That night the Lord stood near him and said, “Keep up your courage! For just as you have testified for me in Jerusalem, so you must bear witness also in Rome.”
(Acts 23.11 NRSV)
There is a small town in Europe which hid Jewish people from the Nazis during World War II. Philip Haille, an investigative reporter, went to this town to see what kind of people would risk everything to do such an extraordinary good thing. He interviewed people in the town and was overwhelmed by how ordinary the people were. They weren't the heroic type, nor were they especially intellectual or politically enlightened.

He did learn one thing from his interviews: the people of this town regularly attended Church on Sunday. Week after week, their pastor proclaimed the Word of God. They prayed and read the Bible together. Over time, by habit, they knew what was right and sought to do it. When the time came for them to be courageous, the day when the Nazis came to town hunting for Jews, they quietly did what was right.

One elderly woman faked a heart attack when the Nazis came to search her house where she had a family of Jews hiding in her basement. She said later, "The pastor always taught us that there comes a time in every life when a person is asked to do something for Jesus. And when our time came, we knew what to do."

What a witness!

Dear Jesus, may I be your witness today. Amen.

Ron Newhouse

Help Promote Devotions.Net | Past Devotions
| Home | Bible | Devotions | Humor | Visitors | Links |