Today I realized how much I have to be thankful for. All of my November posts will be about things that I am thankful for. Most of my posts will not be this serious but this topic is on my heart after tonight. This post will be about Freedom of Worship.
Today was the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. Since we, as Christians living in the United States, have no idea what it is like to be afraid for our lives just to follow Christ, I think its important to remember this. I didn't make it to church this morning where there was a Christian from Iran who spoke. He said that the pastor of their church had been killed for being a Christian. Tonight I went to my community group and we spent our time together praying for the persecuted church. The top 10 countries that are the most persecuted in the world are: North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Afghanistan, Somalia, Maldives, Yemen, Laos, Eritrea and Uzbekistan. A few of these countries are countries that you never hear about. I dont think I've ever heard of Maldives or Eritrea. Others are a lot more well known for being oppressive to Christians: North Korea, Saudi Arabia and Iran specifically. I am also a little familiar with Yemen because there was a couple that were missionaries there from my parents church.
I cannot imagine living in a place where I could not worship freely. The people in these countries continue to meet and worship Jesus and share their faith, even though they run the risk of being arrested, beaten, tortured and killed. I am THANKFUL to live in a place where these thoughts do not ever even enter my mind. Just thinking about the courage the Christians in these countries possess makes me a little embarassed at how much I take for granted the freedom that I have to worship Jesus and often don't take advantage of it. I will continue to pray for the people, leaders and Christians of these countries that persecute believers, and I hope that you will do the same.
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