While in Iraq recently, I was pleased to meet several Christians who are serving their neighbors, even in the midst of their own personal suffering. These “Jesus followers” have lost almost everything that this world values, and they continue to boldly proclaim their faith. They shine brightly in a place that has been darkened by loss, sorrow and hopelessness.

“I see nothing” is the classic line of Sgt. Schultz from Hogan’s Heroes, the 1960s television series about prisoners of war. The line is funny and unforgettable. So what does it mean? It means to ‘turn a blind eye.’ If I can’t see it, it doesn’t exist, it hasn’t happened, and therefore I am not responsible for it. Schultz was hiding from reality—usually the antics of the prisoners of war that he was supposed to be guarding. It was a humorous statement from a character on TV, but in real life hiding one’s eyes (face, head) from reality is immature and irresponsible. It can be downright dangerous.

Pastor Richard Wurmbrand—the founder of The Voice of the Martyrs—had a way with words. In several countries around the world, I’ve met people who, usually with a gleam in their eye, have shared their experience of meeting Richard or Sabina. Many times, they remember a specific quote from a talk that Richard gave. He was a powerful, and profound, communicator.

Much of the persecution of Christians in the news today is attributed to radical Muslims, although there are many other groups across the globe also persecuting Christians. Radical Muslims use a particular religion or an ideological view based on an interpretation of that religion to commit horrendous crimes against innocent humans. Whether they capture the essence of their religion or whether they have a skewed and warped view of it is a debate both within the Muslim community and the world at large. The bottom line is that they are persecuting Christians—and often killing Muslims they feel don’t measure up to their ideology—in the name of God.

At about the same time Muslim radicals were massacring the cartoonists in Paris, Boko Haram was levelling the city of Baga, Nigeria, killing an estimate 2,000 people. I was very angry and outraged at the horrific scale of murder of innocent people of all ages. Although the massacre in Nigeria was not specifically targeting Christians (as far as I know), as a Christian I am deeply troubled by the indiscriminate killing of human beings. I prayed for justice, for the international community to stop these atrocities that grow bolder as each day goes by, and to bring those killers to justice. Where was the sign of international unity against the massacre in Nigeria?

It is hard for most of us to imagine how difficult life is for Christians in many parts of the world. Living as a minority in a hostile context is a daily struggle. Many times, our Christian family members are threatened or attacked because of their faith.

Sometimes when we read the Bible we assume a historical posture that says to us, “that happened a long time ago but doesn’t happen today.” For example, when we read Hebrews 11:38 about ancient saints wandering in deserts and mountains and living in caves and holes in the ground because they were homeless because of their faith, we usually don’t connect that with today’s world—especially in the Western world where homelessness is either a personal choice or one is forced into homelessness due to financial setbacks. The world is larger than our enclave and looking beyond our normal focus, we can see that homelessness due to faith is happening right now.

A few weeks ago, Merv Knight walked into my office door. Merv is a dear elder brother of mine, in his 80’s now, who lives in Australia. Merv Knight has served our persecuted brothers and sisters for more than 40 years. Perhaps his most important contribution to the work of serving the persecuted was summed up in the recent words of one of VOM’s executives: “Merv Knight has served as a spiritual advisor to us all.”

Each month VOM produces "The Jesus Freaks Minute," a daily radio-PSA that shares the stories of the persecuted church with Christian radio listeners all over the United States and around the world. Here's the script for one of the spots that will air next month, a spot entitled New Year Resolve:

The recent stories of the radical Islamic group ISIS indiscriminately and sometimes intentionally killing children has been on my mind these days, especially as we focus on children during the Christmas season. It is hard to comprehend what it takes for an adult to kill children for whatever reason but it is most incomprehensible when it is done to make an ideological/political statement to the world.