Praying for the Church in Laos

1. Pastor Thongam Filavan, 40, of Laos, was shot and killed by two masked assailants on a motorcycle while feeding his livestock at his home. The assailants fled and he was rushed to a local hospital, but died on arrival. He is survived by his wife and two teenage children.

Local police have been investigating this case since October 2022, when Pastor Sithoud was tortured and killed in Don Keo village, Khammouane province, central Laos. According to police, village officials reportedly warned him to stop all Christian gatherings and activities. The case remains unsolved, and the killers are still on the run.

Thongam was a Khmu tribal leader and provincial head of the Lao Gospel Church. He actively shared the gospel, screened Jesus films, and conducted training for pastors.

According to local Christians, Pastor Thongam was closely monitored by authorities and was reportedly warned several times to stop his “Christian activities.

2. Li Bong (a pseudonym), in his 40s, married with three children, became a believer in April 2023. Shortly after his conversion, the rest of his family accepted the gospel, becoming the second Christian family in their tribal mountain village in northern Laos. Their village relatives and others were furious when they learned of the Li Vong family's conversion. They repeatedly demanded that they abandon their Christian beliefs because it would offend the spirits they worshiped, but when they refused to reject their new faith, they began to persecute them. Relatives and neighbors stopped communicating with them, and village authorities cut them from the list of people receiving social benefits from the government. In February 2024, while his family was away, Li Bong saw the roof of his house filled with holes after villagers threw stones at his home. The community tried to shake their faith, but they were resilient.

There were five Christian families living in the village, and after being harassed by the villagers, three of them abandoned their Christian faith and returned to animist worship. The Li Bong family has endured all the hardships and continues to walk in faith.

3. Chan (a pseudonym) became a Christian many years ago and attends a house church in central Laos. His wife passed away and he lived with his son's family. He shared the gospel with his son more times than he could count, but his son's heart remained closed and he opposed his father's conversion to Christianity.

In late 2023, Chan's health began to deteriorate, and he suffered from lung disease. He begged his son to take him to see a doctor or to buy him medicine to relieve his pain, but all his requests were turned away,

His son told him to ask God to heal him.

Psalm 61:1~4

1. Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer.

2. From the ends of the earth I call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

3. For you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the foe.

4. I long to dwell in your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of your wings. Selah

🙏Pray for

1. Let the church in Laos, sprinkled with the blood of martyrdom and increasingly persecuted, be restored to a church authority that the powers of Hades will not be able to overcome.

Comfort the bereaved family of Pastor Thongam and give them grace that God's justice will be poured out on the land of Laos, that those who murdered him will pay for their sins and that they too will come to faith in Jesus. Please quiet all fears in the Lao church and Pastor Thongam's fellow pastors, and give them peace by taking them under Your wings. Grant them unceasing prayer and worship, and restore their bold and courageous faith.

2. As persecution intensifies with conversion to Christianity, let many spiritual leaders arise in the Lao church who will model the faith with a spirit of martyrdom. Give them new strength to walk in the path of faith with confidence and unwavering faith.

Open up ways to meet their material needs for sustenance.

3. May God's justice and righteousness cover the land and free it from all injustice as they face economic oppression, violence, and collective harassment from Communist Party officials and village leaders.

Buddhism, animism, and communism in Laos, depart, in the name of Jesus!

Let the cross of Jesus be comfortably witnessed in the land, so that the Lao church may bear witness to the gospel and the global church may go to the ends of the earth to preach the gospel. From the Church of Laos, we watch with eyes of faith as the holy army of ASEAN marches and advances.