Romans 8:35-39 New International Version (NIV)

³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ³⁶ As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;
    we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”^[a]

³⁷ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,^[b] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

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Miriam is 11, she was forced to leave her home close to Mosul, Iraq when ISIS captured the city in mid 2014.  From Irbil, during Christmas 2014 she did an interview with SAT-7 reporter Essam Nagy.

SAT-7 is a ministry working to broadcast God’s love to churches in the Middle East and North Africa through television.

Miriam tells the reporter that God has provided for them, when he asked her what she meant by that she responded with, “God loved us and wouldn’t let ISIS kill us.”  Then he asked her if she knew how much God loved her and she replied, “Yes, God loves us all, not just me. God loves everybody.”  Miriam’s understanding of God is so beautiful.  Torn from her home and missing the life she knew, she remains focused on God’s faithfulness and love for everybody, even ISIS.  She says she forgives ISIS and prays God will too.

“At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”  He called a little child to Him, and placed the child among them.  And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will ever enter the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”- Matthew 18:1-4 (NIV)

You can see the interview of Miriam’s Story and Song here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ige6CcXuMg

Miriam’s faith left a strong impression on me.  She continually goes back to God’s will.  We can be so easily distracted from God’s will for our lives.  We struggle with wanting our way and trying to find the correct path.  Here she is, in a refugee camp, living her faith with trust and finding peace from God. She knows that God will never leave or forsake those who are His children.

Persecution for simply being a Christian is growing. I recently attended a  Voice of the Martyr’s conference. Everyday I read stories and testimonies of Christians who have been imprisoned, tortured, beaten, etc. for being a Christian. Meeting them, hearing them share their testimonies, and being able to talk with them was incredible.

At the conference, a speaker shared a story from World War II of a train carrying Jews to a concentration camp. The Jews were crying in despair for help.  When the train passed a church, the cries of the Jews interrupted the Christians singing, so those Christians sang louder.

Today the train is rolling.  I refuse to sing louder.

 Never Again Is Now.

God bless you,

Shae