>> today on "christian world news" korean christians rally and pray for persecuted believers in the north. we bring you the story of one woman that escapes to freedom. >> plus cripples in a terrorist attack, this woman is empowering people with disabilities. and a little money can make a lot of difference. we'll tell you how something called micro financing is bringing hope to many. rouling the world to stand up for north korea's christians, hello everybody i am wendy griffith. north korea's prison system as a

modern-day auschwitz. holocaust remembrance day to draw attention to the plight of prisoners in that hermit kingdom. >> reporter: each year they gather to remember the holocaust. remembering the victims of the nazi germany. 200,000 prisoners are believed to be held in the camps. most are christians. this man suggests south koreans must express concern. robert parks spoke at the rally. they tortured him during his

imprisonment in 2010. he says the north korean regime is committing genocide against its own people. >> north korea has employed each of the five acts through executions and state-sanctioned murders, stay induced mass starvation, forcible abortions and the forcible enslavement of children. >> this north kore participants the chinese embassy in seoul. christian activists prayed for north korean prisoners and their family. this college student urges more christians to speak out. >> i wept and prayed when i realized in proverbs it says we

should speak up for those that cannot do so for themselves. >> rally organizers are urging them to announce a clear statement against the koreans. >> you are about to meet a young lady who was part of north korea's secret underground church. her story has never been told until now. >> her name is kim jen, born in north korea. her testimony is rare. cia estimated 24 million people live in the communist country. best guess is 2 percent, 480,000 are christians. a handful have escaped from the

buddha regime. >> growing up i was told by the authorities there was no god. we are ordered to worship kim jong un and kim un sung, the leaders of the country. >> what was it like to be a believer of north korea. >> we met every saturday evening. we had to be very quiet, we whispered when we prayed and sang songs. >> growing up she learned about stories of her city, the jerusalem of the east, 13 percent of the population was christian, 1945. half a century later, kim's faith made her a target.

>> my parents often asked me to watch while my family prayed. >> meetings grew to include friends and extended family. >> we had one bible. my grandmother had a bible, we found strength in those pages. >> soon the authorities discovered her father was a secret believer. >> the police suspected something was going on. we believe they planted listening devices. >> miss kim's father was operating an underground church in north korea, raided the home, arrested him and both men probably ended up in one of the 6 labor camps in north korea.

>> do you remember that day? >> [ foreign speaking ]. the day my father was arrested i was at school. he hugged me before i left for school. he reminded me to be careful. every morning at the breakfast table he would tell us the government will come and arrest us for being christians. i remember him saying even if i faced death, i will follow jesus. >> 200,000 prisoners are being held in north korea. estimated 30,000 are christians. regime is routinely sited for human rights violations. this professor of law in south korea. >> they were treated like criminals, especially a terrorist. they were prosecuted based on

the crime of north korea. this video reportedly shows the execution of north korea creations. christians. >> [ foreign speaking ]. >> do you think your father is alive today? >> no. everyone knows what happens when government agents arrest christians in north korea, they never make it out alive. i know my father is in heaven. and he is praying for north korea and my family. >> kim's mother, grandmother and siblings managed to escape that day to the mountains. in 2005 with the help of a chinese pastor, she crossed the

river and defected to china. >> it was a difficult decision. my family defected because we were being persecuted in north korea for her faith. >> today she is married and has a baby boy. >> i am proud of what she did. she is a hero in my eyes. >> kim gives honor to the man that laid down his life. >> i grew up in a land where they said there was no god. my father told me otherwise, he loved christ, for that he died. >> she has a dream to one day go to to pang yang and share about her love for the lord. george thomas, cbn news, south

korea. >> the those who are ill treated since you yourself also are in the body. if you want to help the persecuted christians, you can go to the website, you can find links to serve those that are suffering for their faith, cwnews.org. coming up, turning tragedy into testimony. one woman is using her experiences to he disabled.

>> karachi, pakistan has been called the most dangerous city in the world. in january, bible teacher marilyn hicky held a series of meetings in karachi. >> marilyn, why did you go to the most dangerous city in the world to hold services? >> this is the second time to

karachi and sixth time to pakistan. some muslims believe jesus heals the sick. the first night we had 75,000, second night 130,000, last night shocked us, over 210,000 people. i would say 30 percent of our crowd was christian. so 70 percent were islamic. i can only say jesus did this. here i am 80 having the biggest meeting in our life. we have a big god and jesus is so wonderful. >> as a woman, how are you received in islamic societies and a woman who is also a christian? >> i don't think it is a negative. now for one thing in islamic countries, they think a woman is

not very bright. what can they do? another thing, an old woman, what can she do? >> marilyn hicky, you are such an inspiration. we thank god for you. >> thank you, wendy. love doing it. this woman has turned her personal nightmare into a blessing lucille talusan reports from the southern philippines. >> more than 50 armed muslim rebels, shirlyn mascasarte survived 29 gunshots. the attack cost temporary

paralysis. shirlyn mascasarte was a victim of mistaken identity, she didn't feel angry or bitter. >> it was a muslim who brought me to the hospital. he saved my life. that is why i believe there is good in every person. >> her life spared, shirlyn mascasarte testified about god's faithfulness. she was drawn to persons with disabilities. she felt passion to help them and launch ed saklay. many of those like evelyn penas have been neglected for a long time. she became lame when her nerves were damaged during a childhood vaccination.

i didn't go to first grade until 14 years old. >> i am happy now i have a wheelchair. it is a big help to g out and earn a living. i have money to buy rice. i thank god for helping me and giving me hope. >> shirlyn mascasarte has assisted many handicapped people in her community. she never expected one of her loved ones would also need help. >> her niece was gunned down by muslims in broad daylight. >> she escaped serious injury, her niece's husband was instantly killed. their 9-year-old daughter

survived, her leg had to be amputated. >> i know the enemy doesn't want god to use me. this has cost much pain. we are thankful she is alive. it is the breath of life that inspires me. i believe in all of this, god has a purpose. >> family tragedies have inspired shirlyn mascasarte to empower the weak and provide education, especially for muslims. example of christian faith in action working to turn evil intentions into something good. lucille talusan, cbn news, north cotabato philippines. up next on "christian world news," ministry of micro financi financing, how small l changing lives around the world.

>> welcome back, more than a

billion people in developing countries live on a dollar a day. the poorest people in the world can be turned into entrepreneurs with loans of $100 or more. efrem graham reports on this growing concept of micro finance. >> reporter: breathtaking beaches lure millions to the dominican republic. >> you have a reality of people with a lot of worth and suv vehicles. that is not the worth of 9.5 million dominicans. >> some of that 60 percent live in poor communities where jobs are nearly impossible to find. then there are areas of the dominican republic built on the sugar cane. communities known as the haitian

batay community. >> many don't have documents. even though they might have been born, they are not citizens of the dominican republic. thought of going to haiti isn't great. >> that can easily lead to hopelessness, so many people living on little more than a dollar a day. >> the global church, we have all we need to see a tremendous impact. now is a key time to get involved in bringing the hope of christ to communities like this. >> peter greer writes about this in his book, the poor will be glad, it is a guide to turning the poorest into entrepreneurs, the concept is called micro finance. >> businesses that are self-employment for someone at the bottom of the pyramid.

an opportunity when people couldn't find a job but can create a job. >> cbn's operation blessing uses it in countries like mexico, laura lost her factory job after more than 40 years. >> at 57 years old, what kind of job was i going to get? >> operation blessing showed her how to turn a love for chocolate into a thriving candy making business. in singal and in guatemala, this grandmother was able to open a clothing store. >> i am making good money with my new business. >> one of the challenge is trying to do it in an efficient economical way. normally when you lend money,

you have to do an analysis. all takes time and money. >> the school is at work in rwanda taking micro finance to the next level with a business development center. >> we are running projects to help people start small to immediate enterprises, sme's. small to medium size are the economic engine of an economy. we are looking at creating businesses that employ people. it is the employment that is the key. >> less than two years, regent has seen 80 graduates from a small eastern government that suffered a mass -->> one of our first applicants, i became the chief of my family when i was 6 years old. >> this woman employs women from

her church. >> they are going to employ a lot of other people. >> this is way bigger than money. yeah. if we were going to look at this as a financial transaction, we would miss the call of script e scripture. >> life has changed back in the dominican republic, single mother of three is teaching others to turn plastic shopping bags into colorful purses. it is a skill she tries to teach me. [laughter]. >> [ foreign speaking ]>> before i was able to get these loans to grow my businesses, i could only get loans from loan sharks.

>> this week a virginia pastor finished his sermon, sat down behind the pulpit and died. bishop thoroughgood encouraged his congregation to get right with god. his life was deeply related to the lord. >> if you are going to do battle with the devil, know jesus and have a focussed relationship with god. >> bishop just finished his sermon. he collapsed shortly after. members of new jerusalem church in virginia beach, he was pronounced dead. his adopted son told cbn news,

his father had heart complications. >> he said if i go, i want to go on the battlefield. i want to be on the pulpit, ultimately we know he is happy because the lord honored his requests. >> god has planned your today and tomorrow. he knows the path that you have taken. >> regent university professor says thoroughgood was a mentor to him. every pastor should be educated and filled with the holy spirit. >> he transformed the community around his church. he invested in the lives of the homeless, broken. >> the bishop the church more than 40 years ago. he started the church in a 3-room flat and preached his first sermon to himself. the church has grown to more

than 2,000 members. >> they will remember the bishop as the man of the people who brought jesus christ and the salvation, the gospel of grace to this area and to the world. >> is there anything too hard for god? you don't have a problem that god can't solve. >> bishop thoroughgood was 62. mark martin, cbn news. >> what a wonderful preacher and legacy to leave. thanks for being with us, until