If only I'd learned more Bible!!

Just finished reading the book "The Pastor's Wife" by Sabina Wurmbrand who along with her husband founded the nationally acclaimed religious organization, "Voice of the Martyrs." The book, "The Pastor's Wife," tells how Sabina, despite losing her husband to prison for 14 years, and despite being constantly hunted and stalked by Secret Police for her underground church work, and despite spending three years of her own in different prison labor camps (where she had to suffer wild conditions, extreme mental and physical torture, and cruelty, she had to scrounge for food, eating like animals, being treated worse, and sometimes thinking she was about to be killed)… despite all this, she managed to keep her faith and bring others to a deeper walk with Christ. The book is so inspiring and challenging, and I think it gives us a picture for some of what we may experience in the coming days when we again loose our religious freedom. But it's encouraging, because if others survived by RAW FAITH, so can we!! 

Something really stood out to me in this story though, and that's when she shared how having FAITH made such a  difference in the prison camps…and how she just wish she'd learned more in the Bible before she was taken captive.  

Heres some of her testimony:

After spending months in the labor camps, those of us who had faith realized for the first time how rich we were. The youngest Christians and the weakest had more resources to call on than the wealthiest old ladies and the most brilliant intellectuals. It was so sad to watch, but the "upper class" women were often the most pitiful in the prison labor camps. Life was harder for them than for anyone. They’d lost the most, in the material sense; and they had the fewest inner resources to fill the gap. A rubble of old games of bridge, hats, fancy clothes, hotels, luxurious dining, cinema, lost weekends and lovers rattled about in their heads like junk in the back seat of a car. Their nerves gave way first, as did their soft white hands…

After long hours of grueling work, many of the women came to us "religious prisoners" and asked, begged even, to be told something of what we remembered from the Bible. The words we shared from God's Word gave hope, comfort, life.

Of course, we had no Bible. We ourselves hungered for it more than bread. How I wished I‘d learned more of it by heart while still in freedom! But the passages we did know we repeated daily and at night, when we held vigils for prayer. Other Christians like me, had deliberately committed long passages to memory, knowing that soon their turn would come for arrest. So they brought precious riches to prison with them that could not be stolen. While others quarreled and fought, we lay on our mattresses and used the Bible for prayer and meditation, and repeated its verses to ourselves through the long dark nights. We learned what verses new comers brought and taught them what we knew. In this way an unwritten Bible circulated though all of Romania’s prisons.

In the Bible in Daniel 12:1, we are told of what will come at the end of time:

"And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book."

Because of what God has told us, we know a time of great trouble is coming, however, I'm thankful for the promise that "every one that shall be found written in the book, His book, will be delivered." But how can we hope to have our names written in His book of life when we don't pay attention to His book of Life, the BIBLE, here???

I don't know what lies ahead in the future, and I can't think too much about it, or I would get scared. But God promises to go with us and strengthen us. And I know He will, just like He did Sabina, and so many others. However, let us prepare ourselves even now, even TODAY. Let us lay up the WORD of GOD in our hearts even now, so that someday, if we are carried away for our faith, we will have a treasure in our hearts that will help carry us, and that no one can ever take away!!!!

This may not seem like "Morning Sonshine" right now… but trust me, it will be in some dark day in the future. Let's not waste any more time, but ask God to help us prepare!!!!

Review:

• Bible Thought: Let us have no regrets when the final day of Trouble arrives. Let us prepare now by laying up His Word in our hearts!
• Blessing: We've been given so many resources, so much freedom. I'm so thankful, but unfortunately our freedom has put us to sleep as a people. (In America especially, we are lethargically out of it, with no idea what the enemy has done while we've been out enjoying peace and prosperity!)
• Battles: Even now, the Communism that destroyed much of Europe during the early 20th century when Hitler and Stalin reigned, is still seeking to destroy even our world today!!!! (If you don't believe me, watch "The Agenda" a modern day documentary - and it's not a conspiracy story - about what is happening to America right now! It's fascinating!!!! And it's just another in-depth look at the "Great Controversy" that we are in the midst of between light and darkness.) By the way, there's no reason to freak out or fear. The best way we can fight back against this evil plan that is still trying to take over the world is to learn the Word of God, stand upon the Word of God, and teach the Word of God to others. Because this is the one aim of the still current Communist plan… and that is to "dethrone God, and destroy confidence in the Word of God." That's from the lips of the leader himself! Heaven help us!

Note: To learn more about Sabina and Richard Wurmbrand's powerful story, please view this website.