Taking It on the Chin
Theme of the Week: Look for That Silver Lining
Susan Perlman
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
 1 of 1
Key Bible Verse: "You will be dragged into synagogues and prisons, and you will be accused before kings and governors of being my followers. This will be your opportunity to tell them about me"(Luke 21:12-13).Bonus Reading: Matthew 5:10-11
Perspective is essential for a person to endure personally directed hostility. You must see this event as part of a larger picture. Russian Jewish believer Boris Fishbein tells of an incident in downtown Kiev as he was distributing gospel literature.
"A tall guy asked me, 'Are you Jewish?'
"I answered, 'Yes.'
"'Who do you believe in?' he asked.
"I replied, 'Jesus is my God.'
"'And I believe in Perun (a Ukrainian pagan god),' he replied. Then he spat at me and hit me hard on the jaw.
"It hurt. There was darkness in my eyes. When I came around, he was gone, but another young man, Vadim, was standing nearby. Vadim had observed the whole encounter and asked me, 'Why did he hit you so hard?' This seeking person stopped to talk to me because he witnessed another's ill will. Vadim later prayed with me to receive Christ into his heart. In a sense, the blow on my jaw brought about good results." For Boris, the pain he endured was only a small part of a great story of a man's redemption.
—Susan Perlman in World Pulse
My Response: When has a personal reversal created an opening for the gospel?
Thought to Apply: Jesus did not come to explain away suffering or remove it. He came to fill it with His presence.—PAUL CLAUDE (French diplomat, author, playwright)
Adapted from World Pulse (8/9/02) by permission.
Copyright © 2007 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.Click here for reprint information on Men of Integrity. 1 of 1
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Help me, Lord, not to fret or fume about troubles, but to accept them as part of Your plan for the ultimate good of Your kingdom—and me.
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