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CR activitiesOpen Doors reveals ambush and beheadings
There is a statistic that says 60% of Christians facing persecution are young people*. It really brings it home for me as a twenty something to hear testimonies of young Christians standing up for their faith and paying the ultimate cost to follow Jesus. Not only does it challenge my faith - it does more than that - it encourages me to persevere, just like the great cloud of witnesses in Hebrews 12. If other Christians can stand for Christ, then I can as well. This is part of connecting with the Persecuted Church - that they make a difference to my life and I can make a difference to theirs, in praying, in giving, in caring, in going.
It was sometime during Ramadan 2005 when Muslims were preparing for Idul Fitri (a day of celebration near the end of Ramadan). It should have been just another day for four teenage schoolgirls and for everyone else in the village. They walked to their Christian high school as is their practice, unaware of what awaited them on the road.
The girls aged 15-19 were ambushed in Bukit Bambu village while on their way to the Central Sulawesi Christian Church (GKST) high school in Poso on the morning of October 29. Five hooded men with machetes attacked Yarni Sambue, Interesia Morangke, Alfita Paulina and Noviana Malewa. Yarni, Interesia and Alfita were all beheaded in the attack, Noviana managed to escape with some machete slashes to her face and arms. The assailants took the heads as they fled the scene, leaving the bodies at the site of the attack - near a cocoa plantation.
The heads were found later by local residents at different locations, one threateningly close to a local church.
Noviana, the only survivor, is currently confined in the intensive care unit of a nearby hospital.
Connect with the global Body of Christ. 1 Corinthians 12:26 says that when one part of the Body suffers we all suffer with it. Don't we?
*Source - World Evangelical Encyclopedia 
Open Doors supports the Persecuted Church in 45 countries around the world by: training church leaders and Christian workers; supplying Bibles and other Christian resources to Christians who either can't get a Bible or have difficulty; providing practical livelihood training and opportunities; visiting, comforting and encouraging those who are suffering; and raising awareness of the difficulties facing persecuted Christians and mobilising prayer support throughout the western world.
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Crumbs- i thought my life was hard. There's no comparison!This brought tears to my eyes! i just wanna urge every1 not to become de-sensitised to this type of thing. It's gettin easier to watch dreadful news from across the world and not even flinch because it's everywhere. Don't hide from it! But don't try + convince yourself that it's not that bad because it's far away/ doesn't directly affect you/ it seems 'normal'. Let's show compassion for our brothers + sisters in persecution, as we are all part of the same Body. Noviana-i pray that God will surround u with his love x