In the months since the 2020 election, there has been unease among the body of Christ; Christians have wondered how the results of a contested and vicious election would affect our ability to worship and to share the truth of the gospel message.
We have contemplated what laws would change and how public policy could impact the freedom of religion in America.
As I have been praying through these very issues, I heard the voice of the Holy Spirit speak to me with an encouraging reminder, "Carol, your role as a believer in Jesus Christ in the year 2021 is the same as the role of a believer at any moment in history."
Then, I felt that the Holy Spirit led me on a journey through time as we investigated and contemplated how Christians survived during turbulent and fractious years in history.
In the first century A.D., the emperor Nero horribly and unfairly persecuted Christians. Professing believers in Christ were torn apart by dogs or burned alive as human torches. During this time in early church history, men such as Paul, Peter and James continued to preach the gospel and write letters to the scattered and tormented church. The church grew and flourished; Christians sang and worshipped the Lord on their way to their deaths.
We can and will do the same in the 21st century.
During the Middle Ages, Christians were exiled, persecuted and tortured. If a person refused to renounce Christ during this era, their hands may have been burned, their feet cut off or they may have been beheaded. And yet, even during these dark times, the gospel continued to be preached and converts continued to choose Christ.
We will continue to preach and we will continue to choose Christ in the 21st century.
During the Civil War, Christians assisted slaves and put them on the "Underground Railroad," which took them to freedom and to safety. During World War II, undaunted Christians hid Jews in their own homes risking their lives and the lives of their families.
We will continue to stand up for those who have been hated and mistreated. We will fight for freedom and for dignity for all races and for all people.
Missionaries have taken the message of Christ to dark continents never to return home again. They have been buried alive, assassinated by the spear and have been paraded naked while being mocked.
We will not cower in fear, and we will not be ashamed, but we will courageously tell the world about the saving grace of Christ.
As Christians of the 21st century, we must embrace a "no matter what" attitude toward all that is happening in the world around us.
— No matter what ... I will serve Christ.
— No matter what ... I will praise the Lord.
— No matter what ... I will tell others about Christ.
— No matter what ... I will be kind.
—No matter what ... I will speak up for those who are unable to speak up for themselves.
No matter what. 
Carol McLeod is an author and popular speaker at women's conferences and retreats, where she teaches the Word of God with great joy and enthusiasm. Carol encourages and empowers women with passionate and practical biblical messages mixed with her own special brand of hope and humor. Carol has written 11 books, including Significant, StormProof and Guide Your Mind, Guard Your Heart, Grace Your Tongue. Her teaching DVD, The Rooms of a Woman's Heart won the Telly Award, a prestigious industry award for excellence in religious programming.'
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