Tolerance Check
Read each pair of statements below. Which statement in each pair best shows true Christian tolerance?
a. We should believe that all religions teach the truth.
b. Christian tolerance means understanding that God wants us to share the gospel with all types of people.
a. It is fine to get angry with people because they have different beliefs.
b. It is right to treat those who believe differently with kindness and respect.
a. Keep the truth to yourself so others won’t be offended.
b. Love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you.
a. Agree with others who have different beliefs to make friends with them.
b. Love others with different beliefs enough to share the truth about Jesus with them.
In each pair of statements above, “b” best shows true Christian tolerance.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Bibles unbound
Bibles Unbound
For $30 a month, The Voice of the Martyrs will send your family, class, or group five New Testaments and everything needed for mailing Scriptures to someone in a country where Christian activity is limited by the government. Go to www.BiblesUnbound.com to find out how to sign up. The site also tells you how to get a free DVD to learn more about the Bibles Unbound program.
Spotlight
Every day, the ice cream man pushed his cart into a small village in Vietnam. The children crowded around him to buy his treats.
Someone else came to the village to share something special with the children. Thaddeus, a Christian, came to share the good news of Jesus with them.
Many Vietnamese children have never heard about Jesus. They don’t know that he was born in a stable in Bethlehem, or that he healed sick people. No one has told them how God sent Jesus to save those who believe in him from sin.
Arrested
Thaddeus stayed in the village for a month sharing Bible stories with the children. He noticed that the ice cream man seemed always to be nearby.
Then one day, the ice cream man pulled a gun out of his cart! “You’re under arrest,” he told Thaddeus. The ice cream man was really a policeman in disguise.
Prison and Freedom
Thaddeus went to prison for sharing his faith with the village children. “I loved my interrogator,” he said. Thaddeus obeyed Jesus’ command to “love your enemies” (Matthew 5:44).
“I told him that God always provides for me, so he took away my food. That night as I was praying, a Christian outside the prison wall threw a plastic sack with food in it over the wall. Every night the food secretly dropped down. The prison commander was amazed that I was not becoming thin.”
Thaddeus was set free after nine months in prison. After his release, he continued to share stories of Jesus with others.
(To protect their identities, the names of some of the people on this site and some identifying details have been changed. Some of the quotes and storie
Someone else came to the village to share something special with the children. Thaddeus, a Christian, came to share the good news of Jesus with them.
Many Vietnamese children have never heard about Jesus. They don’t know that he was born in a stable in Bethlehem, or that he healed sick people. No one has told them how God sent Jesus to save those who believe in him from sin.
Arrested
Thaddeus stayed in the village for a month sharing Bible stories with the children. He noticed that the ice cream man seemed always to be nearby.
Then one day, the ice cream man pulled a gun out of his cart! “You’re under arrest,” he told Thaddeus. The ice cream man was really a policeman in disguise.
Prison and Freedom
Thaddeus went to prison for sharing his faith with the village children. “I loved my interrogator,” he said. Thaddeus obeyed Jesus’ command to “love your enemies” (Matthew 5:44).
“I told him that God always provides for me, so he took away my food. That night as I was praying, a Christian outside the prison wall threw a plastic sack with food in it over the wall. Every night the food secretly dropped down. The prison commander was amazed that I was not becoming thin.”
Thaddeus was set free after nine months in prison. After his release, he continued to share stories of Jesus with others.
(To protect their identities, the names of some of the people on this site and some identifying details have been changed. Some of the quotes and storie
Learning to forgive
Gracia Burnham was angry. A gang of violent Muslims had kidnapped her. Gracia did not even like to go camping. But the group forced Gracia and her husband Martin to live with them in the jungle. The jungle had no beds, bathrooms, stores, or air conditioning.
Gracia and Martin were missionaries in the Philippines. Before the men kidnapped them, Gracia homeschooled their three kids: Mindy, Zach, and Jeff. Martin, a pilot, flew mail and supplies to other missionaries in hard-to-reach places.
The men who kidnapped the Burnhams belonged to a group that wanted Muslims to have more power in the Philippines. They had the mistaken idea that they could get power by hurting innocent people. The kidnappers took Martin, Gracia, and other innocent people into the jungle. Friends and relatives took care of Mindy, Zach, and Jeff.
Rude Treatment
The kidnappers often behaved rudely to the Burnhams. At Christmastime, they made fun of Martin and Gracia because they would not be at home with their families on Christmas. They kept Martin on a chain like a dog. Martin and Gracia got very little food, even when the kidnappers had a lot to eat.
Gracia felt so angry that she wished bad things would happen to the kidnappers. She told Martin that she wished the men would suffer forever.
Martin was very wise. He reminded her that God does not want us to wish for our enemies to suffer. Gracia remembered that the Bible says, “If you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:14, 15, NIV).
When Gracia forgave her kidnappers, her anger went away. But it was not easy to forgive. From day to day, their captors forced them to endure new burdens. Gracia had to forgive again and again. After a while, she found it easier to not get as angry when she was mistreated.
About a year after the Burnhams were kidnapped, their struggle ended. Sadly, Martin died in a battle between soldiers from the Philippine military and the kidnappers.
Gracia was shot in the leg, but she was able to get away from the kidnappers and out of the jungle. She joined her children in the United States. Now she teaches others the lessons she learned in the jungle about forgiveness.
Sources include: To Fly Again by Gracia Burnham with Dean Merrill (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House, 2005).
Gracia and Martin were missionaries in the Philippines. Before the men kidnapped them, Gracia homeschooled their three kids: Mindy, Zach, and Jeff. Martin, a pilot, flew mail and supplies to other missionaries in hard-to-reach places.
The men who kidnapped the Burnhams belonged to a group that wanted Muslims to have more power in the Philippines. They had the mistaken idea that they could get power by hurting innocent people. The kidnappers took Martin, Gracia, and other innocent people into the jungle. Friends and relatives took care of Mindy, Zach, and Jeff.
Rude Treatment
The kidnappers often behaved rudely to the Burnhams. At Christmastime, they made fun of Martin and Gracia because they would not be at home with their families on Christmas. They kept Martin on a chain like a dog. Martin and Gracia got very little food, even when the kidnappers had a lot to eat.
Gracia felt so angry that she wished bad things would happen to the kidnappers. She told Martin that she wished the men would suffer forever.
Martin was very wise. He reminded her that God does not want us to wish for our enemies to suffer. Gracia remembered that the Bible says, “If you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:14, 15, NIV).
When Gracia forgave her kidnappers, her anger went away. But it was not easy to forgive. From day to day, their captors forced them to endure new burdens. Gracia had to forgive again and again. After a while, she found it easier to not get as angry when she was mistreated.
About a year after the Burnhams were kidnapped, their struggle ended. Sadly, Martin died in a battle between soldiers from the Philippine military and the kidnappers.
Gracia was shot in the leg, but she was able to get away from the kidnappers and out of the jungle. She joined her children in the United States. Now she teaches others the lessons she learned in the jungle about forgiveness.
Sources include: To Fly Again by Gracia Burnham with Dean Merrill (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House, 2005).
Maria moves on
Maria knew she made a bad choice. She rebelled against her Christian parents. Like other restless Colombian youth, she and her boyfriend ran away and joined a gang of guerrillas. They hoped to find adventure.
But guerrilla life was miserable and dangerous. Three months after they joined the guerrillas, Maria’s boyfriend was dead. Maria was stuck. The guerrillas, who carried out acts of war and terrorism against the government, did not let people leave easily.
Update
Maria’s story was told in 2006 on www.KidsofCourage.com in a story called “Maria: Putting the Past Behind.” The story told about how Maria’s parents continued praying for her, even after she rebelled against them. Maria cried when she remembered her family.
Maria lost a leg during a guerrilla fight. The guerrillas allowed her to have surgery; without any medicine to stop the pain. They gave her easy jobs to do, but still did not let her go.
One day, during another guerrilla fight, the guerrillas fled and left her behind. She could not run away with just one leg.
Christians helped Maria and took care of her. She got a job working for a radio station that broadcast Christian messages into guerrilla areas. She called her parents and asked for their forgiveness. Maria also had a message for her younger brothers and sisters. “Tell them not to rebel like I did,” she said.
A Hopeful Future
The Voice of the Martyrs helped Maria get an artificial leg. She is married to a Christian and is following the Lord. She and her husband are going to have a baby.
Emily
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