Missionaries With Home Field Advantage
Laos
Thank you for helping us know how to pray for our brothers and sisters in other countries.
— David and Leota S., CA
The letters we get from Christian Aid keep us informed of the needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ. Thank you so much.
— Charles and Susana C., KY
God bless you all as we work together for getting the message of salvation out to the ends of the earth.
— Evelyn K., CO
I praise God for the GREAT and MARVELOUS work He is doing through your ministries to our Brethren.
— DonnElise K.
Thank you for the letters included with our receipts. They help me understand your work. They remind me to pray for you….because you are missionaries too.
— Janet H., MT
Praise God for your ministry! Many others need to do missions this way.
— Sonja K., ME
Praying for each of you every day!
— Kenneth S., FL
My early elementary Sunday School class had the privilege of receiving Prayerline for Kids as a gift from Janet Hardy (donor). In the “Change for Making a Change” program, the children, on their own, all five children have collected $10 in pennies and chosen to support the Thanksgiving Dinner in Peru! God bless you.
— Sandy L., VT
I pray for a very blessed, peaceful Happy Thanksgiving to all my Christian Aid “family.” I thank you for all your prayerful concern for me and my family. God has been supplying all I have needed. He is truly faithful and I am so blessed. May God bless you all abundantly.
— Edith G., CA
Thank you so much for your website and facebook site. They minister to me in such a great way. They help keep keep us informed on Christians worldwide.
— Von Morgan, MN
Thank you for helping God’s people.
— Terri C., IL
Top 5 People Groups
Lao: 2,740,000
Ou Khmu: 545,000
White Hmong: 228,000
Blue Hmong Njua: 195,000
Phu Thai: 180,000
Religion
Buddhist: 56.8%
Ethnic: 36%
Non-Religious: 3.9%
Christian: 3.1%
Evangelical: 1.9%
Reference:
Operation World
CIA Factbook
Joshua Project
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About Laos
Laos is a narrow, landlocked country mainly situated between Thailand and Vietnam. It is home to 148 People Groups, 137 of whom remain unreached according to the Joshua Project. The largest People Group is the Lao; Centuries ago, the Lao lived in China. However, relentless pressure by the Chinese gradually forced them southward, and many settled along the Mekong River in the eighth or ninth century. More than half of the Lao are Buddhists. They believe that right thinking, ritual sacrifices, and self-denial will enable the soul to reach nirvana (a state of eternal bliss) at death. They live in fear of their gods and constantly strive to appease them with religious chants, rituals, and sacrifices. One third of the Lao are ethnic religionists, combining folk animism (belief that non-living objects have spirits) with Buddhism. They seek help through various supernatural beings and objects. Of major importance to them are the "territorial deities."
After the communist takeover in 1975, one goal was to eradicate Christianity from the country. Even though their constitution professes freedom of religion, any expression of these beliefs must be "beneficial to the country and people." Since Buddhism has existed for centuries, it is accepted as part of the Laotian culture but Christianity is not.
Christian Aid supports indigenous missionaries who seek to work with remote tribal groups as well as give aid to Christians forced from their homes by government persecution.
Recent Prayerline Posts
LAOS. Christmas is a strategic time of year for reaching people in Laos with the gospel. For $300, a church can invite their whole community for a grand Christmas celebration. Food, gifts, gospel songs, preaching, and skits are used to share the Christmas story. Last year several leaders were arrested during the event because authorities were angered ...
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LAOS. Most of the rural churches and new church plants started by Christ for Laos need hymnals ($7 each) for their worship services. CFL is planning to provide several thousand hymnals over the next two years, as funds become available. Give thanks and praise God for these churches and pray they be strengthened in the coming years.
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Related Stories
March 08, 2013 - Jailed for several weeks for making copies of a Christian video, three Lao pastors have returned safe and sound to their villages. This is a persecution story with a happy ending.
Read more.
February 25, 2013 - Religious freedom? The Constitution of Laos guarantees protection for all lawful activities of the Buddhists "and of other religious followers," but violations of those rights persist against the country's minority Christian population.
Read more.
August 28, 2012 - Mr. Bountheung is an indigenous missionary who moved to Nongpong village 10 years ago to become a part of the community and reach out with the love of Christ. But this year he has been interrogated three times by village officials, forced to sell his property and finally arrested. What is his crime? He is a faithful Christian witness in a part of Laos that that is particularly hostile to Christians.
Read more.
April 10, 2012 – Laotian officials, who were in town for three-days of anti-Christian indoctrination, rounded up 136 local Christian families here during the Holy Week, and confiscated their church building on Good Friday eve. Read more.
March 2, 2012 - The following information from Human Rights Watch for Lao Religious Freedom (HRWLRF) regarding two churches in Luangprabang Province was sent to Christian Aid by an indigenous ministry being assisted in Laos. Read more.
February 24, 2012 - On February 21-22, 2012, a group of 4-5 Saybuli district officials travelled to Kengweng village and conducted a seminar entitled "Tricks of the Enemy." Officials and villagers of Kengweng were asked to join the seminar. Read more.
Feb 9, 2010 - 48 Laotian Christians, marched from their village at gunpoint, have been abandoned on the roadside three miles from their homes. Their return to home and family is blocked by armed police squads. Read more.
October 28, 2009 - EXAMINING the lives of believers in Vietnam, Laos, and Burma, we can begin to understand the nature and cause of persecution many Christians experience. All three countries have military dictatorships at the helm of government. Both human rights and religious rights are often trampled. Read more.
September 28, 2009 - Three Lao officials arrested Thao Oun, elder of the Boukham Church. He was detained, interrogated, and terrorized for five to six hours. Police authorities threatened Thao Oun that if news got out to the international community about this incident, they would put him to death. Read more.
August 07, 2009 - The Laotian Constitution states: Lao citizens have the right and freedom to believe or not to believe in religions. Yet Christian believers´ rights were once again violated by local officials of Katin Village.
Read more.
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