101 Devotionals for Boys from the Lives of Great Christians and 101 Devotionals for Girls from the Lives of Great Christians will both be published in 2017. We’re publishing one or two devotionals a week to give you a taste of what you’ll get in those two gift books. This one is based on a story from Living Water in the Desert: True Stories of God at Work in Iran (Hidden Heroes #6).
***************
Pastor Yohannan came as a missionary to the Muslims in 1879. He asked young Saeed to teach him the Persian language. When Saeed arrived at the pastor’s house, he stood and waited while Pastor Yohannan and his friend prayed.
Saeed was amazed at how the Christians prayed. They prayed as if they were talking to a real person, not just reciting some prayers they had memorized. They even prayed for their enemies! Saeed was amazed. He knew that no good Muslim would ever do that.
Do you ever pray for your enemies? That’s hard, for sure. But Jesus said, “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, and pray for them that despitefully use you and persecute you.”
Listening to the Christians pray for their enemies, the Muslims, was the first step for Saeed in learning what Christianity really was. He learned that love is stronger than hate.
“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” ~Matthew 5:44
O God, I pray that You’ll teach me that love is stronger than hate. Give me a heart to love my enemies and bless and pray for the ones who persecute me.
Leave a Reply