Zoolander School of Service Training - Trend #4

Serving others is great! And should be encouraged!! Yes! Finally a positive trend to discuss!


So Do Something. Do Good Stuff. Do Anything. 


Really? 


Derek Zoolander (Ben Stiller character in the 2001 movie by the same name) takes a jab at the popular rush to Just Do Something. The life-changing realization of this 'ridiculously good-looking male model' causes him to start "The Derek Zoolander Center For Children Who Can't Read Good And Wanna Learn To Do Other Stuff Good Too" where "we teach you that there's more to life than being really, really ridiculously good-looking."


So Ben/Zoolander puts in the dig and we keep rushing out to pose for the camera while we are doing something good.


Are we a society of poser servants?
While serving others may be better than a hoarding greedy 'Me-first' attitude, I wonder if the inspiration and motivation to serve is as awesome as we all think. 

• Could it be that people serve because it is popular?
• Could the appearance be more important that actually helping someone? 
• Could our posing for pictures be the motivation more than the one we serve?

I'm not sure. But Barna comments on the fourth mega-trend in current religion and Christianity:

Largely driven by the passion and energy of young adults, Christians are more open to and more involved in community service activities than has been true in the recent past. While we remain more self-indulgent than self-sacrificing, the expanded focus on justice and service has struck a chord with many. However, despite the increased emphasis, churches run the risk of watching congregants’ engagement wane unless they embrace a strong spiritual basis for such service. Simply doing good works because it's the socially esteemed choice of the moment will not produce much staying power.

To facilitate service as a long-term way of living and to provide people with the intrinsic joy of blessing others, churches have a window of opportunity to support such action with biblical perspective. And the more that churches and believers can be recognized as people doing good deeds out of genuine love and compassion, the more appealing the Christian life will be to those who are on the sidelines watching. Showing that community action as a viable alternative to government programs is another means of introducing the value of the Christian faith in society.

I'd be stupid to assume I know all that Barna thinks about this trend toward serving but it seems he thinks the church needs to jump on the bandwagon while it is trendy to serve. I have no problem with serving. We serve at Crosspoint/Encuentro. I am questioning our hearts behind the actions.


Serve as Jesus Served is Different
Jesus did not call His followers to serve and make a big deal about it. Scripture says if you bring attention to your service then you have your reward in full. So should be take lots of photos and promote our serving?


Jesus called His followers to self-sacrifice. Actually he said 'take up your cross and follow me' and he didn't mean take up your cross jewelry. He meant join me in humiliation, accomodation, crossing barriers of race, class and ability and join me in self-sacrificial, even death.


Is that what the rush to serve is all about? Or is Ben Stiller's Zoolander pointed social commentary.


(More) Biblical Service
We do not have it all figured out here. We don't. But we are aiming toward biblical service to the poor, seeking reconciliation and justice and making a practical difference.


The book that is leading our thinking is called When Helping Hurts: How to Allievate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor... And Yourself. This is a tremendous resource and introduction into the problems and solutions of our modern rush to serve the poor. Read it and get into the training.


The way it has impacted us is that we don't start with our need to do something. 


We start with God's view of the poor, then develop relationship with real God's-image-bearing people who may need our help, encourage them to make changes based on their assets (not our view of what they need), then stay in long-term relationship learning together. I hope we learn to actually belong to one another and love one another.


Other churches have been doing this much longer and are more experienced disciples. The New City Fellowship Churches in Chattanooga and St. Louis help us enormously.


So Broken Pastor, Are You Against Service?
NO! I'm against self-serving service for the sake of the rich. It does more damage than truly helping someone.


I'm in favor of thoughtful, Scripture-directed Kingdom-of-God-service where the gospel of the Kingdom is proclaimed and to set captives free and actually, practically help the widow, fatherless, alien and powerless - without hurting them in the process. I want us all to receive really good news, alleviate real suffering and offer developing relief so people, families and cities change.

Three Reasons We Welcome Aliens

1. There are at least 10 verses in Scripture that command God's people to love, care for, treat justly and remember that He defends aliens. Don't believe me? Do a search on the text of the NIV for 'aliens' or in other versions for 'sojourners' and you'll see it clearly.

There are a few other moral reasons Crosspoint/Encuentro welcomes people (especially Mexicans) regardless of their legal status.

2. Rising fear from drug violence and weak protection from their own government. I am no policy expert but it doesn't take much to recognize that this kind of violence would make any sane person seek a safe place to live - even if it isn't legal. In June 2010, hundreds of people in border towns were executed by drug cartels.

This is the results from a search on the words 'Mexico' and 'Violence' on Yahoo!

3. Persecution for being a Christian. Voice of the Martyrs include the state of Chiapas as a 'hostile' area where Christians are persecuted. This is more than just being snubbed for converting. Pastor Hector Guzman has friends bringing in basic supplies to families who have lost everything.

Granted not everyone coming to the US without status is a Christian, but no matter the reason for their arrival, shouldn't the church and the people of God seek both mercy and justice for fellow image bearers? Shouldn't we leverage this time of unrest that is sending refugees and immigrants to our nation as an opportunity to advance the gospel?

Bonus Reason: Our allegiance is first to Christ, then to our nation (Galatians 3:26ff) If I'm making you uncomfortable, it's on purpose. Reason #1 is the only reason we need to welcome aliens. God says He is their God. We are His people. If Arizona or Georgia or any other state makes a law that violates God's law, then morally who should we obey?

Think about that.

'If You Need Anything Call Me' - Not Helpful

How many times have I said to someone who was struggling, 'Let me know if you need any help. Really. I mean it.' Hundreds? At least. Turns out that is NOT actually helping those who suffer.

I am not a naturally empathetic person around the sick, suffering or hurting. More like 'concerned but awkward'. So this post by Ed Welch on CCEF's webpage really helped me deeply.

I need this prescription. Hope it spurs you on to go on and simply help people who are suffering rather than thinking they will ask.

"Here is something that I have heard a number of times on the “Not Helpful” list. I have heard it often enough that it deserves to become part of our body of pastoral wisdom.

“If you need anything, please call me—anytime.”

"Sufferers are usually gracious and give us a lot of slack for thoughtless remarks, so I was surprised when this became a theme. Those who mentioned it didn’t say that the comment was meaningless to them, though it was. They said that it was actually unhelpful. Why? I usually don’t ask that question, but I can piece together some of the answers.

• If “comforters” knew anything about real hardship, they would know that sufferers usually don’t know what they want or need.[surprising to me but makes sense]
• If comforters knew anything about the sufferer, they would know what the sufferer wants or needs. [guilty of not looking too hard]
• If comforters really knew the sufferer, they would know that he or she would never make the call. Never.

"The speaker is not giving any real thought to the comforter’s needs and circumstances, and the suffering person knows it.

"That’s the bad news. The good news, of course, is that the same people who have heard the “call me” comment have also been blessed by friends who do the opposite: these friends don’t wait to be called, they just figure out what needs to be done and they do it. [Wow! That is smart and kind!]

"First, they listen and understand the suffering person. They pick up on to-do lists that are growing and impossible. They identify tasks that are especially important. They don’t barge in and do trivial work or serve in ways that leave more disarray....  A good friend can identify what would be truly helpful.

"Next, they do it. They get the dog groomed, do the dishes, drop off a meal, cut the grass, baby sit the kids, bring a meal over and eat it together, clean the house, give a ride to small group, drop off a note of encouragement and then another and another, arrange for a hair cut, and so on.

"Any of these acts of love and service make life easier for the suffering person. That certainly helps. But a meal is never just a meal; maid-service is never merely maid-service. These say to the suffering person, “I remember you,” “I think about you often,” “you are not forgotten, you are on my heart,” “I love you.” That, as they say, is priceless.

"When in doubt, and you are concerned that you might unknowingly rearrange the library; you can get ideas from those who know the sufferer best. There is nothing wrong with the direct approach and ask the suffering person, “Would it help if I ______?” That’s great, but realize that he or she will demur.

"What commends the approach in which you ask friends and family is that you give even more thought to the suffering person’s interests and needs. It is the time you give to creative strategizing that is the power behind these acts. That is unmistakable love that mimics the strategic planning of the triune God’s rescue mission. He planned and acted even before we knew our real needs. [Wow.]

"We can say that there is indeed more misery around us than we know, but may those who experience misery be able to say that there is more comfort available than they imagined, and may they say that God often uses people as angels of comfort."

That is actually helpful.

Five Things that Will Make You Happier

Scientists prove (part) of what Scripture teaches. This article lists 5 things that are proven to make you happier.
A psychologist from the University of California at Riverside speaking at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science said she and colleagues reviewed 51 studies that tested attempts to increase happiness. The results were published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology. Here they are with some more biblical terminology.

1. Be Grateful (Okay, that one's biblical)
2. Be Optimistic (Be Hopeful)
3. Count Your Blessings (Rejoice)
4. Use your strengths (Use your God-given gifts)
5. Commit acts of kindness (Give generously)

 Granted the gospel of Jesus Christ will bring these effects (plus guaranteed suffering and trials) but it's cool to me that general revelation confirms what special revelation stated millenia ago. I'm going to count my blessings! Ching!

When Helping Hurts: Heroic Fail in Haiti

Well-Intentioned Christian 'Heroes' in Haiti FAIL

A friend of mine knows the folks arrested in Haiti for snatching 33 children. Here is part of our dialogue on the Haiti situation, slightly edited for anonymity:

“So the big international hoopla ("Ten Americans Arrested in Haiti...") is folks from our [city]. Three of them are friends, and one of them is barely 18...

“My most visceral reaction was frustration and even anger, that they could have gone in with such a cock-a-mamie plan. They literally planned to find a bus in the DR to charter, drive across the border, fill with the first 100 children they could find, and return across the border to house them in an old motel in the DR.

“The intent was honorable and loving, but the logistics were completely of the fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants variety. Central Valley… financed it to the tune of [a significant amount of money], with the intent of similar funding on a monthly basis. They partnered with another church in Eastern Idaho, which had a dream of building a future orphanage, but without feet on the ground in Haiti [WHAT!], or, apparently even a clue about the correct process, rather than working with an existing mission.

“Apparently none of the leadership thought that planning to be questionable--and even now defend it.

“Now the opportunity is lost, 33 frightened children are displaced once again, innocent (if naive and well-meaning) people are in jail awaiting trial resulting in unknown extra costs, and all of that money was wasted.

“Some of that money had been promised to [a local mission in ID], but then rescinded when the emergency trip idea hatched. I am … dismayed at the poor stewardship and lost potential here, and I find myself, uncomfortably annoyed with people who are sitting in a Haitian jail, while I sit at my computer. It does not all add up ... and I wonder at my smug contempt.”

Helping Hurt! Helping unwisely, from the perspective of the ‘all-knowing missionary’ hurt so many people. And who knows the full extent of the damage.

Again, I strongly recommend that we as comparably wealthy Western Christians LOOK HARD at the affects of our well-intentioned mission work. Not all of it will be so disastrous as this episode. But what is 'doing the right thing?'

We (church leaders) have to ask - before we dash to disasters - 'What makes the church response Christ-like or biblical compared any other non-government agency or relief work?'

Answer: Incarnation and long-term development.

The people and nation of Haiti will be no different in the long run without the gospel of Christ preached and lived out - in both relief and development.

Again I recommend When Helping Hurts:How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor...and Yourself by Brian Fikkert and Steve Corbett. I also recommend their online courses on the same subject. Worth the time and effort.

Does Brokenness Ever Get Better?

'Broken Pastor' has implications. Some think it is a downer or a bummer, like they should be sorry for me. Like brokenness is permanently bad.

Oh, it was bad, but it is good now. SO GOOD!

A wild horse, a rebellious son and a stubborn pastor all need to be broken to be made whole. Blood must be sacrificed for restoration. The gospel requires brokenness.

I am more sinful than I ever dared consider. I'm am not that good. Nor am I better than anyone else.

But I'm loved. More loved than I've ever dared imagine.

That makes the brokenness so worth it. The love of God has been proven by the brokenness of Christ.

Now I'm ruined for anything other than what My King Jesus wants of me. He broke me out of kindness. And I'm grateful. Yes it hurt - but oh, the glory of the restoration is better!

As my friends at Fractured Saints say, I'm never beyond mending.

The mending process has been great. It's the beginning of the second half of my life and I'm thrilled to be a Broken Pastor

Jerious Norwood and Stonewall Jackson theology

This guy can RUN!

And does Atlanta Falcons running back and return specialist have some good theology in this interview too?

Yes. He's taking risks. Risks that make you cringe a little.

Generally, Americans want life safe. Really safe. It shows in the 'avoid-pain-at-all-costs' mentality. I don't even want to be inconvenienced is a corollary. The core motivation of the health care debate is fear of what may happen - and we better avoid it!

But Norwood implies that he plays professional football without fear of what could or might happen.

And he plays football at risk of another concussion - which would be his fifth. Risky? Yes, but wow, do I like the way he plays. He is full out, leave it all on the field and if I get hurt, it is what the Lord had planned for me.

We should, like Stonewall Jackson, put our bodies and schedules and money at risk for our mighty King.

Any Christian who desires to be stronger than soggy bread, has to aspire to and admire a warrior mentality. A fight's attitude that his cause is worth it.

If your life has no cringe-factor, are you living by faith to please God? Or are you living by sight to please yourself?

Whatever you think of the Civil War (and I have a LOT of mixed thoughts on that one - my great grandfather from Tennessee was a corporal in the Union Army) General Stonewall Jackson has to get your attention too.

His faith in God's providence (God's control over every detail of life) was strong. His faith was in God's ability.

He went into every battle secure in the knowledge that he could not die from a 'stray' bullet or an 'unlucky' shot. He was sure that he could leave it all on the field. So when bullets were flying, he stayed on his horse, fighting. Risky? Sure.

Oh, LORD, raise up an army of men and women who will risk, get uncomfortable, cringe, sacrifice. And start with this broken pastor who needs to believe you are in control and that I can lead men and women into spiritual battle confident in You.

Prepared for Persecution in Ir#n

I do not know these women, but I met some very much like them in my travels to the Near East a while ago. Pray for them as the Lord leads you.

Prepare Your Children. And then tonight over dinner share their story. Prepare your children and/or grandchildren for a day when they may be faced with this sort of situation.

Maryam Rustampoor, 27, and Marzieh Amirizadeh, 30, were arrested and sent to Evin Prison in Tehran, Iran. The two women did not rob a bank, kill a man or beat up someone.

Their crime? Loving Jesus. And it is for this reason alone they are still imprisoned.

In August during a court hearing, the two were questioned repeatedly about their faith. They were told to return to Islam.
"We love Jesus," was their reply. Prosecutors asked the women, who had already spent five months in prison, if they regretted being Christians.

"We have no regrets," they said. "We will not deny our faith." The judge sent them back to Evin Prison - notorious for its brutality - to "think about" their decision.
"We have already done our thinking," they told him.

Maryam and Marzieh are among dozens of Iranian Christians arrested, detained or interrogated in Iran in recent months. The harassment is the radical Islamic government's response to an Iranian revival that has thousands of Iranians coming to Christ each month.

from Voice of the Martyrs

Pray for My Persecuted Friends (Keep on Praying)

This time last year a friend of mine from I**n, the son of a martyr, was unjustly arrested and detained for some time. News has been slow reaching me, but R was released months ago.

This is good news for him to be reunited with his family and for the Kingdom of Christ to expand through his network of house churches.

But suffering continues outside the cell.

Imprisonment has left deep emotional (and perhaps physical) scars. He is withdrawn and will not talk to his family about what happened during the ordeal.

I can not imagine what he suffered at the hands of the Islamic terrorists - his own countrymen - who likely tortured him.

I can not imagine what he must keep secret. How he must feel cut off and isolated even outside the cell.

I can not imagine how this effects his marriage, his family, his church ministry or his own soul. But it makes me mad!

And I groan and ache for my friend.

Pray for R, his wife, his children, his mother and extended family. The churches under his care.

What We Should Do for Ir*n

A 4th of July note from a pastor friend in country to me and our church.

Hi Jim
I hope this mail finds you doing well.

Congregation, I hope we will have the same day (4th July) in our country in the future. I appreciate your understanding and helping me & my people in the most difficult time of our lives. My desire is to know the Lord and His will and serve Him as the Holy Spirit directs me. I am confident that you will continue to pray for me & my country. Many thanks in advance and best wishes for whatever you do in the name of Our Lord, and for the strengthening of His Church.
Yours in the Master’s service,
R**n

Most Difficult Time
This from a man who was recently jailed for no reason other than his faith and whose own father was martyred by the Isl@mic Republic.

He is a broken pastor. He asks for prayer? We pray.
Prayer is the highest and best thing we can do.

Why We Shouldn't Mess with Ir*n (or Cuba either)

With the recent unrest after the presidential election in Iran making news in the US, I thought a comment in order.

We American Christians have an odd approach to government participation. Compared to most of the rest of our Christian brothers and sisters alive today, WE think (or I feel) we should engage and argue and even boycott governments for the sake of the gospel. We think activism is good. Political liberty = spiritual liberty.

Christians in Ir*n and Cuba that I have met approach things differently. (I guess the same is true in China, Pakistan, Afghanistan and other nations, though I've never spoken to believers there personally.) They tell me "Inactivism" is better. Political oppression = spiritual liberty.

Why?
The Holy Spirit uses the persecution and pressure against the Church to spread the gospel to thousands, even millions AND proves to the people the inadequacy of inferior types of political governance. It's not dissimilar to the Ancient Near East in the biblical era.

So I say, Do NOT write our government to try to muster support from the USA for change in these nations. If you work in our US government, work for justice and freedom. But the rest of us (me) should not meddle in the affairs of the King of kings except in prayer.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to convert and disciple SO MANY people in these persecuted nations that political change happens from within - as a result of the hand of the LORD at work.

I Have a Sword Because I am in the Killing Business

Yeah, that's right. Swords are for killing. That's why I have a real battle-ready sword just like this one. And I almost always have a knife or a blade within reach as a reminder that we are in a dangerous business. Church is a life and death business. Don't be fooled.

John Piper wrote a great short article about swords and dying here. He says stuff so much better than I do.

Here's to the King who's killing my sinful desires with the Truth of His Blade!

Is This Where the Emergent Church is Headed?

Is this where the church is headed?
This is just so wrong. On so many levels.
For so many reasons.

(WARNING: This video involves people disrobing in church and may cause seriously disturbing thoughts to go through your head.)

Stupidity Happens Up North, But No Redneck Jokes Yet

This is terrible news. An 8 year-old boy accidentally shot himself with an Uzi while under adult supervision at a gun show. Absolutely a tragic day for that family and anyone who remotely appreciates the constitutional right and to bear arms responsibly.

But the adults at that event were STUPID to let an 8 year-old hold a loaded machine gun, much less fire it.

And you know what I'm curious to see? How does the rest of the media (yes, I am technically a member of the media now that I have a blog) handle the news and commentary?

If this had happened in one of my beloved home states in the South, every comedian (except maybe Jeff Foxworthy) would make redneck jokes about it and comment on how people in rural America cling to their guns and religion - oh wait, that was a presidential candidate who said that... sorry, I'm mad and rambling.

This little boy died at a gun show an hour from Boston Massachusetts because his parents were stupid. People do stupid things everywhere and people loose their lives.

Why? Because actions have consequences. That is the moral order of the universe.

THINK! Ideas and actions have consequences! Say "NO" when kids ask to hold or shoot loaded machine guns! Say "NO" when it is the right thing to say but isn't popular!

Hanged for Being a Christian

How long before Christians in America face this reality?

OUR FAMILY is being systematically and illegally persecuted, tortured and murdered.

Pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ!

Pictured - father, hanged in 1980 and son Ramtin, currently arrested and awaiting judicial outcome. From the Telegraph article

This is the first and only article in the mainstream media in the US or Europe about the national movement in Iran to execute Christians. From the Telegraph in the UK.

Excerpts from the article Saturday:

Hanged for being a Christian in Iran
Eighteen years ago, Rashin Soodmand's father was hanged in Iran for converting to Christianity. Now her brother is in a Mashad jail, and expects to be executed under new religious laws brought in this summer. Alasdair Palmer reports.

Last Updated: 8:55PM BST 11 Oct 2008
Rashin Soodmand, whose father was hanged in Iran for converting to Christianity
Life for Rashin Soodmand, her siblings and her mother became extremely difficult after her father was executed in Iran for the 'crime' of abandoning his religion Photo: PAUL GROVER
Hossein Soodmand, Rashin's father, was hanged in Iran after converting to Christianity. Her brother Mashad is now in death row awaiting the same fate
Hossein Soodmand (left), Rashin's father, was the last man to be executed in Iran for apostasy. Her brother Mashad is now in death row awaiting the same fate

A month ago, the Iranian parliament voted in favour of a draft bill, entitled "Islamic Penal Code", which would codify the death penalty for any male Iranian who leaves his Islamic faith. Women would get life imprisonment. The majority in favour of the new law was overwhelming: 196 votes for, with just seven against.

Imposing the death penalty for changing religion blatantly violates one of the most fundamental of all human rights. The right to freedom of religion is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and in the European Convention of Human Rights. It is even enshrined as Article 23 of Iran's own constitution, which states that no one may be molested simply for his beliefs.

And yet few politicians or clerics in Iran see any contradiction between a law mandating the death penalty for changing religion and Iran's constitution. There has been no public protest in Iran against it.

David Miliband, Britain's Foreign Secretary, stands out as one of the few politicians from any Western country who has put on record his opposition to making apostasy a crime punishable by death. The protest from the EU has been distinctly muted; meanwhile, Germany, Iran's largest foreign trading partner, has just increased its business deals with Iran by more than half. Characteristically, the United Nations has said nothing.

It is a sign of how little interest there is in Iran's intention to launch a campaign of religious persecution that its parliamentary vote has still not been reported in the mainstream media.

For one woman living in London, however, the Iranian parliamentary vote cannot be brushed aside. Rashin Soodmand is a 29-year-old Iranian Christian. Her father, Hossein Soodmand, was the last man to be executed in Iran for apostasy, the "crime" of abandoning one's religion. He had converted from Islam to Christianity in 1960, when he was 13 years old. Thirty years later, he was hanged by the Iranian authorities for that decision.

Today, Rashin's brother, Ramtin, is also held in a prison cell in Mashad, Iran's holiest city. He was arrested on August 21. He has not been charged but he is a Christian. And Rashin fears that, just as her father was the last man to be executed for apostasy in Iran, her brother may become one of the first to be killed under Iran's new law.

Not surprisingly, Rashin is desperately worried. "I am terribly anxious about him," she explains. "Even though my brother is not an apostate, because he has never been a Muslim – my father raised us all as Christians – I don't think he is safe. They assume that if you are Iranian, you must be Muslim."

Her brother's situation has ominous echoes of her father's fate. Rashin was 14 when her father was arrested. "He was held in prison for one month," she remembers. "Then the religious police released him without explanation and without apology. We were overjoyed. We thought his ordeal was over."

But six months later, the police came back and took her father away again. This time, they offered him a choice: he could denounce his Christian faith, and the church in which he was a pastor – or he would be killed. "Of course, my father refused to give up his faith," Rashid recalls proudly. "He could not renounce his God. His belief in Christ was his life – it was his deepest conviction." So two weeks later, Hossein Soodmand was taken by guards to the prison gallows and hanged.

Life for Rashin, her siblings and her mother became extremely difficult. Some Muslims are extremely hostile to people of any other religion, never mind to those who they consider apostates: Ayatollah Khomeini declared that "non-Muslims are impure", insisting that for Muslims to wash the clothes of non-Muslims, or to eat food with non-Muslims, or even to use utensils touched by non-Muslims, would spoil their purity.

The family was supported with financial and other help from a Christian church based in Iran. That support became even more critical as Rashin's mother began to lose her sight. Rashin herself was eventually able to leave Iran. She now lives in London, married to a fellow Christian from Iran who successfully applied for asylum in Germany.

It took years for Rashin to understand how her father could have been legally executed simply for becoming a Christian. In 1990, there was no parliamentary law mandating the death for apostates. What, then, was the legal basis for Hossein Soodmand's execution?

On one subject, however, sharia law is unequivocal: men who change their religion from Islam must be punished with death. So when the judge heard the case of Rashid's father, he could refer to sharia and reach a straightforward decision: the death penalty. There was no procedure for appeal.

Nevertheless, in the 18 years since Hossein Soodmand's execution, there have been no judicially sanctioned killings of apostates in Iran, although there have been many reports of disappearances and even murders. "As the number of converts from Islam grows," notes Ms Papadouris, "apostasy has again become a serious concern for the Iranian government." In addition to 10,000 Christian converts living in Iran, there are several hundred thousand Baha'is who are deemed apostates.

There is another factor: President Ahmadinejad. "The President didn't initiate the law mandating the death penalty for apostates," says Papadouris, "but he has been lobbying for it. It is an effective form of playing populist politics. The Iranian economy is doing very badly, and the country is in a mess: Ahmadinejad may be calculating that he can gain support, and deflect attention from Iran's problems, by persecuting apostates."

The new law is not yet in force in Iran: it requires another vote in parliament, and then the signature of the Ayatollah. But that could happen within a matter of weeks. "Or," says Papadouris, "it could conceivably be allowed to drop, were there a powerful enough international outcry".

Time may be running out for Rashin's brother. She believes that the new law will be applied in an arbitrary fashion, with individuals selected for death being chosen to frighten others into submission. That is why she fears for her brother. "We just don't know what will happen to him. We only know that if they want to kill him, they will."

This is 'sharing in the sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ.' Are you ready?

Teaching What the Bible Says about Suffering Seems Like Healing a Heart with a Tire Iron

In light of my previous 9/11 post about I=an , this is shocking, prophetic and awesome audio from John Piper. He reads and comments on the introduction to his book Spectacular Sins.

Piper's prophecy for American Christians about persecution and partnering in suffering is strong, biblical and true...

Having read 4-5 blogs confronting the health, wealth and prosperity false gospel in the American church, it makes me wonder if this is the tonic for what ails us?

When things do not go well for you, will that be a crisis of faith for you?

"Our felt needs are about to change."

"Coddled people will not be good listeners when their world collapses."

"The aim of this book is not to meet felt needs, but to awaken needs that will soon be felt, and then to save your faith and strengthen your courage when evil prevails."

"If we are to endure and bear and believe and hope, we need to see the spectacular sins of history the way God sees them. I hope this book helps."

I'll buy a copy of this book for the first three people who promise to read it with me.

9/11 Remembered: Isla+ic Government Arrests, Tortures Christians

As Americans remember the thousands who died on 9/11 seven years ago, we should not forget the millions around the world who still suffer under the oppression and slavery of Isl+m.

More news is leaking out of I+an. While most of us gripe about our economy and how we suffer, our brothers and sisters in Christ are being violated for their faith in Jesus Christ.

The secret police arrested my friend R 21 days ago. This article from Compass Direct News details his situation and shows a pattern of illegal persecution. It makes me MAD! It is WRONG!

To all the skeptics who think 'all religions are the same' show me how this Isla+ic 'Republic' is the same as Christianity!

The government (NOT the citizens) of I+an is based on Isl*m. No other country bases its government on that religion. It is worse than Nazi Germany in that these ungodly practices have been going on for 30+ years.

The 70+ million people of ancient Persia are enslaved to an unjust religion and an oppressive government!

Pray for justice and mercy!

I++nian Prisons Don't Stop Gospel Prayer!

This is follow up to my previous post (Aug 22) about my friend being arrested in I+an. He and his family who are leaders of home churches are suffering with chains, but the gospel advances!

This is an edited email of hard news smuggled out (I have to take out names of people and cities.)

Warm greetings in the matchless name of Jesus our Lord,
We want to inform you about R==in, son of martyr Ho***in S**d, who has been asked by the authorities (Islamic intelligent service) in M==d/I+an to report for an interview, and it has been already 2weeks past, but on Tuesday Sept 02.08 intelligent service called R===in`s brother to their organization to talk to him about the situation.

They tolled him that first we will find out what is his guilt then when we find something, he become guilty and he goes to the Islamic court for conviction and after that certainly for the punishment but probably this process take 6 months to 2 years. And they said again very badly to Aria that; you are making people Christian and surely we are trying to find those people that you made them Christian here!

His brother said his wife and mother are worry about him, and want to come and visit him, but unfortunately they said' NO' [ed. possible that he has been beaten and IIS doesn't want it known]

Please continue to pray for R===in S and his Family in I+an and so that the Lord protect and strengthen him. And also pray specific for his mother Mrs. Ma---b and Mi--a, R's wife because they are in bad pressure.
Please share this pray request to your churches or friends.

R is the son of one of I''n's many martyrs. He is being held unjustly until they beat or torture a 'confession' out of him. This is heinous and wrong!

So would you get indignant and angry and do as our suffering brothers are asking? Will you pray? Ask your church to pray? Prayer is what they want and need the most.

Pray especially that R does not feel abandoned, that he will not give up any names of other leaders, that the Holy Spirit strength him to joy like the apostle Paul in jail in Philippi and that his guards would be converted! God has done it before!(Acts 16) To God ALONE be the Glory!

Arrested for Your Faith?

I'm distracted to pray for someone today and I can't tell you why, exactly. Not in the normal way we in the West ask for prayer requests. But I'm going to ask you to pray for my friend anyway. This is not a game. It is life and death. You'll have to figure it out.

Do you know what country is shaped like this? Starts with I and ends with N. You hundreds of thousands of brothers and sisters in Christ in this country in the hidden church.

I met some of these brave men and women in that country last year at a clandestine training seminar. I can't say enough how amazing it was and how deeply it struck me - turned upside down my concept of church. I felt like I was with 1st century believers. I can't tell you names because it isn't safe for them to be posted on the Internet.

Why am I distracted? This Wednesday August 20, one of the key leaders of the hidden church was ordered to report to the police. He hasn't been heard from since. He has a wife and two elementary aged children. He is the leader of a network of over 200 underground churches

It's killing me and I hope it isn't killing him. I asked him once, 'Are you prepared to be a martyr?' He looked me right in the eye and said, 'Yes. But I'm not volunteering.'

Pray for the brave men and women in the church in that country.
Then pray for us to be brave and let his chains, like Paul's persuade us to boldly speak the Word of God here (Philippians 1:12ff)

Ed. Aug 28 - News via the underground church is that R called his mother two days after his arrest and told her 'I am fine. Do not worry about me.' and was then disconnected. No word since.
The church in that country and expats are calling for prayer and fasting. I am joining with them.