Faith Through the Journey

As we look around our country, it doesn’t take long to find reasons to be somewhat pessimistic. Disregard for human life is manifested in an increase in mass shootings and bombings which have taken many lives in recent years. Abortion has taken the lives of 56 million children in the years since the Supreme Court decided that women should have the “right to privacy”. We have become increasingly self-centered and want to make sure that our lives are comfortable and easy. We are more excited about new technology and devices than we are about forming relationships with other human beings. If you look around any restaurant, airport, or other places where people gather, our attention is trained on our devices and not on the people around us. Pausing to consider these aspects of American life reminded me of a song sung by Steven Curtis Chapman a number of years ago, “Heaven in the Real World”. The refrain asks the question, “Where is the hope, where is the peace, that will make this life complete for every man, woman, boy and girl looking for heaven in the real world?” This certainly isn’t the first time societies and civilizations seem to be spiraling downward, and yet somehow it seems to be worse now than ever. Is there a way out, or will we implode on ourselves?

Last weekend we had the opportunity to meet a remarkable young woman, Naghmeh Abedini. Her husband is unlawfully imprisoned in one of the most notorious prisons in the country of Iran, where he was trying to help establish orphanages. He was seized from his father’s home, falsely accused of trying to establish Christian churches and railroaded through the legal system, being sentenced to eight years. He has been held for a year already in which he has suffered great mistreatment. Saeed Abedini is still sharing his Christian faith, for the Gospel is not imprisoned. Even as millions of people worldwide pray for his release, God is using him for His glory in the worst of circumstances. God is also using Naghmeh in remarkable ways to speak to heads of state, to 196 countries at the U.N., to politicians at the highest levels, and she shares Jesus Christ with them all. In our conversation with her, Naghmeh said she still has great hope for this country to return to its godly roots. That statement  brought me up short, because I have been discouraged and, as some events have transpired, almost despairing of America ever returning to and honoring God in public life. Naghmeh reminded us that our hope is in Jesus Christ, and Him alone. If she can place her hopes in Jesus while her husband is suffering unimagineable persecution, how can we do otherwise? The song to which I referred echoes this, as it says in the end, “He (Jesus) is the Hope, He is the Peace that will make this life complete.”  

God’s Word tells us in Hebrews 13:3: “Don’t forget about those in jail. Suffer with them as though you were there yourself.” Earthly prisons are temporary, and God has demonstrated His power to release captives in supernatural ways. We pray for release for Pastor Saeed, and we can have hope because of Jesus Christ. Psalm 41: 11 says: “But O my soul, don’t be discouraged. Don’t be upset. Expect God to act! For I know that I shall again have plenty of reason to praise Him for all He will do. He is my help! He is my God!”