Persecution....

"You're blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God's kingdom." (Matthew 5:10, Message)





I never understood this verse, not really. I easily read it, and new what all the words meant, but I could never really fathom "persecution." I thought persecution (at least in America) was something that didn't happen anymore. A year ago when running across this same verse, I prayed for persecution thinking that it would really challenge me to grow in my faith and strengthen my relationship and dependency on God....but did I know what I was really looking for to happen? No. Until today.

Persecution doesn't always come in the form of beatings and abuse. It doesn't always come in the form of getting thrown into prison or having to hide underground and have secret meetings to escape death. Sometimes, persecution comes through criticism. Through judgement. Through abandonement. And through many other things, that people say and do, whether it be family, friends, or complete strangers, when they see you doing things most would consider "radical" in order to help be a factor in bringing the kingdom of Heaven on earth.

I had an encounter today, with a very close friend of mine, who had more than a few choice words about some decisions I have been praying about and contemplating for a while. Decisions that might cause me to be not only uprooted from my church, family, friends, and my job but maybe from the country itself. When you say to people "I want to be a missionary" or "I am called to move to Africa and help orphans" or "God spoke to me and told me do to this fill in the blank thing" people look at like you like you are crazy. They laugh you off as if you are joking. And almost all of them most certainly have some type of opinion about what you have just said.

The thing is, we as Christians do not answer to those people....even if those people are brothers and sisters in Christ. We don't answer to our church or our family or our job. We were created to serve ONE God and are called according to HIS will, not the will that others place upon us. Where friends and family who discourage us from doing the things that they consider "radical" or crazy even probably mean very well, and are not mean-spirited people, they are also not the ones who have to answer for the things in my life that I did or didn't do. I answer for those things. And in the end, when I get to see my Father and Creator and very best Friend, I don't want to waste a ton of time having to come up with excuses as to why I didn't do the things I know He so apparently called me to do. I would rather just run to Him and hug Him and worship Him and ask Him questions and let Him love on me. I don't want the added drama ;)

I imagine that the reason we see deeper into the kingdom when we as Christians are persecuted is because we are then truly walking in the footsteps of Jesus, becoming more like Him, and getting closer to feeling the weight of what we did to Him when others do it to us. I will continue to pray for persecution, just like I will pray for the ones who crucify me and that their hearts be changed. If you're not for the kingdom you are against it, and just like a parent who would do anything in the world for their child I feel that way about doing what God has called me to do. I have that kind of passion and drive to wrecklessly abandon everything in my life to serve Him.

In Him,
Meg