NORTH AFRICA PASTOR: Persecution Is Part of Christian Journey

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The Voice of the Martyrs

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4.9 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 11 November 2023

⏱️ 25 minutes

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Summary

Listen as Pastor Joe shares the struggles many new Christians in North Africa face when they believe in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. Yet, people in the region are coming to Christ like never before!

Christians in North Africa often pay a huge price for following Christ. They are rejected by family, lose jobs and face other forms of persecution when they tell others of their faith in Jesus. Many of these persecuted Christians don’t know how each day will end. They rely on the Lord for strength and hope, despite their fear.

Listen as Pastor Joe shares the story of a young woman in his congregation who was overjoyed to share her new faith with her family. But when she did, she was beaten and thrown into the streets. Her own mother told her, “I would rather know that my daughter became a prostitute than a Christian.”

Pastor Joe encourages listeners to not flee from danger and potentially miss blessings and service that God has planned for us. He reminds us that Jesus came to earth knowing He would suffer. He says that, as a Christian, we should also know that persecution will come.

Hear the story of one young man who encouraged other believers until the final moments of his life. In addition, Joe shares of a married couple who kept their faith a secret from each other—until they ran into each other at a Christian meeting!

Pray God would call believers in North Africa to stay in their communities and serve. Pray Pastor Joe and his family will remain faithful to the Lord and His calling on their lives and for continued protection over their ministry.

Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the podcastOr you can listen each week—and get daily reminders to pray for persecuted Christians—in the VOM App for your smartphone or tablet. You can give online to support VOM’s ministry to the persecuted church here.

Transcript

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0:00.0	We are not special people, we are afraid, we are exposed many times.
0:06.6	We start a day, but we don't know how the day will end. Many times, before we go to a meeting, we think twice. If as a Christian,
0:20.3	I spend all my life escaping the challenges escaping the danger I may end up not doing
0:28.4	what God is calling me to do. Jesus never promised his followers an easy path. In fact, he told his disciples
0:38.2	that the world would hate them. He sent them out as sheep among wolves.
0:43.0	Jesus' words came true in the life of the Apostles,
0:46.0	and they're still coming true today in the lives of his followers around the world.
0:50.0	Join host Todd Nettleton as we hear their inspiring stories and learn how we can help right now on the voice of the martyrs radio network
0:57.6	Welcome again to the voice of the martyrs radio. My name is Todd Nettleton
1:01.5	Today we have the opportunity to hear from one of our brothers in North Africa.
1:06.3	I was able to travel to that region of the world not long ago
1:10.1	and record this interview with a pastor who serves in an area where the gospel is not welcome.
1:16.8	We're just going to call him Pastor Joe in order to protect him.
1:20.8	You'll notice from the sound quality, we recorded this on the road, we weren't in a fancy studio, but I hope you'll pay attention and hear how God is helping people in North Africa find freedom in Christ.
1:34.8	Pastor Joe says when people there come to faith in Christ,
1:38.4	they know what it's going to cost them.
1:41.6	A huge price. When you live in a Christian world, as they used to say,
1:50.4	you can't really imagine what the people here endure because this includes to be
1:58.8	rejected or denied by your family. I can tell you a number of cases that I know that we've had to even
2:08.8	intervene, take care of them, remove them from one region to another.
2:14.0	This includes to lose their jobs,
2:18.0	and other normal challenges, like for a lady not finding someone to marry, for a man to struggle, to find a wife, simply because you have that name you are identified as a Christian.
	...

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