Widows
Nigerian women carrying water, Author Shamus08 (CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication)
“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction…” (James 1: 27 ESV).
- The Fulani Militia are from a nomadic Muslim tribe, based in central Nigeria. As of 2014 the militia were named the fourth deadliest terrorist group in the world by the Global Terrorism Index (the others being Boko Haram, the Taliban, and ISIS-West Africa) [1A]. Fulani Militia target non-Muslim communities, particularly Christians. They attack isolated communities and individuals at their most vulnerable, including men and women working in the fields [1B].
- Boko Haram is a self-proclaimed jihadist terrorist organization based in Nigeria but, also, active in Chad, Niger, Cameroon, and Mali [2][3]. Boko Haram and ISIS-West Africa carry out hundreds of kidnappings and ambushes in Nigeria annually using small arms, captured military equipment, and improvised explosive devices [4].
Islamist attacks have widowed over 10,000 Christian women in Nigeria in the past 20 years [5A]. Many women have young children now left fatherless. Widows may be forced into prostitution, in an effort to feed their children.
Meanwhile, Sudan has the world’s largest hunger crisis and world’s largest displaced population, with nearly nine million people having fled their homes [6]. Neither side in the conflict there – the Sudanese Armed Forces supplied by Iran or the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces – is sympathetic to Christians, giving Islamist extremists greater opportunity to target them [7][8]. Sudanese Christians from a Muslim background are at particular risk.
“Anytime I remember, it is so painful…Even when you forgive, it is not easy to forget. God is still working on my heart.”
–Regina, widowed victim of religious persecution in Nigeria [5B]
Often forgotten by the western church, the persecuted church in Nigeria, Sudan, and elsewhere, finds meaning in suffering for Christ. And strives to forgive in His Name.
By contrast, we in the West have a shallow faith. We feel slighted, if God does not fulfill all our material desires. We must do better.
“…false Christian teachers have sold many on the idea that if we exhibit strong enough faith or make a big enough offering, God will respond by showering us with material blessings in this world. This false teaching…dishonors God by mischaracterizing Him as a transactional deity from whom we can buy health, happiness and success in the fallen world.”
–Cole Richards, Pres. of Voice of the Martyrs [5C]
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[1A and 1B] CSW/UK, “Who Are the Fulani Militia?”, https://www.csw.org.uk/nigeria-fulanimilitia.
[2] Wikipedia, “Boko Haram”, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boko_Haram.
[3] National Counterterrorism Center, “Boko Haram”, https://www.dni.gov/nctc/groups/boko_haram.html.
[4] US Dept. of State, “Country Reports on Terrorism in 2021: Nigeria”, https://www.state.gov/reports/country-reports-on-terrorism-2021/nigeria/.
[5A, 5B, and 5C] Voice of the Martyrs Magazine, Vol. 59, No. 1 , “How Nigeria’s Women of Honor Find Meaning in Suffering” by Cole Richards, January 2025.
[6] Open Doors/US, “World Watch Ranking: 5 – Sudan”, https://www.opendoorsus.org/en-US/persecution/countries/sudan/.
[7] Wikipedia, “Sudanese civil war (2023 – present)”, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudanese_civil_war_(2023%E2%80%93present).
[8] Washington Institute, Fikra Forum, “Iran in Sudan: Fears of a Sudanese Popular Mobilization Forces” by Areej Elhag, 1/31/24, https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/iran-sudan-fears-sudanese-popular-mobilization-forces.
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A Lawyer's Prayers 
“By contrast, we in the West have a shallow faith. We feel slighted, if God does not fulfill all our material desires. We must do better”.
This is a powerful, but accurate assessment of Western Christianity. I would go even further and say that such a “Christianity” is Christ-less because it exalts the fleshly lusts and desires of man rather Jesus Christ. Surely, such a belief as you described Anna is a stench in the nostrils of the Almighty!
When physical persecution comes to the Western church, and it surely is coming, one has to wonder where the prosperity preachers will run to, because it is clear to me that their hope is not in Christ, but in material possessions. Sadly, millions of their faithful followers will find themselves in the same position.
This is why sites such as yours are so important. The truth must be declared in times like these, and I thank God He has given you a voice unafraid to proclaim it.
You are always so kind to me, Ron. 🙂 Mostly, I feel like someone shouting into the wind.
Like you, however, I believe there will eventually be a winnowing. Those who only profess to believe (the “goats”) will be separated out from those who actually do (the “sheep”) (Matt. 25: 32-33). And from that there will be no return.
You are doing much more that “shouting into the wind” my friend! God is using you to reach far more than you can imagine!
These are areas of suffering that the world has forgotten, perhaps because the persecution of the church of Christ is unimportant even to Western Christians and especially Dispensationalist ones who are focused on Israel. It astounds me that this is so even though Christians are now the single most persecuted religious group in the world.
Thank you, Anna, for keeping us informed so we can pray daily for them.
That is my goal, Dora.
Your advocacy for the defenseless is important, Anna. So many widows and orphans, in so many different lands.
We too support Voice of the Martyrs, Barnabas Aid and other ministries that focus on these most vulnerable populations.
As for materialism in the Western Church… it is often nothing less than “another gospel.”
Praying for these defenseless people
Amen.
And amen