“A Tajik Christian has been penalized for sharing the gospel with children. In Tajikistan, teaching children about Christ is illegal, but Christian parents and pastors continue discipling children. One church leader was caught trying to bring Christian children’s books into the country and now faces expensive fines and multiple court appearances. “This restriction is a hard one, especially on parents,” said a front-line worker. “Their kids cannot go to church on Sundays, but they are taught Islam on the streets. It's really hard to go against the flow without a church family supporting and encouraging children.” Christians in Tajikistan request prayer for increased opportunities to discuss Christian faith with their children without interference, and for the Lord to help them be good role models. They also request prayer for the church leader facing penalties for importing Christian materials.” Jehovah Shalom, thank You for gospel witness in Tajikistan, a place full of people You love deeply and gave Your life for! We thank You so much for the courageous love within the church leader who was caught trying to bring in kids’ books full of Your truth—we only love because You first loved us. Thank You so much for parents and other adult believers who are investing in prayer and courageous witness so that the next generation would know Your heart! We ask for a strengthening of their hearts, a deepening of their courage, a refreshed grace in testifying to the truth, and a deluge of creativity in partnering with Your love for the children of Tajikistan! We link shields with our Tajik brothers and sisters and ask boldly before Your throne of grace for an increase in opportunities for parents and others to have discussions about faith with children. We ask You to strengthen Your disciples – young and old – to be winsome and contagious examples of what it means to follow Jesus. Holy Spirit, we ask You to give wisdom to Your people to know how to honor those in authority over them while not giving one ounce of their hearts over to the fear of man. We humbly ask You to give each Jesus follower -- including this church leader now undergoing fines and called to appear in court -- their daily bread, joy amidst their suffering, and fertile soil that will sprout an abundant harvest as they sow where You have planted them. We pray these things in the name above every other name – Jesus. Amen. Photo Representative | Ahmad Bader via Unsplash https://www.icommittopray.com/request/2828/tajik%2Dchristians/ (fb)

"A kidnapped Christian girl in Pakistan reunited with her parents on Wednesday (May 21), five months after a Muslim abducted her, forcibly converted/married her and got her pregnant due to repeated sexual assault, her lawyer said. Attorney Hanif Hameed said the 15-year-old girl was abducted from her aunt’s home by Muhammad Anees, 29, and four accomplices from Sambrial Tehsil in Sialkot District, Punjab Province on Jan. 25. Her Catholic father, Yousaf Masih, works as a laborer at a local brick kiln in Sambrial. After 12 days, the police informed the Masih family that their daughter had converted to Islam and married Anees with her free will,” Hameed said. “However, when we saw the conversion and marriage certificates that had been issued from Gujrat District, we found that both documents were fabricated.” The documents indicated she had contracted Nikah (Islamic marriage) on Jan. 17 and converted to Islam the next day – though she was at home in Sambrial with her family on those dates, Hameed said. “This is a clear case of false conversion and fake marriage to cover the crime of abduction and rape,” he said. After police failed to recover her, the family filed a petition in the Lahore High Court ordering police to find her and arrest the suspects, he said. Police presented her in the high court on May 6. “Since the child was suffering from immense physical and mental trauma and was not in a position to record her statement, the court directed that the child should be moved to a government shelter for women in Sialkot District for rehabilitation,” Hameed said. “Three accused, including the primary suspect Anees, were sent to prison on judicial remand while police are making efforts to arrest their two absconding accomplices.” The attorney said that those treating her at the shelter discovered she was four months pregnant as a result of repeated rape by Anees. Today (May 21) the girl recorded her statement before Sambrial Magistrate Khurshid Ahmad in which she expressed her desire to be given into the custody of her parents, Hameed said. “Accepting her request, the magistrate allowed Masih to take his daughter home, where she is now among her family members,” he said. Amid a proliferation of such cases, Pakistan’s parliament on Monday (May 19) passed a significant bill aiming to curb, discourage and eventually eradicate child marriages in the federal capital territory by raising the legal age of marriage for both sexes to 18 years. The bill says that any man over 18 who marries an underage girl could face up to three years of rigorous imprisonment." “How long will you defend the unjust and show partiality to the wicked? Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked." -Psalm 86:2-4 Oh Lord, how our heart aches for the suffering this young girl has endured. We plead for her complete healing-physically, emotionally, spiritually. We ask that you enable her to get the care and protection she needs to recover, thrive and grow. Holy Spirit, draw close to her and be her comforter. Lord, we pray for her family to have the means to care well for herself and this new life conceived in such heartache and pain. We would also ask that this bill to protect these girls from this horrible situation would become law and would be vociferously enforced. We would further ask that You make this the law for the entire nation, not just this one territory. Heavenly Father, Righteous Defender, raise up lawmakers and people of influence to be defenders of righteousness, to work for the protection of the powerless in their midst. https://morningstarnews.org/2025/05/forcibly-converted-married-christian-girl-returned-to-parents/ Photo Credit | Christian Daily International-Morning Star News (fb)