The Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trial, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgement.
2 Peter 2:9 (NRSV)
Christian Farmer (2002)
Unremembered Martyr
A Christian farmer, who had recently returned to his home in Kayamanya, near Poso in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, was murdered in July 2002 when he went to tend his plantations. His wife had died the previous year when the family was living in a refugee camp. They left behind five children.
This farmer was one of many often-unremembered Christians who lost their lives during the turmoil in Central Sulawesi. The Poso district in particular had been the scene of much anti-Christian violence since 1998. The district where this farmer lived exploded into sectarian violence at the end of 2001, when organisations such as Laskar Jihad, an Islamist terrorist group, began to send militants to the area from all over Indonesia. Their activities, which involved destroying numerous Christian villages, killed many thousands and created around 50,000 refugees.
O Lord, we beseech you to deliver us from the fear of the unknown future, from fear of failure, from fear of poverty, from fear of sickness and pain, from fear of age and from fear of death. Help us, O Father, by your grace to love and fear you only. Fill our hearts with cheerful courage and loving trust in you; through our Lord and Master Jesus Christ.
Akanu Ibaim (1906-1995)