“For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;” 2 Corinthians 4:6-9 ESV
Digging Deeper
I have been praying about this review week in particular since we started memorizing this passage together. 2 Corinthians 4:9 talks about a kind of persecution and being “struck down” in a way that not so many in our country have experienced. So this week I have three objectives for us:
•1 To pray for this man’s family (will share below), his church and their kingdom reach to spread, and for the persecuted church (1 Pt 5:8-11)
•2 To be inspired to press on in being bold in sharing Christ, trusting God in the process and with the outcome
•3 To keep praying for the persecuted church even after this week. If this would help you, here is a link to The Voice Of The Martyrs prayer updates, a place to “sign up” should be at the top to receive regular emails to pray for specific people and countries all over the world of the persecuted church: iCommitToPray (https://www.icommittopray.com/)
Sep. 25, 2025 | Eritrea
Arrests of Christians Increasing
Front-line workers report that arrests of Christians in Eritrea have increased in 2025 with very few releases of current prisoners. Since Jan. 1, 2025, there have been over 200 new arrests, putting the total number of Christian prisoners in the country around 550. This is the highest it has been in over five years. The conditions inside these “prisons” are some of the harshest in the world as Christian prisoners are provided meager rations and held in shipping containers in extreme desert conditions for years. Some prisoners, like Dr. Tecleab Menghisteab and Dr. Kiflu Gebremeskel, have been imprisoned in Eritrea for more than 20 years. Pray for God’s peace to be with Christian prisoners in Eritrea and with their families, and pray for their release. https://www.icommittopray.com/request/2883/christians%2Din%2Deritrea/