Whatcha Readin?

I have been to many places in Africa, but I have yet to travel to North Africa, which I would dearly love to do. Remember those scenes in the first Indiana Jones movie where they are digging for the Ark of the Covenant in Tanis, North Africa? North Africa is a place of amazing history and significance in our spiritual genealogy. Carthage, or what is now called Tunis, in Tunisia is one of the places I would like to visit. The Christian faith spread across all of North Africa and the Christians of Carthage were a powerful testimony in the second century. Even now their lives inspire me to a more committed life to the Lord.

We know by reading history that the Christian's desire in much of North Africa was to lead quiet, humble, and moral lives; in other words, they were model citizens. They paid their taxes to the Roman government and gave respect to those in authority. They worked hard, raised their families, and worshipped peaceably. Their phlegmatic personality should not be taken as weakness, however. They would stand with backs of steel in defending the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

In 180 AD twelve Christians from a village (Scillitan) outside of Carthage were brought before the Pro-consul Vigellius Saturninus who was the first persecutor of Christians in North Africa. These twelve have been called The Scillitan Martyrs and the account of their demise is thought to be the earliest documented case of martyrdom in North Africa. Amazingly, their trial was recorded and has been passed down through history.

Seven men and five women were executed by the sword on July 17, 180 AD without any resistance on their part. At their trial they were given 30 days to return to their village and think about their decision in hopes that they would recant, but they did not. It appears in reading the trial account that Speratus was the spokesman for the group of twelve. When he was called upon to swear allegiance to Caesar and deny the Lord, he said, "I do not recognize the empire of this world; but rather do I serve God whom no man hath seen, nor with these eyes can see." He was then asked what he was carrying in his satchel and he responded, "Books and letter of Paul, a just man."

It is safe to say that you are not facing death by sword today, but you are facing other hardships. I find it very interesting that these twelve had in their possession at the time of their trial the writings of Paul. They not only found doctrine in those letters, but they found comfort and courage and they knew they needed both. Doctrine told them they would be with the Lord soon, and comfort told them that God would go with them through the "Valley of the Shadow of Death." The twelve would have been happy to continue living quiet and devout lives for the sake of others, but now they were being called upon to be a dying testimony for the Lord.

So I think of my own life this week, in light of the economy it would not take much for me to lose my home, my car, and all my life's savings. It just would not take very long for me to be totally wiped out financially. Now the question is, "How would I react?" As the saying goes, talk is cheap and it is easy to talk about faith and trust when all things are well, but what about when all things are not well? How hard is it for me to have a smile on my face and peace in my heart when things are going my way? The Christian's most powerful testimony has always shown forth in the darkest times. Eighteen hundred years later we still know of the Scillitan Martyrs because they stood strong in very dark times.

Maybe the twelve held on to the words of St. Paul when he wrote, "Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love." Paul's admonition for us is to stay awake and be people of courage. Paul's words somewhat echo the word of the Lord to Joshua when the time had come for the Israelites to go in and take the land that the Lord had promised them: "Be strong and courageous." In fact, the Lord says this phrase to Joshua twice in the same conversation. The second time He adds the word 'very' before the word 'courageous': "Be strong and very courageous."

None of us have any idea what life will throw at us this next year. We may lose more than we ever dreamt possible; yet how we react will speak volumes about the true condition of our faith. For about two thousand years brothers and sisters in Christ have brought more people to Christ by displaying peace during persecution than by evangelists like me. The twelve were close to the scriptures, which is where they found conviction, comfort, and courage. I would highly recommend that in these times of uncertainty that your Bible be very close to you. You should take it to work, keep it in your car, keep one in the kitchen and by all means, if you travel like I do, keep one in your briefcase. You and I both know that in this amazing meltdown of American finance, only the Lord can bring comfort to our lives. Maybe that is why this is all happening in the first place!

With Eternity in Mind,

Dan Owens

P.S. I want to add that because of God's amazing grace, Eternity Minded Ministries continues to move forward because of the generosity of our friends.

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