13 Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 14 But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear their threats; do not be frightened.” 1 Peter 3:13-14
Peter was telling his readers that they would probably be persecuted for their faith. Suffering is difficult. Nobody likes to see it or experience it, especially if it’s wrongfully administered. In fact, we often say that “life isn’t fair,” and that’s totally correct. It never is. But it happens, and it happens to everyone. What we do with it is as important as experiencing it.
As I just mentioned, we all experience suffering to varying degrees. We’re not alone. When it’s in relation to our faith, we are certainly not alone. Millions have gone before us under intense persecution, and perhaps hundreds of thousands are undergoing persecution even as you read this. Persecution is not new, nor is it fun to experience.
Voice of the Martyrs not that the following areas of the world that are experiencing persecution:
- Afghanistan
- Algeria
- Azerbaijan
- Bangladesh
- Belarus
- Bhutan
- Brunei
- Burma (Myanmar)
- Chiapas, Mexico
- China
- Colombia
- Comoros
- Cuba
- Egypt
- Eritrea
- Ethiopia
- Gaza and the West Bank
- India
- Indonesia
- Iran
- Iraq
- Jordan
- Kuwait
- Kyrgyzstan
- Laos
- Lebanon
- Libya
- Malaysia
- Maldives
- Mindanao, Philippines
- Mauritania
- Morocco
- Nepal
- Nigeria
- North Korea
- Oman
- Pakistan
- Qatar
- Saudi Arabia
- Somalia
- Sri Lanka
- Sudan
- Syria
- Tajikistan
- Tibet (China)
- Tunisia
- Turkey
- Turkmenistan
- United Arab Emirates
- Uzbekistan
- Vietnam
- Yemen
Run down that list, and pick a country to pray for its pastors and those being persecuted for their faith. Pray as if their life depends on it, because in many situations, that’s the truth.