Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) today urged officials in Mozambique to expedite the release of pilot Ryan Koher, a U.S. citizen who has been wrongfully detained in the country since November 4. MAF also called on U.S. government leaders to do everything in their power to bring Koher home, and invited Christians around the world to pray for Koher’s safety and swift release.

The more we focus on God and keep our minds on Him this holiday season, we will be able to rest in the perfect peace of the world. Allow the four candles of Advent to prepare your hearts for the season in celebration of Jesus’ birth.

It’s a common refrain this time of year: “Merry Christmas!” But what many of us don’t realize is that the season of Christmas hasn’t yet begun. In actuality, we are in the season of Advent, which means “coming” and begins four Sundays before Christmas.

What is Advent, and how do we celebrate it?

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/MKucova

According to sources, on November 20, Muslim extremists burned down a house where a cell fellowship was meeting in eastern Uganda. This comes one week after Muslims in another area reportedly caned two converts.

Suspected Fulani herdsmen in southwestern Nigeria last week kidnapped Christian workers taking a bus to a wedding, while another group of Christians was kidnapped en route to a funeral in the same state.

 Suspected Fulani herdsmen and other terrorists in the past month killed at least 30 Christians in Plateau state, Nigeria and 10 in Kaduna state, where they also demanded payment for a corpse after collecting ransom for the Christian they kidnapped and killed.

According to a pastor, a group of Muslim extremists in eastern Uganda seriously wounded a him and his wife in an attack on a meeting at their church on Nov. 18.

The Republican Party has no excuse for its failure to win control of the Senate in this year’s midterm elections. Facing record-high inflation, an unpopular President, and a general malaise across the country, the GOP should have gained control of the Senate, racked up a sizeable majority in the House, and flipped Governorships all across the country. Instead, Democrats remain in control of the Senate, the House majority will be slim at best, and won several Governors’ races that should have gone to the GOP. Like a football team that blew a winnable game, the GOP needs to sit in the film room and figure out what went wrong.

Authorities in Sudan on Nov. 21 arrested and jailed a church leader on charges of “witchcraft” for leading a prayer meeting for his ailing mother, sources said.

If you have a large family, Christmas shopping for every member can be stressful. If buying for each member proves too difficult, try to buy one larger gift for the whole family or only buy for the kids. Kids have the most fun during the holidays.