| Author | Post |
|---|
Wilderness Voice
Member
| Joined: | Fri Jul 6th, 2007 |
| Location: | Arkansas USA |
| Posts: | 155 |
| Status: |
Offline
|
| Mana: |    |
|
Posted: Tue Aug 7th, 2007 03:32 am |
|
We spend so much of our time thinking about ourselves and sometimes Jesus would just have us redirect our thoughts toward others. This is certainly in His image. One web site that will really help you do this is Voice of the Martyrs (http://www.persecution.com). It is dedicated to aiding and educating about all the Christians being persecuted in today’s world. In places like China, Pakistan, Cuba, North Korea where they are arrested, tortured, killed, their homes and property seized, and their families torn apart.
The Voice of the Martyrs organization (VOM) was started in 1967 by Richard Wurmbrand who himself, as well as his wife, was in Romanian Communist prisons for a total of 14 years. There are tremendous, uplifting stories of bravery and sacrifice occurring every day in our world; stories which are completely ignored by the mainstream media. You will find many of these at the website.
The following note was printed from some works of Wurmbrand in the latest VOM newsletter. It is titled “Where Jesus Is.”
Where Jesus Is
Only love Jesus with a perfect love, from your whole heart, and you will know where He feeds His flock as surely as every man who loves drugs or alcohol [or sex] knows where to find them. “What man is he that fears the Lord? Him shall He teach in the way that He chooses,” (Psalms 25:12). The difficulty is not lack of knowledge, but a moral weakness. His bride cannot make [is not making] the decision to go to the place of deep suffering, which is the surest place of encounter with the greatly-Beloved.
Would you like to know where Jesus feeds His flock? Deny yourself and take up your cross. Then you can be sure of following Him. Would you like to know where He rest at noon? Once, He rested in the bosom of the Father; now He rests in the heart of every believer who gives Him room. But He is pre-eminently resting in the hearts of the believers who are undergoing suffering, in the heart of those who have purified themselves from attachments to created things, so that they may remain entirely indwelling in the Creator.
I remember a Good Friday in a cell in the Romanian jail, Jilava. We were all very hungry, but that day when the bowl of gruel was brought we refused to eat. We fasted. Good Friday is the only fast-day described by the Lord himself: “But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and then they shall fast” (Matthew 9:15) Days of fasting, with deep repentance for our past sins, are the greatest gifts anybody can give to the underground church and the missions which help it.
As a punishment for refusing the food on Good Friday, we were made to stand at attention for the whole of Easter morning. That provided a captive audience for a sermon! If anybody had desired to be with Jesus on that day, he should have traveled in spirit to be in fellowship with us. Jesus was in jail with his disciples that day.
I Peter 3:[10] For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:
[11] Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.
[12] For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
[13] And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good?
[14] But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;
[15] But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
[16] Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.
[17] For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.
Wilderness Voice
|
guitarist63
Member
| Joined: | Mon Feb 12th, 2007 |
| Location: | |
| Posts: | 966 |
| Status: |
Online
|
| Mana: | |
|
Posted: Thu Aug 9th, 2007 12:49 am |
|
This is a wonderful thread, Wilderness Voice. Very moving contribution on this organisation and thanks for the website which I will check out.
Last edited on Sun Mar 23rd, 2008 03:46 pm by guitarist63
|
Current time is 10:33 pm | |
|
|
|
RSS