MERRY CHRISTMAS! This week, as we celebrate the birth of Christ, we will be looking back on the most-read posts on the Persecution Blog this year. Today we look back on the #2 most-read post. We will continue this countdown until we unveil number 1 tomorrow. Look back to see which posts drew the most attention, readers and shares over the course of 2014, and come back tomorrow to see the most-read post of the year.

It gets very cold in northern Iraq, and winter is coming. Christian refugees from Mosul need our help now.

READ PART 1

Around the world, the advance of Islamic extremist groups is creating increasing difficulties for Christians, as Islamists seek territory and political power. Islamic groups often terrorize Christians by chasing them off of their property, appropriating Christian properties, and even kidnapping or killing family members.The increasing threat of extremism was highlighted this year with the advance of the Islamic State (IS) terror group from Syria into Iraq.

The Voice of the Martyrs is actively supporting Christians in Iran who are sharing the gospel with their neighbors, coworkers, friends and family. In addition, we partner with broadcasting ministries sending the gospel message into Iran through television and other means. The government of Iran is clearly not happy with this ministry work.

The eyes of the world turned this week to the White House, where President Obama gave a speech outlining his plans to battle against the Islamic State (IS). While VOM is not a political organization, VOM staff do monitor how the United States government responds to religious freedom issues overseas, and we work to educate and provide resources for government personnel tasked with understanding and speaking out against the persecution of Christians.

Today we re-post a blog from last year's "MOVING TOWARD MUSLIMS" series of posts by "Anna," a Christian living and working among Muslims in the Middle East.

Last week in our VOM staff chapel service Cole Richards, the leader of our international work, talked about how we, as followers of Christ, should think about and respond to radical terrorist groups like the Islamic State (IS), which is dominating the news cycle yet again this week with the videotaped beheading of another American journalist, Steven Sotloff.

Recently one of my coworkers was in the Middle East to attend a conference for Syrian Christians. These conferences, which VOM sponsors, are designed to encourage and train Syrian Church leaders, who have been ministering in the midst of war for the past three years, in addition to the heavy persecution they face as gospel workers in a Muslim nation.