Turkish Christian media group: ‘Please pray for us’

Rescue workers respond at a shopping center in Diyarbakır, Türkiye, after an earthquake struck Monday. The building in the background eventually collapsed. [Photo by Mahmut Bozarslan, VOA]

The twin earthquakes that have killed thousands of people and destroyed thousands of buildings in Türkiye (formerly known as Turkey) and Syria also have taken a toll on Christian media in the region.

“The most damaged city is Antioch,” said Paul,* the general manager of a Christian media ministry in Türkiye. “We had a radio station there. Also, we don’t have a signal.”

Paul and his team are ministry friends of TWR, also known as Trans World Radio, a multinational Christian media mission.

In a brief audio early on Monday, Paul reported that his team was purchasing blankets, clothing and food before traveling with his wife to Antioch, which is also known as Antakya. It is about 130 miles from the quake’s epicenter, which was near the city of Gaziantep.

Antioch is known to New Testament readers as the city the Apostle Paul was sent from on his missionary journeys and the place where believers were first known as Christians. But today, 99% of the Turkish population is Muslim, and in nearby Syria it’s 87%.

The quakes registered magnitudes of 7.8 and 7.5, the region’s strongest in decades, according to media reports. The second quake’s epicenter was about 60 miles from the first.

The manager of the Turkish media group asked for prayer on behalf of all those affected by the devastating quakes.

“Please pray for us,” he said.

Please pray:

• For the untold numbers of victims trapped under collapsed buildings and for the people doing all they can to rescue them. Call on the Lord to protect the rescue workers in this potentially dangerous work and to save many of the victims from their horrific entombment.
• For the families of the thousands who have died or been injured and for those who have lost their homes and livelihoods. Seek God’s comfort, protection and provision for these profoundly traumatized souls.
• For our ministry friends and other believers who are already rushing to find ways to aid the survivors of this devastating disaster. Ask the Lord to care for them and give them strength throughout this ordeal. May they radiate the love and peace of Christ as they minister to a hurting nation.
• For TWR programming that reaches into this area of the world and shares the ultimate good news of Jesus Christ both in the midst of this crisis and later as life returns to some semblance of normality. For further updates and information, visit our newsroom.

Thank you for praying for our ministry friends and for the people of Türkiye and Syria. We’ve also set up an emergency fund to help support our outreach in the aftermath of this disaster, and if God is leading you to get involved, you can take action here. 

* Paul is a pseudonym used for security purposes