Many are the foes who persecute me, but I have not turned from your statutes. (Ps. 119:157)
The testimonies were emotionally stirring. The speakers were sharing about being persecuted because of their faith in Jesus Christ. In graphic detail, each presenter described what they had endured. A Nigerian woman shared that she was forced to witness her husband and children being beheaded. Another woman, with tears running down her face, spoke about being forced into sexual slavery. A young man, with his voice cracking with emotion, spoke about how some of his relatives had blinded him because he would not promise to stop reading the Bible. The last person to share was an eighteen-year-old girl whose father had poured acid on her face, strangled her, and then threw her into a canal to die.
After each shared, there was a question-and-answer time. One of the questions asked was, “Have you ever wanted to give up your faith in Christ?” The response from the Nigerian Christian especially spoke to my heart. “Through all the pain I have gone through, I could not turn away from Christ . . . and I have not turned away from him. . . . I will never turn my back on him. He will always be my Savior. And one day I know I will once again see my husband and children. Christ is my hope for eternal life!”
Pray that Christians will remain steadfast when they are persecuted.
Jim “Umf” Lo is a professor at Indiana Wesleyan University, cross-cultural leader, intercessor, and author of several books including Unholiness: Overcoming the Forces That Attack Your Soul (WPH).
© 2019 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission.
