P&PA - Oct. 22

Here is this week's Persecution & Prayer Alert information... please take the time to read these stories and pray for those who are suffering.

More Love To Thee

The following hymn is yet another one of my favourites. It was written by Elizabeth Prentiss in 1856, and the words are wonderful...

More love to Thee, O Christ, more love to Thee!

Hear Thou the prayer I make on bended knee.

This is my earnest plea: More love, O Christ, to Thee;

More love to Thee, more love to Thee!

Once earthly joy I craved, sought peace and rest;

Now Thee alone I seek, give what is best.

This all my prayer shall be: More love, O Christ to Thee;

More love to Thee, more love to Thee!

Let sorrow do its work, come grief or pain;

Sweet are Thy messengers, sweet their refrain,

When they can sing with me: More love, O Christ, to Thee;

More love to Thee, more love to Thee!

Then shall my latest breath whisper Thy praise;

This be the parting cry my heart shall raise;

This still its prayer shall be: More love, O Christ to Thee;

More love to Thee, more love to Thee!

Where There Is Injury

Here is another writing by Elisabeth Elliot that I think is particularly good to think about in honesty:

Where There Is Injury

Have you ever found the taste of revenge sweet? Does there lurk in your heart, as in mine at times, a desire for at least the milder forms of revenge if you have been hurt--a desire to see the person apologize, an urge to remind him that he was nasty to you, or even the temptation to pay him back somehow? It was not God's plan that man should take revenge. That He has reserved for Himself, and when we seize that power we are taking a huge risk. It is, in another form, the risk Adam and Eve took when they ate the forbidden fruit--arrogating to themselves powers, lethal burdens, for which they were never designed.
What if God paid us for our sins? What if He were not Love? His mercy is everlasting and has brought us salvation and forgiveness. Remembering that, and how we ourselves have offended Him times without number, shall we dare to retaliate when someone sins against us? Think of the measure of forgiveness God has offered us. Think of the price. Think what the cross means. Then pray the prayer of St. Francis:

Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace--

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

Where there is injury, pardon....

For it is in forgiving that we are forgiven,

It is in dying that we are born again to eternal life.

The Fog of the Future

Here is a quote from Elisabeth Elliot that I really appreciate:

Today is mine. Tomorrow is none of my business. If I peer anxiously into the fog of the future, I will strain my spiritual eyes so that I will not see clearly what is required of me now. "Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof" -- and the work thereof. The evil is not a part of the yoke Jesus asks us to take. Our work is, and He takes that yoke with us. I will overextend myself if I assume anything more.

Salt of the Earth

Here are some more quotes from Brother Andrew:

“The real calling of God is not to a certain place or career, but to everyday obedience.”

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“It’s important that we not despise our own life experiences. We can look back and know that God will use them all for His service.”

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“Jesus Christ has given us the awesome responsibility of feeding His church and sharing His message with the world. Unfortunately, I see few Christians who take His challenge seriously. To live as a true member of Christ’s church is not a hobby or something to do in spare time. It is very life!”

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“God has called us to make a difference, to be the salt of the earth.”

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“Let us focus on backing up our words with the kind of life that others recognize as belonging to Jesus Christ.”

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“When we proclaim the lordship of Christ, the forces of evil around us leap into action, and the spiritual battle intensifies. Yet we need not be afraid. Why? Because we already know the outcome of the battle. It was decided two thousand years ago when Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead.”

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“We must walk closely with God and stay grounded in His Word.”
“In spite of the intense spiritual warfare – or perhaps because of it – I believe God will give us opportunities to proclaim the good news of Christ to people we never thought would be interested.”

Be There

One of my favourite things to read about and study is the Persecuted Church and its servants. Although the stories can be gut-wrenching to read (or see) there is so much inspiration to be found in them. When I think of my brothers and sisters suffering for their faith it makes me really think about my own faith and how I would react in various situations.
There are a lot of organizations and people that really focus on the Persecuted Church. The Voice of the Martyrs is one of them, and I support their work as much as I can, however I can. There's also Open Doors, which was founded by the well-known Brother Andrew.
I've read a lot about Brother Andrew and about the work he has done/does, and I recently started reading yet another book written by him. I thought I'd jot down some of my favourite quotes from it that I found to be particularly special. So I want to share some of them with you today!

“When God calls, or when His people are in need, be there.”

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“Today we can look to His written Word to know Him and His will for us. As we saturate ourselves in the Scriptures and in prayer, our relationship with Christ deepens. And through the Bible He will begin to impress upon us just how and where He wants us to share His message.”

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“God has given us in Scripture a full revelation of His nature and His character. And He has given us an unmistakably clear mandate to share Him and His Word with those who have not heard. What more do we need? If we focus on obeying Him on a daily basis – wherever we are – He will lead us where He wants us to go and to the people He wants us to reach.”

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“God is waiting for us to walk forward in obedience so He can open the door for us to serve Him.”

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“Total, absolute dependence on God is the only way we can accomplish anything for Him.”

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“Iron, Bamboo, and Sugarcane Curtains, closed borders, dictators, terrorists – these are not the real obstacles that keep us from serving our suffering sisters and brothers. The biggest obstacles lie in our own hearts – fear, doubt, selfishness, and a host of other excuses.”

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“When, instead of worrying about the obstacles, we trust God to take care of them, our Christian life becomes much more effective… then, as problems arise, we can view them as part of the process in which God is teaching us to walk in faith.”

October Persecution Report

The Voice of the Martyrs Persecution Report for October: view it here

Light of the World

Here is this week's NOTW "design of the week" :)

"... I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." - John 8:12

Spiritual Warfare

I just heard from a friend of mine whom I correspond with regularly, and she is such an inspiration to me. She was talking about pressing on when going through particularly difficult times... she is so faithful to wearing her armour of God against Satan's attacks, and it made me think of this particular reading, written by Kay Arthur:

As you decide how to respond in the various situations that will arise today, I urge you to remember that you are in a war. Satan’s strategy is to besiege your mind until he wears down your resistance and captures your thoughts. You can expect a barrage of thoughts to constantly hammer away at your defenses. It is spiritual warfare.
From the beginning, Satan has cast doubt on the Word of God. He wants you to question, doubt, distort, alter, embellish, discredit, or ignore the Word of God. Disguised as an angel of light, he will do anything and everything he can to undermine God’s Word.
The devil’s tactic is not only to cause you to doubt, ignore, and disobey God’s Word. It is also to get you to doubt God’s love. To doubt God’s love is to doubt His character. Once the enemy casts doubt in your mind on God’s love, he cuts you off from the only true and sure source of healing – your Jehova-rapha and the Word of God.
Know your God. Know His Word. And live accordingly. “Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).Remember, the Word of God is all you need in order to be perfect, thoroughly adequate for every work of life (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Victory is assured as long as you let Jesus be your captain and do what He says.

Focus

A great reading by Kay Arthur:

Many Christians are stumbling through life, unable to see clearly the path of purpose because their spiritual vision is blurred or obstructed by the things of this world. John’s first letter warns, “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the father, but is from the world” (1 John 2:16).
Because our eyes can be an instrument of lust – because they can lead us into the sin of covetousness – it is vital that we keep our eyes healthy. But how? We live in a world filled with all sorts of alluring things. Books, magazines, television, movies, billboards, and computers constantly display treasures belonging to this life and this life only. How then can a child of God keep his vision clear?
Focus!
As the author of Hebrews says, we need to fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith. Or as Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:18, we need to look “not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
It’s all a matter of perspective – eternal perspective. Where is your focus? Is it upon the things of this world? Is it riveted to the treasures of this life that can be consumed by moths and rust and stolen by thieves? Or is it upon heavenly treasures, which have eternal value?

Help me, dear God, to keep my eyes on You and on the things that matter to You. Don’t let me be distracted or drawn away from You by worldly things.