Remember Ambassadors

Today I will be taking our two newest bulletin inserts to the printers, but you saw them here first!

Vietnam

Nigeria

Sometimes, in all the statistics on persecution, we forget the faces behind the numbers.  It is almost unbelievable that 160,000 die each year because they stand for Christ, but let us not forget that each one of those is an individual, a person with hopes and dreams, feeling the pain, and sacrificing everything for the cause of Christ.  And so many leave behind them families, women and children with no breadwinner to turn to, who live in abject suffering because of their faith.

I was reminded of the amazing importance of all of this by a simple picture, taken from the inside of a church building in an IDP camp outside of Khartoum.

This is why we serve. 

Have you ever wondered how a person can stand for his faith in Jesus Christ in the face of persecution?  I wonder that every time I read suffering for the cause of Christ, of horrific torture, of agonizing martyrdom.  How can these men and women, even these children, forsake literally everything in this life and embrace the pain of being a Christian?

That question was running through my mind all weekend, as we remembered Christ's unimaginable sufferings and celebrated His glorious resurrection.  Christ is certainly the example of fortitude in persecution; his full humanity felt the agony of every lash, every thorn, and every nail.  He felt the rough cross re-open the wounds on His back as its weight shoved Him into the stones of the street.  Why?  Why would He do that?

He suffered so that we could follow Him.  Our following must start in the streets to Golgotha, as we take up our own crosses.  (Matthew 16:24)  But our following does not end there, even though we follow Him to death!  Death is merely the beginning; when we follow Christ we follow Him to eternal glory.  The power of Easter is the power of salvation, but it is more than that–it is the power to follow through the pain that leads to the glory.

I will admit that I am grateful I have not had to face torture, imprisonment, or death in order to stand for Jesus Christ.  But I have seen those that have, those that have found and exercised the power of Easter.  If that day ever comes for me, that day when taking up my cross means facing the ultimate sacrifice, I pray that I will turn to the power of Easter.

He is risen!

Last month, The Weekly Reminder ran a series based on 1 John 4.  It is an amazing passage of Scripture, especially in dealing with our relationships with other members of the Body of Christ.

1 John 4:1-6 

1 John 4:7-11 

1 John 4:12-16 

1 John 4:17-21

While I was writing those, there was one phrase in the chapter that just never seemed to make sense.  In the middle of John's writing on love, and why we love God, there is a seemingly unrelated sentence: "No man hath seen God at any time."  Right after saying that, the apostle goes on talking about love, talking about how God's love is perfected in us when He dwells in us:

Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.

No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.

This morning, as I was meditating on the passage, this phrase jumped out at me again, only this time I realized why it is there.  It is not random–in fact, it fits perfectly.  You see, we ought to love one another, as we are told in verse 11.  But why is that important?  Because although no man has seen God, it is entirely possible to see God's perfected love in the lives of His children.

What a responsibility that is.  No one can physically see God, not the believer, not the unbeliever.  But both can see God reflected in us.  Does demonstrating our love to the Body of Christ matter?  It absolutely does–it is how people see God.

Returning from a country like to Sudan to the lights and cheer of the Christmas season is quite the study in contrasts.  Sudan is not a cheery place!  But in spite of that fact, true joy lights the faces of our brothers and sisters in Christ, as dark as their sufferings are.

When I was a kid, the joy of the Christmas season was all about the gifts and the goodies.  Now that I'm a bit older, though, it has changed–Christmas is the time in which I remember and am grateful for the unbelievable blessings of family and friends.  And as I work with the church across the world, I am realizing more and more the depth of that blessing.  "Family" is not just physical relatives; it is the Body of Christ, united in His love.  What a blessing to be a part of that Body.

As we ring in the season of giving, I can't help but think about the white-haired elder I wrote about on the trip, and how meaningful the gift of prayer is.  I certainly cannot think of anything more valuable.  Perhaps we never see the results, at least not in this life, but our prayers make all the difference.

As a reminder of this gift, we have compiled a beautiful 2008 prayer calendar, which will be going out the Remember mailing list shortly.  If you are not on the mailing list, but would like a copy of the calendar, please e-mail me your address!

Before we return to regularly-scheduled blogging on persecution in general, I want to take the time to praise the Lord for His blessing on our recent banquet.  We could feel the presence of the Spirit, and people's lives were touched!

Over 550 people came and enjoyed an excellent meal at Trident Technical College before watching our presentation on "Of Whom the World was not Worthy," the state of persecution worldwide.  We used video and live testimonies to share the compelling stories of the Body of Christ worldwide.  Focusing on Burma, Sudan, Iraq, and Egypt, we shared the needs of our brothers and sisters.

Stay tuned for the video!  Lord willing, we will be able to share with you the components that we put together.  In the meantime, thanks to each person that prayed for this event, that came, gave, and volunteered to serve.  Your prayers were answered!  But please don't stop praying–the fruits of this evening could extend into the far future as God opens doors all over the world for us to meet the needs of the persecuted church. 

If you'd like to read what the media had to say, we had a small write-up in the Charleston Post and Courier, which you can read at the bottom of this page.

Now that the banquet is over, I am turning my attention to Sudan.  Our joint team, in partnership with two other ministries, leaves in one week.  More updates to come…