Nik Ripken has encountered followers of Jesus Christ all over the world, from the mountains of Kentucky to the heart of the Somali war. He experienced the reality of suffering in his own family and in war situations, and faced the destruction of everything he felt called to do, to the point of sometimes feeling overwhelmed by evil. How can God be said to be good in the midst of such darkness? How can we say that Christ is victorious when close friends die as martyrs? Does Christ really have all authority when circumstances say otherwise?
From a crumbling Somalia the Ripkens traveled to more than 60 countries to hear the stories of more than 600 men and women who learned to be strong and ready enough to walk with Jesus in an environment of persecution. These believers testify, alongside all those in the Bible, that they do not regret having remained attached to Jesus, even at the cost of their lives, that of their spouse, that of their children.
How can faith survive, let alone grow, in places of life that are drowning in sin and despair? Readers of this book, alongside the author, will listen to persecuted believers and learn from them “how to follow Jesus, how to love him and how to walk with him day by day.” Some will think that it is better to live like the world than to do the absurd things that Jesus sometimes asks us to do. But are we happier in our present situation than those who walk the wildest paths of darkness? What should we conclude from this? These are the questions this book addresses.
ISBN: 9782755002188