How Far Will You Go for Christ?

A few years ago, I attended ICOM in Atlanta. God taught me a number of things, but one lesson which will always be with me tested my faith. “Are you willing to stand firm for Christ when your life is on the line?” This question was asked in a few different sessions I attended. I knew I needed to answer it. It is very easy to be caught up in those conversations, where your faith is on steroids and you are in the safety of America, land of freedom of religion to boldly claim you will stand firm for Christ. I did not want to answer on a feeling. I knew that would be dishonest, and this kind of question needs to be rock solid! I spent time searching my heart and soul. God brought me to deep places, where I became familiar with my deepest struggles and my greatest strengths. God gave me scriptures and visions, as I searched for my answer. At the end of the quest, I knew I would have the strength to stand firm on my faith in Christ, even at the risk of my own life.

I am apart of a Bible study here in Uganda, and today I was plagued with another question. “Are you willing to stand for Christ when someone else's life is on the line?” Wow! At an instant, I would answer “No way could I do that!” When you look at that situation from a human point of view, you see that your decisions are killing others! You choose to follow Christ without any question, and lives are stolen. People suffer. An unexplainable pain rests on the loved ones who lost their life. That is EXACTLY what satan (I know I should capitalize his name, but I have a friend who got angry at her spell check during class because, “he doesn't deserve his name to be capitalized!” … great point Monica!) wants us to see. He wants us to see it as our faults, and that we are evil creatures to let such horrible acts exist. But it really is not our fault. Evil reigns in the heart of the persecutor. If I ever find myself in this situation, I will need to be beyond strong in my faith, and I will have to be secure knowing those who will suffer because of my decision are right with God and I will see them once more in Heaven.

I am not saying that I am at this point in my faith. I do not know what I would do if I faced this scenario. I have an overly sensitive heart for the suffering of others. With that, I do not know if I could stand strong for Christ. I need to do the same soul searching I did a few years ago after ICOM. This will be a long, heart wrenching process, but I believe I will be made stronger through it. Even if I never come to an answer, today made me think, “How far am I willing to go for Christ?” The farther I go with Christ, the more the gospel is spread. That is the point of this Christian life on earth. Acts 1:8, Matthew 28:18, and Mark 16:15 make that clear. As for now, I am going to be faithful with the small things. As struggles come, I will have the habit of faithfulness, and as time goes on, I will be able to go farther and farther for Christ. For now, that is all I can do. Just like after ICOM, God will bring me places inside of me I never expected to go, and I will be made stronger.