Open doors

A plea for the persecuted

“Perhaps the question should not be: ‘Why are others persecuted?’ Perhaps the better question is: ‘Why are we not?’”

With this question, speaker Nik Ripken captured the attention of hundreds of Liberty students gathered in the LaHaye Event Space Monday night, Sep. 15 for a persecuted church symposium and night of prayer.

The event, hosted by Liberty University’s Center for Global Engagement (CGE), featured Ripken, the author of “The Insanity of God” and “The Insanity of Obedience,” and his wife Ruth, along with Open Doors, an organization devoted to aiding persecuted churches.

The Ripkens, who have served overseas for 30 years, are no strangers to persecution. Working in Eastern and Southern Africa, the Ripkens made it their life ministry to labor in countries predominantly defined by persecution of those with faith in Jesus Christ.

After witnessing the executions of several Muslim converts and experiencing the death of their own 16-year-old son, the Ripkens embarked on a global pilgrimage to find believers in persecution and to capture the story of church planting within environments of persecution and martyrdom.

Nik Ripken shared stories of his approximate 600 interviews with believers living in environments of persecution in 72 counrtries. One such story narrated a Russian pastor’s 17-year imprisonment and his church’s subsequent prayer and support.

“That is the body of Christ,” Nik Ripken said, commenting on the Russian church that not only survived persecution but thrived in it.

As students were dismissed to pray for fellow Christians, Ripken was intentional in asking that students not pray for an end to persecution for believers abroad, but rather that they pray for strength in persecution.

The symposium transitioned into a time of prayer, with attendees sitting alone or splitting into groups. Students were encouraged to use scripture as they prayed for overseas churches and Christians.

In an effort to aid students in their prayer and understanding of persecution, CGE lined the event space with posters, each featuring the face of a persecuted Christian in countries such as Nigeria and Uzbekistan. The posters contained information about the Christians’ plight and listed prayer points for students to specifically keep in mind while praying.

One poster was dedicated to Samson, an imprisoned pastor from West Africa. The poster asked readers to pray for Samson’s faith, his family and his students, but, as an echo to what Ripken had previously instructed, not for his release or freedom from persecution.

A series of closed doors, each tightly bound with chains and representing a different persecuted country, lined the front of the room. A sign instructed students to “Pray for open doors.” Students gathered around the display, their heads lowered.

Kate Yates, a representative for Open Doors, expressed her desire to see Liberty University become part of a chain of united “Open Doors Campuses,” with all of them supporting overseas churches and missionaries with prayer, as well as sending their own volunteers to do work abroad.

“We want to make this whole place an altar before God,” Yates said.

Prayerful students exited the room somberly, with the words of Ripken still ringing in their ears: “This can be another event, or this can be a movement that can impact the world.”

FULLER is the graduate assistant
Research contributed by BENJAMIN LIN