Ever since the church began, there have been some who want to stop the Gospel from spreading. They will harm and sometimes even kill Christians. This treatment of Christians is called persecution.

In many places around the world, persecution is still going on. In some countries, the government of that nation has made it against the law to be a Christian. In these places, Christians may suffer for sharing the Gospel or preaching in public, and churches must meet secretly.

How do we help the persecuted church throughout the world? The best way is to pray for them. On November 8th, churches all over the world will be holding the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. This would be a great day to pray with everyone around you for Christians who are being persecuted around the world.

Here are some suggestions for a prayer schedule during the week before the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church:

November 2nd – Pray for pastors of persecuted churches

November 3rd – Pray for church members being persecuted

November 4th – Pray for Christian children living in areas of persecution

November 5th – Pray for Missionaries living in areas of persecution

November 6th – Pray for those in your own country who work to help those in areas of persecution

November 7th – Pray for those persecuting Christians, that they may eventually come to Christ

November 8th – Pray for all persecuted Christians around the world

Contributed by Nate Owens, Senior Executive Administrative Assistant