Recently I had the privilege to travel to Laos and to meet Christians there who face persecution. One of the brothers we met with is an evangelist who leads people to Christ almost every day. He has seen numerous people miraculously healed through the power of God, and many overcome drug addiction with God’s help. He told us that his cel phone rings regularly with people who say, “I need help.”

One of our VOM contacts in India recently shared an inspiring story of a young woman that lives her life for Jesus in spite of her many trials.

The Lahore High Court has, for the second time in two weeks, delayed the first hearing on Asia Bibi’s appeal of her conviction for blasphemy and the resulting death sentence.

In giving instructions to his disciples as they set out on a limited mission to Israel (Matt 10:16), Christ tells them that he is sending them out as sheep among the wolves, so they needed to be shrewd and not be seen as a threat. They were to remain innocent but not be foolish. While the instructions were meant for this limited mission, it makes good sense in our approach to the world. There is no need to rush out, foolishly crashing headlong into the opposition. That would be reckless. Why purposefully provoke those who are hostile when the point of the mission is to win those who are hostile to Christ? The message may invite and incite hostility but our behavior should not provoke them.

Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:1

This week I received an email from a Christian contact in Turkey. He shared the news that, under authority of a new Turkish law, the five men who murdered three Christians in 2007 were being set free. Their court case has dragged on and on and on, and the new law says that if a court verdict is not reached within five years, the accused should be set free until the verdict is reached.

A couple of weeks ago, I was asked to teach a missions class at a Christian university. The topic was “Smuggling” and it was an excellent opportunity for me to share our perspective on a controversial topic. One of the reasons that the topic of smuggling is so hotly debated in Christian circles is that many misunderstand a biblical hierarchy of authority.

Believers in hostile and restricted nations must often pray and worship in secret. They risk their freedom, their physical and emotional well-being, and even their lives for sharing the gospel message with others in their families and those around them. They trust the words of Jesus when He said, “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20).

People who thrive on competition enjoy opposition; it is what motivates and inspires them. Conventional wisdom says that competition brings out the best in us, and to a degree that is true. When opposition, however, is serious and life-threatening, most people shy away from it, usually because opposition implies something negative and difficult, if not personally devastating. Opposition can be devastating.