Reality Check.  By Sara Cain.

Celebrities sure can be entertaining sometimes in all the wrong ways. I remember an interview where a well-known celebrity claimed she suffered from PTSD just like soldiers do because people sent her mean tweets and it hurt her feelings.

My thoughts about her were not charitable … in fact God called me out on it and replaced those thoughts with this one:

Am I not behaving the same when I complain about my suffering?

It’s true that the pain we feel when we are emotionally hurt is real.

Sometimes we suffer physical pain and ailments that almost seems unbearable.

And some of us have suffered trauma perpetrated by another that alters our life forever. In fact, this is why Hearts Being Healed Ministry exists. The suffering is real, and it will destroy us if we don’t seek healing.

This message isn’t to minimize or belittle our suffering, but to look deeper at the purpose given to each born-again Christian.

As Pastor Rick Warren said in the first sentence of his book The Purpose Driven Life:

“It’s not about you.”

When we focus on ourselves, we are NOT focusing on the gospel. When we are submerged in our own emotional response to life’s struggles, we are NOT focused on Jesus’ purpose for our lives.

When we’re suffering, might our prayer purpose be simply to be more comfortable, and free of our physical or emotional pain?

When we struggle, do our first thoughts go to, “How can I use this to glorify You, Father?

Do we say, “Jesus, who do you want me to share YOUR story with so that they may know You and be saved?”

Should our prayers for the relief of our own pain not bring to mind our brothers and sisters around the world who are suffering for the sake of the gospel?

Not because of personal problems, but because their suffering is a direct consequence of spreading the gospel so that others might be saved.

Just before Jesus ascended into heaven, he gave this commandment in Matthew 28:19-20

^“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Is our comfortable, safe American church not doing the same as that celebrity when we complain about our being “persecuted” because many in our society mock us for believing in a God we can’t see?

We believe we are being persecuted because this current political and cultural climate sometimes rules for active evil, even though there are few, if any, real consequences for us personally.

Meanwhile, around the world Christians are being persecuted, some to the point of death. Nigeria is a very dangerous place for Christians where they’ve seen their villages burned, families scattered, and lives lost. One recent news story reported on a church in Nigeria that was set on fire. The outside block walls still stand, but the roof and everything inside burned and the windows blew out.

Still, that did not deter their love and faith in God. The very next Sunday they stood in that burned out place, lifted their arms to God and praised Him.

The enemy kills, steals, and destroys their churches and even their lives.

And still, the people worship God and praise Him for His goodness.

Still, the people continue to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Incredibly, Christianity in the persecuted world is growing rapidly. At the same time, Christianity in the USA. is in decline and churches are closing.

We’re busy. We struggle. We’re exhausted. We are too often caught up in our self-focused world to give thought to the world beyond.

The book of Acts tells the miraculous story of the birth of the Church. After Pentecost, Peter and John were brought before the Council twice and were told to stop preaching in the name of Jesus, “or else”.  Instead, they reported back to the other 150 apostles and prayed this prayer.

²³On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. ²⁴When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heavens and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. ²⁵You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David:

“‘Why do the nations rage
and the peoples plot in vain?
²⁶The kings of the earth rise up
and the rulers band together
against the Lord
and against his anointed one.

²⁷Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. ²⁸They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. ²⁹ Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. ³⁰ Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”

³¹ After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. – Acts 3:23-31

Those apostles gave up everything, knew their lives were in danger, but prayed for BOLDNESS to continue preaching and doing miracles in the name of Jesus, spreading the gospel as Jesus commanded.

This weekend we’re celebrating 250 years of being a free country where we have liberties that most of the world’s people can only dream of.

We are abundantly blessed by God.

We have freedom to worship God in public, spread the gospel openly, and testify to the goodness of God and His salvation whenever and wherever we choose.

We have led the world in spreading the gospel, and sending money, manpower, and expertise all around the world in times of crisis of every kind, being the light to the world. We’ve been the liberators and protectors of democracy in vulnerable nations.

And yet, on our 250^th anniversary, we’re also infected with hate, chaos, and evil of every kind blatantly living in the open, no longer hiding in the shadows.

Where is the Church in all of this?

Where do you and I stand as individual believers?

WHAT DO WE PRAY FOR?

Are our prayers  focused on surviving our personal trials and life challenges?

Do we only pray for God to heal our land so that we feel more comfortable to safely exercise our religious freedom?

Perhaps we need to examine our hearts and take the measure of our commitment to spread the gospel.

Do we grieve for the lost?

Do we passionately pray for the salvation of the lost?

Do our hearts burn with the desire to see every person, every ruler, every kingdom, come to the Father and be saved?

John 14:15

“”If you love me, keep my commands.”

Jesus’ command to spread the gospel is to every believer!

Obedience is proof of our love for Jesus.

If we say we love Jesus, our words must be proved by the fruit of our actions.

It’s the very fact that we have experienced the presence of God walking through our sufferings with us, have experienced His healing- body, soul and spirit- and have been saved from our sins and restored to right relationship with God, that our hearts should be filled with passion to spread the gospel of Jesus and His salvation.

We must be passionate about the gospel because of what Jesus has done for us. Should we not obey from a heart of thanksgiving and devotion to our Savior?

As we celebrate 250 years of freedom in the most blessed nation on earth, let sharing the gospel of Jesus be our celebratory response.

Are we going to do that now while we have the freedom to do so?

If our nation continues to make ungodly choices that take us farther away from God, we may find ourselves facing real persecution that puts our lives in danger.

If it sounds like I expect the USA to crash, I do not. God’s Will and His Word will prevail.

I believe God established our nation to be a light to the world, and what He starts, He finishes.

So, are we all-in with Jesus, totally surrendered to Him even at the cost of our life?

² He said to them, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” ~ Luke 10:2