Latest / Challenges of Faith Radio Program / So what is going on in parts of Africa? Ep 3404
Transcript
- 0:01Speaker 1: Welcome back to Challenges of Faith radio program. I'm Gary McCance.
- 0:04Speaker 1: Thank you for joining. Thank you for joining. Well, today
- 0:12Speaker 1: we want to find out here on episode 3404 what
- 0:18Speaker 1: the International Christian Concern has put out by way of knowledge,
- 0:23Speaker 1: information for the household of faith. They talk about a
- 0:28Speaker 1: father's stand, a son suffering over in Africa. They said
- 0:33Speaker 1: that for many years, Pastor Emmanuel faithfully served the church
- 0:37Speaker 1: in Sudan as secretary of the pastor's council. And when
- 0:42Speaker 1: the government operating under Sharia influence formed an organized body
- 0:48Speaker 1: to bring churches under its control, Pastor Emmanuel initially thought
- 0:55Speaker 1: it could provide an opportunity To represent Christ at the
- 0:59Speaker 1: government level. At first, I thought the initiative was to
- 1:03Speaker 1: bring glory to the name of the Lord by giving
- 1:06Speaker 1: us access. To represent him by preaching the gospel at
- 1:10Speaker 1: the government level, he said. But, that was a plot
- 1:17Speaker 1: against the body of Christ. The government began pressuring pastors
- 1:23Speaker 1: to sell church land. offering bribes to those who agreed.
- 1:29Speaker 1: Some surrendered their properties, but Pastor Emmanuel refused. He chose
- 1:35Speaker 1: to remain faithful to Christ rather than compromise. His decision
- 1:41Speaker 1: brought persecution from government authorities and even from fellow pastors
- 1:46Speaker 1: who had given in to the pressure. In 2012, a
- 1:49Speaker 1: trusted friend, warned him that his arrest was intimate. To
- 1:57Speaker 1: protect his family, Pastor Emmanuel ran to Chad. His children
- 2:03Speaker 1: were scattered for safety. Four were sent to Egypt and
- 2:07Speaker 1: three to Juba, South Sudan. One son remained connected to Sudan.
- 2:14Speaker 1: That son is Daniel, now 24. In July 2025, Daniel
- 2:18Speaker 1: returned from Chad to visit his wife who was living.
- 2:23Speaker 1: I'm not giving up the location for various reasons. The
- 2:29Speaker 1: following day, a neighbor who recognized him as the son
- 2:32Speaker 1: of the long-wanted pastor reported him to the authorities. Daniel
- 2:39Speaker 1: was arrested and taken to Cobar Prison, one of Sudan's
- 2:42Speaker 1: harshest prisons, normally associated with people accused of serious crimes.
- 2:49Speaker 1: Daniel has now spent more than a year in prison.
- 2:53Speaker 1: On several occasions, the court has found him innocent, yet
- 2:56Speaker 1: he has not been released. Emmanuel sought help from lawyer
- 3:01Speaker 1: friends and discovered what he believes is behind his son's
- 3:06Speaker 1: continued detention. After he was found innocent, Pastor Emmanuel said,
- 3:13Speaker 1: I tried to engage with some of my friends who
- 3:17Speaker 1: are lawyers to release him. But they found out that
- 3:20Speaker 1: a Muslim who wanted the wife of Daniel to be
- 3:23Speaker 1: his wife was behind the continued detention. According to Pastor Emmanuel,
- 3:30Speaker 1: this man has used his influence to keep Daniel in
- 3:34Speaker 1: prison because he wants his wife for himself. He has
- 3:38Speaker 1: also threatened Pastor Emmanuel and warned him not to pursue
- 3:41Speaker 1: his son's release. There have been attempts to have Daniel
- 3:45Speaker 1: released so that he could be captured and killed outside
- 3:48Speaker 1: the prisons. Although he has been found innocent and all
- 3:53Speaker 1: trumped-up charges declined, his life remains a serious risk. As
- 4:00Speaker 1: it is standing right now, we're still trusting God to
- 4:03Speaker 1: make a way so that he can leave the prison
- 4:06Speaker 1: zone and be evacuated safely, the pastor said. This is
- 4:11Speaker 1: one of the most brutal prisons for people who have
- 4:14Speaker 1: committed major crimes such as murder. But this is an
- 4:18Speaker 1: act of persecution just because he is a Christian and
- 4:23Speaker 1: his father is a pastor who refused to work with
- 4:27Speaker 1: the Islamic government to tear down the church. According to Emmanuel,
- 4:32Speaker 1: the court expects Daniel to leave prison this month. But
- 4:37Speaker 1: he fears that without proper arrangements for his safety, his
- 4:41Speaker 1: release could put his life in even greater danger. This
- 4:46Speaker 1: exerts pressure on us because failure to make arrangements for
- 4:49Speaker 1: him could lead to his death. Pastor Emmanuel said we
- 4:55Speaker 1: ask the global body of believers to pray for us
- 4:59Speaker 1: and help us to advocate for this issue, and we
- 5:02Speaker 1: would be more than excited to see him free once again. Today,
- 5:07Speaker 1: Pastor Emmanuel remains in exile, separated from his children for
- 5:13Speaker 1: their protection. And when Daniel remained behind bars, despite being
- 5:21Speaker 1: found innocent. Please pray for Daniel's protection and release. An
- 5:27Speaker 1: international Christian concern staffer said for Pastor Emmanuel's safety and
- 5:32Speaker 1: wisdom and for the entire family as they continue to
- 5:36Speaker 1: trust God and stand firm in their faith. A better
- 5:43Speaker 1: household of faith, irrespective of where you are around the globe,
- 5:46Speaker 1: listen to the program, have listened to the program, continue
- 5:49Speaker 1: to listen to the program. Are you undergoing a form
- 5:54Speaker 1: of persecution for the cause of Christ and not anything
- 5:59Speaker 1: you've done? Do you know any other believer? Are you
- 6:03Speaker 1: standing in prayer with them? Have you been called to
- 6:08Speaker 1: help them like those attorneys? Well, have you? Have you obeyed?
- 6:14Speaker 1: Are you sure? Are you sure?