Waking Up Christian

Every Christian in the world wakes up every morning as an alien and stranger whose true citizenship is in heaven (Philippians 3:20). Every day we wake up, we know that our first loyalty is to our God (Acts 5:29), who holds us responsible to submit to our governing authorities (Romans 13:1).

Spend some time reading and meditating on these verses.

Now, think about all the places in the world where Christians wake up. Think about all the places through church history where Christians have faced a day. What kind of struggles did they encounter that you and I, as Americans, will never face?

It’s our sobering historic reality. Though there is a lot wrong with the United States, many priorities and trends we would like to change, there has never been a better place to wake up as a Christian than the United States of America.

The government has never persecuted Christians for our faith.

The government has never limited Christian freedoms to practice our faith.

Still not convinced? Try waking up in another place!

Checkpoint Charlie

When I was a young Army officer, I had the opportunity to visit Berlin during the height of the Cold War. I will never forget passing through “Checkpoint Charlie” into East Berlin. West Berlin looked like Los Angeles. East Berlin still looked like a World War II combat zone. More than that, you could feel the fear of the people.

It occurred to me then how fortunate it was for the people born in the west. But their fortune was more than mere geography.

Since God forms us in the womb, He also determines where we are born. The blessing of those born west of the wall was obvious.

How about you and me? Has there ever been a more blessed generation of Christians than us?

Answer? No!

Fourth of July Praises

Fourth of July weekend is a great time to stop concentrating on all that is wrong with America and start thanking God for all that it means to wake up to serve Him here!

When was the last time you fell to your knees to thank God for His goodness to you in making you an American?

Ed Underwood
COD Missionary