Recently I was asked by my friends at CRU’s Creating Options Together Conference to share my thoughts on “How to Keep Going When Ministry is Hard.” As I work with the Persevering Church, this is something we deal with daily – it’s always hard. Actually, “hard” becomes the norm… They asked me to speak to their […]
Learn From African Americans
Recently, I sat down with Canadian human rights journalist Geoffrey Johnston with Toronto’s Kingston Whig Standard newspaper to talk about the intersections between African American Christians, US Church history, and the persecuted Church. That conversation evolved into this article, “Learn from African Americans.” It became the first part in his series for the Whig Standard on persecution in Pakistan. For […]
The Desert Lily
When I first met Deborah*, the word that came to my mind was “firebrand.” Deborah lives among an unreached people group. Long ago, they were stripped of their dignity, identity and God-given purpose in life. Grave injustices have brought this entire population to a place where is no electricity or water. There are very few economic opportunities, and […]
Protect the Power of Eternal Hope
One of the most destructive lies of American chattel slavery was that “if we were good and obedient slaves, we would be greatly rewarded in heaven.” In the twenty-first century, this distortion of Scripture is morphing into something equally as insidious. This aberrant teaching has so deeply affected African American Christian consciousness that we’ve swung the […]
Iran: When Losing is Winning
“I know exactly what I’m doing!” So said a young Iranian calling in during a live broadcast on Iranian television. The on the air host advised him to be cautious with his decision, to which he responded: “Would you keep me from the truth about life in Christ? The state can kill me for this, […]
Jackie Hill Perry on American ‘Persecution’
I appreciate the ministry of Jackie Hill Perry on many different levels. This spoken word performance of hers caught my eye and ear, and challenged my heart. From her site: “Comparing the struggle of American believers to our counterparts in other parts of world, Jackie envisions that any form of “American Persecution” isn’t one of […]
Endurance. 