Living as a Christian in 21st Century England is easy. It might not always feel easy, but it really is. There are no laws prohibiting Bible reading or praying to Jesus or talking about Him in public places. There aren’t any government-sent army soldiers knocking on the door of your life-group to demand you stop worshipping Yeshua or pulling you off to a prison cell when you don’t.
These realities are so far from our experience as Christians in the UK that we forget they are happening every day for a sizeable chunk of our Christian family around the earth. We forget. We forget what it really costs some to stand for the gospel and to bear the Name.
http://www.csw.org.uk/idop.htm
Peter writes of trials that come to believers like this: “These have come so that your faith…may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor…” (1 Pet. 1:7)
In the absence of ‘life or death’ or ‘freedom or prison’ realities for us here, we should still remember that our own trials are still ‘proving’ our faith in our lives. Part of the high, high privilege of having a soft heart is the process of the maturing of our faith in Christ…a faith growing in wisdom.
Whatever trial you’re in now consider it’s effect on your faith as one of proving and maturing. Trials mature us. Trials produce wiser faith….which is worth far more than gold, (1 Pet. 1).
Come on, let’s pray! Father, we pray now for every brother and sister around the globe caught in persecution. We pray you’d bless them. Keep them, protect and deliver them, and may their faith be shown to be genuine. Please strenghten their faith to the praise of Your Name – may your Name be known.
And for the trials in our lives, here in the Western world. Help us to respond well. Would you give us a wiser faith as a result, and that You’d be glorified – that is, known as the glorious One that You are. We pray too for subtle, governmental laws that persecute followers of Christ in the UK – in the midst of these cause Your gospel to shine.
Amen
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