July 11

Suffering for Jesus is not something we experience much in the US.  Sure there are people around us who oppose Christian values.  And our country is sliding further and further from traditional family values.  Sexuality is flaunted openly.  Less and less people believe in absolute truth not to mention the Bible or even God himself.  And anyone who stands up for their faith or biblical belief are seen as rigid or “phobic”.  There are some churches that have been vandalized because of the support of life and every once in a while a church shooting from those who are upset at what we teach and preach.
  But all in all, America still has the value of the freedom to worship.  We are not persecuted for going to church or killed because we follow Christ.  Our houses are not burned to the ground because of our confession.  We are not jailed for owning a Bible.  We can still live and work in our communities and are not shunned by our families when we tell them about Christ.  I cannot say the same for other countries around the world.  I have no idea if any thing like this will ever come to our shore, but it might.  Thankfully our country was founded on a Godly foundation (despite what others say differently).  But even that is coming under attack.  I hope and pray that we never have to face real suffering for our beliefs.  But if it does, I hope we are all ready to be the kind of people who will not deny Christ in the face of suffering and hardship.  That we will stand firm like Polycarp and not back down at the prospect of death.  Now is the time to prepare and not wait until we are standing on the wood pile.