“Remember to pray for me in this
jail.” Paul in Colossians 4:18
This past Sunday was the International
Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOPPC), an annual
observance to remember those suffering for Christ around the world.
It is an event our fellowship has participated in every year going
back perhaps to the mid-90s when it began. Some years we have
followed the curriculum that is provided by one of the several
advocacy groups out there like Open Doors or Voice of the Martyrs.
The first few times we observed it I remember creating massive prayer
guides for people to take home with them. Now and again I have tried
an additional follow-up prayer gathering involving Christians from
other fellowships in town. But whatever the format we employed we
spent time – sometimes longer than others – praying for those we
probably will never meet this side of heaven who are experiencing
hardship and trouble on account of their devotion to Christ.
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| Pastor Andrew and Norine Brunson |
This year frankly I did not know what
to do. I only had an idea that began to germinate when I caught a
snippet of an interview American pastor Andrew Brunson, recently
released from two years of captivity in Turkey a few weeks ago, gave
on CBN. I found him very candid about how broken the first year of
his captivity had left him and what came of it. Based on stories he
had read of others who had been imprisoned for Christ he had expected
to be buoyed by a grace that made him joyful despite the bars that
separated him from his family, his church and the rest of the world.
Instead he was desolate and alone and felt absolutely nothing
leaving him struggling with disappointment in the very One to whom he
professed his faith in.
So my plan became this: after some
introductory comments, we would listen to the audio version of
Colossians 4 from The Message (I prefer its real-world sound) and
then watch a series of videos I found on YouTube including:
- The FOX News interview that Pastor Andrew & Noreen Brunson gave after he was released from house arrest in Turkey ("I will preach Jesus until the day I die"). (I personally like the images and timeline that track his story from prison to kneeling before President Trump and praying for him 24 hours after his release).
- A much more subdued and poignant interview that the Brunsons gave to CBN during which they each were candid about their experiences being incarcerated ("I was really broken"). (Noreen herself shared a cell with her husband for the first 13 days of his imprisonment).
Asia Bibi A CBN update and interview on the case of Asia [pronounced AH-ZIA] Bibi, a Christian mother of five recently acquitted of blasphemy in a Pakistani court but currently still incarcerated (Asia Bibi).- A call to prayer for Christians in Pakistan who suffer because of Christ created by another advocacy group for the IDOP observance (IDOP 2018).
All of them concluded in the same way:
a request to pray for them and how the knowledge of people praying
for them across the globe sustained them in their darkest time. So
even though these people are a “zillion miles away” from here
somehow, someway our prayers matter.
It was a small group Sunday at Refuge
which simply means that corporate prayer is done by people taking
their chairs and circling up to pray with one another (something that
we practice at least twice a month). Just as people were about to
break into small groups to pray for the persecuted, this happened:
Duane – one of our elders and about as introverted as they come –
popped to his feet and asked to share something. But he couldn't
speak. All he could do is look at all of us and try and restrain
himself from weeping and failing at it. While we waited for him to
regain his composure, Larry popped up and stood with Duane in
solidarity. Our congregation was temporarily at the mercy of the
emotional display of two introverts, one weeping and one standing
with his friend.
Eventually Duane was able to share
briefly about some of the persecuted he knows personally. Having
served with Youth With A Mission for over 27 years, he shared just
how he was overcome with sadness for former students of his who are
presently serving in Bangladesh and China and experiencing hardship
because of their commitment to Christ. In our small groups then we
went into a time of intercession. The only instructions I gave was
that before they prayed for each other they were to pray the best way
they knew how for the persecuted around the world. I can only speak
for the small group that I was a part of but it seemed that our
prayers were heart-felt and direct. As I looked around the room,
everyone seemed to be on point praying the best way they knew how as
well.
Following prayer we returned to the
large group and I led the gathering in worship from songs I
deliberately had chosen that would affirm that God is God, that He is
Lord and that he sees and knows and is present with us in times of
loss and hardship. When the service was over it just felt like we had
experienced some kind of serendipitous moment of grace that had
helped us pray that morning. It was a moment that carried on to our
monthly prayer gathering for the handful of us who gathered to wait
upon the Lord that evening.
That afternoon as I reflected upon what
had happened and pondered Duane's unusual display of emotion
(unusual, that is, for him) this is what I now believe had happened.
Knowing Duane like I do I know his intent wasn't to manipulate us
into some kind of contrived sadness so that we would be in the right
mood to pray. No, what I believe we witnessed when two introverts
stood before us in an unscripted moment was a prophetic picture of
how God feels when his servants suffer – and sometimes die – on
account of the Name. It was only a few moments but I believe that
picture of God's broken heart for his people “in chains” helped
us to intercede in English and (later for those so endowed) in a
language we do not know nor fathom.
And then this: Asia Bibi, the Christian
Pakistani mother of five we had prayed for on Sunday was released on
Tuesday and she and her family have since been moved to a secure
location within Pakistan or are currently in exile beyond it (reports
are conflicting). I realize that the forty or so saints gathered at
724 Leonard Street in Chetek this past Sunday were but one of
probably thousands across the globe who had prayed for her that day
and for many months before. But the reminder to me is simple: our
prayers matter. Not because on that day we prayed in such a
way that he was certain to hear us. Certainly not because we had
found (accidentally) “the secret” of effective prayer. But
because the Spirit helped us and taught us how to pray for her and
for countless others like her on that day.
“When he ripped off the fifth
seal, I saw the souls of those killed because they had held firm in
their witness to the Word of God. They were gathered under the Altar,
and cried out in loud prayers, “How long, Strong God, Holy and
True? How long before you step in and avenge our murders?” Then
each martyr was given a white robe and told to sit back and wait
until the full number of martyrs was filled from among their servant
companions and friends in the faith.” Revelation 6:9-11, The
Message
Until he comes to set things right, may
we be found faithful and may he help us to pray for those who suffer
in the here and now as he leads us to pray.
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