Pray We Do Not Shrink Back

Okay, mighty men and women of God who just so happen to be planted in Phoenix, Arizona, just after the turn of the 21st Century, when the cities of America have become predominately Post-Christian. 

The continent we live on existed in a pre-Christian state until some explorers and immigrants decided there was something for them on the west side of the Atlantic. Once those explorers and immigrants landed on the shores of the continent of North America, the influence of the Christian worldview began there. (When I say Christian worldview I mean people whose thoughts and culture have had Christian influence.) Today, the part of North America we live in is filled with people in cities that have built up an intolerance and in many cases a distaste for Christian influence. Today, it seems Christian influence is rejected not because it is wrong or harmful. It is rejected simply because it is Christian. In a book from a very intriguing author name Rosaria Butterfield our culture is described like this…

“Let’s face it we have become unwelcome guests in this post-Christian world. Our children ride their scooters in neighborhoods where Christianity is dismissed or denounced as irrelevant, irrational, discriminatory, or dangerous. Many of us work in places where sensitivity training has become an Orwellian nightmare. Christian common sense is declared hate speech by the keepers of this culture.”

What Rosaria is describing is not the intense physical, emotional, or psychological persecution that many Christians are going through today in many parts of the world, but it is a form of persecution. We could deny it or ignore it, but I think it is only going to increase without a beautiful revival. But the message of the Bible and the heritage we have as followers of Christ clearly demonstrates that whatever the cultural climate, the increase of the word of God and the multiplication of Jesus’ kingdom can happen. We are seeing this on display in the book of Acts and I hope to see it in our day as well.

Please join me in praying that we will not shrink back or be naive in our day and age. Please pray that we will “shine among our generation like stars in the sky as we hold firmly to the word of life.”

Praying for you today and hoping to see you Sunday,

David

For further reading about the persecution of today, you can visit Voice of the Martyrs at 
https://www.persecution.com

For further reading from Rosaria Butterfield you can visit 
https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2018/april-web-only/rosaria-butterfield-gospel-comes-house-key.html