Several years ago my husband and I sat in a small group discussing the ultimate decision. If a man walked into your house, held a gun to your head, and demanded you to denounce Christ, would you do it? There was a spirited discussion about all the repercussions that choice would have on our families and their faith. But in reality, it was just a discussion. At that time – pre 9/11- none of us ever thought that being killed for our faith would ever really happen. Yet thirteen years later, on a cold barren mountain top in Iraq, thousands of Christian women are cradling their young and contemplating that very choice. They can leave their home, convert to a foreign, evil faith, or die defending it.
The pictures on the news are shocking and sickening. Babies have guns held to their heads, mothers are crying out having just witnessed the beheading of their children, fathers stand in shock as their families are led away to be slaughtered. Suddenly the hypothetical discussion of “what would I do?” has become a reality. While the dangers of ISIS seem far away from our comfortable homes , how would we react if we were marched to to the top of the Smoky Mountains and demanded to denounce our faith? Would we be willing to die for the Father?
During the original discussion many years ago, one woman said she could not die for her faith, not while she had young children at home that needed to be taught. Who would pass on the value of her faith? Another woman outright said she would lie saying she could not bear to be parted from her children even in death. Excuses abounded as to why their death would not really be valuable to their kids. Their lives on Earth were much more valuable than their valiant deaths! Yet Paul stated that to “live was Christ, and to die was gain!” Does that promise not still hold true today?
Eventually I will die, perhaps in a bed as an old woman, perhaps tomorrow in a speeding car. But my death is certain. My legacy of faith is not. Knowing that, I must make every effort to make my faith count today, to show Jesus’ love today, to teach my children, no matter how young, today. And if a Muslim man comes charging into my house strapped with guns and bombs, my faith must still come first. If I lie or or say that I never really believed, then my children will see that my faith has limits. My faith is not all consuming. My faith is just something that I do and not the essence of my being.
We all want to be there to see our children grow up, get married, and become productive citizens of the Kingdom of God. But more than I want to be there, I want my children to be faithful to Him. I want them to know that life on Earth is not all there is. I want them to know that God is faithful to His promises to us. And though we may be separated on Earth, our life here is but a vapor. Someday we can live together in Eternity.
I am praying for the Iraqi women. I am praying for their children and the difficult roads they have ahead. I am praying that God protects them from the evils of the militants. But more than that, I am praying for a steadiness of faith, a strength of character, and comfort and peace of mind. While I am pray that for them, I am also praying that for me. May we all have the strength to put our faith first until the very end, even if it means the very end.
–Christa Bryant
********New Deeper Insights Post by Beth Johnson — Biblical use of the word wine ********