Showdown
Theme of the Week: The Righteous Warrior
Friday, February 22, 2008
 1 of 1
Key Bible Verse: The Son of God came to destroy these works of the Devil 1 John 3:8. Bonus Reading: Ephesians 6:19-20
Five gringos approached the Chiapas, Mexico, maximum-security prison to encourage 80 wrongfully incarcerated brothers. Ten years earlier, local mob bosses, angered by the Christians' refusal to pay for pagan rituals, had had them framed and convicted.
Guards searched us and inspected our gifts: toothbrushes, soap, and toilet paper. Steel doors were unlocked and relocked as we were escorted inside and told to wait. A half hour later, a warden's assistant announced we could only visit ten inmates at a time. Time constraints, we realized, would prevent us from visiting half the men. This was spiritual warfare!
We fired back that we represented these prisoners' families, demanded to visit all 80 together, and insisted on seeing her boss. She disappeared; we prayed. Ten minutes later, the warden appeared. He was new, it turned out, and unaware of these men's histories. We filled him in. "I'm an evangelical too," he replied. "Come to the main courtyard. All the prisoners may meet with you!"
Keys clanked, doors slammed, men in orange jumpsuits emerged, weeping and hugging us. A throng of curious prisoners hung on every word as Alan, Hector, and I spoke, reminding these Word-starved brothers that nothing can separate them from Christ's love.
—Kenny Luck in Dream
My Response: I'll stand up for the gospel or justice by …
Thought to Apply: When good people cease their vigilance and struggle, then evil men prevail.—Pearl Buck
Adapted from Dream (WaterBrook, 2007) by permission.
Copyright © 2008 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.Click here for reprint information on Men of Integrity. 1 of 1
Give me the courage, Lord, to take a bold stand for truth and justice, even when it's risky.
Men of Integrity
Connect with God | Transform my Mind | Live by His Power
Relate Better | Make an Impact
Home | Archives | Contact Us
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Try an Issue of Men of Integrity
Free!
|
 |
|
No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. Click here for International orders.
If you decide you want to keep Men of Integrity coming, honor your invoice for just $19.95 and receive five more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The trial issue is yours to keep, regardless.
Give Men of Integrity as a gift
Buy 1 gift subscription, get 1 FREE!
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 |
| |
|
