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DOMINGO, DIA 1 Senhor Deus e Pai Celestial, oramos pelos nossos irmãos que se encontram em locais como a República Democrática do Congo, Myanmar e a Nigéria, que sofrem perseguição violenta persistente por causa da sua fé. Por favor, está com os feridos, deslocados, traumatizados e enlutados, consolando-os com a paz que só pode ser encontrada em Cristo. Supre também as suas necessidades urgentes — alimento, água, abrigo e cuidados médicos —, pois prometeste prover ao Teu povo. Pedimos estas coisas em nome do nosso Salvador. (Salmo 111:5)
SEGUNDA-FEIRA, DIA 2 Fomos atacados por aviões de guerra inúmeras vezes”, diz “Myint”, uma crente de 25 anos de uma região de maioria cristã em Myanmar. “Tivemos de fugir das nossas casas várias vezes.” A história de Myint é apenas uma entre muitas que poderiam ser contadas por cristãos em todo o mundo que sofrem perseguição violenta. A Barnabé está a promover a sensibilização para a situação dos crentes que enfrentam ódio semelhante. Ore pelo sucesso da nossa campanha de Páscoa em favor das vítimas de violência em todo o mundo.
TERÇA-FEIRA, DIA 3 Daniel Okoh, líder sénior da igreja e presidente da Associação Cristã da Nigéria, manifestou preocupação com um “genocídio” de cristãos na Nigéria. “Mantemos a nossa posição de que há um genocídio cristão na Nigéria”, afirmou Okoh. “Em muitas partes do norte da Nigéria e do Cinturão Médio, as comunidades cristãs têm sofrido ataques repetidos, coordenados e, em muitos casos, claramente direcionados, sem precedentes.” Nos últimos 10 a 15 anos, dezenas de milhares de cristãos nigerianos foram massacrados por terroristas islâmicos. Ore ao Senhor para que esta violência contínua chegue ao fim.
QUARTA-FEIRA, DIA 4 Os nossos irmãos estão entre as vítimas da Província da África Ocidental do Estado Islâmico (ISWAP, sigla em inglês) no nordeste da Nigéria, onde os cristãos estão numa região de maioria muçulmana são alvos frequentes por causa da sua fé. Quinze crentes foram massacrados em dois ataques no final de dezembro, no estado de Adamawa, enquanto o ISWAP reivindicou a morte de outros quatro num ataque com metralhadoras perto da cidade de Dille, no estado de Borno, em novembro. Ore para que o Senhor traga paz a esta região da Nigéria, pelo bem de todos os que correm risco de sofrer violência, especialmente do Seu povo perseguido.
QUINTA-FEIRA, DIA 5 Oito cristãos foram decapitados em mais um ataque brutal perpetrado pela Província da África Central do Estado Islâmico (ISCAP, sigla em inglês) no nordeste da República Democrática do Congo (RDC). O ataque armado ocorreu no distrito de Lubero, no final de dezembro. O ISCAP matou cerca de 800 cristãos no nordeste da RDC nos 12 meses anteriores a este ataque, sendo Lubero uma das áreas mais afetadas. De acordo com especialistas em antiterrorismo, é claro que os islamistas estão “a visar explicitamente os cristãos por causa da sua fé”. Peça a Deus que dê coragem ao Seu povo no nordeste da RDC, pois enfrentam a ameaça de morte simplesmente por seguirem o Senhor Jesus Cristo.
Friday 6 The dream of owning a Bible has become a reality for 365 young Christians in a Muslim-majority area of Uganda, where persecution is a constant threat. Many recipients reported that their understanding of the Bible and their Christian faith was deepened because of the Barnabas-funded distribution. Attendance of young people also increased at local churches. “Barnabas has answered my prayers for God’s Word,” said recipient Nalugya. “I now have a way to learn more about Jesus and share the Good News.” Join us in praising the Lord that His people have accepted the Word of God, which is at work in them (1 Thessalonians 2:13).
Saturday 7 “The clergy’s eyes were opened,” said a church leader in Burundi, one of the world’s poorest countries. He was commenting on a series of Barnabas-funded workshops that gave pastors and church leaders an insight into the growth of Islam in the country, especially in remote areas bordering Tanzania. The workshops empowered the 97 participants with the skills to respond robustly to safeguard their congregations, and to support Muslim-background converts (especially women) rejected by their families and communities because of their new faith in Christ. Please pray that this teaching will continue to strengthen the Church of our Lord Jesus Christ in Burundi.
Sunday 8 Lord God and Heavenly Father, we pray today for our sisters in Christ in places where women are at particular risk of persecution and violence. Please provide for those denied opportunities for education and literacy. Meet the needs of those, especially widows, who endure acute poverty. Be with those who have been abducted, forced to marry, forced into joining another religion. Protect those at risk of sexual violence. May Your light shine in the darkness, may their faith endure, and may they continue to proclaim the Good News, for we ask it in our Saviour’s Name. (Psalm 68:11)
Monday 9 At the time of writing Iran is experiencing widespread protests, with the government looking to blame foreign actors for the unrest. “Whilst the initial triggers were economic, the protests have rapidly evolved into a broader political crisis,” explained Barnabas Aid’s projects manager with responsibility for Iran, adding that the government is “increasingly using the Christian minority as a scapegoat, accusing believers of inciting and leading these demonstrations”. At least 11 Christians were killed in mid-January; sadly, there are probably others who have lost their lives. As well as being treated with suspicion and hostility as apostates from Islam, Farsi (Persian)-speaking Christians are considered enemies of the state. Pray for these believers and any others falsely accused of crimes against national security.
Tuesday 10 Christians in Egypt welcomed a government decision to make Christmas Day a paid public holiday for the first time. While challenges remain for believers, the public holiday provides a degree of protection, legitimacy and freedom to worship collectively. Churches across the country marked the season with extended services, music and community gatherings. Recognition does not erase discrimination, nor does visibility eliminate vulnerability. Yet the ability to celebrate openly and to gather as families and congregations remains particularly meaningful. Praise God for increased freedom for our brothers and sisters in Egypt.
Wednesday 11 In the opening weeks of the year, Christians in Punjab, Pakistan, were still suffering the consequences of flooding that devastated the province in the second half of 2025 and left more than 2.7 million displaced. Christians are usually among the most impoverished and marginalised of Pakistan’s people. Please continue to pray for your flood-affected brothers and sisters. Ask the Lord to bless relief efforts being carried out by Barnabas Aid project partners.
Thursday 12 “This support has brought great relief to my home and strengthened my faith, reminding me that God never forgets His children,” said Alice, a widow in Pakistan, after receiving food parcels funded by Barnabas Aid supporters. “During a very difficult season of my life, when I had no one else to turn to, the church welcomed me with compassion and treated me with dignity and respect,” she continued. “I am truly thankful to everyone who made this help possible.” Praise the Lord for the help given to widows and other vulnerable believers in Pakistan.
Friday 13 Intercede for Younas Talib, a Pakistani Christian charged under the country’s “blasphemy” laws after a false accusation of desecrating graves. A local Muslim, Umar Hayat, reported Talib for supposedly desecrating both the grave of Umar’s grandmother and the grave of a pir, a spiritual guide in Sufi Islam. The report followed a dispute in which Umar objected to Talib walking past a graveyard near his home in the district of Mirpur, Pakistani-controlled Kashmir. Ask the Lord to impart wisdom to Barnabas Aid’s partners as they provide legal support for Talib and seek to disprove this spurious accusation.
Saturday 14 Praise God for the Barnabas-funded distribution of thick winter blankets to 2,000 Christians in the Indian states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. “Many of these believers live in remote tribal villages with minimal protection against cold nights,” says Barnabas Aid’s project partner. “Each year, several Christian families fall ill due to exposure during winter, particularly in high-altitude or forested areas.” Join us in thanking God that these impoverished brothers and sisters in Christ have been kept warm through the winter months.
Sunday 15 Thank You, gracious heavenly Father, that You are the God who heals. We give thanks that You transmit a ministry of healing through skilled physicians and other health professionals and ask that You bless the work of those carrying out healing in Your Name in many difficult circumstances. Please empower them to touch and transform many lives and protect doctors, nurses and patients as they work in environments of war, hunger and poverty. We ask You to prosper their work through the healing hand of the Lord Jesus Christ, in whose mighty Name we pray. (Exodus 15:26)
Monday 16 Please pray for the success of a Barnabas-supported medical ministry in the Christian-majority state of Karen, Myanmar. Because of ongoing war and conflict, the healthcare system in Myanmar has collapsed. This has led to many preventable deaths, especially among pregnant women and young children. Barnabas Aid’s project partner, a Christian-led teaching hospital and trauma centre, provides free 24-hour medical care, life-saving surgeries and spiritual support. Pray that Barnabas will be able to fund the medicines and medical supplies to sustain this vital work.
Tuesday 17 Intercede for the believers of Falam Township, Chin State, Myanmar, where a church building and 20 houses were destroyed in Tatmadaw (Myanmar military) bombing. This attack came just days after another bombing in the Christian-majority state that destroyed seven homes. Ask for the Lord’s comfort and provision as our brothers and sisters recover from these acts of violence. Pray that there will be shelter for those now homeless, and that believers deprived of their church building will continue to know the love and peace of God.
Wednesday 18 “The pictures speak the same language of destitution, despair and senseless violence,” wrote our project partners in Myanmar. They were describing the regular testimonies they receive from displaced Christians fleeing attacks by the military since it seized power in February 2021. In just one recent aid distribution, Barnabas Aid supporters have provided food parcels for 780 Christian families as well as sleeping mats, blankets and tarpaulins, for 255 families. “On behalf of the families, thank you so much and God bless you,” added our partners. Give thanks to God for the opportunity to help our brothers and sisters and witness that we are disciples of Christ (John 13:35).
Thursday 19 People across South-East Asia are still recovering from unprecedented tropical storms that struck the region in late 2025. One of the hardest-hit countries was the Philippines, where more than 300 people were killed and around 620,000 displaced by back-to-back typhoons. Among those affected were the members of 11 house churches in the Filipino province of Cebu, left without access to clean water. Thank the Lord that Barnabas Aid supporters have given to help these and other believers in South-East Asia at their time of need.
Friday 20 Eighteen leaders of a network of unofficial churches in China face trial and a possible three-year prison sentence for the crime of “illegally using information networks”. The 18 were among 30 members of the Zion Church network first detained in October 2025. The most high-profile detainee is Pastor Jin Mingri, who founded the Zion Church in Beijing in 2007. While unofficial churches are often overlooked by the Chinese authorities, they are technically illegal and members run the risk of arrest and imprisonment. Intercede for these 18 believers, and all those in China’s unofficial church, asking the Lord to sustain them through trials and difficulties (Psalm 55:22).
Saturday 21 Praise God that churches throughout China had opportunity to celebrate Christmas and proclaim the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Although Christmas is not a public holiday in China, many congregations met in the days leading up to Christmas or on the day itself. At one church in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, on the Sunday before Christmas, 20 new believers were baptised. Thank the Lord for the degree of freedom that official churches in China retain. Pray that these freedoms will be maintained, and that pastors and church leaders will have great wisdom in ministering in a context of restriction and suspicion.
Sunday 22 Lord God and Heavenly Father, we bring before you our brothers and sisters in North Korea suffering immense hardship and terrible persecution for their faith. Please guide believers by Your Holy Spirit, giving them all peace and wisdom as they risk their lives to follow Christ. Please draw especially close to those enduring abuse and torture in prisons and labour camps, reminding them that the One who is in them is greater than the one who is in the world, for we ask it in our Saviour’s Name. (1 John 4:4)
Monday 23 In recent years the Saudi Arabian authorities have been more tolerant of celebrations of Easter and Christmas, allowing, for example, decorations in homes and shops. “It’s important for foreigners to feel confident in sharing these traditions here,” said a 26-year-old resident of Riyadh, the capital city. Despite this, Christian worship is still almost entirely forbidden. The government maintains that there are no Saudi-born Christians, and leaving Islam remains a capital offence. Pray that a growing openness towards other cultural traditions will lead to greater religious freedom, especially for Muslim-background believers.
Tuesday 24 Churches in Qatar exist only under firm restrictions. Christian worship is only permitted in one government-owned complex in Doha, the capital city. Even here church buildings cannot include any external religious symbols. Evangelism and leaving Islam are both punishable offences (though no punishments are known to have been carried out since 1971). As in many Muslim-majority contexts, converts from Islam are at additional risk of reprisals from their family, neighbours or former friends. Lift up in prayer our brothers and sisters facing hostility from both the state and the wider community.
Wednesday 25 Barnabas Aid contacts have confirmed that more than 50 Christians were arrested in Yemen in January 2026. The arrests represent a fresh crackdown on the Yemeni Church, which consists mostly of converts from Islam, by the country’s internationally recognised government, the Presidential Leadership Council. At the time of writing all those arrested remain in custody. Please remember them in prayer as the Lord commanded (Hebrews 13:3), asking the Lord to help them to endure any mistreatment or abuse that they face.
Thursday 26 Two Iranian Christian converts from Islam convicted on “national security” charges concerning their involvement in a “house church” were called to begin their sentences in mid-November. Hossein Mohammadi (known as Daniel) and Zahra Gholami (known as Hannah) were each given a two-year sentence in July 2024. In Iran the usual practice once a person has been sentenced to imprisonment is that they will later be summoned to begin their prison term. Pray that Daniel and Hannah will know God’s strength and comfort and His presence with them throughout their ordeal.
Friday 27 Please intercede for Teymour Hosseini (known as Kourosh), an Afghan refugee in Iran who has begun a two-year sentence for his involvement in a “house church”. Kourosh, 45, has lived in Iran for around 20 years and is married with two children. The Iranian authorities consider involvement in unofficial churches an anti-state activity and a crime against national security. Pray that Kourosh and his family will find in the Lord their place of refuge in times of trouble (Psalm 9:9).
Saturday 28 Humanitarian needs remain acute in Afghanistan. Food security experts estimate that in the opening months of 2026 more than a third of the population will face crisis-level or worse levels of food shortages. Among those suffering hunger, poverty and deprivation are an unknown number of Christians, whose lives are in danger if their faith is discovered. Please pray for the Lord’s provision, for all those suffering but especially for our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Sunday 29 Heavenly Father, we remember today Your Son’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the blessed One who comes in the Name of the Lord. We thank You for the revelation that occasion brought of the honour due His Name, even though it took the agony of the Passion for it to be realised in fullness. We pray that Your Church around the world will in awesome wonder of Your majesty present our very best gifts to serve You, whatever challenges and trials lie ahead. Enable the praises of Your people to resound as we worship You this Lord’s Day, for we ask in the precious Name of Jesus. (Psalm 118:26; Matthew 21:9)
Monday 30 Islamists affiliated to Al Qaeda and Islamic State (IS, ISIS, ISIL, Daesh) continue to wield power across parts of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. One regional expert describes “a war for governance” as terrorist groups “seek to build a proto state” in areas where the governing authorities of these three states are perceived as distant from the lives of people. Islamists have set up sharia courts, started taxing residents and – in Mali – imposed a blockade that has severely limited supply of fuel and other goods. Christians are a minority in the West African Sahel, and have more to fear from Islamist rule than many others. Pray that the Lord will deliver His people from their enemies (Psalm 18:48).
Tuesday 31 An elderly couple were killed when gunmen attacked a church service in the village of Mailo, south-western Niger, in late December. Mailo is in the tri-border area of Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali, a hotspot of Islamist terrorism and armed crime. Please pray for the bereaved and traumatised Christians, asking that they will be comforted with the promise that our Lord has “abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” (2 Timothy 1:10, ESV).
