Please pray for the safe return of Pastor Moses Dikko Usman who was abducted in northern Nigeria last week.
It is understood that Moses, a clergyman in the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) denomination, was kidnapped by suspected Islamist militants in Kaduna state last Monday.
His abduction is just the latest in a string of kidnappings and killings of church leaders and members this year. A report by the ECWA said that six of its pastors had been killed and 27 members of the ECWA kidnapped in the past seven months.
James Saleh, a co-ordinator of ECWA’s Evangelical Missionary Society (EMS), reported that among the six pastors murdered was Rev Ezra Shamaki, an ECWA missionary killed in an attack on June 21 in Kaduna state.
‘Ask God to comfort the family of the late Rev Ezra Shamaki, who was shot dead by terrorists,’ Saleh said. ‘The terrorists kidnapped his wife, and they are yet to make any contact.’
Mac Philips, another EMS co-ordinator, said that 15 other women and five men were also abducted in the June 21 attack.
In July terrorists killed Rev Adamu Buba in Kaduna state, Philips said. Pastor Buba leaves behind a wife and seven children.
‘To preach the gospel for us is to die, to be safe is to stop preaching the gospel,’ Philips told Morning Star News. ‘It’s a choice we all have to make – for us, we choose the former. The gospel in Nigeria cannot be preached without casualties. Our lives are increasingly on the line, but nothing compares to the excellency of sharing the gospel to a dying world without Christ.‘
Northern Nigeria is engulfed in terrorist attacks by Islamist extremists who invade predominantly Christian communities, he said.
(Source: Morning Star News)
- Thank God for the inspiring faith and courage of Christian leaders and missionaries in northern Nigeria, who put their lives on the line in order that others may hear the gospel.
- Pray for the safe return of Christians, including Pastor Moses and the wife of Rev Ezra and all those taken in the June attack.
- Ask God to comfort Pastor Buba’s wife and children and all those who are mourning the loss of loved ones.