So I am willing to endure anything if it will bring salvation and eternal glory in Christ Jesus to those God has chosen. (New Living Translation) - 2 Timothy 2:10

Anyone who is familiar with the life of the Apostle Paul knows that these were not idle "pretty" words. He meant them and he proved it by giving his life for the sake of the Gospel.

He didn't have to go to Rome, you know. He could have been set free in Jerusalem but he appealed to stand before Caesar. As a Roman citizen he had the right to be heard by Caesar and he invoked that right because that was what he believed God wanted him to do. Appear before Caesar and give his testimony.

The Apostle Paul was a man who passionately acted upon what he believed, first as a persecutor of Christians and then as a Christian who penned 13 out of 27 books of the New Testament and worked tirelessly to spread the Gospel amongst the Gentiles.

I do not believe that his victims prior to his conversion were ever far from his mind. He had been wrong and he knew it. At the very least, he was willing to suffer what they had endured... so that others could come to know Christ.

We cry and cry for deliverance from our circumstances but what if... what if God is calling us to endure so that others may come to know Christ? Do we ever consider that we must endure this in order for something far greater to take place?

Trust in the Lord and yet always remember that while sometimes God will open the "prison doors" and deliver us in "Jerusalem"... sometimes He requires us to go to "Rome" and face "imprisonment" and "suffering" until our deaths. Regardless of where God leads you, always remember; He is with you... no matter what!

Blessings!

K