Day 20 - Malaysia

Malaysia is a federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of government. The country is separated by the South China Sea into two parts, Peninsular Malaysia and Malaysian Borneo. Located in the heart of Southeast Asia, Malaysia is surrounded by other countries such as Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Philippines, Vietnam and Brunei. Malaysia's capital is Kuala Lumpur. 


Malaysia's official religion is Islam. however, freedom of religion is also guaranteed by the constitution. Of the 28 million Malaysians (Malays, Chinese and other ethnic groups), 62.61% are Muslims. Malays (the largest ethnic grow) are generally Muslims. There are also Indian Muslims and a small number of Chinese Muslim converts. Although the previous and present Prime Ministers have made proclamations that Malaysia is an Islamic nation, certain segments of the population have resisted this status, pointing to the nation's secular constitution. Proselytizing Muslims is prohibited by law and conversion out of Islam is also forbidden.


believers form a Muslim background are few in number. Many worship in house churches and retain their Islamic clothing and some cultural customs to avoid detection and harassment. In many cases, they discovered the Messiah through a direct divine encounter. Though they are few in number, they are courages in their witness and their faith.


Martyred in Saudi Arabia
In August 2008, a Muslim cleric and member of Saudi Arabia's Commission of the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice killed his sister, 26-year-old Fatima Al-Mutairi. She had proclaimed her Christian faith to her family, in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. The 'Voice of the Martyrs' contacts reports Fatima's fellowship with other believers was mainly limited to Internet forums and phone correspondence. 'As part of her testimony to the family, she proclaimed that he way of Christ is the most pure and most holy way of all. After sharing with her family, she found her brother in her room with her laptop open,' VOM contacts said. 'Her laptop contained notes about her spiritual journey, which he was searching in order to find more evidence against her. Her brother locked her in the room for four hours, during which time she wrote a final letter on the internet. Fatima was killed soon thereafter,' VOM contacts added. This story is from the Voice of the Martyrs website. You can find many other testimonies of suffering believers at: www.persecution.com.


Prayer Ideas:

  • Pray for believers to open tup their hearts to their Muslim neighbours and to be a blessing to them in practical, concrete ways.
  • Pray for more divine encounters to occur among the Malays (see Acts 10:17-18)
  • Pray for believers to be courageous while extending the hand of fellowship and assistance to new people since it can be risky. 
All text from 30 Days of Prayer for the Muslim World

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