Persecution Blog

Top 8 in 16: #1

We've been looking back at the most-viewed posts on Persecution Blog in 2016. Today we look back at #1, the most-read post of the year on Persecution Blog. It's a post from September that looks at the nation with the fastest growing church in the world, a nation whose official name starts with "The Islamic Republic of..."

Country With Fastest Growing Church May Surprise You

VOM was featured recently on Mission Network News in a story about the country with the world's fastest growing church. And the location of that church may surprise you: The Islamic Republic of Iran. Here's an excerpt from the story from MNN:

Why is the Iranian Church going through such a growth spurt?

[VOM's Todd] Nettleton shares, “I’ve had Iranian Christians tell me, ‘The greatest missionary in Iran, the greatest evangelist we’ve had in Iran was the Ayatollah Khomeini.’ This is the guy who took power in 1979, he converted Iran to the Islamic Republic [saying], ‘We’re going to run our country according to what Mohammed would have us do, we’re going to run our country according to the Koran.’

“Now here we are thirty-plus years later, and most Iranians have rejected Islam precisely because of that. The country is run by the Mullahs. The government says, ‘We’re doing everything according to Islamic principles.’ So if the government doesn’t work, if there’s still corruption, if there’s still poverty, then that must mean Islam doesn’t work…. That failure has really, in the eyes of the people of Iran, become the failure of Islam.”

According to Nettleton, the Iranian people are going through honest introspection about what they’ve witnessed in their country, and what that means for their lives…and their souls.

“I’ve heard statistics as high as 70 percent of Iranians have rejected Islam. If you ask them in an honest conversation, ‘Do you believe Islam is the truth? Do you believe Islam is the way?’ They would say, ‘No! Of course not!’…. Then the Gospel comes and they say, ‘Wait, this is true. This is right.’ And I think that’s really the root cause of the growth in the Iranian church we see.”

A challenge to American Christians

All of this poses a thoughtful question: how would the American Church respond if we were in a similar situation? How would Western Christians react under restriction and persecution?

Nettleton reflects, “I think the story of the Church in Iran is an incredibly timely message for American Christians. If you think back to 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini takes power, the Mullahs are now in charge of the country. The natural response to that from the Church there would be, ‘Oh no! This is horrible! This is terrible! The Muslims have taken control of the government. What’s going to happen to us now?’ Now thirty years later it’s the fastest growing Church in the world.

“There are many American Christians who look at what’s happening in our country, they look at the presidential elections, they look at the Supreme Court decisions, and they say, ‘Oh no! The government is turning against Christianity, Christian principles are no longer being honored in Washington D.C., what’s going to happen to us?’”

We can take a cue from our Iranian brothers and sisters in Christ.

“The people of Iran would say, ‘Hang on. Serve the Lord, and see what He does. We’re not dependent on the government, we’re dependent on Christ.’”

To be clear, persecution is not something to be sought after for the sake of persecution. Religious freedom is an ideal to be sought after and advocated for.

But when persecution does enter our lives, we can respond as Paul did in 1 Corinthians 4:12b, “When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure.”

Therein lies our witness for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Therein lies our opportunity to share our eternal hope with others who see us responding to hurt and shame in a way that doesn’t make sense to the world.

Nettleton emphasizes, “Our reliance needs to be on God, not on the protections offered by the Constitution, or the political process, or the U.S. government. Now I’m not saying don’t vote, I’m not saying don’t speak out. But understand that ultimately our reliance is on God.”

Read the full article on Mission Network News' web site. We appreciate our media partners, helping VOM to share the stories of God's faithfulness and the faithfulness of our persecuted family around the world.

Top 8 in 16: #2

In the remaining days of 2016 we'll look back on the most-viewed posts on Persecution Blog in 2016, including a post that is more than 10 years old but is still one of the most-read posts on the blog! Today we look at #2, a post that goes all the way back to 2006, but continues to generate traffic and readers today. The story it tells goes back even further, to the Apostle John:

Boiled In Oil But Remains Alive

Hebrews  9:27 tells us that, "... it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment," and I love this passage because it gives me confidence in knowing that the Lord will not take me home to be with Him until that appointed time.  So the story of John is inspiring and also draws us back to worship the One who made us.  Be encouraged as you read this excerpt from Extreme Devotion (order your copy of the book here, or download VOM's Pray Today app to read a new devotional from Extreme Devotion each day on your phone or other device).

What do you do with someone who is boiled in oil but doesn’t die?

It is said that Roman emperor Domitian commanded that the apostle John be boiled to death in oil, but John only continued to preach from within the pot. Another time, John was forced to drink poison, but, as promised in Mark 16:18, it did not hurt him. Thus John, the head of the church in Ephesus at the time, was banished to Patmos in A.D. 97.

John survived all of this because God had not finished with him yet. A “revelation” still had to come. While he was in a cave on the island of Patmos, John received a vision. This vision became the book of Revelation—the book that would act as the driving force for evangelism in the church age. It prophesied the events that surround the return of Christ. John wrote of Christ’s second coming and welcomed his arrival. Even today his writings inspire believers to anticipate the glorious return of Christ.  

Two years after John’s exile, the emperor Domitian died, and John returned to the church in Ephesus. The youngest of the disciples lived also to be the oldest, dying in peace in Ephesus at the age of eighty after over half a century of resilient service to Jesus’ church.

Hebrews  9:27 tells us that, "... it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment," and I love this passage because it gives me confidence in knowing that the Lord will not take me home to be with Him until that appointed time.  So the story of John is inspiring and also draws us back to worship the One who made us.  Be encouraged as you read this excerpt from Extreme Devotion (order your copy of the book here, or download VOM's Pray Today app to read a new devotional from Extreme Devotion each day on your phone or other device).

What do you do with someone who is boiled in oil but doesn’t die?

It is said that Roman emperor Domitian commanded that the apostle John be boiled to death in oil, but John only continued to preach from within the pot. Another time, John was forced to drink poison, but, as promised in Mark 16:18, it did not hurt him. Thus John, the head of the church in Ephesus at the time, was banished to Patmos in A.D. 97.

John survived all of this because God had not finished with him yet. A “revelation” still had to come. While he was in a cave on the island of Patmos, John received a vision. This vision became the book of Revelation—the book that would act as the driving force for evangelism in the church age. It prophesied the events that surround the return of Christ. John wrote of Christ’s second coming and welcomed his arrival. Even today his writings inspire believers to anticipate the glorious return of Christ.  

Two years after John’s exile, the emperor Domitian died, and John returned to the church in Ephesus. The youngest of the disciples lived also to be the oldest, dying in peace in Ephesus at the age of eighty after over half a century of resilient service to Jesus’ church.

Top 8 in 16: #3

In the remaining days of 2016 we'll look back on the most-viewed posts on Persecution Blog in 2016, including a post that is more than 10 years old but is still one of the most-read posts on the blog! Today we look at #3, a post from February in which we encouraged readers to show hospitality to Muslims living in their communities.

Hospitality 101: Reaching Out to Muslims

Last year author Tom Doyle and his wife JoAnn were guests on VOM's weekly radio program (You can listen to Tom's interviews here and here; listen to JoAnn here). One of the things both of them challenged listeners to do was to reach out to Muslims living right here in the United States by inviting them into our homes. Tom shared the joy of one Muslim family they'd invited over who said in seven years living in the U.S. it was the first time they'd ever been inside an American's home. But how do we make sure our hospitality is a blessing? What do we need to know to make our Muslim friends feel welcome and not trip over any cultural differences? Here's advice from "Anna," who lives and works among Muslims in the Middle East:

Did you know that the majority of Muslim international students living in the United States have never set foot inside a Christian home?

The home can be a place where hospitality is offered and deep values are communicated. When a meal is shared, it ups the stakes even more. For Easterners, to share a meal is to commit to one another in friendship. You can hear similar overtones in Jesus’ words in Revelation 3:20: “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends” (NLT, emphasis mine).

So what prevents us from sharing a meal as friends with Muslims? For me, it was the feeling that I wouldn’t “do it right.” My rented house was sparsely decorated and I didn’t know how to cook any Arabic dishes. And what about conversation – what would I talk about with students who were still learning English?

Your home will probably never be perfect for entertaining, and you’ll never say and do all the right things. But by learning some basics, you could drum up the confidence to invite a Muslim to your home.

Here are some basic guidelines when hosting Muslims:

On the table. Steer clear of pork products and all alcohol. Rice, curries, and roasted lamb or chicken will please almost any Muslim dinner guest. (Takeout from an ethnic restaurant is also a fabulous idea.) The larger the quantities of food you serve, the more honor you bestow on your guest!

What to wear. Modesty is important to all Muslims in differing degrees. Most will feel comfortable in your home if you dress modestly. For women, that could mean a long skirt or loose-fitting pants, and a high-necked shirt with sleeves. For men, long pants are more respectful than shorts.

In the doghouse. Dogs make some Muslims uncomfortable. If at all possible, keep your dog in another room while your guests are present.

Gender divide. Ask a Muslim couple if they prefer to segregate inside your home. If so, prepare a separate space for the women to sit - even an office or spare bedroom will do. (It should go without saying that single men and women should only invite Muslims of their same gender.)

I have found that Muslims almost always accept a meal invitation. Or you can begin gradually with tea or coffee together. They may bring a small hostess gift – chocolates or a trinket from their country – as a way of saying thank you. Don’t be surprised if they remove their shoes and take detailed notice of the room’s décor and pictures.

Perhaps the most important way you can prepare to host a Muslim is to bathe the visit in prayer. You could even place your hand on the chair your friend will sit in, praying for him or her to encounter Christ in a real way inside your home.

Don’t let fear or perfectionism hold you back. Can you think of a Muslim – a co-worker, an international student, or an employee at a store you frequent – that you might bless with the gift of hospitality? All you have to do is extend the invitation. In opening your home, you are sealing the bonds of friendship that can eventually point a Muslim to Christ.

Your Turn: Are there lessons you have learned hosting Muslims? What holds you back from welcoming Muslims into your home? Share in the comments to this post.

Read More: Both men and women can benefit greatly from the cultural insights shared in Joy Loewen’s book Woman to Woman: Sharing Jesus with a Muslim Friend. (Also available for Kindle.)

Anna loves Jesus and wants to see Him cherished by her neighbors and people everywhere. Anna is a pseudonym, and all names in her posts are changed for security reasons.

Disclosure: VOM is a part of the Amazon Associates program. If you click on the links above and purchase a product, a small referral fee will be paid to VOM.

Last year author Tom Doyle and his wife JoAnn were guests on VOM's weekly radio program (You can listen to Tom's interviews here and here; listen to JoAnn here). One of the things both of them challenged listeners to do was to reach out to Muslims living right here in the United States by inviting them into our homes. Tom shared the joy of one Muslim family they'd invited over who said in seven years living in the U.S. it was the first time they'd ever been inside an American's home. But how do we make sure our hospitality is a blessing? What do we need to know to make our Muslim friends feel welcome and not trip over any cultural differences? Here's advice from "Anna," who lives and works among Muslims in the Middle East:

Did you know that the majority of Muslim international students living in the United States have never set foot inside a Christian home?

The home can be a place where hospitality is offered and deep values are communicated. When a meal is shared, it ups the stakes even more. For Easterners, to share a meal is to commit to one another in friendship. You can hear similar overtones in Jesus’ words in Revelation 3:20: “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends” (NLT, emphasis mine).

So what prevents us from sharing a meal as friends with Muslims? For me, it was the feeling that I wouldn’t “do it right.” My rented house was sparsely decorated and I didn’t know how to cook any Arabic dishes. And what about conversation – what would I talk about with students who were still learning English?

Your home will probably never be perfect for entertaining, and you’ll never say and do all the right things. But by learning some basics, you could drum up the confidence to invite a Muslim to your home.

Here are some basic guidelines when hosting Muslims:

On the table. Steer clear of pork products and all alcohol. Rice, curries, and roasted lamb or chicken will please almost any Muslim dinner guest. (Takeout from an ethnic restaurant is also a fabulous idea.) The larger the quantities of food you serve, the more honor you bestow on your guest!

What to wear. Modesty is important to all Muslims in differing degrees. Most will feel comfortable in your home if you dress modestly. For women, that could mean a long skirt or loose-fitting pants, and a high-necked shirt with sleeves. For men, long pants are more respectful than shorts.

In the doghouse. Dogs make some Muslims uncomfortable. If at all possible, keep your dog in another room while your guests are present.

Gender divide. Ask a Muslim couple if they prefer to segregate inside your home. If so, prepare a separate space for the women to sit - even an office or spare bedroom will do. (It should go without saying that single men and women should only invite Muslims of their same gender.)

I have found that Muslims almost always accept a meal invitation. Or you can begin gradually with tea or coffee together. They may bring a small hostess gift – chocolates or a trinket from their country – as a way of saying thank you. Don’t be surprised if they remove their shoes and take detailed notice of the room’s décor and pictures.

Perhaps the most important way you can prepare to host a Muslim is to bathe the visit in prayer. You could even place your hand on the chair your friend will sit in, praying for him or her to encounter Christ in a real way inside your home.

Don’t let fear or perfectionism hold you back. Can you think of a Muslim – a co-worker, an international student, or an employee at a store you frequent – that you might bless with the gift of hospitality? All you have to do is extend the invitation. In opening your home, you are sealing the bonds of friendship that can eventually point a Muslim to Christ.

Your Turn: Are there lessons you have learned hosting Muslims? What holds you back from welcoming Muslims into your home? Share in the comments to this post.

Read More: Both men and women can benefit greatly from the cultural insights shared in Joy Loewen’s book Woman to Woman: Sharing Jesus with a Muslim Friend. (Also available for Kindle.)

Anna loves Jesus and wants to see Him cherished by her neighbors and people everywhere. Anna is a pseudonym, and all names in her posts are changed for security reasons.

Disclosure: VOM is a part of the Amazon Associates program. If you click on the links above and purchase a product, a small referral fee will be paid to VOM.

Top 8 in 16: #4

In the remaining days of 2016 we'll look back on the most-viewed posts on Persecution Blog in 2016, including a post that is more than 10 years old but is still one of the most-read posts on the blog! Today we look at #4, the story we posted in March of a bell ringing three times without seeming to have anyone ringing it.

Assyrian Christians Are “N”

In the early morning hours of Feb. 23, 2015, guards in the Assyrian Christian villages along the Khabur River in northern Syria left for duty in Hassaka. An hour later, ISIS militants burst into the homes of villagers, taking hundreds of men, women, and children as captives.

In one village, ISIS militants forced 21 people into a small room. Most in the group were men, but there were a few women, including one man’s aunt and his six-year-old daughter, Mariana. For three hours, they listened to gun battles and explosions just across the river as ISIS militants battled with Assyrian soldiers and Kurdish forces. It was not clear what the extremists intended to do. Death seemed imminent.

Photo credit: Assyrian International News Agency

Caption: In the weeks before the attack, ISIS fighters told the villages to remove the crosses from their churches. After crosses came down, some of the men defied the Islamic extremists and put the crosses back on top of their churches.

During a lull in the fighting, the Christians heard the village church bell ring three times. It gave them hope that God was still with them.

Immediately, their ISIS guards became fearful and demanded to know who else was in the village. No one could explain why the church bell rang. Thousands of those who once lived in these villages had already left, and only 3,000 or so remained. Taking no chances, ISIS loaded group into trucks and took them into the mountains. Eventually the Islamic extremists would bring 253 hostages into this area. Nearly every day, the ISIS fighters pressured the Christians to convert to Islam.

The Islamic extremists began negotiations to exchange the hostages for ransom almost immediately. Within a week, the 21 who were held in the room were among the first to be released. However, just as they were releasing the hostages, the extremists decided to keep 6-year-old Mariana. Her father and great aunt pleaded with the extremists, who tried to force them to leave without the girl. Finally, the men relented and told the father to bring more money for his daughter’s release, and they allowed Mariana’s great aunt to stay as her guardian.

Mariana and her great aunt were eventually released along with around 30 of the others after ransoms were paid.

In November 2015, ISIS released a video showing three men from the Khabur region dressed in orange jumpsuits and kneeling in front of black-clad ISIS members. The men stated that they were Christians from the Khabur region, and they were executed on-camera. The video threatened that if ISIS did not receive $10 million dollars,

ISIS demanded nearly $10 million dollars for the remaining hostages, then believed to be about 202 people. The Assyrian Christians remained committed to their faith. None of them would convert to Islam, despite the pressure to do so.

On Feb. 22 of this year, following their year-long captivity with ISIS militants as their guards, the last of hostages from the Khabur River region were released. The 43 men, women, and children are thankful for all the Lord has done.

They ask that Christians remember them in prayer. While all of those who were taken captive from the villages along the river are accounted for, there are still hundreds of missing Assyrian Christians who have been taken from other villages. More than 200 were taken from another village in Qaratyain, Syria this past August. They too, need Christian brothers and sisters who will not allow them to suffer in silence and will stand with them in prayer for their faithfulness, courage, and perseverance.

In the early morning hours of Feb. 23, 2015, guards in the Assyrian Christian villages along the Khabur River in northern Syria left for duty in Hassaka. An hour later, ISIS militants burst into the homes of villagers, taking hundreds of men, women, and children as captives.

In one village, ISIS militants forced 21 people into a small room. Most in the group were men, but there were a few women, including one man’s aunt and his six-year-old daughter, Mariana. For three hours, they listened to gun battles and explosions just across the river as ISIS militants battled with Assyrian soldiers and Kurdish forces. It was not clear what the extremists intended to do. Death seemed imminent.

Photo credit: Assyrian International News Agency

Caption: In the weeks before the attack, ISIS fighters told the villages to remove the crosses from their churches. After crosses came down, some of the men defied the Islamic extremists and put the crosses back on top of their churches.

During a lull in the fighting, the Christians heard the village church bell ring three times. It gave them hope that God was still with them.

Immediately, their ISIS guards became fearful and demanded to know who else was in the village. No one could explain why the church bell rang. Thousands of those who once lived in these villages had already left, and only 3,000 or so remained. Taking no chances, ISIS loaded group into trucks and took them into the mountains. Eventually the Islamic extremists would bring 253 hostages into this area. Nearly every day, the ISIS fighters pressured the Christians to convert to Islam.

The Islamic extremists began negotiations to exchange the hostages for ransom almost immediately. Within a week, the 21 who were held in the room were among the first to be released. However, just as they were releasing the hostages, the extremists decided to keep 6-year-old Mariana. Her father and great aunt pleaded with the extremists, who tried to force them to leave without the girl. Finally, the men relented and told the father to bring more money for his daughter’s release, and they allowed Mariana’s great aunt to stay as her guardian.

Mariana and her great aunt were eventually released along with around 30 of the others after ransoms were paid.

In November 2015, ISIS released a video showing three men from the Khabur region dressed in orange jumpsuits and kneeling in front of black-clad ISIS members. The men stated that they were Christians from the Khabur region, and they were executed on-camera. The video threatened that if ISIS did not receive $10 million dollars,

ISIS demanded nearly $10 million dollars for the remaining hostages, then believed to be about 202 people. The Assyrian Christians remained committed to their faith. None of them would convert to Islam, despite the pressure to do so.

On Feb. 22 of this year, following their year-long captivity with ISIS militants as their guards, the last of hostages from the Khabur River region were released. The 43 men, women, and children are thankful for all the Lord has done.

They ask that Christians remember them in prayer. While all of those who were taken captive from the villages along the river are accounted for, there are still hundreds of missing Assyrian Christians who have been taken from other villages. More than 200 were taken from another village in Qaratyain, Syria this past August. They too, need Christian brothers and sisters who will not allow them to suffer in silence and will stand with them in prayer for their faithfulness, courage, and perseverance.

Top 8 in 16: #5

In the remaining days of 2016 we'll look back on the most-viewed posts on Persecution Blog in 2016, including a post that is more than 10 years old but is still one of the most-read posts on the blog! Today we look at #5, the true story of a man whose name is celebrated every year in March, but whose life and ministry didn't have anything to do with wearing green.

The Real Story of St. Patrick

March 17th is St. Patrick’s Day, a day Americans focus on good luck and all things Irish. But most of those celebrating don't know that the man for whom this day is named was a Christian persecuted because of his Christian actions.

The following comes from "A Note from the Author to Parents and Educators" that is included in The Story of St. Patrick: More Than Shamrocks and Leprechauns, a book for children published by VOM that tells the true story of St. Patrick’s Day.

Many celebrate Saint Patrick's Day on March 17^th and hang pictures of shamrocks and mythical creatures called leprechauns. But who was St. Patrick, and why do we celebrate his life on this day?

Patrick lived a full life, but not without his share of suffering and adventure. He was born in Britain, in the fourth century A.D., during a time of great uncertainty for the Roman Empire. The Roman legions that once protected civilized Britain from barbaric invaders were called away to defend themselves in other regions of the Roman Empire. Therefore, Britain was left vulnerable to attacks.

Just before Patrick turned 16 years of age, he and his family were at their holiday villa by the sea, located outside the town of Bannaventa Berniae when Irish  pirates attacked it just before dawn. (Some say the villa was attacked during the day while Patrick played on the beach. Although Patrick's family escaped, Patrick and many of the family's workers did not; and soon they were en route to Ireland, where Patrick was sold as a slave to Miliuc of Slemich, a Druid tribal chieftain.

Patrick was given the task of a herdsman. Though raised in a Christian home (his father, Calpornius, was a civil magistrate and tax collector, as well as a church deacon), Patrick never made a decision to follow Christ until he was kidnapped and made a slave. In his autobiography called Confessions, Patrick wrote: “…‘the Lord opened my senses to my unbelief,’ so that though late in the day, I might remember my many sins; and accordingly ‘I might turn to the Lord my God with all my heart.’” He also wrote about how his faith in God grew as he prayed to Him while he shepherded the flocks: “But after l had come to Ireland, it was then that I was made to shepherd the flocks day after day, and, as l did so, I would pray all the time, right through the day. More and more the love of God and fear of him grew strong within me, and as my faith grew, so the Spirit became more and more active... In snow, in frost, in rain, I would hardly notice any discomfort, and I was never slack but always full of energy. It is clear to me now, that this was due to. . .the Spirit within me.”

But Patricks devotion to God did not go unnoticed. He soon earned the nickname "Holy Boy" among his fellow slaves.

One night Patrick had a dream, and in it he heard a voice saying do him, "You are right to fast, soon you will be returning to your own country." In another dream he received a response to the first dream, being told, “Come and see where your ship is waiting for you.” At the age of 22, Patrick escaped and traveled 200 miles to the coast of Ireland. Of his long journey across Ireland, he wrote: "I turned on my heel and ran away, leaving behind the man to whom I had been bound for six years. Yet I came away from him in the power of God, for it was he who was guiding my every step for the best. And so I felt not the least anxiety until I reached the ship.

When Patrick approached one of the men on the ship that was on the coast, he asked to board. The seaman scowled at him, so Patrick began to leave when the man called back to him, saying the other men wanted him on board as a passenger. Patrick wrote. "In spite of this, I still hoped that they might come to have faith in Jesus Christ."

The journey by boat was long, including a stop on land where they journeyed for 28 days. After having run out of food, the captain turned to Patrick and challenged him to ask his God for food. Glad to oblige, Patrick responded: "Turn trustingly to the Lord who is my God and put your faith in him with all your heart, because nothing is impossible to him. On this day, he will send us food sufficient for our journey, because for him there is abundance everywhere." According to Patrick’s autobiography, when the men turned around, a herd of pigs was standing before them. They feasted for days and gave thanks to God.

Two years later Patrick finally made it to his beloved Britain and into the arms of his mother and father who pled with him never to leave them again. Patrick began to settle back into his life in Britain and studied to become a priest and bishop. But one night Patrick had a dream of a man who seemed to come from Ireland and was carrying a letter with the words “The Voice of the Irish.” As Patrick began to read the words, he seemed to hear the voice of the same men he worked with as if they were shouting, “Holy broth of a boy, we beg you, come back and walk once more among us.”

But Patrick's plans to return to Ireland—the land of his captivity—were fiercely opposed by both his parents and the church leaders who, by the way, did not think the Druids were worth saving. His family shuddered at the thought of him returning to barbaric Ireland with the gospel, as the Druids were known to weave criminals and runaway  slaves into giant wicker baskets and suspend them over a fire. Of this opposition Patrick later wrote; “So at last I came here to the Irish gentiles to preach the gospel. And now I had to endure insults from unbelievers, to ‘hear criticism of my journeys’ and suffer many persecutions ‘even to the point of chains.’…And should I prove worthy, I am ready and willing to give up my own life, without hesitation, for his name…There was always someone talking behind my back and whispering, ‘Why does he want to put himself in such danger among his enemies who do not know God?’” Patrick had to sell his title of nobility in order to become the “slave of Christ serving the barbaric nation.”

While Patrick was in Ireland, he shared the gospel with his former slave owner, Miliuc the Druid. But instead of turning his back on his pagan gods, Miliuc locked himself in his house and set it on fire while Patrick stood outside the house and pled with him to turn to Christ. It is said Miliuc drowned out Patrick’s pleadings by crying out to his false gods.

But Miliuc's refusal to hear the gospel was just the beginning of Patrick’s challenges with the Druids as he spread the gospel across Ireland and taught the people how to read and write. One story that some believe is legend mentions Patrick challenging the Druid wizards in 433 A.D., on the vernal equinox, which occurred on Easter Sunday that year. Patrick challenged the wizards' power of control by starting a bonfire, which was central to the Druids’ ritual, on a hillside opposite of the barbaric idol-worshippers. Patrick was dragged before the Druid council where he had the opportunity to share about Jesus, the light of the world. Some Druids believed, and others tried to kill him.

Patrick continued his journey across Ireland. He preached at racetracks and other places of worldly indulgences, seeing many come to Christ. However, this was not without opposition. The Druids often tried to poison him. One time a barbarian warrior speared Patrick’s chariot driver to death in an attempt to kill Patrick. He was often ambushed at his evangelistic events, and it is noted that he was enslaved again for a short time. He had to purchase safe passage through a hostile warlord's land in order to continue on his journey. Another time Patrick and his companions were taken as prisoners and were going to be killed, but they were later released. In Confessions, Patrick wrote, “As every day arrives, I expect either sudden death or deception or being taken back as a slave or some such other misfortune. But I fear none of these, since I look to the promise of heaven and have flung myself into the hands of the all-powerful God, who rules as Lord everywhere.”

Patrick journeyed throughout Ireland, sharing Christ until his death on March 17^th, around the year 461 A.D. Later Irish mythological creatures known as leprechauns would creep into the holiday celebrations, as well as the symbol of the shamrock, believed to have been used by Patrick to illustrate the Trinity as he preached and taught. Some legends have circulated stating Patrick drove all the snakes out of Ireland. Since there are no snakes in Ireland and snakes often symbolize the devil and evil, many believe the "snakes" were a metaphor representing his work of driving the idol-worshipping Druid cult out of the country.

Enslavement, torture, imprisonment and death for one's faith in Christ were not confined to Patrick’s lifetime. Today Christians in communist nations like China, Vietnam and Cuba are imprisoned if caught sharing the gospel with fellow countrymen. In Sudan, a Christian boy named Demare was kidnapped by militant Muslims and sold as a slave. And in Vietnam, when members of some tribal groups have come to Christ, they destroy the altars used to pray to their dead ancestors. When fellow villagers and even members of the government hear about this, these new believers in Christ are harassed and some even imprisoned for turning away from their empty religions of idol and ancestor worship.

We may never be enslaved, imprisoned or beaten because of our faith in Christ, but many may make fun of us for believing in Jesus’ promise of heaven and placing our faith in a God they do not see with their eyes and cannot touch with their hands. I pray this version of Patrick’s courageous life will inspire you to stand firm in Christ and stand strong for Him as you tell others about the greatest gift we can ever be given—salvation through Jesus!

Come back next Tuesday afternoon as we continue with the top 4 most-read posts of 2016.

March 17th is St. Patrick’s Day, a day Americans focus on good luck and all things Irish. But most of those celebrating don't know that the man for whom this day is named was a Christian persecuted because of his Christian actions.

The following comes from "A Note from the Author to Parents and Educators" that is included in The Story of St. Patrick: More Than Shamrocks and Leprechauns, a book for children published by VOM that tells the true story of St. Patrick’s Day.

Many celebrate Saint Patrick's Day on March 17^th and hang pictures of shamrocks and mythical creatures called leprechauns. But who was St. Patrick, and why do we celebrate his life on this day?

Patrick lived a full life, but not without his share of suffering and adventure. He was born in Britain, in the fourth century A.D., during a time of great uncertainty for the Roman Empire. The Roman legions that once protected civilized Britain from barbaric invaders were called away to defend themselves in other regions of the Roman Empire. Therefore, Britain was left vulnerable to attacks.

Just before Patrick turned 16 years of age, he and his family were at their holiday villa by the sea, located outside the town of Bannaventa Berniae when Irish  pirates attacked it just before dawn. (Some say the villa was attacked during the day while Patrick played on the beach. Although Patrick's family escaped, Patrick and many of the family's workers did not; and soon they were en route to Ireland, where Patrick was sold as a slave to Miliuc of Slemich, a Druid tribal chieftain.

Patrick was given the task of a herdsman. Though raised in a Christian home (his father, Calpornius, was a civil magistrate and tax collector, as well as a church deacon), Patrick never made a decision to follow Christ until he was kidnapped and made a slave. In his autobiography called Confessions, Patrick wrote: “…‘the Lord opened my senses to my unbelief,’ so that though late in the day, I might remember my many sins; and accordingly ‘I might turn to the Lord my God with all my heart.’” He also wrote about how his faith in God grew as he prayed to Him while he shepherded the flocks: “But after l had come to Ireland, it was then that I was made to shepherd the flocks day after day, and, as l did so, I would pray all the time, right through the day. More and more the love of God and fear of him grew strong within me, and as my faith grew, so the Spirit became more and more active... In snow, in frost, in rain, I would hardly notice any discomfort, and I was never slack but always full of energy. It is clear to me now, that this was due to. . .the Spirit within me.”

But Patricks devotion to God did not go unnoticed. He soon earned the nickname "Holy Boy" among his fellow slaves.

One night Patrick had a dream, and in it he heard a voice saying do him, "You are right to fast, soon you will be returning to your own country." In another dream he received a response to the first dream, being told, “Come and see where your ship is waiting for you.” At the age of 22, Patrick escaped and traveled 200 miles to the coast of Ireland. Of his long journey across Ireland, he wrote: "I turned on my heel and ran away, leaving behind the man to whom I had been bound for six years. Yet I came away from him in the power of God, for it was he who was guiding my every step for the best. And so I felt not the least anxiety until I reached the ship.

When Patrick approached one of the men on the ship that was on the coast, he asked to board. The seaman scowled at him, so Patrick began to leave when the man called back to him, saying the other men wanted him on board as a passenger. Patrick wrote. "In spite of this, I still hoped that they might come to have faith in Jesus Christ."

The journey by boat was long, including a stop on land where they journeyed for 28 days. After having run out of food, the captain turned to Patrick and challenged him to ask his God for food. Glad to oblige, Patrick responded: "Turn trustingly to the Lord who is my God and put your faith in him with all your heart, because nothing is impossible to him. On this day, he will send us food sufficient for our journey, because for him there is abundance everywhere." According to Patrick’s autobiography, when the men turned around, a herd of pigs was standing before them. They feasted for days and gave thanks to God.

Two years later Patrick finally made it to his beloved Britain and into the arms of his mother and father who pled with him never to leave them again. Patrick began to settle back into his life in Britain and studied to become a priest and bishop. But one night Patrick had a dream of a man who seemed to come from Ireland and was carrying a letter with the words “The Voice of the Irish.” As Patrick began to read the words, he seemed to hear the voice of the same men he worked with as if they were shouting, “Holy broth of a boy, we beg you, come back and walk once more among us.”

But Patrick's plans to return to Ireland—the land of his captivity—were fiercely opposed by both his parents and the church leaders who, by the way, did not think the Druids were worth saving. His family shuddered at the thought of him returning to barbaric Ireland with the gospel, as the Druids were known to weave criminals and runaway  slaves into giant wicker baskets and suspend them over a fire. Of this opposition Patrick later wrote; “So at last I came here to the Irish gentiles to preach the gospel. And now I had to endure insults from unbelievers, to ‘hear criticism of my journeys’ and suffer many persecutions ‘even to the point of chains.’…And should I prove worthy, I am ready and willing to give up my own life, without hesitation, for his name…There was always someone talking behind my back and whispering, ‘Why does he want to put himself in such danger among his enemies who do not know God?’” Patrick had to sell his title of nobility in order to become the “slave of Christ serving the barbaric nation.”

While Patrick was in Ireland, he shared the gospel with his former slave owner, Miliuc the Druid. But instead of turning his back on his pagan gods, Miliuc locked himself in his house and set it on fire while Patrick stood outside the house and pled with him to turn to Christ. It is said Miliuc drowned out Patrick’s pleadings by crying out to his false gods.

But Miliuc's refusal to hear the gospel was just the beginning of Patrick’s challenges with the Druids as he spread the gospel across Ireland and taught the people how to read and write. One story that some believe is legend mentions Patrick challenging the Druid wizards in 433 A.D., on the vernal equinox, which occurred on Easter Sunday that year. Patrick challenged the wizards' power of control by starting a bonfire, which was central to the Druids’ ritual, on a hillside opposite of the barbaric idol-worshippers. Patrick was dragged before the Druid council where he had the opportunity to share about Jesus, the light of the world. Some Druids believed, and others tried to kill him.

Patrick continued his journey across Ireland. He preached at racetracks and other places of worldly indulgences, seeing many come to Christ. However, this was not without opposition. The Druids often tried to poison him. One time a barbarian warrior speared Patrick’s chariot driver to death in an attempt to kill Patrick. He was often ambushed at his evangelistic events, and it is noted that he was enslaved again for a short time. He had to purchase safe passage through a hostile warlord's land in order to continue on his journey. Another time Patrick and his companions were taken as prisoners and were going to be killed, but they were later released. In Confessions, Patrick wrote, “As every day arrives, I expect either sudden death or deception or being taken back as a slave or some such other misfortune. But I fear none of these, since I look to the promise of heaven and have flung myself into the hands of the all-powerful God, who rules as Lord everywhere.”

Patrick journeyed throughout Ireland, sharing Christ until his death on March 17^th, around the year 461 A.D. Later Irish mythological creatures known as leprechauns would creep into the holiday celebrations, as well as the symbol of the shamrock, believed to have been used by Patrick to illustrate the Trinity as he preached and taught. Some legends have circulated stating Patrick drove all the snakes out of Ireland. Since there are no snakes in Ireland and snakes often symbolize the devil and evil, many believe the "snakes" were a metaphor representing his work of driving the idol-worshipping Druid cult out of the country.

Enslavement, torture, imprisonment and death for one's faith in Christ were not confined to Patrick’s lifetime. Today Christians in communist nations like China, Vietnam and Cuba are imprisoned if caught sharing the gospel with fellow countrymen. In Sudan, a Christian boy named Demare was kidnapped by militant Muslims and sold as a slave. And in Vietnam, when members of some tribal groups have come to Christ, they destroy the altars used to pray to their dead ancestors. When fellow villagers and even members of the government hear about this, these new believers in Christ are harassed and some even imprisoned for turning away from their empty religions of idol and ancestor worship.

We may never be enslaved, imprisoned or beaten because of our faith in Christ, but many may make fun of us for believing in Jesus’ promise of heaven and placing our faith in a God they do not see with their eyes and cannot touch with their hands. I pray this version of Patrick’s courageous life will inspire you to stand firm in Christ and stand strong for Him as you tell others about the greatest gift we can ever be given—salvation through Jesus!

Come back next Tuesday afternoon as we continue with the top 4 most-read posts of 2016.

Top 8 in 16: #6

In the remaining days of 2016 we'll look back on the most-viewed posts on Persecution Blog in 2016, including a post that is more than 10 years old but is still one of the most-read posts on the blog! Today we look at #6, sharing two different responses from readers to this year's IDOP story:

"What They did Was Unconscionable"

By now you know of VOM’s 2017 IDOP video called Hannelie and have read the October newsletter with her story.

A couple of weeks ago, Andrea H. wrote to us after she read the story in the newsletter:

Hello. I am stunned by this month's cover story of Hannelie and am particularly interested if there are others who are utterly in shock that these two people would endanger their children. I believe what they did is unconscionable; if they were in the United States, they would have had their children removed from their custody. How dare these people put those vulnerable kids in harm’s way. I'm absolutely blown away by this irresponsible act, as well as your tacit approval of all of it.

What did you think? Did you feel the same way Andrea did? Did Hannelie and her husband make an irresponsible choice regarding their children?

On the other hand, Bob S. wrote us this note:

When my wife and I watched the DVD Hannelie, I got depressed. I realized that in my quiet time or during a good sermon or rousing Christian song, I was like Peter and ready to “risk my life for Jesus,” but when faced with a situation like distributing Bibles as a Gideon in Chicago–the murder capital of America for over two years–I was chicken at the thought of what might happen.

Well, yesterday, I went into Chicago with other Gideons in a pretty safe neighborhood and all I suffered was indifference at the offer of a free Bible–plus many were open to accepting the Lord. Pray that Friday I will be a credit to His name and be willing to endure whatever may come when we venture into a place a lot less threatening than the people you support.

Sincerely in His service,

Bob S.

P.S. Keep sending out testimonies like Hannelie.

Bob had a completely opposite response to Hannelie’s story. Her story inspired him to take more risks in sharing the gospel, even in a dangerous part of America. Is it foolish of Bob to take that risk? Please join us in praying for Bob as he shares Christ through the Chicago area, and that his work will result in much fruit.

I’ve written before about trying to bring my young children up by praying for our persecuted family and with the knowledge that persecution could come to us. And if the Lord calls us to Afghanistan, to Saudi Arabia, to North Korea, I would take them with me. Jesus promised us persecution. He said that his message would divide families, and he said that no sacrifice was too great for him.

What about you? Are there some sacrifices that are too great?

Dory P. grew up the daughter of missionaries in Ecuador, met her husband while working with another mission organization, and now lives in Oklahoma. Their family of four shares seven passports. Dory helps tell the stories of the persecuted through VOM's newsletter, and her husband serves with VOM's international department.

 

By now you know of VOM’s 2017 IDOP video called Hannelie and have read the October newsletter with her story.

A couple of weeks ago, Andrea H. wrote to us after she read the story in the newsletter:

Hello. I am stunned by this month's cover story of Hannelie and am particularly interested if there are others who are utterly in shock that these two people would endanger their children. I believe what they did is unconscionable; if they were in the United States, they would have had their children removed from their custody. How dare these people put those vulnerable kids in harm’s way. I'm absolutely blown away by this irresponsible act, as well as your tacit approval of all of it.

What did you think? Did you feel the same way Andrea did? Did Hannelie and her husband make an irresponsible choice regarding their children?

On the other hand, Bob S. wrote us this note:

When my wife and I watched the DVD Hannelie, I got depressed. I realized that in my quiet time or during a good sermon or rousing Christian song, I was like Peter and ready to “risk my life for Jesus,” but when faced with a situation like distributing Bibles as a Gideon in Chicago–the murder capital of America for over two years–I was chicken at the thought of what might happen.

Well, yesterday, I went into Chicago with other Gideons in a pretty safe neighborhood and all I suffered was indifference at the offer of a free Bible–plus many were open to accepting the Lord. Pray that Friday I will be a credit to His name and be willing to endure whatever may come when we venture into a place a lot less threatening than the people you support.

Sincerely in His service,

Bob S.

P.S. Keep sending out testimonies like Hannelie.

Bob had a completely opposite response to Hannelie’s story. Her story inspired him to take more risks in sharing the gospel, even in a dangerous part of America. Is it foolish of Bob to take that risk? Please join us in praying for Bob as he shares Christ through the Chicago area, and that his work will result in much fruit.

I’ve written before about trying to bring my young children up by praying for our persecuted family and with the knowledge that persecution could come to us. And if the Lord calls us to Afghanistan, to Saudi Arabia, to North Korea, I would take them with me. Jesus promised us persecution. He said that his message would divide families, and he said that no sacrifice was too great for him.

What about you? Are there some sacrifices that are too great?

Dory P. grew up the daughter of missionaries in Ecuador, met her husband while working with another mission organization, and now lives in Oklahoma. Their family of four shares seven passports. Dory helps tell the stories of the persecuted through VOM's newsletter, and her husband serves with VOM's international department.

Top 8 in 16: #7

In the remaining days of 2016 we'll look back on the most-viewed posts on Persecution Blog in 2016, including a post that is more than 10 years old but is still one of the most-read posts on the blog! Today we look at #7: information and a request for prayer on the day when Muslims everywhere are looking for their lamb.

Today (September 12, 2016), the Muslim world shifts its eyes to one thing: The lamb.

Today is Eid al-Adha, the Feast of Sacrifice.

Last year Saudi Arabia reported more than 4 million pilgrims for the Haj. (Photo: AsiaNews)

Marking the end of the haj, the pinnacle event of this feast is sacrificing a lamb — literally slitting its throat while reciting verses from the Quran. After reserving a portion of meat to give to the poor, Muslims will clean the meat and rub it with fennel seed, turmeric and other aromatic spices. Then they will braise or roast it until the tender meat falls off the bone.

In almost every country, new clothes are a must for this special day. In the Middle Eastern country where I live, local men attend prayers early in the morning, and then receive guests as early as 6 a.m. Women with henna-decorated hands pass out chocolates and money to children who knock on their doors. But the lamb takes center stage, and some Muslims don’t even know why.

The event behind Eid al-Adha is Prophet Ibrahim’s (Abraham) willingness to sacrifice his son. Muslims know that God stopped Abraham as he raised the knife and sent a ram from heaven so the son could go free. But the deeper significance of this story — and how it points to Jesus — most will never know.

Several years ago I had coffee with a South Asian woman near the celebration of this meaning-packed holiday.

A few simple questions led to a topic most Americans would avoid: sin. As a Muslim, Hanna explained to me how she views sin: Everyone sins, at least a little. But the payment for sin is good works.

It gave me the entrance to share about the seriousness of sin, its penalty of death and that no amount of good works are good enough for God. Ever.

The table was silent. Suspense had sufficiently been built. Hanna appeared deep in thought when she looked up from her drink and asked, “So how can anyone go to heaven?”

I was so glad she asked! “You know about Nabi Ibrahim?” I ventured, referring to the Eid ul-Adha story. “The ‘ram from heaven’ was given in place of Abraham’s son, and this sign points us to Jesus.” (As a note, some Muslims insist the son was Ishmael, not Isaac, so I used “son” in general to avoid confusion or an argument.)

After relating the story to Jesus the spotless Lamb of God who gave his life so we could go free, I asked Hanna, “Have you ever heard this before?”

“No. Never.” At the end of our coffee date, Hanna thanked me for explaining about Jesus. She said, “I have always wondered why he came.”

The Quran ends the story of Abraham and his son with this: “And We ransomed him with a momentous sacrifice” (as-Saffat 37:107, Yusuf Ali Translation). So, every year on the occasion of Eid ul-Adha, astute Muslims are left wondering, What is the “momentous sacrifice?” Surely it means more than a ram caught in the brambles.

God in his wisdom tucked this meaning-packed story in the Quran and made it the focal point of the biggest feast in Islam. Having woven this account into the fabric of Muslims’ lives, God has prepared these precious men and women to hear about His provision of the “momentous sacrifice,” Jesus, the Lamb of God.

This Eid, may they not be left wondering.

YOUR TURN: Have you ever taken part in an Eid al-Adha celebration? Do you know any Muslims who are celebrating today?

"Anna" blogs about friendship, culture, and Kingdom-living from her home in the Middle East. She loves Jesus and wants to see Him cherished by her neighbors and people everywhere. Anna will be posting on the Persecution Blog each month. Feel free to ask questions or suggest future topics in the comments section for this post. Anna is a pseudonym, and all names in her posts are changed for security reasons.

Top 8 in 16: #8

In the remaining days of 2016 we'll look back on the most-viewed posts on Persecution Blog in 2016, including a post that is more than 10 years old but is still one of the most-read posts on the blog! We begin today with #8: a look back on the man most responsible for having the Bible in English; William Tyndale.

If you read the Bible in English, you owe a debt of gratitude to William Tyndale. Today (October 6) marks the anniversary of Tyndale’s execution at the stake in 1536 for the “crime” of translating the Bible into English. Here is Tyndale’s story, as told in VOM’s book, FOXE: Voices of the Martyrs.

William Tyndale was a well-educated scholar who was frustrated at the distance between English education and the Bible, the source of truth. Studying at Oxford and then at Cambridge, he bristled at the barriers and longed for the nourishment his mind and heart treasured. “In the universities,” he said, “they have ordained that no man shall look on the Scripture until he be nozzled in heathen learning eight or nine years, and armed with false principles with which he is clean shut out of the understanding of the Scripture.” Tyndale’s life would be devoted to overcoming just this obstacle. For him, the Bible “for the people” would become the answer to corruption in the church. The Bible “for the people” meant that all could drink from the truth itself, without pressure or pretext; and most clearly, without a priest to read or interpret.

Tyndale was born sometime around 1494 in Gloucester, England, near the Welsh border. Ninety years earlier the Church had banned the only English Bible in the world, the hand-copied work of John Wycliffe. It was a flawed translation, based on the Latin Vulgate, but it was all English speakers had. And to have it was a crime. Tyndale’s passions eventually settled on a mission as dangerous as any in his century: to work from the Greek and Hebrew texts to create a Bible in vernacular English, so readable and accurate that an Englishman could depend on it, learn from it, and find God’s voice in it. All this was clear to the multilingual Tyndale by the age of thirty.

To do that work, Tyndale had to leave England. No bishop in the realm would protect him, much less encourage the project. Tyndale traveled to Germany where he completed the New Testament in 1525. Then he went on to Antwerp, one step ahead of English agents, where the first five Old Testament books were translated and printed. In Belgium he met a community of English merchants, and though agents were searching the continent to find him, Tyndale felt secure enough to relax his guard. His lack of caution would prove fatal.

Tyndale took up a friendship with Henry Phillips, who won Tyndale’s confidence but secretly sough the bounty offered for his capture. In May, 1535, the trap was set. Tyndale was taken under guard to the castle at Vilvoorde, near Brussels, where he suffered in dank and cold for eighteen months before standing trial for “maintaining that faith alone justifies…that to believe in the forgiveness of sins, and to embrace the mercy offered in the gospel, was enough for salvation.” The complete list of charges included direct attacks on church teaching, among them that “neither the Virgin nor the Saints should be invoked by us.”

Tyndale knew how these trials ran. He would have no chance at defense, and death was the remedy. With his body shaking from cold and the winter’s light dim for writing, he worked to complete the English Bible, helped by a sympathetic prison governor.

In August, 1536, Tyndale was condemned as a heretic and defrocked. For two more months he was kept at Vilvoorde. Then in early October, just past dawn, he was led from prison to the stake. Formalities included placing the Mass once more in his hands, then quickly snatching it back, the offer of last-minute reprieve if he would only recant, and always the shouts of a crowd gathered to witness a “heathen” die.

Secured to the stake, surrounded by brush and logs, Tyndale was heard to pray, “Lord, open the King of England’s eyes.” Then the executioner snapped hard on the rope, strangling Tyndale before the blaze consumed his body.

That final prayer was for the bully King Henry VIII, whose pursuit of a male heir had already cost Anne Boleyn her life and Catherine her marriage. So full of his own power and pomp, would the king’s eyes ever fall favorably on Tyndale’s English Bible?

Indeed they did. Two years after Tyndale’s death, King Henry authorized the distribution of the Matthew Bible, much of it Tyndale’s work. And then, on November 14, 1539, all printers and sellers of books were ordered by the king to provide “for the free and liberal use of the Bible in our own maternal English tongue.” Tyndale’s dream and his last earthly appeal had come true.

Excerpted from FOXE: Voices of the Martyrs by The Voice of the Martyrs. Order your copy here.

VOM Radio: I'm With You Always, Even During Torture

In one of the most-listened-to episodes of VOM Radio from 2016, "Sister Amber" shares how Christ was with her even as she was being tortured and abused in Tibet.

After more than a decade in Tibet, Amber watched as God orchestrated a great ministry breakthrough: people who'd been totally closed to the gospel message were now asking to learn more about Jesus. But just days after that breakthrough Amber experienced persecution as police came pounding on her door.

Listen as she tells the story, including how God ministered to her in the most painful moments of her suffering. You'll hear how God showed her that her persecution wasn't the end of the story. You'll also hear how God laid on the hearts of people around the world to pray for Amber, including one who drew a remarkably-accurate picture of Amber and the policemen in the interrogation room--and how God’s plans included those policemen.

Your faith will be challenged as you hear Amber's thoughts on what the New Testament calls the "honor" of being persecuted.

 

Listen to the complete interview with Amber here: Part 1 and Part 2.

Never miss an episode of VOM Radio! Subscribe to the VOM Radio podcast on iTunes or Google Play Music.

Stories and Cookies

Lily and I had been friends for several months and I looked for ways to spend time with her. Christmas was approaching and as I wanted to bake cookies for our family and friends, I invited Lily over with the promise of lots of cookies as payment for her help. She readily accepted.

Lily and I worked to roll cookie dough, melt chocolate, and strategically place tiny Christmas bells on dozens and dozens of cookies as I shared with her the story behind the Christmas celebration. My telling of the Christmas story was sprinkled with comments such as, “Can you hand me the baking soda?” and “Don’t add too much flour as it makes the cookies too hard.” Stories and cookies go well together.

“Have you ever heard that story of Isa (Jesus) before?” I asked Lily. “No,” she replied, and we kept talking as I packed cookies in containers for her to take home.

We continued to meet a couple times a month over a meal, a movie or taking walks around our beautiful city.  Our friendship was a strange one at best; she was a Muslim, I was a Christian. I was born in the United States, and she had never left her city. I was twenty years her senior, married with children and she was still single, visiting her parents in the village on weekends. In spite of the differences, our friendship blossomed. We got together often that year.

The next year, I invited her again to make cookies at my house. I asked her if she remembered the story of the birth of Christ and she told it back to me just as she had heard it the year before! Then the questions came: “Do you believe it was a miraculous birth? Why did God plan for Isa to be born in a stable? Why was Herod so determined to kill him? Is this a true story? Really?”

I had invited Lily and several other people over for a Christmas Day meal, but as several things came up, I decided to cancel the meal. A few days earlier my husband had to make an unexpected trip back to the US, two of my children couldn’t make it home for the holidays and our youngest was sick in bed with an unexplained fever. What was to be a day of celebration seemed to be one of calamity.

My mood was cloudy and sullen. I didn’t feel like having company. I didn’t feel like celebrating at all!

“I just can’t do this, Lord. What a poor witness I will be for my Muslim and Christian friends today. I do not have the strength nor the joy to celebrate and tell the story of your birth today. I just can’t!”

I waited for Him to speak. He whispered to me, “My grace is sufficient for you TODAY.” His words flooded my soul with peace and a renewed strength to get to work, His work. As I prepared the meal, I began to think of our lives like a pair of lifeless mittens lying on a table. We are useless unless the hand of God fills us and brings us to life, an abundant life, filled with His Spirit, His strength, His joy.

My thoughts began to turn and give Him praise for all that He is, all He did for me and all that He will do.

My guests came, we prayed, ate, and then sat around the table, laughing, talking, asking questions and discussing the topic of God well into the night.

It was a wonderful day. A day of sustaining grace. A day of amazing grace.

The last person to leave was my friend Lily. As she was putting on her shoes, she looked at me and said, “I want to know more. I want to study your book and go to church with you.”

As she studied God’s Word and learned of his love for her, God touched her heart. My friend Lily is now my sister in Christ. The simple act of making Christmas cookies together, plus a little faithfulness on my part, opened up the possibility for Lily to meet God. Gloria in Excelsis Deo!

TM is a VOM staff member. She lived for many years in Malaysia and Indonesia before coming to VOM.