February 2023 Persecution Magazine

Front Lines of Ministry
A HEART RESTORED
My tears fell freely that day. I wasn’t
ashamed, and neither was Mrs. Mukhtar.
Before I left, she took my hand in both
of her own and looked at me with her
tear-filled eyes. I will never forget the
expression on her face or the tone in her
voice when she looked up into my eyes
and thanked me.
What was she thanking me for? I knew it
was more than the money.
I wish I could capture that moment in
time. I wish you could see her eyes. Full of
sorrow but coupled with gratitude after we
cried, prayed, and cried together.
My job is simultaneously thrilling,
exhausting, and rewarding. I’ve heard
and seen too many accounts of horrific
atrocities committed against Christians,
many of which are accompanied by
graphic photos and videos. When I sit
in my D.C. office, reading a report from
halfway around the world, I don’t always
feel the pain of my brothers and sisters.
But, when I’m sitting face to face with a
victim or when my hand is on their heaving
shoulder, I feel their pain.
When I meet with the persecuted, I become
acquainted with their suffering. I consider
the effect on my heart to be a great benefit.
In the west, there is a superficial quality to
life as we strive for wealth and continual
ease and comfort. This phenomenon is
consistent with our human nature, but it
has a decidedly negative effect on us. We
face a constant pull toward narcissism and
self-absorption.
Carrying the pain of our persecuted
brothers and sisters may be a burden, but
it is a restorative burden. I believe that it is
the cure for the frivolousness endemic to
Western life.
The pain of the persecuted needs to
become our pain. The Lord addresses this
repeatedly in the New Testament when He
refers to the Church universal as “the body
of Christ.”
On the day I met Mrs. Mukhtar, her sorrow
became my sorrow and still is. I left my
meeting with Mrs. Mukhtar knowing that
her heart had an exceedingly long desert
to walk through. I also knew she wouldn’t
be walking through that desert alone.
On that day, one exhausted and calloused
heart was softened and restored.
In short, the persecuted were changing
me. While I was paid to minister to
them, I found them discipling me in what
Christianity could or should be. They were
bringing life to my heart and leading me up
the mountain path of my spiritual journey.
I couldn’t see the path ahead, let
alone an endpoint
since the mist around
the mountain was
thick, and hid the
way.
So, I kept watching
and listening to
the persecuted
and the martyrs,
as I followed
the master’s
footsteps – one
step at a time.
“How could
they murder
him? All he
did was
love people.
He loved
the Muslim
people...
How am
I going to
live without
him? What if
they kill my
son, too?”
- MRS. MUKHTAR
READ MORE
Grab your copy of Jeff’s
new and revised book at:
www.jeffkingblog.com or
scan the QR code below.
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