Open Doors says prayer is crucial in upcoming anti-conversion decision.

Sri Lanka (MNN) — Sri Lanka’s proposed anti-conversion law remains a concern of evangelicals worldwide. Buddhist leaders have been pushing for three years to pass this legislation.

But God’s also been working in Sri Lanka. Jerry Dykstra with Open Doors says the point of the bill is a deeper issue: “Behind all this is that the Buddhist party wants to suppress the growth of Christianity and stir up popular opposition to the Christian faith. We know that the Christian church is growing rapidly in Sri Lanka, and that’s really an answer to prayer. In fact, the last 20 years, protestant Christianity has grown from 50,000 to 250,000.”

Despite the great growth of the church, if the bill passes, it could have a devastating effect on both tsunami relief work and ministry.

Dykstra says, “It would just make evangelism out there very difficult and would hinder Christians in carrying out the great commandment of bringing people to Christ.”

The effects of the new law are “up in the air” says Dykstra, and so prayer is needed. Pray that the proposed bill will not pass and the Gospel will continue to spread throughout Sri Lanka.