Angel Face

PASSAGE OF THE DAY:
Acts 6 (click the link)


KEY VERSE:
All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel. (Acts 6:15, NIV)


REFLECTIONS:
When I was 17 I went on a summer mission trip to Panama with a group of teenagers (including my brother Alex).  We were with a group called Teen Missions International.  We went to a small island on the east side of the country in the San Blas Island chain, an island called Aligandi which was inhabited by the Kuna Indians.

While I was there, I had a dream.  Which in itself is rare, but the fact that I remember it so clearly is even more significant.

In my dream it was a dark, rainy night.  I was in a cabin, in the middle of nowhere, with a small group of Christians.  We were planning how to save all the other Christians.  See, it was the end times.  And Christians were being persecuted everywhere, but somehow we had evaded persecution so far.

All of a sudden, a WWII German car pulled up outside and German soldiers got out and stormed into the cabin.

They ordered us down on our knees in a line, and one by one shot us each in the head.  I believe I was like number 3 in line, and woke up as the guy next to me got shot.  That was the end of my dream.

When I woke, my heart was pounding.  I could see out the window of the small church basement where we were staying that the sun was starting to rise.  It was maybe like 5:30 or 6:00 in the morning.  Everyone else was still sleeping.  I decided that I’d better get up—I’d had enough of sleeping.  I got dressed quietly so as not to wake the other girls, and went outside.

Our backyard was a courtyard, surrounded by a concrete wall.  And on the other side of the wall was ocean.  Miles and miles of ocean.  The waves literally lapped the opposite side of the wall.  If it weren’t for the outhouse which hung out over the ocean just 20 feet down the wall, it might have been paradise.  It was pretty close, anyway.  I walked out the back door of the church to go and sit on the wall to pray and calm myself, and saw that my little brother Alex was already awake and sitting on the wall!  I was able to immediately share my experience with him.  It was such a God moment.

Anyway, I share all that not because I think that is my fate.  I didn’t see it as a future look from God.  But I did see it as a very significant experience in my life.  It made me question if I would willingly put myself in a position of potential persecution, as Stephen did.  Is my devotion to God strong enough that I will stand up for Him when “that” moment comes?  And if so, will I stand with a “face like an angel” as Stephen did?  Or will I be fighting for my honor, standing up to those who blatantly lie about me so as to save my own reputation?  Will I openly preach the gospel and the good news of Christ to anyone at any time?

Honestly I don’t have an answer.  Let’s face it, we won’t actually know until we get put in a position like that.  But my prayer is always, “Lord, give me the strength to stand for You, no matter what.”  My dream, even 15 years later, is still as clear in my memory as if I dreamt it last night.  And it often comes to mind.  I like to think that it keeps me in an “eternal” state of mind, rather than a worldly one.  The reality is, I am often thinking in worldly terms instead.  But I try to think differently.

As our world stands right now, it seems so unlikely that most of us will have to face death and persecution, doesn’t it?  We are American. The most powerful country in the world (for now).  The wealthiest (or so they say).  We are free (right?).  I’m not trying to be the voice of doom, but what if that changes?  What if our world turns upside-down?  It could happen.  And, if it does, I want to be ready.

Remember how different the world felt after 9/11?  Maybe it wasn’t felt as strongly here in Texas; but in the Northeast it was a marked difference.  I lived near Boston at the time and we definitely didn’t feel as safe as we had on 9/10.  Personally I think that is just a glimpse of how “turning upside-down” might feel if and when it happens.

Even if our world doesn’t turn upside-down we all still face persecution every day in little (and sometimes not so little) ways.

When I was in high school I was the only Christian amongst my friends.  They all knew what I believed, it was no secret.  One of the boys in my group would always put his hands together as if he were praying when he would say my name.  It never bothered me.  I actually saw it as a compliment and, although he liked to tease me, I knew even at the time that his mocking was his way of showing his respect.  Sort of like the little boy who pulls the hair of the little girl he likes on the playground.  But he was mocking me nonetheless.  I always just ignored it.  And, I don’t think it would have been wrong for me to confront him either, I just never did.

So where do you have persecutions in your life?  And what do you do with them?  Do you lash out or try to correct them?  Do you gently redirect?  Do you turn the other cheek?  Do you “look like an angel” in the face of persecution?  Personally I think any of those can be the correct response depending on the situation, as long as God is in the middle of it.


POINT OF ACTION:
Ask God to show you how to respond in the face of persecution, either day to day, or what is to come in the future.  Ask God to use you to better a situation for His ministry and Kingdom.  He will give you the words to say and the actions to show when you need them.


WHO AM I?

Hey! I am Kate Sansom.  I am a Mainer by birth but an Honorary Texan (or at least that’s what the t-shirt my brother gave me says... so I like to think it’s true). I love that my husband, Tres, and I are an “old married couple” in the sense that we like to sit outside in our driveway and talk.  But we are a “young” old married couple, since our second wedding anniversary is just a few weeks away!

Separately, I want to put in a plug for the movie “ExtremelyLoud and Incredibly Close” since my brother, Alexander Libby, was the Director’s Assistant and basically helped produce it!