More sad news coming out of Nigeria today, as we see another bomb being set off near a church killing more innocent bystanders.

Christians in China are under a lot of scrutiny and pressure from governing authorities. Our friends at China Aid have been doing stellar coverage on what has been happening with the Shouwang Church. Here's a snip from part of today's blog post:

Last week we highlighted prisoner Ilmurad Nurliev and asked you to write a letter to encourage him. We started at 349 letters written and as of today we show that 366 encouraging letters have been written to Illmurad. We are grateful for the 17 new letters that were sent to Ilmurad in the last week. Praise God for your faithfulness to encourage the prisoners! I believe that every letter these dear prisoners receive, will encourage them in their faith. Thank you to those who have taken the time to write.

Mission Network News has interviewed Todd Nettleton regarding how Pakistan is looking to try to outlaw parts of the bible. Click here for the full article.

A provincial governor ordered seven churches in the province of Béjaïa to close recently, but Christian leaders do not intend to comply. On May 22, 2011, the Béjaïa police commissioner sent an official letter to the head of the Algerian Protestant Church Association (EPA), stating that all churches in his province and around the country should be closed immediately. The notice cited a May 8 decision from the governor of Béjaïa province.

“Hurry, get into the closet. Do not make a sound unless you hear my voice. Do you understand?” Rose heard the two small voices of her preschool children say, “Yes, Mommy,” then she bolted out the door and headed toward her daughter’s school, praying that it was not too late.

Our sister ministry, The Voice of the Martyrs Canada, has posted a great blog today about evangelism and Nepal. Click here for the full blog entry.

It's Friday, which means it's time to get out your prayer journal and take note of how we can pray for the persecuted church today. Below are three prayer requests from this week. Please take a moment to share them with your family, pastor, church and friends. May the Lord bless you richly as you intercede on behalf of the persecuted church.