About Watch & Pray Ministries

Getaneh M. Getaneh, founder of Watch and Pray Ministries, is a gentle man whose radiant face belies the horrors he experienced during the red terror of the Mengistu regime in Ethiopia.
  • Arrested by the Communist authorities for preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ
  • Jailed in Ethiopia and in Djibouti
  • Was repeatedly denied food, water, and sleep for days
  • Was tortured with boiling oil poured on the soles of his feet
  • Was whipped with a metal cable during his many years in prison
He eventually escaped prison and fled to neighboring Djibouti. When the Communist government fell in 1994, he returned to Ethiopia.

We are a people who call on the name of Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. We are a people who hear the cries of Our God our Father’s children. We are a people who because of God’s grace and love are called to be the hands and feet of Christ.

Through all the difficulties, his commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ endured.
“Pastor Getaneh is one of the bravest and most remarkable men I know. Pastor Getaneh has been a chosen instrument of hope and progress for victims of religious persecution throughout the world…”
Michael Horowitz, General Counsel of Office management and Budget, President Ronald Reagan Administration.

Getaneh and Mr. Horowitz remain good friends to this day.

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Hebrews 13:8

Our Vision

Providing education, encouragement and hope through Jesus Christ to the persecuted, homeless, orphans and widows around the world.

Our Mission

To educate Christian churches and individuals in the community through evangelistic speaking that engages, impacts and encourages God’s people who call on the name of Jesus Christ to hear the cries of the persecuted church through church and conference speaking, pastor trainings; and by bringing hope and promise into the lives of the widows and orphans (James 1:27) the homeless ( Matthew 25) and the lost (Matthew 28:18-20), through our various ministries to these groups both in America and abroad.