After reading the horrific story of this Christian couple who have been beaten, falsely accused and have almost lost their preborn infant, due to merciless beatings, the verse of scripture that comes to mind is Matthew 5:11 - "Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me."
Christ spoke these words in his most famous sermon, we refer to as the sermon on the mount. And here in America if the situation described in this Compass Direct article were to happen, I cannot even begin to think of the outrage and media coverage that the couple would receive. As a nation, we desire justice for those who are falsely accused, beaten without cause, arrested falsely and I know that the citizens of America would rally behind this couple, offer financial support and many prayers.
Sadly, the couple we're talking about though isn't in America. Instead they are a Christian couple living in Pakistan under the majority religion of Islam, where Christians are frequently persecuted, falsely accused, sometimes murdered and often tortured for their belief and trust in Christ Jesus the Lord.
Yet, I am amazed and humbled by my suffering brothers and sisters in this story because their words reflect the condition of their hearts. Even though this dear sister could still lose her preborn baby, she said,
“I begged them for mercy, pleading that I am five months pregnant, but they continued their merciless onslaught for over three hours,” she said. ‘They continued to try to force me to admit to the crime, even threatening that they would kill my baby, but I refused to confess a false allegation.”
The false allegation she is referring to is one saying that she was part of stealing from her employer some valuable jewelry. Despite the police investigating her home and finding nothing, and also despite the fact that she had things also stolen from her employers home, she was deemed guilty.
You can read more details about what Salma Emmanuel, the woman who was beaten while pregnant and her husband Emmanuel Rasheed endured for their faith here. Please keep them in your prayers, as well as their preborn baby. They have both lost their jobs, as a result of this incident and are living with relatives.
