At Home and Abroad

Nina Shea is a champion of religious liberty.  We should listen to her when she cautions us against overblown rhetoric about the real dangers to religious liberty at home - real, but we cannot mistake their gravity in comparison to labor camps and death squads.  Shea, in an interview with Kathryn Lopez published in the NCR, urges Christians not to forget the intense persecution endured by believers abroad.  Besides prayer she suggest citizens need to take advantage of their rights to insist the president and members of Congress defend persecuted believers.

A good place to start would be writing the President, Secretary Clinton and your members of Congress urging them to focus attention on the case of Asia Bibi in any interactions with the government of Pakistan.  Bibi is a 45-year-old mother of five who is on death row for defending Christ in a discussion with Muslim her co-workers.  To learn more about Asia Bibi's case, read here.

This week, International Christian Concern brings us the story of Farrin whose mother was  drug addict, her father a drug dealer who spent time in prison.  Enduring abuse from her father and brother, she escaped three times.  Finally at the third attempt she managed to get away and stay away.  But with no means of support, she fell victim to men who used her.  This resulted in her becoming a prostitute and turning to alcohol in order to numb the physical and emotional pain. Read the rest of her story here.

Whether at home or abroad, and whether we are defending conscience rights of health care workers in our local hospital or writing the State Department about Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani or Asia Bibi, the team at Breakpoint reminds us that we are all missionaries.