Kenya (MNN) — In the early hours of January 13th, terrorists attacked Kamuthe, a small village in Kenya. They cut communications, then murdered three Christian teachers, left a fourth with severe injuries, and abducted a fifth.
It’s a symptom of a larger problem in Northeast Kenya, where al-Shabaab and other militant groups target Christians, especially teachers. Bruce Allen of FMI says, “According to the Kenyan Ministry of Education, at least 32 Christian teachers have been killed in those border counties over the past five years. More than half of the teachers in the primary and secondary schools have demanded transfers to other areas of the country, simply because they’re being targeted.”
Extremists attack Christian teachers to prevent any growth of Christianity in the region. But they also realize an educated population will be more resistant to the kind of radical violent ideologies that al-Shabaab and other extremist groups promote.
FMI sends in a team
These militants often cross over the border from Somalia into Kenya. Allen says, “What I find very interesting is that ethnic Somalis are poised to become the most populous ethnic group in Kenya. So the time to reach them with the good news of Christianity is now.”
That’s why a team of FMI partners plans to visit this dangerous region of Kenya very soon. They hope to equip church planters and distribute Arabic Bibles. Allen says, “Pray for them, that the Lord would providentially connect them with church planters who could benefit from FMI partnership. Finding Christians in an area where it’s 99-point-something percent Muslim is going to be difficult. But the Lord knows how to connect people. Just like Ananias was connected with Saul of Tarsus in Damascus, pray that those sorts of connections happen again.”
Pray this team returns from Kenya with none of the Bibles they brought in. And pray God would keep them safe as they perform Gospel work in a very dangerous area for Christians.
The header image shows a Kenyan village. (Image by David Mark from Pixabay)
