Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Disciples and the World “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. — Matthew 5

But the high priest rose up, along with all his associates (that is the sect of the Sadducees), and they were filled with jealousy. They laid hands on the apostles and put them in a public jail. But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the gates of the prison, and taking them out he said, “Go, stand and speak to the people in the temple the whole message of this Life.” Upon hearing this, they entered into the temple about daybreak and began to teach…

When they had brought them, they stood them before the Council. The high priest questioned them, saying, “We gave you strict orders not to continue teaching in this name, and yet, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.” But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you had put to death by hanging Him on a cross. He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him.” — Acts 5

A lot of people have spent a fair amount of time in jail for doing things they shouldn’t have. A lot of people have spent a lot of time in jail for standing up for their moral place and religious convictions. There are many Christians in Muslim countries who has spent years in jail for just being a Christian or just chatting about their faith in Christ.

As I said yesterday, it’s time that people truly believe in Christ stand up for the principles and the religious convictions they have regarding the evil going on our schools, in our governmental organizations, and even in some of our churches.

It’s time to become informed and put our money where our mouth is. Orphan’s Promise is an excellent ministry that I’ve become involved in and supports Christian education and children’s care in countries where limited to living orphanages after their parents have passed away or been killed by oppressive governments.

CBN’s Operation Blessing will be on the streets of Florida helping people who have been left homeless by the storm recently. They are an excellent service to our world, bringing Mercy in Christ’s name.

The website Charity Navigator is a good place to check to see what the nonprofits that are making great progress in our world spend on overhead and spend on their projects. If you go to church (and you should) your church or denomination may have excellent outreaches to your community, spreading the gospel and the truth of a higher moral principle to people who desperately need it. There is rarely anything like a moral compass in the typical member of our society, and that moral compass comes from learning from Christians and from God’s Word what is expected of the righteous people in this world.

These are perilous times indeed, but we have experienced worse times in our history as a country and a world. When people pray and put their hand to the plow to see things changed miracles can happen in us and around us.