Matthew 12:30
They were singing choruses when the two soldiers entered with rifles. The service came to a halt as the Russian soldiers stared at the believers with wild eyes.
“What are you doing here?” they shouted. “Worshiping your imaginary God?” The church members cowered in the pews, wondering if there were more soldiers and more guns outside.
“All those who are faithful to God, move to the right side of the church,” said one of the soldiers, his face a mask of hatred. “You will be shot for your faith. You who wish to go home and keep your life, stand on the left side. You must decide to live or die. Those who are faithful to this ‘God’ will die. Those who deny him can live freely.”
Ten minutes earlier, everyone had sung praises equally. Now it was a question of life or death. Some stood to the left, looking sadly or waving apologetically to those on the right. Some stood on the right, their eyes closed in last-minute prayers.
“You on the left are free to go,” one of the soldiers said moments later. Those people filed out, taking one last look at those who would soon be dead.
When only those on the right remained, the soldiers put down their weapons. “We, too, are Christians,” they said, “but we wish to worship without hypocrites.”
Defining moments come to us when they are least expected, and we cannot prepare for them. We must experience them “as is” and learn from the consequences. A defining moment is any situation involving a question of character. It may be as complex as a church service interrupted by perpetrators who demand our allegiance to one faith or another. Or it may be as simple as deciding whether or not to walk out of an offensive movie. Our response to a defining moment will side us with that which is Christlike or that which is questionable. Ready or not, we meet our real character face-to-face the moment we decide to take sides.
Readings taken from
Extreme Devotion: The Voice of the Martyrs
They were singing choruses when the two soldiers entered with rifles. The service came to a halt as the Russian soldiers stared at the believers with wild eyes.
“What are you doing here?” they shouted. “Worshiping your imaginary God?” The church members cowered in the pews, wondering if there were more soldiers and more guns outside.
“All those who are faithful to God, move to the right side of the church,” said one of the soldiers, his face a mask of hatred. “You will be shot for your faith. You who wish to go home and keep your life, stand on the left side. You must decide to live or die. Those who are faithful to this ‘God’ will die. Those who deny him can live freely.”
Ten minutes earlier, everyone had sung praises equally. Now it was a question of life or death. Some stood to the left, looking sadly or waving apologetically to those on the right. Some stood on the right, their eyes closed in last-minute prayers.
“You on the left are free to go,” one of the soldiers said moments later. Those people filed out, taking one last look at those who would soon be dead.
When only those on the right remained, the soldiers put down their weapons. “We, too, are Christians,” they said, “but we wish to worship without hypocrites.”
Defining moments come to us when they are least expected, and we cannot prepare for them. We must experience them “as is” and learn from the consequences. A defining moment is any situation involving a question of character. It may be as complex as a church service interrupted by perpetrators who demand our allegiance to one faith or another. Or it may be as simple as deciding whether or not to walk out of an offensive movie. Our response to a defining moment will side us with that which is Christlike or that which is questionable. Ready or not, we meet our real character face-to-face the moment we decide to take sides.
Readings taken from
Extreme Devotion: The Voice of the Martyrs
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment