

5%Research and Advocacy Advocating for the persecuted church worldwide

6%Bibles Bibles and other Christian literature distribution

23%23% Practical Support Church restoration, family support and job creation

20%20% Training Discipleship, Bible training, trauma counselling

Thank You!

20%23%

6%5%

12%

8%3%

20%

3%

Thank You!

3% Future Ministry Future field projects

20%Local Ministry Mobilising and resourcing the Australian church to pray and serve the persecuted

3% Future Infrastructure Long term infrastructure for ministry growth

8%Administration Finance and other ministry running costs

12% Fundraising, Research Local Advocacy Marketing and raising awareness


Thank You!

A Closer LookOPEN DOORS AUSTRALIA

To the 742 people who donated to our Bible For Every Believer in a secret country, you fully funded the $68,000 project! Plus you gave an additional $30,000 to help persecuted Christians where most needed!

To the 2,366 people who gave to Iraq and Syria, you raised over $500,000 for emergency support.

To the 76 groups that ran a walk, you raised over $93,000 for practical support in Africa!

To the more than 10,000 people who regularly receive our Prayer Guide, Prayer emails and resources. Your prayers are transforming the global church. Thank you for your faithfulness!

Thank You!

To the 39 schools, 28 youth groups and 5 conferences who hosted our youth team, you shared the persecuted church with over 25,000 youth!

A Bible For Every Believer

Iraq and Syria

Walk to Water

Prayer Warriors

Open Doors Youth

Local ChurchTo the 187 churches that hosted an Open Doors speakers in 2016, you shared the persecuted church with over 27,000 people in Australia!


Image: Village in North-Eastern China, border area with North Korea

Myoung-Hee* still remembers seeing her father stumbling into their home, pale and weak. He gestured that he desperately wanted to speak, before breaking down in tears. He cried so loudly that Myoung-Hee feared the neighbours would warn the police. Her mother pushed him into the bathroom and locked the door. “Someone must have died,” she thought to herself. She was right. Her uncle was brutally executed for his faith.

A Family Secret That day Myoung-Hee was let in on a family secret: most of them were Christians. But she wanted nothing to do with their faith after seeing the suffering it caused.

“I wanted life to go back to normal”, she said, “So I focused on school; in my free time I read lots of translated Russian books. I got the books from the local library. I particularly liked Leo Tolstoy. Back then, I didn’t know he was actually a Christian.”

The books she read began to change her world view. Life outside North Korea was much different than what she was led to believe. As Myong-Hee grew up, more and more people realised she went missing.

“ I wanted to leave North Korea”, Myong-Hee said.

Sometime after graduating high school, she swam the river by the Chinese border and left her home country.

“ I was caught by human traffickers and sold to a Chinese farmer. He wasn’t as bad as most Chinese men who buy North Korean women. I had a child with him. But still… I thought I could never feel at home in this family.”

Her mother-in-law also lived with Myoung-Hee and her Chinese husband.

Discovering A Hidden Faith “My mother in law showed suspicious behaviours. Some days she left without telling where she was going. One night I decided to follow her. It was a long way before she reached the place where some kind of meeting was going on. I called her. Of course she was very surprised to see me. But I was still invited to participate. I quickly discovered it was a Christian meeting, which made me uncomfortable because in my country I had always been against Christianity. My curiosity beat my fear and I decided to stay. I actually wanted to learn more about God.”

After some time Myong-Hee decided to tell her family back in North Korea that she had become a Christian, which meant risking her life. On her way, the border crossing went horribly wrong. Myong-Hee was arrested and sent to a North Korean prison. Prisons in North Korea are some of the worst in the world.

“When I saw how the other prisoners and I were treated, as if we weren’t humans, I gave up life. I trembled often in prison and thought I would never see my earthly family again.”

But even in some of her darkest moments, God was near. “Something was stirred in my heart that was impossible to resist, like an invisible power. I felt it every time I wanted to give up hope. That power was God himself. He was with me and didn’t want me to give up.” She repeated Bible verses to herself, that she had memorised when she was free.

“ And then I begged God for mercy.” Myoung-Hee said.

North KoreaMYOUNG-HEE* ESCAPED NORTH KOREA,

ONLY TO RETURN WITH JESUS

Image: Myong-Hee

“ HE ONLY IS MY ROCK AND MY SALVATION; HE IS MY DEFENCE; I SHALL NOT BE MOVED. IN GOD IS MY SALVATION AND MY GLORY; THE ROCK OF MY STRENGTH, AND MY REFUGE, IS IN GOD.” – PSALM 62: 6-7

Update: Project North Korea

In April this year, we asked for you help to fund our work with North Koreans. It was a massive target, trying to raise $84,000 for our persecuted brothers and sisters. Thanks to your help, this project is full funded! Thank you for your faithful support!

Some Of The Ways We Help North Koreans

– Supplying North Korean believers with emergency relief aid (food, medicines, clothing etc)

– Distribute Christian books and other material– Provide training through radio broadcasting– Provide discipleship for North Korean believers

who have fled to China.

“All I wanted was a chance to be reunited with my family and to worship God together with them.”

She was transferred to a camp closer to her hometown, as is the custom in North Korea. This camp had less surveillance.

“I took this as a sign from God to try to escape. I knew he would protect me. One night, the guards were drunk and they hadn’t locked the door of the barrack. I snuck out and ran through the gate. My heart was pounding so fast! I didn’t stop running until I came to a sign that pointed me the way to my hometown.”

Myong-Hee was finally reunited with her family.

“It was the most joyous experience ever.” She said. “We were so happy to see each other, and for the first time, we worshipped God together as a family. Later, I also attended small gatherings of other Christian families. I slowly came the realisation that God had guided me every step of the way. He had a purpose for every experience, no matter how painful it was. It all happened to prepare me to share the gospel to the lost people in North Korea and China.”

A New Mission But for Myong-Hee her mission didn’t end there.

“ I decided I needed to go back to my Chinese family. My husband and my son had to hear the Gospel too. It was a dangerous trip. I could get arrested again and be severely punished. But nothing could extinguish my passion for Christ.”

She escaped North Korea a second time and arrived safely in China thanks to other believers.

“They were truly the hands of God to protect and guide my journey. I wish more people could have the blessing that I received through them.”

Myoung-Hee lives in South Korea now with her husband and son. They both accepted Jesus and became Christians after she returned. Together they serve God by supporting North Korean missions.

“I will never forget my childhood. There are so many Christian parents in North Korea who cannot share their faith with their children. It breaks my heart. I was once a victim of this too. But thanks to praying people I found God in the end. And thanks to the prayers of my mother-in-law, I survived prison too. My life story testifies of the power of prayer. I hope it’s a call to all brothers and sisters in Christ to join in prayer so that God will bring grace and justice to my country.”



Kidnapped For 10 Days Reena didn’t know where she was, but managed to make a phone call to her parents telling them she was being held in a terrible place. They told the police, who didn’t act for three days. Finally the headmaster was arrested. But it wasn’t long before he was released without any formal charges.

Reena eventually woke up on a train. She was in a city 14 hours away from her small village and used the last few coins she had in her pockets to call a friend.

“I was so confused. I don’t remember but apparently I asked them not to call my parents. After a couple of days, I took the train back home.”

Healing In Scripture We don’t know exactly what happened during the kidnapping (when asked, Reena did not want to share the details because they were too traumatic). As soon as her parents saw Reena’s physical state, they rushed her to hospital.

Image: Reena praying to God

Reena*, a 19 year old from India, knew that deciding to become a Christian meant she would be persecuted for her faith. But she never thought she would be drugged and kidnapped.

Reena had a lonely childhood. She was a Christian, and everyone else was Hindu. “Nobody wanted to play with me… After school I just came home and entertained myself.”

Her family were not allowed to use the local well to collect water because of their faith. “My parents had to walk a few kilometers to get water from the river.”

“ My parents explained that persecution will come when you are a Christian. And I was not jealous of the Hindus, because Jesus gave me joy inside.”

Reena had to leave school and get a job when her family was no longer able to pay for her education.

She got a job working in a school, but her employer stopped paying her. A few days after quitting, another school offered her a job. The headmaster invited her to come to a teachers meeting. “The headmaster offered me some Indian sweets, which I ate. I don’t remember anything after that.”

The sweets had been drugged.

As the shock wore off and the doctors worked on her physical recovery, Reena battled with her internal damage. Her spirit crushed, she didn’t see a reason to live anymore.

“ I prayed: God I know you. Yet, this still happened to me. Why? I felt broken in this way.”

During a church service Reena had an encounter with a comforting, loving God. He’d spoken to her through two scriptures:

“Make me to know your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation, for you I wait all day long.”

– Psalm 25:4-5

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

– Revelation 3:20

“ I realised that if I opened the door of my heart, Jesus would come in and dine with me.” Reena said. “So I surrendered to Him. I came to know that it was Satan who wanted to destroy my life, but God loves me.”

“ When I came home, I was overjoyed and shared it with my ‘friends’. Which friends? My Hindu friends, of course. I wanted them to come to a similar church service and also experience God’s healing power in their lives.”

You Help Makes A Difference Open Doors local partners have remained in constant contact with Reena and her family. Through our local partners, we were able to pay for Reena’s medical bills and encourage her in her faith.

“I want to thank all those who supported me through prayers, financial help and standing with me in all my struggles and whatever I went through. It is because of all your help that I am a recovered person today.”

But Reena isn’t completely out of trouble yet. The headmaster who drugged her is still free.

“The headmaster said that he is in trouble because of her”, her brother told Open Doors partners. “He wants revenge and may hurt her again.”


“ I CAME TO KNOW THAT IT WAS SATAN WHO WANTED TO DESTROY MY LIFE, BUT GOD STILL LOVES ME.”

Persecution In India19 YEAR OLD FOLLOWS JESUS DESPITE KNOWING THE

CONSEQUENCES OF BECOMING A CHRISTIAN

Image: Reena reading her Bible.


Elissa and her daughter Leora, QLD Leora was 6 when she first heard about persecuted Christians and signed up to Open Doors, to pray and send pocket money to help Christians in other countries.

“ One Saturday, Leora and her neighbour, set up shop out the front of our house,” said her mum Elissa. They sold handmade ‘loom band’ bracelets, dolls and skipping ropes.

“ Thanks to the amazing generosity of neighbours, friends and family they made more than $300 that day”

Betty, VIC In the 80’s, Betty and her friend decided to follow in Brother Andrews’ footsteps and smuggled almost 200 bibles behind the Iron Curtain. But their border crossing went wrong.

“ All went well until we were arrested and interrogated separately. When we were finally released, we had to sign forms saying we had 199 Bibles, but we counted 156 at the end. Each person who went past picked up one and put it in his pocket!”

Ike and Marilyn, VIC

Ike was from Holland. During WW2, Ike found himself struggling to survive in a German labour camp. With other Christian prisoners, Ike managed to hold onto God. He would focus on bible verses and even wrote what he could remember on a toilet roll.

Ike now testifies to the blessings in his life and the countless miracles of God despite his suffering. Ike and his wife are active supporters of Open Doors and recently were involved in Walk to Water.

Your Sixty Second Stories

Encourage Teachers In LaosEncourage Sunday School Teachers In LaosThis year was the first time Sunday school teachers from the Hmong tribe in Laos used the manual they put together to teach children in their village about the gospel.

They had been working on the Sunday school manual for three years, and this January it was finally completed and ready to be shared. Full of colourful illustrations, songs they wrote, games and culturally relevant lessons–hearing about Jesus will be easier than ever for the Hmong children.

You can write to encourage these patient and dedicated believers as they finally get the see the fruit of their hard labour.

Prayer Points– Pray that many children will hear

and understand the word of God and commit their lives to the Lord.

– Pray that these Sunday school teachers will not tire from doing good and serving Jesus.

– Pray for protection as children and families meet together on a Sunday to worship and learn about God.

– Print clearly in English– Be brief and encouraging – Include 1–2 Bible verses – Provide your name and

country, (not your full address)

Best To Send: – Greeting cards, artwork from

children and postcards (send postcards in an envelope, do not write Open Doors' address on the postcard)

Make Sure You: – Don't mention Open Doors – Don't send money– Do not criticise a country – Do not make proposals to help

Send To: 11/10 Gladstone Road, Castle Hill NSW 2154 by 31 August 2017

WRITING GUIDELINES

Image: Child in a village in Laos

BLACKOUTNo phone. No talking. No communication. For 48 hours.

Help raise money, awareness and pray for the persecuted church.

FIND OUT MORE www.opendoors.org.au

FREE

BOOK!

BECOME A FRONTLINE PARTNER TODAY!

Sign up to give monthly today and you will receive a free copy of God’s Smuggler.

Exclusive offer for July & August 2017!

FIND OUT MORE www.opendoors.org.au

ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY!

INCLUDES P&H.Offer available until

30 April, 2017.

$7

Open Doors Australia PO Box 734 Penrith NSW 2751 (02) 9451 2999 [email protected] www.opendoors.org.au

WALK TO WATER16 September 2017

FIND OUT MORE www.walktowater.org.au

Walk to raise funds to provide clean water, health, education and jobs in Nigeria.

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