S: 1 Peter 1:3-9 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
O: Today, 28 April 2012, as I write this, tens of thousands of our brothers and sisters in Christ join tens of thousands of other fellow Malaysians at the BERSIH 3.0 pro-democracy rally to stand up for democracy in the face of our government's repression. They face the possibility of tear gas, water canons, injury, imprisonment, and even, perhaps, death, because they believe in the rightness of their cause. I am not physically with them because I have the responsibility to lead worship at the Saturday afternoon service at church today, but I am with them in spirit and in prayer.
But even greater a calling and a cause than to fight for democracy, anti-corruption, and justice in Malaysia, is our calling to be the hands and feet of God for the cause of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Millions of our brothers and sisters in Christ have laid their lives on the line since St. Stephen was martyred by Saul of Tarsus' mob as detailed in Acts 7. Many have been brought to Christ as a result of their sacrifices, even as the murderous persecutor Saul of Tarsus eventually became St. Paul the Apostle and himself eventually died for the faith.
A: Not only do we need to be willing to die for Christ physically, we also need to daily take up our cross, die to self, and live for Him. Sometimes that's harder to do, because for me to live is Christ, and to die is gain (Philippians 1:21), while to live for Christ, we have to daily discipline ourselves follow to Christ (1 Corinthians 9:27).
P: Father, I lift up the tens of thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators at BERSIH 3.0 today, and I pray for your protection for them. I pray that undemocratic actions will be thwarted at the upcoming general elections, and that politicians who seek to pervert justice and enrich themselves will be stopped, and that men and women who are willing to uphold truth and justice will be raised up in their place.
For myself, I pray that I will be faithful to Your calling, and that I will both live for you and be a good witness of Your love to those around me, and that if I'm called to die for You, I will go boldly and with full trust in You. In Jesus' name, amen.
Note: this is using the SOAP method. For more information, see this page (not written by me.)
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