Are you Ready?

Rom 8:35    Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?

Martyr- means Witness

American pastor Saeed Abedini is a evangelical pastor that is being held in a Iran prison. He is serving an 8 year sentence, in reality it is a death sentence. Evin prison is noted for its political prisoners where prisoners have been held both before and after the 1979 Iranian Revolution. If you are a Christian or anything other then Muslim and serving a sentence in Evin you will be tortured.
The reason why pastor Saeed is in Evin prison is because he will not recant Jesus Christ and convert to Islam. Our government is doing nothing to help pastor Saeed to come home. There are a number of Christian agencies pushing to get our Brother out. American Center for Law and Justice is one of those agencies that is doing this.
What pastor Saeed is going through is NOT the first time this has happened, it is not an isolated event. Many Brothers and Sisters in Christ have died for His name sake! You see pastor Saeed could just say ok and recant, but he can not do that. The Holy Spirit in him is giving him power to overcome the pain and sadness he is feeling! This is the same Holy Spirit that was in Jesus Christ, when He was going through the torture of the cross and of the Father! Jesus Christ was obedient to death," Php 2:8    And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." Pastor Saeed is being obedient to his Savior through the Holy Spirit! It is his choice to be obedient to Jesus. The Holy Spirit is convicting and providing the strength, but the pastor is submitting to the Holy Spirit.
We will at some point face persecution and my question is "are you ready?" As Christians that live in a country that the worst thing that can happen (so far) is ridicule and verbal attack. Are you being obedient to the Holy Spirit?
Richard Wurmbrand was a pastor that was captured during WWI in 1944 by the Russians that invaded Romania. They put him in prison for being a Christian and not wavering from his love for Jesus! Pastor Wurmbrand was obedient to the Holy Spirit! He wrote a book called "Tortured for Christ", and in one part of the book he explains one of the many tortures they(Christians with him) went through.
" A pastor by the name of Florescu was tortured with red-hot iron pokers and with knives. He was beaten very badly. Then starving rats were driven into his cell through a large pipe. He could not sleep because he had to defend himself all the time. If he rested a moment, the rats would attack him.
He was forced to stand for two weeks, day and night. The Communists wished to compel him to betray his brethren, but he resisted steadfastly. Eventually, they brought his fourteen-year-old son to the prison and began to whip the boy in front of his father, saying that they would continue to beat him until the pastor said what they wished him to say. The poor man was half mad. He bore it as long as he could, then he cried to his son, “Alexander, I must say what they want! I can’t bear your beating anymore!” The son answered, “Father, don’t do me the injustice of having a traitor as a parent. Withstand! If they kill me, I will die with the words, ‘Jesus and my fatherland.’” The Communists, enraged, fell upon the child and beat him to death, with blood spattered over the walls of the cell. He died praising God. Our dear brother Florescu was never the same after seeing this." "Tortured for Christ, Chapter 2"
Stephen was the first Martyr of the New Testament, he was obedient to the Holy Spirit to stand up for the love of his Savior! Stephen was bold and courageous to stand and proclaim to the Pharisees the Truth! They wanted Stephen to recant Jesus as Lord and Savior, but Stephen did not, look at what he did..... " Act 7:51    "You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.
Act 7:52    Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered,
Act 7:53    you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it."
Act 7:54    Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him.
Act 7:55    But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.
Act 7:56    And he said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."
Act 7:57    But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him.
Act 7:58    Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.
Act 7:59    And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."
Act 7:60    And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
So my question is still " are you ready" to stand and proclaim that Jesus is Lord and Savior no matter what? Are you walking in "The Way", during these relaxed times in America? We will be persecuted and the wheat and tares will be separated. Persecution will bring forth the ones who will not waver at any cost! Make this your prayer today, Father God please allow me to stand for your Son Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit! Let me glorify you today and not waver at any cost! I pray for true obedience like these men and women of old that stood on the Rock and not wavered! I pray that I can stand firm like Pastor Saeed, I pray for his wellness, but I pray more for me to have his faith! I love you and want to serve you at any cost, I pray this in Jesus name
Amen