Pray for the Persecuted

I've been preaching through Matthew chapter 5 for a few weeks now, at the Miami Valley Church. More than anything else, with each weeks topic, as I research the subject matter, I have found out exactly how very little I really know about what Jesus really meant by what He said in His "Sermon on the Mount"
This weeks sermon was about Matthew 5:10-12 - "Blessed are those persecuted for righteousness". I sat down to work on the sermon last Tuesday and realized, I don't know anything about being "persecuted for righteousness". As an American Christian, persecution is something very foreign to our experience. I use the word "foreign" for good reason. Because although in America we consider persecution a "dirty" look after we pray at a meal in public, I have a hard time believing this is at the heart of Jesus' statement about being mistreated for the Gospel. However, in many foreign countries, persecution, and even death for being a Christian is very much par for the course. Here are some very disturbing facts about the treatment of Christians throughout the world.

*Since the crucifixion of Jesus, more than 45 million Christians have been killed for their faith.
*More Christians have been martyred in the 20th century than in all the prior 1,900 years...combined!
*There have been more than 26 million (documented) cases of Christians being killed for their faith, in this century alone.
*More than 200 million Christians in 55 countries face persecution every day...60% are children!

We don't realize this is true because it doesn't make good news headlines. So, the lives and horrible deaths of our brothers and sisters in Christ are quietly swept under the rug. This one fact is undeniable: Christians are the single most persecuted group in the world. They are the most persecuted group in the history of the world. But, they do not die in vain. Let's not let them be forgotten...there are very real things we can do to make a difference.

*Pray-Talking to God every day about these heroes of the faith. Asking for their governments to wake up and stop either persecuting them, or stop the groups who are.
*Pray for their enemies-The big three persecutors in the world today are:Communist governments, Muslim extremists and Hindu extremists.
*Go to http://www.persecution.com/ to get the names, stories and resources needed to be a real help in the lives of persecuted Christians.
*Make other Christians aware of these facts and ask them to pray as well.

It is so easy to think we will never face any real persecution in this country. Things could change...

What would you have other Christians do for you, if you were living with the very real threat of being killed, brutalized, sold as slave, imprisoned, tortured, threatened, discriminated against or arrested solely for being a Christian?

Think about it!