Yesterday one of my readers mentioned that I might be jumping onto the persecuted church issue a bit much with the North Korean situation. After all, aren't there literally dozens of countries that are persecuting Christians? That's true, and it's an argument I've used personally over time to question our country's motives for going to war in Iraq. I suppose one of the questions would be, "why concern yourself so much about North Korea if so many other countries are also persecuting Christians?"
Several reasons.
1. North Korea ranks as the NUMBER 1 persecutor of the church according to the Open Doors website. This is echoed by the website for The Voice of the Martyrs. The largest number of Christian worshippers exists in concentration camps (a quote from the VOM website).
2. North Korea is attempting to undermine the human rights of it's people in a general, overarching sense. Not only are the Christians being attacked, but essentially, everyone is under watch.
3. Just because there are others persecuting Christians does not mean that I should not focus on any particular group or country. In fact, I recommend that you pick one of those countries to focus on and pray hard for the Christians and those that Christians reach out to.
VOM is supporting missions in North Korea by launching gospel baloons, funding safe houses, etc. To donate, click HERE.
This is an issue very important to my soul, and I've stayed silent because I know there are some really great resources out there. However, I am committing to spending Monday from now on until at least I get through the top 50 persecutors of the church discussing and providing information about countries that are restricted and who persecute believers. My hope is that you'll be able to pray hard about the work of the Spirit in those churches. Onward!
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