MAY 7, 2013
We
Can Trust Him
Read: Matthew 10:32-38
Bless those who curse
you, do good to those who hate you, and pray
for those who . . . persecute you.
—Matthew 5:44
I
know very little about persecution. My physical well-being has never been
threatened because of what I believe or what I say. What little I “know” about
the subject comes from what I hear and read. But that is not true for many of
our brothers and sisters around the world. Some of them live in danger every
day simply because they love Jesus and want others to know Him too.
There
is another form of persecution that may not be life-threatening, but it is
heartbreaking. It’s the persecution that comes from non-Christian family
members. When loved ones ridicule our faith and mock us for what we believe
and
how we express our love for God, we feel rejected and unloved.
Paul
warned believers that following Jesus would result in persecution: “All who
desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Tim. 3:12),
and we
know that sometimes rejection will come from those we love (Matt. 10:34-36).
But when people we love reject the God we love, the rejection feels personal.
Jesus
told us to pray for those who persecute us (Matt. 5:44), and that includes
more
than strangers who hate us. God is able to give us grace to persevere through
persecution even when it comes from those we love.
Lord, give us grace to pray for those
Who seek our harm and not our good;
And teach us how to show them love
In ways that will be understood. —Sper
People may mock our message but they can’t stop our prayers.
Source:
Our Daily Bread 2012
