I have been reading through Paul’s letters for my daily devotion time. This morning I looked at 2 Timothy. In this letter Paul is trying to encourage Timothy, who is a young Pastor, to keep working hard no matter how bad things get. Paul knew what it was like for things to be bad. He spent countless hours in prison; he was tortured and eventually murdered for his faith. Paul not only endured the persecution, but thanked God for it. Living in America I have not had much exposure to persecution, but that does not mean it does not exist. All over the world Christians are facing persecution. If you look to Middle East, Christians are imprisoned and killed by Muslim believers. In China, where communism reigns supreme, Christians are also imprisoned and killed daily. We in America should thank God everyday we do not face persecution or should we? Paul tells us in 2 Timothy 3:12, “…everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” Persecution is intended to discourage Christians, but churches all over the world that are faced with persecution experience a strengthening and some experience growth. While we are fortunate here in America not to be persecuted, we also are faced with many nominal Christians that are not serious about their faith. American Christians, it is time to take stock and realize that all over the world our brothers and sisters are suffering for the gospel. The least we can do is live passionately for Jesus, sharing the gospel every opportunity we get.
To read actual modern day persecution stories check out:
http://www.persecution.com/
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