This post is contributed by Jillian, who, along with her husband and three children, is taking the Gospel to Muslims in Africa. I pray you will be encouraged by her testimony of God's care and provision in the face of persecution and loss. TK
In our human minds, as we ask ourselves the question, “Who can be against us?”, our hearts are often discouraged with our responses. We see the list of critics and haters as long. We fret about our tomorrows. On our own, we fall into despair. But pausing a minute to remember His Word—His promises that are true—pausing to cling to our only HOPE, we find a great and sure peace.
You can’t threaten to kick a man out of his family whose Father is God and whose brothers and sisters number in the millions.
You can’t threaten to fire a man who has been commissioned as a steward of God and an ambassador for Christ.
You can’t threaten to take a man’s wealth whose treasure is stored in Heaven.
You can’t threaten to expel a man from a country who is the citizen of a City whose Builder and Maker is God.
You can’t threaten to imprison a man who has been set eternally free.
You can’t even threaten to kill a man whose life is hidden with God in Christ.
These were the thoughts that filled my heart as I looked around the packed out room full of believers yesterday. The adults lined the walls of the living room in rows, and the kids filled the space in the middle. The occasion was the celebration of the resurrection of Christ. Six were baptized. The crowd of 61 was the largest gathering of believers that any of the nationals present had ever seen. We are amazed at what God has done!
As I look around with my mind’s eye, I see my closest friend, whom I love dearly; I know she is in the process of losing her earthly family. I hear one of the pastors preach; he is a husband and father of three, who was fired from his job as a manager of a bread factory when the boss found out what he believed. I looked down at the note in my hand, asking for some groceries; it was written by an old man whose wife divorced him after she found out about his faith and left him with their three teenage kids. I hear another of the pastors preach; he has stood before police and judges as a prisoner in his own country for the crime of evangelizing openly and boldly. I see another brother give his testimony with a giant smile; he trained in Libya for “holy war” with a branch of ISIS, and now—as a Christian—his neighbors threatened his life with a sword just a month ago.
The faces in the room, however, didn’t reflect a fear of threats. They reflected the joy of Paul’s triumphant statement: “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31). I am humbled. I am blessed. We serve an AWESOME GOD!