If you have children, I really want to encourage you to become well acquainted with our Kids of Courage website because there is a wealth of wonderful information for you to use with your children at home, in your church and even in your school.

A few days ago there was a wonderful blog post titled Ask a VOM Worker: The Only Security that I wanted to share with you because it will give you insight about where security is truly found.

VOM intern Kelly C. interviewed a VOM worker who grew up in another country. She asked him the following:

Question: Were there things that you learned as a child that helped prepare you for your work now?

Answer: My mom died when I was 13, and she was my best friend. I realized that if even your best friend can be gone from one day to another, nothing in this world is sure.

When I finally found Jesus, or he found me, I found the only security in life. When I joined the mission field, people asked me, “Why are you going to the mission field where you don’t know anyone or anything? You will leave everything behind you that is secure.”

I thought about it and I realized that the only thing that is really secure is already here. He goes before me, and he’ll be there to take care of me. Not just my childhood, but also how I came to faith helped prepare me for this work.

The following stories tell about kids and families who continue to serve God in the face of dangers and hardship. Please pray for them and for other Christians around the world who face the same kinds of struggles.

1. Nigeria: The Pastor

Workers from The Voice of the Martyrs visited a church service in Nigeria. The pastor that day was a 15-year-old boy! He preached from 1 Thessalonians 5:18, which says, “In everything give thanks.”

The young pastor has no father. He lives at a boarding school called the Stephen Centre during the school year. Other children at the Stephen Centre are also fatherless. Their fathers died when Muslims attacked homes, churches, and families in their towns. Now kind Christian teachers help them get an education.

The pastor has reasons to be sad, but he has learned to thank God “in everything.” He shares what he has learned with other students at the Stephen Centre when they gather together on Sundays to worship God.

To read more of the inspiring stories that The Kid's of Courage ministry page is highlighting, please click here. And thank you for allowing your children to minister to the persecuted church.

Most of the people in Uzbekistan are Muslims. Kids in some parts of the country can get into trouble just for going to church!

One Sunday, several police officers and a TV cameraman raided a church service in Uzbekistan. The cameraman filmed the entire service. After church, the police questioned the children. “How often do you go to church?” the police asked.

Later, the film aired on TV. The TV announcer said that the children were “deprived of a normal, happy childhood” because of their church activities.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

Recently we told you about our great VOM vacation bible school material, and we are not the only ones who think so.  This is pretty cool...from someone who found it for Egypt and wrote about it on their blog. 

Our preteen ministry coordinator was browsing around looking for mission-oriented curriculum for our Sunday morning class and she found a Kid section on the of the Voice of the Martyr website. It’s called Kids of Courage and has a number of different lesson books all available for free download.

I took a look at the Bold Believers in Egypt (naturally, considering our VBS theme!). It’s 57 pages! Impressive. The first 20 pages are facts about Egypt, and after that are stories and people in Egypt and their life situations, particularly how they are persecuted for their Christian faith. Reading through a few, I think the kids would really get a lot of out them.

I was reading a story about a man named Mark who was put in a cell with a big dog. The police wanted the dog to attack, but Mark prayed and the dog sat still and quiet — sounds a lot like Daniel, huh? Pretty cool, considering we’re just finishing up the Dare to Be A Daniel Series. After each story is a related lesson (Christianity vs Islam for Mark’s story), a puzzle, skits, food, a game, etc. It looks great and very complete. Also included is a monthly prayer calendar. This particular lesson book has a bunch of Egyptian crafts that I haven’t seen anywhere else — like how to mummify an apple! Another one of the activities is making Papyrus out of cucumbers!

I think it would be a great resource. And it’s free! An excellent way to either introduce EGYPT VBS or follow-up with it.

You can download The Egypt Book by clicking the link.

And we would like to thank Lindsey for writing such a great review.  Please visit Lindsey's website here.

 In case you haven't checked out the great Kids of Courage ministry that VOM has, check out this latest story from our Kids of Courage page.

How can kids inform others about persecuted Christians? Send an e-mail, perform a skit, make a bumper sticker, start a scrapbook, design a church bulletin insert, share a Kids of Couragenewsletter, pass out prayer reminders, make a poster, or write a poem!

Bita Packs Her Bags
Three-year-old Bita began packing her suitcase. "I’m going to see Daddy," she said. Bita lives in Iran. She does not understand that her father is in prison for following Jesus and sharing his faith with Muslims. The government of Iran wants Muslims to stay Muslims.

Bita could not visit her father. "Will he come home for my birthday?" she asked her mother. But Bita’s father will probably not be coming home any time soon.  Read more...

One of the coolest ministries of The Voice of the Martyrs is their Kids of Courage program. I really believe that if we teach our children about other children in the world who are suffering for their faith, that it can be great step of maturity for our kids.

Take this lesson from the Kids of Courage page today - the Bible lessons and a Nosy Postman.

Sidra is a teenager in Pakistan. She lives with her father, Ilyas Masih, and her mother, Najma Bibi. She has an older brother, four younger brothers, and a little sister.

Only two Christian families live in her village, and there is no church building. Sidra has Muslim classmates, Muslim teachers, and Muslim neighbors.

Sidra loves Jesus, and she wanted to learn more about God’s word. So she signed up for a Bible class. The class was a home study class. She received lessons in the mail, and she sent assignments back to the school’s office.

Special Packages
Three Muslim children named Shazia, Sadia, and Muhammad lived next door to Sidra’s family. The neighbor children noticed that the postman brought Sidra a package every two weeks. “What is in the packages?” they asked Sidra.

Sidra told them that she learned more about her Christian faith from the lessons that came in the packages. “We want to learn about Christianity, too!” said Shazia, Sadia, and Muhammad. “Can we receive the lessons?”

Sidra’s father is a garbage collector, and her family is not rich. But she wanted to help her neighbors learn about Jesus. So she paid the $2.50 membership fee for them, and she signed them up for the lessons.

Arrested
The village postman noticed that Muslim children got Bible lessons in the mail. He told the school principal. The principal went to Sidra’s house and talked to her father. “You and your daughter have been attracting Muslims to Christianity,” the principal said. “I will teach you a lesson for this!”

The principal told a news reporter and the police about the Bible lessons. The police came to Sidra’s house and arrested her father. Thankfully, family members were able to see that the police freed him the next day.

To Think About
Sidra was guilty of “attracting Muslims to Christianity.” To attract someone means to invite them or draw them closer to something. How might someone in your country attract others to Christianity? If you were accused of attracting someone to Christianity, would you be “guilty”?

- Are you guilty of attracting anyone to Christianity? - Just a thought to ponder today.

Children amaze me.  There's something about a child that inspires me to press forward.  Maybe it's their innocence, or their faith or curiosity.  Whatever it is, there is a reason the Lord said to be like a child.  We need to have faith like a child because children truly do have faith. 

Take this story as an example from our Kids of Courage page.

Bhaskar is a Christian in India. He wasn’t always a Christian. But a few years ago, he decided to give his life to Jesus.

Around Christmastime, a friend of Bhaskar’s got sick and had to stay in the hospital. Bhaskar went to the hospital to visit his friend and to pray for him. A few days later, he returned to the hospital and prayed for his friend again.

A radical Hindu at the hospital knew about Bhaskar’s visits. Many Hindus are peaceful, but many radical Hindus persecute Christians and use violence against those who disagree with them.

The Hindu man beat up Bhaskar because of the hospital visits and prayers. The police came. They arrested Bhaskar instead of his attackers!

India has a law against “promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion….” That means it is against the law to encourage people of different faiths to be enemies.

Of course Bhaskar did not do that. He was simply praying for his friend. But sometimes the police in India like to help the radical Hindus. So they charged Bhaskar with the crime of “promoting enmity.” 

Other Christians heard about the arrest. They helped Bhaskar get out of jail a few days later.

Is your name on a "most wanted" list because of your faith and work for Jesus Christ?   Most of us don't have to worry about being on the most wanted list, but for our dear brother Mr. Choi (pictured), who is a Korean Christian, his name is.

As you read this wonderful faith inspiring testimony that is on the Voice of the Martyrs Kids of Courage website, join me in praying for the highlighted family and also ask the Lord to make you a bold witness for Christ.

Here's part of the article to whet your appetite.  Enjoy.

Telling the Story of Jesus

“I am a Christian,” Mr. Choi told an officer who questioned him after he was arrested. “I believe in only one God. As his servant, I serve him alone. According to his word, I have done a righteous work [by helping the North Koreans].”

 

In prison, Mr. Choi shared the gospel with many prisoners. The guards told him he would not get out of prison for five years if he kept telling people about Jesus. Mr. Choi answered, “The responsibility of a Christian is not only to believe in Jesus but also to tell the story of Christ to other people. … I am willing to spend the full five-year sentence in prison.”

 

The Letter

Mr. Choi’s family did not know what was happening to him. Mr. Choi wanted to send them a letter, but prisoners were not allowed to write letters. Using a piece of wire, he cut words and letters out of his Bible. Then he used glue made out of rice to form the words into sentences in a message. He secretly worked eight hours a day for 17 days to finish the letter. A Korean official then helped him get the letter to his family.

  One of the greatest ministries of The Voice of the Martyrs is the Kids of Courage ministry and this year they have written a great article highlighting the top ten stories from 2009.  Here are a few to get you started on the recap.

 3. Iran: Risky Questions

Marzieh and Maryam, Christian women in Iran, suffered under harsh prison conditions after their arrest for their faith in Jesus. Officials in Iran discussed whether Muslims who become Christians should be executed by the government. Police raided a house church, arrested the Christians, and took their Bibles. That’s the kind of thing Christians in Iran faced in 2009.

So why would anyone in Iran want to become a Christian? 

A Muslim leader gave a speech at a public school in Iran. He said that the kids could write questions on pieces of paper. The students turned in 40 pages of questions. Many students asked questions about Christianity. The students said that their parents believed in the teachings of Jesus more than the teachings of Islam. Muslim kids in Iran want to know the truth, even when the truth is risky. Pray that they will find the truth in Jesus Christ.

And...

5. Laos: Girls Stand Up to Police
Ban is a teenager in Laos. One day, a Christian man came to her village. He told everyone about Jesus. Ban wanted to belong to Jesus but did not know how. The man soon left.

In 2009, a group of Christians came to Ban’s village. They explained how people can come to Christ and follow him. Ban and five other girls accepted Christ into their hearts! They began to study the Bible and worship together. 

Ban’s parents were angry. They did not want her to be a Christian. Many people in Laos worship false gods and spirits. Ban’s parents asked the police to stop their daughter from following Jesus. Two policemen and a group of other adults took the six Christian girls to a village hall and scolded them. They threatened to take the girls away from their parents or to put them in jail if they did not stop following Jesus.

The girls did not give up their faith. “We are sinners and we need Christ,” they said. “If we die, we die with faith in Christ and in his ways.” Ban is now living with a Christian friend. She does not know what will happen next in her life, but she trusts God. 

Click here to read the whole list.

One of the coolest ministries of the Voice of the Martyrs is the Kids of Courage program. Today I wanted to highlight a piece from the Kids of Courage website about how kids are witnessing secretly in their schools. Can you imagine doing this in the United States...wow, the faith of children inspires me.

Click here to read the full article at the Kids of Courage Website and pray for your children!