Persecution?

I speak for no one but myself. My experience does not define yours, and therefore can't invalidate yours. You might have experienced love and acceptance where I experienced rejection and loss, or vice versa. My experiences need not be a threat to yours, nor yours to mine. We both had legitimate experiences. Having said that...

Churches and ministries need to utilize their members' spiritual gifts for the glory of God, not use the actual people to fill a place, and then discard them when the need is no longer pressing. People are not a commodity. They are God's most priceless creation. Even mature Christians are vulnerable and need to be cherished. We all matter. When you go to church, treat everyone there like they're the most valuable person you ever met, because they are!

Our faith is in Jesus and His finished work, not in other people, but hurt from fellow believers is real, and very painful. I have experienced this hurt, some recently, some years ago. The enemy uses it against me often, and I have to claim Romans 8:1, There is therefore now no condemnation for them that are in Christ Jesus.

The summer I was fourteen, I was excommunicated from a church body I had thought loved me. My whole family was kicked out, in fact. Others experienced love and joy there, and I don't in any way deny that. I have good memories there that I can still enjoy remembering. Good and hurt can coexist. People who love the Lord can make leadership mistakes. The tragedies are the casualties of these mistakes. I am one such casualty. All the same, mistakes are forgivable.

The "crime" that got me kicked out was that I shared the Gospel at VBS and led 24 second graders to Christ. I apparently didn't do it at the right time, and it wasn't part of the program. I was a troublemaker who had to be stopped. You'd think I was selling drugs behind the church the way I was treated. I didn't share the Gospel in any weird way. The older gentleman I was asked to help, Mr. Johnson, invited me to share with the second graders. I was suddenly filled with a need to get the Gospel out. It was a power beyond myself, urging me on, and it would have been painful not to do it. That's how it should be to use our spiritual gifts. We should feel led and empowered, and the idea of not doing it should be unsettling to us. I opened my mouth, and I found I was able to articulate the Gospel in a way these children could receive it. Mr. Johnson was asked to stop letting teenagers share, but he obeyed God rather than man, and he let me do it again. He was also excommunicated, and for the rest of his life, he never really found peace from what happened. It was one of those things where he thought he had gotten over it, but then it would still hurt him, and he would give it back to God, and think it was over, but then it would still come back in painful waves. He supported me as a missionary until he died, and in our final conversation, he was still broken and grieved that we had been so wounded--but he wouldn't trade those who were saved at that long ago VBS for anything!

Ever since that day years ago, in another century, I have struggled with feeling that I'm not a valid part of the Body of Christ, and that other Christians don't really love me. I have recently experienced some difficulties inflicted by fellow believers that have hearkened back to these painful times as a teenager.

This experience at 14 was the first, but not the only time I was in trouble for sharing the Gospel in a time and place when it should have been allowed and celebrated. This has been my lot in life, and it has happened to me multiple times, including surprisingly recently. In every case, it was simply bad for business. In one particular instance, my right to free speech was violated, though I chose not to pursue legal action. Yet I did not cave. I continued evangelizing. I'm not a hero. I'm just someone who will answer to God one day, and take that very seriously. This is a lot more common than people realize. There are Christians in every nation who are facing pressure every day, and are still taking a stand for Christ, using their gifts to bring Him glory, against odds we know nothing about. I get so tired of hearing people say Christians in the US and other western nations don't experience persecution.  In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted (Second Timothy 3:12).  Don't minimize the pain some believers go through simply because it looks different than stories we hear of other nations.  

     Being asked to stop sharing the Gospel is a moral dilemma, and different Christians might feel led differently.  When this has happened to me, I didn't just bluntly continue sharing in order to stick it to the person telling me to stop.  I didn't have anything to prove to them.  I tried to be very respectful.  I evaluated each situation, and I continued sharing in a more discrete manner that was appropriate to the time and place--but I never stopped sharing the Gospel.  Those who came to salvation when I "disobediently" continued sharing are my very best argument for continuing.  I can't wait to see them all in Heaven one day.  The Gospel came to us through the sacrifice of persecuted believers throughout history.  We can't drop the ball!  

I answer to a higher authority, and that is Jesus Christ. Acts 5:29 sums up my philosophy well: ...We ought to obey God rather than men. The Apostle Paul said in Acts 20:24  But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.  In a thousand years, all that will matter will be that people came to Christ and will be in Heaven for all eternity.  That is so much more important that the programs, or power of leadership, or whatever other reason people might have for opposing the Gospel.  

     In every place where I have been wounded, there are redemption qualities.  Sometimes, there has even been redemption for me with that situation.  Right now, our family is kind of between a few things, but I am so thankful I have the support of both of my ministry-related jobs (CEF and the Christian school I teach at).  Because of these things, my local body far exceeds any individual church, and I experience Jesus' love from many different believers.  In no way am I criticizing any specific church, nor am I discouraging anyone from being part of any specific church.  My experience isn't yours and yours isn't mine.  Keep running your race and I'll keep running mine.  We both answer to Jesus!  The prize is waiting!  

Treasures in Heaven

      Two friends grow up in a one-horse town, and both are dying to break free.  Both are Christians, and long to do something big for God.  One friend uses his outgoing personality, determination, and intelligence to get a few degrees, then travels the world debating against worldly philosophies with the best of them.  Revivals seem to break out wherever he goes as people re-think their beliefs in light of his persuasive arguments in favor of the truth.  Thousands are saved as a result of his work, and he receives recognition from media outlets.  

     The other friend just doesn't seem as motivated, and, even though he longed to get ouf of town, he ends up settling down there anyway, working a local retail job.  He quietly prays daily for his co-worker and customers.  He does his best, as unto the Lord, and eventually rises to the position of manager.  No one thinks that much about him, but he influences others for the Lord.  He has the opportunity to lead one of his sales associates to Christ, and sees their whole family baptized.  He himself gets married and raises a godly family.  He teaches Sunday school, and one summer even takes a group of boys up to camp.  He is never on television, never mentioned in any media outlet.  No one outside his circle knows his name.  

     This is the premise of a book my husband and I have talked about writing.  I'm not sure if we ever will, but we like the idea.  Which of these two friends would receive the most treasures in Heaven?  The surface answer would be to say the first, as his ministry is reaching so many more.  The more spiritual-sounding answer might be the second, because he isn't getting any attention in this life, so perhaps that figures into the heavenly treasures.  Or, perhaps the way it is worded is set up to make you guess the second one, as if to imply he is more humble.  But I want to suggest that both friends are being faithful to the Lord, and, assuming they are in obedience to His leading in their lives, they will both hear, Well done, good and faithful servant. (Matthew 25:23).  

     I have the interesting vantage point of having been in both ministry and secular employment.  I want to suggest that, if you are a Christian, everything you do has the potential to be a ministry.  Colossians 3:23-24 remind us, Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.  Did you catch that?  Whatever you do.  Not, "Whatever mission trip you go on" nor "whatever church job you have" but "whatever you do."  All work God leads us to, whether it seems like a ministry or not, is really serving Christ, and doing it as unto Him gains us Heavenly rewards (hence the words inheritance from the Lord).  Likewise, while we are doing these jobs, Second Corinthians 5:20 says, We are Christ's ambassadors...  We are never off duty from representing Jesus.  In my made-up scenario, both friends are being Christ's ambassadors in the calling they've been given.  

     Being called "into the ministry" is an honor, but the truth is, every believer has a ministry.  Some of us are employed by a mission agency or church, while others are not, but our real boss is God, and we are to serve Him in every way He gives us.  He has called some to pastor churches, go to mission fields, lead evangelistic crusades.  If that is your calling, you must obey.  But if every Christian were doing these things, who would represent Jesus to the McDonald's employees?  Who would represent Him at the local mechanic shop?  Jesus said, You are the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Matthew 5:13, 14).  God scatters us into the various places where we'll make that impact for His kingdom.  

     For a while, I worked for the YMCA.  I loved that job, though it was more or less very secular.  Due to government funding, we weren't supposed to share anything religious with the students (I was working with before and after school elementary day care).  However, I had my calling.  I prayed for children, even when they didn't know.  I reasoned that God had me there to pray for kids who perhaps had no other human on earth praying for them.  It was an honor.  Many Christians I know who work in public schools have shared having that same calling to pray for children.  In my case at the YMCA, I was able to share my faith with them at opportune times (when we shared the Thanksgiving story each November, it lent itself to that).  In my five years there, I led one child to Christ (it was a divine appointment), and had others seriously ask me about salvation, and I was able to plant those seeds.  We had a college student who was volunteering with the YMCA, assigned to me for a while.  This young lady was from China, and had purposely come to college in the US so she could learn about God.  God gave me the opportunity to speak truth to her that she hasn't heard under Communism.  I was also able to represent Christ to co-workers who knew I was a Christian, one of whom was actually a practicing witch and opposed me much of the time.  I was still able to leave her with a blessing.  That was a divine calling--as divine as anything I'm doing right now in "full-time ministry".  It's all full-time ministry in it's for Jesus.  My time at the YMCA was so rewarding, and I'm so thankful God gave that to me.

One of the few pictures I was able to find of myself in my YMCA uniform!  I worked a split-shft, and I Walter took this one while we went to lunch before my afternoon shift started, 2015.  I think I wore that uniform so much that I got sick of it, and always put on other clothes before I had my picture taken, which is why so few have me in that uniform!

     I have had people sweetly say to me, "You're going to have so many treasures in Heaven for all the ministry you do."  This is so kind of them, and I appreciate that--and I hope it's true.  However, I do not believe my job entitles me to more treasures than the next Christian.  The Walmart employee who is obediently in God's will for him and being that salt and light where God has placed him is just as eligible for those rewards as Greg Laurie or the late Billy Graham leading their crusades that bring thousands to Christ.  It's about obedience.  God is the one who grants the fruit.  We obey.  There are people that Walmart employee can reach for Jesus who would never go to a Greg Laurie crusade.  He has placed us where He wants us, and given us that calling.  

Greg Laurie sharing the gospel with hundreds

Think of how many people this Walmart employee rubs shoulders with every day.  Think of the impact for Christ!

     Being an "official" pastor or missionary doesn't mean higher ranking with God.  It actually means harsher judgment.  James 3:1 warns, Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.  If you are in a position of influence, be careful you are saying what God wants, not what you want.  You could lead others astray.  Everyone needs to be faithful to God's calling.  

     I always laugh when I share this, but I graduated from my Bible College as salutatorian of a graduation class of two!  Both of us were straight A students, and we both graduated Summa Cum Laude, but I had gotten one B in one class, and the valedictorian hadn't.  But anyway, both of us got to give a speech at graduation, and in mine, I felt compelled to challenge everyone "Follow Jesus with everything that is within you--because all the degrees and knowledge in the world can't make up for the lack of it."  The same could be said for what you do in your life.  Follow Jesus, not ministry positions.  If Jesus is leading you to a ministry job, that's wonderful.  If He is leading you to a "secular" job--be it business, education, retail, whatever--that's also wonderful.  He has you right where He wants you!  If you are called to live a godly life in your community with your job, don't stoop to become a missionary.  If you are called to be a missionary, don't do anything else!  God's will is more important than title.  

My Bible college graduation, June 4, 2006 (I was 24 at the time).  I am pictured with the valedictorian.  It was a wonderful time.  

     I'll close with the words to a song from my youth, For the Sake of the Call, by Steven Curtis Chapman.

We will abandon it all for the sake of the call

No other reason at all but the sake of the call

Wholly devoted to live and to die

Not for the sake of a creed or a cause
Not for a dream or a promise
Simply because it is Jesus who called
And if we believe we'll obey

Steven Curtis Chapman's 1990 album, For the Sake of the Call