G7 leaders are meeting virtually this week as chaos continues in Afghanistan.

On Friday, a confidential United Nations report confirmed Taliban fighters were hunting for anyone who collaborated with Western forces “and were threatening to kill or harm their relatives if they do not surrender.”

Christians in Afghanistan fear torture and execution. They’re asking believers like you to be their voice. “It’s dire. We’ve seen the Taliban in the past, we know what they do,” says Rex Rogers of SAT-7 USA, a satellite TV ministry to the Middle East and North Africa.

“We know what their values and worldview drives them to do. They’ll likely get even more violent.”

United States President Joe Biden faces increasing criticism at home and abroad over his handling of the crisis. Last week, the president and his team admitted surprise over the Taliban blitz.

Listen: How we can help, and pray for, Afghanistan

For others, concern began with April’s announcement of a full U.S. troop withdrawal. Taliban forces gained significant territory by the end of June and didn’t stop there. Insurgents controlled roughly half of Afghanistan’s districts by July, seizing provincial capitals and the national capital city in a matter of days.

Pray for Afghan Christians

Afghanistan is one of the most difficult places in the world to follow Christ. Yet the Holy Spirit is moving; “significant Christian growth has occurred among the Hazara people,” Voice of the Martyrs USA reports. Reports of brutal Hazara massacres at the hands of Taliban fighters surfaced last week. It’s unknown whether these individuals were believers or not.

Amnesty International’s Secretary-General Agnès Callamard said:

“The cold-blooded brutality of these killings is a reminder of the Taliban’s past record, and a horrifying indicator of what Taliban rule may bring. These targeted killings are proof that ethnic and religious minorities remain at particular risk under Taliban rule in Afghanistan.”

As described here, some Afghan Christians are reaching out to SAT-7 on social media, while others call in to receive encouragement and prayer. Many have tried to flee the country but cannot. Some have received multiple death threats.

“They are connecting; our Dari-speaking Christian counselors are responding to them as best they can. Sometimes they’re asking us for information and help, [asking questions like] ‘how do I get out of here?’,” Rogers says.

Afghan believers often watch SAT-7 PARS because their language, Dari, is similar to Farsi, the language spoken throughout Iran. The channel provides critical updates and spiritual encouragement. Today, a special live broadcast on SAT-7 PARS will address the situation, amplify Christian voices from Afghanistan, and lead viewers in prayer. Will you join in, too? Use the prompts listed below to guide your intercession.

“We may not know why [certain] things that happened to us, or in the world, but we know the God who knows why. We trust the sovereign God of the universe, who’s also our Heavenly Father,” Rogers says.

“God is not surprised. He’s not perplexed. He can turn evil to good. We’ve seen it in Iran. We could see it just as quickly in Afghanistan.”

CALL TO ACTION

  • Please pray urgently for the people of Afghanistan, particularly Christians. Believers are afraid for their lives, and some have received death threats. What was already a very high cost of discipleship has become an imminent threat to safety.
  • Pray for peace and for protection from brutality and oppression.
  • Pray that believers will find a place of safety; that they will be able to follow Jesus without fear of their lives.
  • Pray for women in Afghanistan, who face the loss of so much that has improved their lives.

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Written by By Katey Hearth. This story originally appeared at Mission Network News and is republished here with permission.