July 2022
Prayer Partners and Supporters,
In the first four verses of Acts 8 we read "...And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles... Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison. Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word..."
CRM affiliated teams did their last training for Sudanese Muslim Background Believers (MBBs) in November of 2019. Covid-19 pandemic related restrictions prevented us from doing further trainings in the years of 2020 and '21, and a military coup in Sudan forced the cancellation of a planned training in Khartoum at the end of October 2021. The focus of the November 2019 training, for the male leaders, was the CRM produced Acts Story Cloth. We taught in depth the 30 stories pictured on the cloth, but also spent hours teaching on 9 of the themes that Dr. Luke highlighted in Acts. One of those themes revolves around how the early church responded to persecution, and, of course, how the Lord Jesus provided for believers in a context of fierce persecution. As Austin Davis and I taught those 15 male leaders, we were quite aware that they had already experienced more persecution for their faith in Jesus than we ever had or would. So, it was humbling for us to lead those discussions. During those times, we gave opportunity for the participants to share their stories. They not only stood and used words, but in some cases, they pulled up their shirts so we could see the scars inflicted by repeated lashings, and in one case, through being burned. We were humbled even further.
Since the October 25, 2021, military coup occurred, we have watched as the level of violence has elevated all over Darfur. While MBBs have in some cases been affected by the general violence, until two weeks ago, we had not seen police and soldiers openly targeting them. This has now changed. Over the last two weeks in Zalengei, Central Darfur State, local authorities have imprisoned believers and allowed Islamist leaders to do as they wish with followers of Jesus. The 4 young believers who were imprisoned were released on Sunday, July 3. However, while detained, they were physically abused and tortured. Those 4 and 14 other leaders of the gospel movement which has occurred in Darfur are now in hiding. Today I learned that the persecutors stripped the Zalengei compound of everything, including 50 MP3 players and 2 projectors. However, it should be noted that in 2020 paperwork for the purchase of the land upon which the compound is located was obtained. So, one day, in God's timing, Christians will resume using this center.
CRM has provided the finances required to enable 18 leaders to evacuate the Zalengei context to a city in another Darfur State. They have rented a house for a month and have the money needed to buy food and provide for their basic needs. Enough money was sent to also enable leaders to provide assistance to the wives and children of leaders who must be away from home while waiting for things to cool off.
The leaders who have kept me abreast of all their news have repeatedly emphasized the fact that they know our Lord is going to use all these painful events for His glory. They have been pleased to report that all believers are standing firm in their faith. The four who were locked up in a Zalengei jail were repeatedly told they could be set free if they would just renounce Christ and report that they had only converted because they had been offered money. They refused. Somehow, pictures were made by one of the brothers and sent to Adam. Here is one of them.
The plan now is to "set up shop" in this new city in North Darfur. The governor of that state is a former rebel leader who led his group to sign the Juba Peace Accord in 2021. He is committed to religious liberty and has given assurance to our field partners that believers can operate safely in his area. The goal now is to rent a house which can be utilized as a training center. Before all these recent events transpired, the goal was to start a new Bible school class in Zalengei. Thirty new students were registered. Now, instead of starting an official Bible school, they will take these 30 people through a less formal training aimed at producing multiplying disciples. The 18 men who graduated from the Zalengei Bible school in March will be given the same program to follow in their own localities. The bottom line for us to understand is that this fresh, heightened persecution, as in Acts 8, is only going to lead to the Gospel being shared on an even wider geographical basis.
The other ministries which CRM donors have been supporting, i.e., the women's coffee project and showing of the Jesus Film, will carry on. The women will most likely have to meet on days other than Friday, and meet in smaller groups, but they are fully committed to sharing Christ in this culturally appropriate manner.
Here are some prayer requests we ask you to take before our God's throne of grace on behalf our brethren.
1. Thank God for HIs protection of all believers.
2. Thank God for providing the believers who had to flee a safe place to stay where there are leaders committed to religious freedom.
4. Pray for the wives and children left alone while husbands and fathers are away.
5. Ask the Lord of the Harvest to display His power and provide the wisdom our partners require to regroup and form fresh plans.
6. Pray for the persecutors, especially those who have seen the faith of the 4 who resisted all attempts to force them to deny Jesus.
7. Pray that Christian leaders in the capital city will be granted wisdom to know how to intervene on behalf of Christians in Darfur.
8. Pray that believers all over Darfur will be of one mind and heart. Pray that their response to those doing the bidding of the devil will be so Christ-like that they will come under conviction of sin. We want to see an Acts 8 type of scenario where persecution results in the increased spread of the Gospel
If you would like to donate toward CRM's efforts to support those under threat, you may do so by donating online by clicking the red donate button at the top of the page or by sending in a check. If donating online, please choose the giving option "While it Is Still Day." That option supports CRM's general budget and for now all our giving for those in persecution is taken from it. If you send in a check, the address to use is, 4100 Fulton Road, Corryton, TN 37721. Please include a note of designation if you want your donation to specifically be used for Sudan.
Please note that Clover Give offers an option for you to sign up for an automatic monthly draft/donation, either from a bank account or a credit card. A $50 monthly donation these days basically means giving up one outing to a restaurant per month. The faithful response of our Sudanese brethren shouts for us to double up our efforts, not give up.
Thank you for praying, and as the Lord leads, for giving.
David Crane