A trip to the Middle East is not needed to learn that untold numbers of people are suffering in these ancient lands. Multiple media outlets are sharing unimaginable stories riddled with pain and affliction. Followers of Jesus Christ, once known as the 'sect of the Nazarene,' are being relentlessly pursued by radical Islamic factions. They are being kidnapped, tortured, raped, and forced to flee their homes and the birthplace of Christianity. A genocidal fire fueled by fierce evil is scorching the Middle East, and leaving in its wake death and destruction.

Many American churches have abandoned the practice of "Prayer Meetings," weekly gatherings of believers to seek the Lord and lift up the needs of their congregation and the world. But prayer meetings to lift up persecuted Christians are still happening every week among believers from all over the world—online.

Today we share an excerpt from a post by Pastor Eric Foley, VOM’s project partner for North Korea, the CEO of Seoul-USA, and a regular speaker at VOM Regional Conferences. In his post Pastor Foley provides a careful and thoughtful exegesis of Hebrews 13:3 in light of the current situation that Christians are facing in Mosul under the domination or Islamic State (IS).

During a recent trip to train persecuted believers in the Southern part of Mindanao Island, one of the most difficult places to be a Christian in the Philippines, I started the morning by chatting with brother Jun before breakfast.

A judge rescheduled the Aug. 12 execution date for a Christian man imprisoned outside Tehran, Iran. “Amir” was originally set to be executed this week, two years after being caught transporting a truckload of Bibles. Publishing, importing or reprinting Bibles or Christian literature is illegal in Iran. Though the sentence has been delayed, his family remains very concerned for him.

My heart has been heavy as I read and hear news reports of IS (the Islamic State) giving Christians in Mosul an ultimatum to convert to Islam, pay a high tax (jizya), flee or die. More recently, IS released a video, in which they announced a threat, "Our message to the entire world is that we are the soldiers of the Caliphate state and we are coming." So much of what we are seeing unfold in the Middle East characterizes what has happened to Christians throughout history in that region as well as other restricted nations. As I reflect on this, I am reminded of five truths that are important to remember, in order to keep our eyes focused on what's eternal (Col. 3:2).

Within the past 48 hours VOM workers have received good news about two of the prisoners that have been listed on www.PrisonerAlert.com.

The Muslim world is in the midst of celebrating Ramadan, the most holy time on the Islamic calendar. For Christians this is a strategic time to pray for Muslims around the world to come to know Jesus Christ in a personal way.

With this month's newsletter VOM invited readers to adopt a front-line worker by agreeing to pray regularly for that person for a minimum of one year. (If you didn't receive the newsletter, you can sign up for a worker here.)

Surrounded by violence, Grace had never known much about love, joy, or forgiveness. Her community in Uganda, was hostile both to outsiders and those living in the village. Most people had grown up believing in dark, spiritual forces that could only be remedied by a witch doctor’s magic.