Daily Light - February 5, 2011

Daily Light from the Lighthouse
40 Days of Faith

"Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings,

yes, and of chains and imprisonment."

Hebrews 11:36

The children of faith have often been led into places where they never thought they would be. Why should a child of God be subjected to cruelty and torture? What right does a "child of hell" have to imprison a join-heir of the promises of God? Don't we have our rights? The easy answer is "no".
A child of the Most High does not go around demanding his rights and fighting for his own will. He instead surrenders to the Father with a desire to be conformed to the image of His Son by being transformed through the renewing of the spiritual mind. The heroes of faith both of yesterday and today are joyful to be counted worthy to suffer for Christ. In our human mind this does not make sense, and that is why the mind must be transformed to be like Christ's.
Many over the years have endured trials that were a kangaroo court meant only to find them guilty of man's petty opinions. These trials resulted in their name being dragged through the mud, their families being ridiculed and ostracized, and their places of worship being torn to the ground. Many of these individuals have experienced incredible pain and suffering at the hand of their captors. With the civil government looking on, these torturers put these heroes through great pains and torment. If you were to ask each of them how they endured the mocking and scourging, they would each tell you that it is in that moment that they understood Christ even more.
What should those of us do that are now presently suffering in this way? We believe the truth of Christ as our brothers and sisters in chains do, but we live in a world where at this time we are not feeling the pain of their suffering. We cannot and must not sit idly by. There are many organizations like Voice of the Martyrs that give us an opportunity to get involved in some way. We can spend time in fasting and prayer for these brothers and sisters that we may never meet on this side of eternity. We can confront our own government about the atrocities that are committed abroad. There is much that can be done, and there is much that we must do. Proverbs 31:8 says, "Open your mouth for the speechless in the cause of all who are appointed to die."
May you speak up for the cause of Christ today!