Happy Eleventh Day of Christmas!! Today, we remember the Elizabeth, an American who is the patron saint of the rejected, the persecuted, the orphaned, and the widowed. It seems odd to pair a remembrance of the persecuted with the theme of rejoicing, but when we study the early church's response to persecution, the theme of rejoicing makes more sense. The disciples were threatened (in Acts 4) and their response was to pray for boldness in spreading the Gospel. They didn't pray for safety or for persecution to end. The apostles were flogged (in Acts 5) and left rejoicing that they could suffer disgrace for Jesus' name. Jesus, Himself, called the persecuted "blessed" (when they were persecuted for righteousness and not just being jerks to people) and told His disciples to rejoice and be glad when they were persecuted for being associated with Jesus (in Matthew 5).
How do you react in the face of persecution?
What do you rejoice about?
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