The Jihad in Nigeria is Worse than You Think

In the past two years, 90% of all Christian persecution deaths have taken place in Nigeria. In the past four years, nearly 17,000 Christians have been killed for their faith in Nigeria. The situation is desperate, the need is great, and the responsibility falls on Christians to step up and help our brothers and sisters in need. Nigeria is Africa’s most populous nation and has a wealth of natural resources, yet the nation is stuck in poverty and religious turmoil due to competing cultures and religious animosity. What seems peculiar is that you most likely have not heard about what is happening in Nigeria until recently, perhaps when Fox News did a brief story on the tragedy, or maybe you're hearing about it for the first time right now as you read this.

Persecution of Nigerian Christians has been happening for quite some time, and it is not because there is a lack of Christians in Nigeria, as approximately 47% of Nigerians identify as Christians. Despite the large Christian population, violence against Christians rages as jihad sweeps across the Middlebelt of Nigeria. Areas that were once 60% or 70% Christian in Northern Nigeria are now 10% to 20%, as Christians flee or are brutally disposed of by groups such as the Fulani herdsmen or Boko Haram (African ISIS).

I have seen firsthand the destruction that is taking place in the lives of our brothers and sisters there in Nigeria. One widow told me her story of how her husband—a pastor—was targeted, stalked, and ultimately butchered for his faith. It brought me to tears to hear her testimony, but also to hear of her faith and love for the Lord as she thanked God for all the blessings in her life. Also in Nigeria is The Fountain of Hope, an orphanage dedicated to caring for children whose parents have lost their lives standing up for the gospel of Jesus Christ. While it is heartbreaking to see some of the scars on the children, marking where they have survived attempts on their lives from Islamic terrorist groups, it is also heartwarming to see them run and play with hope in their hearts because they have found Jesus Christ as their Savior.

Yes, there is a lot of evil happening in Nigeria: Christians losing their lives for their faith, mass kidnappings—sometimes involving entire schools—and horrific violence that can’t even be spoken of. But there is hope in Nigeria. Better is possible through the reach of the body of Christ. One of the limbs of the body of Christ that has made Nigeria its mission is Equipping the Persecuted (ETP). ETP has taken on the task of coming alongside the persecuted church in Nigeria and equipping them with the hope of God’s Word and the love of the saints by supplying needs and building necessary infrastructure to not only pick up the pieces of the destruction left behind by these radical terrorists, but also to hopefully end the persecution happening there. If you want to join in the building of God’s Kingdom by helping the most in-need Christians in the world—the persecuted church—please visit www.equippingthepersecuted.org to see how you can help today. God bless you.