Praying for the Persecuted

Last Sunday at church we were challenged to pray for those who are persecuted, and even martyred, for their faith. We saw a short video clip of a woman, in a country I had never really heard of, who was beaten and imprisoned for her faith in Christ. She talked about how her faith had sustained her and given her strength in the midst of severe beatings. To survive her imprisonment, she and her fellow believers would pray 6 times a day...three during the day and three through the night. How eye-opening...and what a challenge! I know that I have lived a very "safe" Christian life, never really being persecuted for my faith even though I've lived as a missionary in a country that was primarily Buddhist. Now that I'm here in the US, where we have so many freedoms, I am challenged that I should be more bold about my faith. What keeps us from sharing the truth of the Gospel when we have so many freedoms to do so?

It could be that we are too afraid of displeasing people. We want people to like us, right? We want to be nice and friendly. Maybe we feel awkward about talking about Jesus when our society rebels so much against what Christians stand for. Maybe we as Christians don't know how to approach people who look different from us, live a different lifestyle, and the list goes on. I'm challenged by this. One of the conclusions I've come to is that I want to simply share with people the love of Christ. I think before we can jump ahead and start encouraging people to change their lifestyle or ways of thinking, we have to get to the core...people need Christ. They need Him and His Word and that's what will transform them. I think that's step one. That's my thought, anyway. I know how much I need Christ's transforming power in my own life. I would love to see the lives of others around me transformed as well.

Today I finished reading another book, The Preacher's Wife by Jody Hedlund. Wow. I would definitely recommend it. I liked it because it was set in 1600s England in the time of the Puritans. Not only did I learn new historical information, but it was a great love story. It also told of the persecution of the Puritans and the lengths they went to stand for the truth of Jesus Christ. The main character was loosely based on John Bunyan, who was imprisoned for his faith. It was a great follow-up to what we heard in church on Sunday.

A few other great missionary biographies that I've read:

Evidence Not Seen by Darlene Deibler Rose. Great story of a woman and her husband who were taken captive during WWII.

Bruchko by Bruce Olson. Another amazing story written by Olson about his experiences with South American Indians. He began in 1961, so this story is more current.

There are so many more biographies/autobiographies written by those who have been an amazing example of perseverance and faith in Christ. They put their lives on the line to share with others the truth of Christ. Once again, it is definitely a challenge and encouragement to me.

May we all be challenged to pray for those who are persecuted around the world!