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| Jessica & Tifanee 2005 |
Mark 13:9 “But take heed to
yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye
shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake,
for a testimony against them.”
Jim Elliot, Joan of Arc, Cassie Bernall, Rachel
Scott, Stephen, James, Peter.... names that you may or may not recognize, but
all have one thing in common; they were martyrs for our Lord. From the early
church of the Apostles where all but one of the twelve Apostles died a martyr's
death, to the modern-day story of the teen-agers at Columbine High School who
were shot to death because they believed in God.
Being persecuted for the sake of Christ was not
just something that happened to the early church in the book of Acts. It's as
real today as it was then. Christians in Sudan and other parts of the world are
being persecuted daily, for no other reason than, they won't denounce the name
of Jesus.
In the spring of 2003, our local high school held
its yearly Talent Contest. Tifanee and Jessica, my two daughters, along with
four of their friends, decided to enter. They chose the song
"Breathe", a well-known worship song made popular by Michael W.
Smith. During rehearsal they had some sneers and laughter from other teens that
were not Christians. Knowing they would be made fun of, they still proceeded to
sing "Breathe" during the contest.
Tifanee told me later that the anointing was so
strong while they were singing that it didn't matter what the other kids
thought of them. After they finished singing, they went and sat in their seats
among the other students. A few rows back there were a group of boys snickering
and laughing at them. Suddenly one boy cursed and shouted out "Hey, what
about the separation of church of state?" Then the boys began throwing
half eaten suckers at my girls and their friends. One girl ended up with a
sucker stuck in her hair and another girl was hit in the eye.
Persecution? Yes! They may not have been beaten
like the Apostles, or burned at the stake like Joan of Arc, but the mental
persecution from their peers was real to them. A few days before the contest,
they had the opportunity to minister to an unsaved friend of theirs... and of
all places, in the girl's restroom at school. A group of them held hands and
prayed while other high school girls went in and out of the restroom. Ashamed?
No! If they had it to do all over again, they would... persecution or not!
"Father, I pray that no matter what the
cost, we will be Your light to a darkened world. Even if it means being made
fun of, laughed at, or beaten. Give us strength to take a stand for our faith
and declare aloud like the courageous teens at Columbine High, ‘Yes, we believe
in God!’.”
© Debbie L Davis 2004
Have a blessed day,
Debbie Davis
One Blessed Chicky
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