It's been some time since I've asked you to consider praying for a specific restricted nation, and since April is right around the corner, I thought now would be a good time to ask you to consider picking one or a few restricted nations on our Restricted Nations page and praying for them during April.
With all the persecution happening in Nigeria, I've been praying more for believers in Nigeria recently.
Here's some information about Nigeria from our Restricted Nations page:
Sectarian violence has resulted in 50,000 deaths since 1999, when one-third of Nigeria’s states implemented the Islamic penal code. Punishments handed down by Shariah courts include amputation, flogging and death by stoning. Greed and corruption consume all levels of the government. For many non-Muslims in northern and central Nigeria, daily life consists of a veneer of normalcy over a barely concealed reality of chronic discrimination and tension that periodically erupts into deadly, but organized, violence. Sixty-seven of the 523 people groups are unreached by the gospel.
Category: Hostile Nation
Religion: Christian 51.3%, Muslim 45.1%
Ideology: Islam
Head of State: President Goodluck Jonathan (who is a Christian)Christians in northern Nigeria complain of discrimination by the Muslim controlled government. In some cases, young women are kidnapped, compelled to convert to Islam and forcibly married to Muslim men. The kidnappers are protected by Shariah courts. Because of the extreme tension between Muslims and Christians, religious riots are common in northern Nigeria. Churches, mosques, schools, homes and businesses are burned and destroyed by angry rioters during these outbreaks of violence, which often involve both sides. In 2011, violent protests broke out in April after presidential elections. More than 500 people were killed and more than 31,000 were displaced. In addition, 150 churches were burned.