Syria: Prayer Update

Syria has been closed to the outside world for many weeks. This letter has been received from a leading pastor in Syria and the Evangelical Alliance in the UK is taking the unprecedented step of circulating it to Christians around the world. In it, the pastor writes of the situation in Syria, his hopes, fears and trust in the Lord. He also asks for prayer.

The letter expresses incredible courage, faith and resilience in the face of increasingly dire conditions. It is clear that Syria is experiencing a war within a war. Christians are caught in the crossfire and are being driven from their homelands on account of their faith. This is a complex situation, but we need the media to tell the story of what's really happening to the Church. The astonishing spiritual maturity of suffering Christians in Syria should prompt us all to prayer and action.

Please be encouraged to read this letter aloud in your churches, in your house groups and in your homes, so that we are better informed in our prayers and so that our Christian brothers and sisters in Syria will know that they are not alone. We are their family, and we are praying for them and standing with them against this storm of persecution and oppression.

Steve Clifford, general director of Evangelical Alliance UK.

This statement is issued by the Evangelical Alliance and is endorsed by Release International, Christian Solidarity Worldwide and Open Doors:
With love from Syria…

CryOut to the Father

• For peace in Syria and an end to bloodshed. For God's rich mercies on the suffering people.
• For safety and protection for the churches and wisdom and vision for church leaders.
• To empower the Church to reach out to the suffering, to share the divine cure of the gospel, and to speak the word of the Lord in all boldness.
• That the Lord would send wise, God-fearing counselors to the decision-makers in all parties in the country.