On average, eight Christians died every day for their faith in 2019. That equals more than 2,920 people killed for the cause of Christ last year, according to the 2020 annual report from Open Doors’ World Watch List. In addition, 9,488 churches or Christian buildings were attacked, and 3,711 Christians were detained without trial, arrested, sentenced and imprisoned.

For more info go to this link:

https://www.imb.org/2020/04/20/june-7-day-prayer-persecuted/

IMB personnel around the world deal with the constant reality that they may suddenly be required to leave the country where they serve. Mostly recently, some were evacuated to locations with better medical care because of the coronavirus pandemic. In several countries, foreigners are required to leave the country a few times each year. And each time they leave, they know that they might not be granted access to return. One missionary shared her family's experience: "In the past two years, our family has experienced multiple challenges. Due to security and visa issues, our family had to abruptly leave the country where we served for 15 years to travel back to the U.S.A. Without fully realizing it at the time, we lost our beloved community and most of our belongings overnight. We have since moved to a new country, where our energy is spent learning a new culture and language and figuring out where we fit in the new and strange land. We have also experienced debilitating illnesses that leave us feeling discouraged and weak. These experiences are not unique to our family. Missionaries around the world face challenges and suffering due to security issues, persecution, illness, logistics, etc. Pray that we will not be discouraged or surprised by suffering, but that we will rejoice as we share in the sufferings of Christ (1 Peter 4:12). Pray for perseverance and that our relationship with Christ will be strengthened during trials."