After four months ...

I've been reading recently in 1 Peter. The church was being persecuted and Peter was urging them to stand firm in their faith. They even were to rejoice in their sufferings. "If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you." 1 Peter 4:14

I've been drawn to this because it's clear that these Christians of the early church were different from the people around them. The Bible tells us they first were called Christians at Antioch -- rather than calling themselves Christians -- indicating people outside their group noticed a difference in them.

I want to be different from the world. And when it comes to suffering for Christ, and the blessing Peter says we'll receive if we do so, I don't want to run from it. But I've not suffered for Christ, not that I can think of. I've not been insulted.

I had a great conversation a couple of weeks ago with the brother of a wonderful couple in our church. He's a believer and feels strongly in Christian witness. He's put pamphlets on car windows outside of bars and talked directly to people about his faith.

He says there can come insult from that. He says one of his friends once was spit on after sharing his faith, and that he rejoices because of it. But this brother I met says he'll never forget coming out of a bar during his Navy days and running into two Christians who asked him about his faith. He argued with them, calling the Bible bunk.

But it changed his life. Months later, their words stuck with him and he investigated the faith. He accepted Jesus into his life on board his ship. How awesome is that! It reaffirms to me how God can use the little things I'm doing. It also emboldens me to do more, even in tough situations against a potentially skeptical crowd. I can rejoice no matter how they respond. And God can do the rest.