Faithful Unto Death

...Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. - Revelation 2:10

I've been wrestling through a look at what a human heart goes through in the midst of suffering and it's left me asking the Lord to strengthen my love and faith. I need the Holy Spirit's help to embrace His leadership even if it were to lead me to walk through tremendous suffering and sacrifice.

I cannot recommend the book "Perpetua" highly enough. To be honest, I’m not one to read novels often, but after a few strong nudges, I gave it a chance.  What ensued was a journey for my heart that surprised me and provoked me to deeper hunger for Jesus... I was captivated.  Nearly every chapter of this novel has brought me to my knees in prayer before the Lord; asking for His help, for His grace, for the refining of my heart, and for an increase in love for Him.  "Perpetua" is based on the true story of a Christian woman who was martyred for her faith around 202 AD.  The last several chapters of the book are filled with content from the real-life journals that this courageous young noblewoman wrote while being held in a Roman-ruled Tunisian prison awaiting her trial and execution before a crowd in an arena with wild beasts and all.     

For the past several weeks I’ve been facilitating a book club for women to journey through this heart-gripping novel together.  I’ve marveled each week as the Lord has helped us to share openly with one another, brought us to tears, and drawn us to Him in prayer.  We’ve all been stirred by the way Perpetua lived in constant awareness of the presence of Jesus and learned to cultivate ongoing communication with Him.  It was this strong relationship with Jesus that helped Perpetua to remain faithful to Him without fear of persecution or of a martyr’s death.  

Lord, grow this kind of inner reality within me...