Many of us just celebrated Rosh Hashanah. This is the Hebrew/ Jewish new year. This is also known as the Feast of trumpets. New year often comes with new goals and new hopes. It can be hard for some to blow the trumpet with joy when we think about the times we are living in.

The only thing that keeps me stable in these days of uncertainty is the absolute dependability of God’s Word. -Elizabeth Elliot

I wish I could say that most things in our world are running smooth and exactly how we want them to run. They are not. We have had a very trying couple of years. I wanted to share a few numbers with you.

Notable violence numbers from 2019:
2,983 Christians were killed for their faith
8,537 Christians were raped or sexually harassed for their faith
9,488 Churches or Christian buildings were attacked
3,711 Christians were unjustly arrested or imprisoned
1,052 Christians were abducted for faith-related reasons
3,315 Christian homes were attacked, burned or destroyed

Before you read any further… Pray.

We have these violent acts going around the whole world. I don’t have the answer for what you can do other than pray. The violence of this world is nothing new. People have been killing each other since Cain and Able. We can not look at these numbers and be surprised. Only a little over 30% of the worlds population is a Christian. Only about 65% of the US is Christian. That number is declining every year. These numbers should not scare you, but they should stir you. They should stir you to be in the Word so that you are also… prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.

I recently when through Ephesians 4 with the Family Life Assembly of God in Choctaw, OK. The whole chapter is so rich and gives a great playbook for the Christian. One thing that we discussed every night was that the first three chapters of the book are the why and the next three are the how. As in, why we are Christians and how we walk that out. The biggest things that we have to understand is that we can not begin to walk out out faith, if we don’t know why we have our faith. My friend Maria shared the biblical definition of faith with us; confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. The only way that we can live in these trying times is by faith with hope. Not faith in a government to protect us and provide for us, but faith in our God to do that. Not hope that things will be how we want them to be and that we wont face trials and persecution, but Hope that Christ’s will be done in our lives.

One of the most powerful things that was ever told to the Hebrews that were being persecuted and were filled with righteous anger was; We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. When we have Christ as an anchor in our life, the storms and waves of the evil in this world don’t shift our faith. The frustrations of mundane daily tasks don’t distract us from the mission we are on.

What mission are you on?

Is your mission Christ centered?

What distractions from the enemy, stumbling blocks or briars of rebellion do you need to address?

Stand firm in your faith. Pray for the persecuted. Pray for those that persecute. Blow the trumpet of the Lord. Loudly!

Grace & Peace

Chorley