No Retreat: Give Me Courage
“Any of you who want to be my follower must stop thinking about yourself and what you want. You must be willing to carry the cross that is given to you every day for following me. Any of you who try to save the life you have will lose it. But you who give up your life for me will save it.”
Luke 9:23-24 ERV
“Jesus, help me! Give me courage,” 14-year-old Denpo* prayed silently, fervently, as the angry voices just outside his home grew louder… more agitated. He could hear fear in his father’s voice as he faced the mob ... trying to calm them, pleading with them not to kill Denpo. He was just a boy — a good boy.
But the angry men were adamant: Denpo was a threat to them that they would not endure. He was endangering their children and their community. Denpo had to be stopped. What had Denpo done that so enraged his neighbors? What was the boy’s unforgivable sin? He had dared to tell his schoolmates about the hope they too could have in Jesus.
To these Bamar people, that was perhaps the greatest betrayal they could imagine. To be Bamar was to be Buddhist. Their identities were completely wrapped up in their religion. When their children were drawn to Denpo’s bold and hopeful witness of Jesus, the people’s fear turned to anger… and thoughts of violence. They had surrounded Denpo’s home resolved to kill him that night.
With God’s help, Denpo’s parents were able to calm the crowd, promising to sendtheir son away—to live with the Christians who had introduced him to Jesus. He would not trouble them or their children again, they promised. But Denpo made no such promise. From the relative safety of his new Christian home, Denpo’s love for his home village and the men who tried to kill him has not dimmed. He is passionate about being a faithful witness and, someday, a pastor in his community.
One of the best ways to reach this country is through the children. To this end, Joy, a successful former children’s pastor in Northern California, started children’s ministries and teacher training in [sensitive country] approximately 10 years ago. It was in one such ministry that Denpo learned about Jesus and became a Christian. As the situation therehas deteriorated, crushing the people’s hopes for more freedom and a better future, the evangelistic fervor of the Christians has grown. People are dying every day without Jesus and without hope. We have the answer in Jesus — and hope. The church in that countryis stepping up with new boldness and purpose. More believers are willing to say, “We’ll share the gospel at any cost.”
Will you?
*Name has been changed.
“I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.”
Isaiah 43:19