Freedom

*LISTENING TO:*
Song: Into Our Midst
Artist: B.D.A.
Album: Better Days Ahead
Quote:"Let Your love come down into our midst, let us slowly lose our grip in the haven of Your grace. Let Your love come down into our midst, falling sweetly on our lips, give us more than just a taste..."
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Ah... Passion in Toronto... I wish I was there on Tuesday... but unfortunately, had too much schoolwork to get done and stuff was due. So why did I post a picture of the event?

Today at Celebration Church, the speaker, Joel, spoke about the persecution of Christians in other countries. Right from the introductory video, the topic struck a chord in me... Christians are being mocked, humiliated, tortured, and even killed for publicly proclaiming their faith. Governments are making Christianity illegal in their countries, officials are declaring other faiths as official religions, and missionaries and evangelitical christians are being placed in prison for their faith in God. Joel asked us to pray for countries like Saudi Arabia and Mongolia... and we might think that such persecution is so distant and so far away from our homes... and then I thought of people like Cassie Bernall, the girl from Columbine that gave her life because she believed in God and the girl for which Michael W. Smith's song This Is Your Time was based. A foreign lady on the introductory video proclaimed that "whether she lives or she dies, we win". A chinese woman on the introductory video explained how a group of people gather in a tiny room underground and whisper songs of praise just to avoid the authorities. It makes me wonder about how certain I am in my faith in God that I can take that kind of stand under those kind of circumstances. I am so glad that Joel took the time to remind us of this topic... it saddens me to think of Christians out there that are prohibited from and are punished for things like praying in public, singing praises in public, telling others about God, preaching the Gospel... At the same time, it inspires me to do mission work to encourage such struggling believers. It's a battle out there... and the battleground is not as distant as we might think...

So why the picture? When I look at awesome photos like that, of thousands of worshippers gathered in a public venue in the middle of a huge city to sing praises freely and cry out to their God, my mind can't help but think that persecuted Christians in some countries can not even come close to doing something like that. How fortunate are we? How free are we that we can assemble on Sunday mornings for church without the fear of prosecution, harm, or death. How priveleged am I that I can call up a few of my friends to jam at my home without the fear of authorities breaking down my door and dragging us all to prison. I am so thankful to God for that freedom... and my prayers are with those in countries where they can not enjoy that kind of freedom.