"About five weeks ago a twenty-seven year old pregnant woman was sentenced to death by a Sudanese court for refusing to recant her Christian faith. The court also convicted her of adultery and sentenced her to one hundred lashes because her marriage to a Christian man is considered void under sharia law. Meriam Yaha Ibrahim Ishag, who was brought up as a Christian by her mother after her Muslim father had left the home, told the court:
‘I am a Christian and I will remain a Christian.’
She has since given birth to a baby girl and is allowed to care for her for two years before the sentence is implemented. Meriam’s husband is in a wheelchair and is dependent on her. He says that all he can do is pray. Although there has been an international outcry over the situation, Meriam remains shackled in prison along with her new baby and her twenty-one month old son (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-27646747).
This brave Christian couple are showing extraordinary loyalty to God and to one another in the face of the kind of threat that we read the early Christians faced for their faith in Jesus Christ.
Loyalty is a combination of love and faithfulness. It is a quality often lacking in our society today. Disloyalty destroys families, churches, businesses, political parties and even nations. Each of the passages today says something about this quality of loyalty.
Proverbs 14:15-24
Loyalty to God in our plans
The book of Proverbs is full of practical wisdom. It encourages us, for example, to be discerning about what we believe: ‘The gullible believe anything they’re told; the prudent sift and weigh every word’ (v.15, MSG). Ultimately wisdom is about how we relate to God: ‘The wise fear the Lord and shun evil’ (v.16).
‘Fear of the Lord’ is an attitude of healthy respect and loyalty. It means involving him in all our plans. We need to be very careful about the plans we make – that they are for good and not for evil. Eventually, even ‘the wicked will respect God-loyal people’ (v.19, MSG).
‘But those who plan what is good find love and faithfulness’ (v.22b). The word for ‘find’ is sometimes translated ‘show’. Both are true. Those who plan what is good not only find love and faithfulness, they show love and faithfulness as well. This is at the heart of loyalty – to show love and faithfulness. This is contrasted with those who selfishly plot evil and go astray.
Lord, help me to be wise and God-loyal in my plans. Show me good plans and more ways to be kind to the needy. May we, as a community of God-loyal people, plan what is good and find love and faithfulness."
1. Thank You for this great example of loyalty. May I display the same kind when faced with trials.
2. Thank You for a patient, lovely, and appreciative sign language teacher.
3. New experiences arise daily. Thank You, Lord, for a very dynamic life. And a rainy, soaky night so I can finally wash my shoes after a really long time. :D
