Sharing God's Word

We have been called and empowered to do the work of God and as He gives us strength and
direction, we can be faithful to do His will. 1st Corinthians 15 says:
57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

Our faith will be tested and challenged and there may be barriers that we encounter as we seek to walk faithfully before God.  We can know that He has given us His mighty power and that He has provided victory for us through Jesus.  When we face opposition - which may come from within us, through our own fleshly desires, or from without, through a variety of challenges - we can rely on God's strength to enable us to work through the things that would slow us down in pursuing the will of God.

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There may be obstacles that we face in this world to freely share our faith, but we can continue to be
steadfast in our witness. 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 states:
7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.
8 We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed--
10 always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.

The news that continues out of Hong Kong shows that the protests against the government there continue, even in the aftermath of the withdrawal of that proposed legislation that would extradite some of those arrested in Hong Kong to China for trial.  No wonder that Christians have expressed their concern and joined the protests.  It continues to be an explosive situation there.

And, in the midst of the activity, a Christian ministry representative has set up an organ and sang, while Bible and Christian books are available to the protesters to take.  According to Mission Network News:

Mission Cry recently sent a container filled with used Christian books and Bibles to Hong Kong. The books, mostly in English, were donations from Christians who no longer had a use for them. Mission Cry sends these resources all across the globe, but it sent this shipment to Hong Kong because of unrest. Executive Director Jason Woolford says he believes God is doing something in this city; Mission Cry wants to resource it.

The books are shipped to a ministry partner in Hong Kong and distributed in the manner that I mentioned.  As the article points out, "Woolford says the city is a region China can point to as an example to show its claimed leniancy;" of course, China's restrictions on religious freedom are well-documented.  Woolford states:

“Hong Kong is a melting pot of multiple nationalities and different languages so there [are] so many people that speak English. And so, we have that ability to give English [books] and those people to read it. It’s having a big impact..."

A person working with Woolford stated, "thousands of people at the protests will sometimes break out into praise and worship."

Meanwhile, back in America, Christian college students are voicing concern about their being refused the opportunity to share the gospel in a city park - in Chicago!

Four students at Wheaton College wanted to share their faith at the city's Millennium Park, and were restricted from doing so; the Chicago Tribune reports they "filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the city of Chicago, saying the park rules improperly restrict freedom of speech in a traditional public forum and infringe on the students’ right to exercise their religion."

The article states:

In April, the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, which runs Millennium Park, updated rules for the park. One new rule divided the park into 11 “rooms,” or sections, and prohibited “the making of speeches and passing out of written communications” in 10 of the 11 sections, according to the city’s website.

That leaves out the area with the highest tourist concentration, according to the Wheaton students' attorney.  Also, according to the article:

The rules also ban “conduct that objectively interferes” with visitors’ ability to enjoy the park’s artistic displays, impairs pedestrian traffic and disrupts the views of art.

These new rules actually were implemented following an incident last year, in which students on Wheaton's Chicago Evangelism Team were told that they could not hand out materials and could not engage in open-air preaching.

Around the world, believers are diligently following the Great Commission, and we can each be challenged to boldly communicate our faith. Today's takeaways:

Seek to boldly share God's Word - there may be impedances, but we can continue to reflect the courage of Christ.

And, we remember that we can creatively share God's Word - look for opportunities to share the love of Christ. And when there are barriers, we can continue to find ways that we can get the gospel to people who need to hear.