Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. John 12:25
A tentmaker missionary in Morocco struggled with the issue of dying for Christ. He shares these words:
Is
faith in Christ worth dying for? I quickly saw that if it wasn’t, I had
no business presenting the Gospel to Muslims. You see, when a Muslim
receives Christ, he faces certain persecution and possible death. How
can I ask a Muslim to receive Christ as Lord if I have doubts in my own
heart. If Christ isn’t worth dying for, He isn’t worth living
for. On the other hand, if Christ is worth living and dying for, then we
have a Gospel that is of infinite value to Muslims...
Ahmed came
to see me one day, honestly sharing his fears with me about following
Christ. He asked, “What if I go to prison?” This kind of question had
always intimidated me; I wasn’t sure that I could ask someone to be
willing to go to prison when I myself had never gone. Yet now I realized
that it was Jesus who was calling him to take up his cross and follow,
not me. This was between Ahmed and the Lord.
A thirty-two-year-old
pastor works in Upper Egypt, an area of intense persecution for
Christians. He runs a day care center, a medical clinic, a literacy
training program as well as caring for the families of those in prison.
He has been beaten twice by Muslim extremists and threatened daily with
death. He knows they are trying to kill him...but he continues to daily
bear his cross.
A leading pastor in Egypt shared about a
parishioner who tearfully came for counseling. Young people she had
trained at her work were recently promoted to be her supervisors. She
was passed over solely because she was a Christian. The pastor
concluded, “That’s the cross we must bear here in Egypt!”
The
essence of these examples is that instead of exercising and asserting my
will, I learn to cooperate with God’s wishes and comply with His will.
RESPONSE: Today I give my will over to God and comply with His will for me.
PRAYER: Lord, I want to cooperate with Your wishes and desires. Help me bear my cross for You.
No comments:
Post a Comment