If you have children, I really want to encourage you to become well acquainted with our Kids of Courage website because there is a wealth of wonderful information for you to use with your children at home, in your church and even in your school.

A few days ago there was a wonderful blog post titled Ask a VOM Worker: The Only Security that I wanted to share with you because it will give you insight about where security is truly found.

VOM intern Kelly C. interviewed a VOM worker who grew up in another country. She asked him the following:

Question: Were there things that you learned as a child that helped prepare you for your work now?

Answer: My mom died when I was 13, and she was my best friend. I realized that if even your best friend can be gone from one day to another, nothing in this world is sure.

When I finally found Jesus, or he found me, I found the only security in life. When I joined the mission field, people asked me, “Why are you going to the mission field where you don’t know anyone or anything? You will leave everything behind you that is secure.”

I thought about it and I realized that the only thing that is really secure is already here. He goes before me, and he’ll be there to take care of me. Not just my childhood, but also how I came to faith helped prepare me for this work.

The Voice of the Martyrs offers medical help to persecuted Christians all over the world. This is Walter who was shot by a Muslim dressed as a Nigerian soldier. Hear his testimony of hope and help. And please say a prayer for Walter today, and all in Nigeria who are being persecuted for their faith in Christ Jesus.

In doing some research this morning about Dumitru Bacu, as a result of today's Extreme Devotion (see previous post), I just happened to find an article that talked about a fellow prisoner by the name of Father Gheorghe Calciu-Dumitreasa.

It appears that Father Gheorghe Calciu-Dumitreasa was also persecuted for Christ.  Read an article about his life and death here.

Here is one section that I found particularly interesting.

"In the addendum there are enclosed few letters, prefaces and interviews of father Calciu from post-December period. The texts show the fighter character of the author, for which the most important stake is the awakening and canalization of young people's self-awareness. In a letter to Comitй des Intellectuels pour l'Europe des Libertйs (1978), His Holiness enumerated the reasons for which he was oppressed: "Because I have requested the liberty to preach without restrictions. Because I have protested against demolition of churches (…). Because I have requested the exemption of theologians from the military service (…). Because I have demanded for Christians, young or old, the right to monasticism, thing which The State is against. His public positions - expressed in sermons, letters and interviews - constitute an ample national message build on Christian message, in the spirit of orthodox tradition, referred especially to young people."

There is certainly a cost for serving Christ Jesus and my hope and prayer is that as you read about people who have suffered for Him, that it will inspire you to remain faithful in your walk with Him too. 

Here is a great article about The Voice of the Martyrs that was written by Mike Tupa from the Examiner-Enterprise.  Read the full article here.  A snip is below for you.

The Bartlesville-based Voice of the Martyrs’ mission, simply stated, is to do whatever it takes to assist persecuted Christians throughout the world.

That could mean anything from smuggling Christian literature, to buying a horse for a minister in mountainous environs to helping set up broadcast opportunities, David Brackemyre explained during the Bartlesville Rotary Club’s afternoon luncheon Monday.

Brackemyre, who is the director of the Voice Ministry, spoke and answered questions during a 25-minute period at the event, held in the Bartlesville Community Center.

The Voice of the Martyrs headquarters, located near the Tri-County Technology Center in east Bartlesville, will be fully operational next year, Brackemyre said.

Some of the project already is done, but the VOM operation currently is housed in various offices or warehouses in Bartlesville.

The VOM headquarters are located in Bartlesville, due to the decision of former director Tom White — whose father was an engineer at Phillips Petroleum Co.

Doing some research this morning for this blog, I came across this very well written article from Raymond Ibrahim of Jihad Watch. The full article is worthy of being read.  Click here to read the full article.  Here are a few snips from it, worthy of thought.

Nonetheless, history attests that these Crusades were violent and bloody. After breaching the walls of Jerusalem in 1099, the Crusaders slaughtered almost every single inhabitant of the Holy City. According to the Medieval chronicle, the Gesta Danorum "the slaughter was so great that our men waded in blood up to their ankles." Moreover, there is the 1204 sack of Constantinople, wherein Crusader slew Christian.

In light of the above-one a prime example of "Hebraic" violence from the Bible, the other from Christian history-why should Islam be the one religion always characterized as intrinsically violent, simply because its holy book and its history also contain violence? Why should non-Muslims always point to the Koran and ancient history as evidence of Islam's violence while never looking to their own scriptures and history?

While such questions are popular, they reveal a great deal of confusion between history and theology, between the temporal actions of men and what are understood to be the immutable words of God. The fundamental error being that Judeo-Christian history-which is violent-is being conflated with Islamic theology-which commands violence. Of course all religions have had their fair share of violence and intolerance towards the "other." Whether this violence is ordained by God or whether warlike man merely wished it thus is the all-important question.

   I would like to take a moment to wish all of our readers a happy, healthy and Christ-centered new year.

I am so thankful that so many of you care so much about Christian persecution and my hope and prayer is that in 2009 we can stir your love for our brethren ever deeper.

Tell us if you have any resolutions regarding your walk with the Lord in our comments.  I love hearing from you!

Stacy

When I read this piece today I had to share it with you because it shows that people are genuinely curious as to why Paul suffered for his faith and ended up in jail.

Billy Graham answers the question in It Takes Strength to Live a Christian Life.

Recently I was reading in the Old Testament about beheadings that had taken place back in Old Testament times.  And as I read the scriptures, I kept thinking about all the news I read regularly on the subject of beheading.  Today as just one example, I've read six different stories that discussed beheading in some form or another.  But this story is the one I have to share with you.

Although I see no direct link to Christian persecution in the article, I want you to read this because it will give you some insight to the deep and horrible trauma that someone goes through who sees such a horrific act being carried out.  And I would plead with you to keep this precious girl in your prayers.

GULU, 17 November 2008 (IRIN) - Children abducted by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) during its decades-long insurgency in the north have to live with the trauma and psychological scars long after their rescue and return to civilian life. One such is Alice*, abducted in 2005 when she was only 12. She told IRIN about her escape from rebel captivity in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo: 

“Rebels emerged from the bush as I was helping my mother harvest groundnuts and abducted me; one of the rebel commanders, called Pope, said he would kill me if I escaped. 

... 

"Although I was put under tight security, I decided to escape one day while going to fetch water. I walked in the forest for two weeks, looking for any place where UN peace-keeping forces could be. I was scared and thought the wild animals would kill me in the jungle. 

"Another boy who had also escaped the rebels joined me but he was killed by civilians in Congo. His head was cut off and the people carried his head, saying rebels were killing people in Congo. 

...

"I know that other children in the rebel camp want to escape but they are scared of people in Congo. I cry a lot when I imagine how my friend was beheaded and other parts of his body cut up; why do people kill children? We were all abducted and did not want to be with the rebels. 

Will you pray for Alice?  Leave us a comment.

Today I wanted to offer you a different perspective on how we need to remember the persecuted church.  As I was reading an entry written by Glenn Penner over at his blog for The Voice of the Marytrs Canada, I just HAD to tell you about it because I think that we all may be able to identify with the fact that we exalt persecuted believers sometimes too much, and we forget they are human and have struggles.  Here's the beginning of Glenn's post:

One of the dangers that I have noticed in our work with persecuted Christians is the danger of putting these brothers and sisters on a pedestal, bestowing them with special spiritual fervour, maturity, and grace. We call them spiritual heroes with extreme faith exhibiting extraordinary courage. And certainly this is not without merit on occasion. And perhaps those of us who minister to our persecuted family members are guilty of portraying them in this fashion, even with the best of intents. But as I have experienced even today, persecuted Christians are prone to the same temptations and failures as those of us who live in religiously free countries. Some persecuted Christians commit adultery, lie, are dishonest, slander other believers, and abandon their faith in the face of violence.

Keep on reading...

And leave us a comment.  Have you exalted our brothers and sisters?

Sometimes I find truth stranger than fiction. Take this recent story found on CNSNEWS.com...

Islamic Nations’ Push to Outlaw Religious Defamation Faces Hurdles

          

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

                                               

By  Patrick Goodenough, International Editor

(CNSNews.com) – Amid growing opposition, a campaign by the world’s Islamic nations to have international bodies outlaw the “defamation” of religion may be facing an uphill battle. The drive by the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), led by members including Pakistan, Iran and Egypt, has sparked concern that the right to freedom of expression is being undermined by a group of countries, including some that enforce blasphemy laws and punish “apostasy.”

...

But the OIC campaign has hit a hurdle, with a new report by a United Nations expert recommending that the focus shift away from the religious defamation concept, towards one of incitement to religious hatred, which is covered by existing laws.

Governments critical of the OIC push welcomed the recommendation, but also insisted that a distinction be made between inciting religious hatred and legitimate criticism of religious beliefs and practices.

Finish the article here.

And consider this as you're reading the rest of the article.  Consider how Islamic countries persecute Christians and see if what they are asking for in this article is something you agree with.  Leave your comments below.