Standing up for our Faith

Recently I got on this "ancestry" kick where I have been researching both sides of the family.  It is amazing what I am finding and there is so much more to discover.  The one person that I knew was a notable ancestor was William Brewster, of the Mayflower.  Growing up, we would listen to my grandmother talk about how our family can trace its roots straight back to 1620 and the landing on Plymouth Rock.  I remember sitting there just entranced as I took it in that he was someone I was related to and learned about in school.  How many First Graders can stand up in their class to give a report on their ancestor during Thanksgiving?  But as I became older and life got in the way, the memory was put on the back burner.  We always knew about it but it was just history.  Since I started this genealogy search, originally to help my in laws find their side of the family tree, I have been blown away by my side of the tree.  William Brewster was an amazing man.  He worked for the Archbishop of York as a bailiff and was in charge of all the daily things that the Archbishop had to do during the day.  But what I didn't know until recently was that behind that facade, he was a strong believer in something more than what the Church of England was offering.  He was a "religious rebel" I guess you could say.  He was incarcerated for his beliefs and had a family during this time.  His beliefs in the fact that Jesus Christ is our Savior and we should be able to worship the way we want caused many upheavals I am sure in his family life.  How hard it must have been for his wife Mary to go through this and see that her husband was a wanted man.  Of course, we all know the story of the Mayflower making it to Massachusetts in 1620.

The amazing part of this story is I can see his complete and utter faith in the Lord.  He was so led by faith that all the things that happened to him, he let it happen because he knew God was in control.  No king, queen, archbishop or the like would make him falter when it came to his faith.  He literally put his life and his family's life into the Lord's hands.  That complete faith and trust my ancestor had is the kind of faith and trust that I hope to have in life's difficulties and in life's praises.  We think that we have horrible things happening to us now for God's sake.  Persecution by friends, family members that tell us to go leap off a bridge before telling them your testimony, the world telling us that we are horrible people because we don't "include" everyone and Satan telling us that we are bad.  Persecution is hard for a Christian.  But imagine having the sort of persecution that would land you in jail because of your solid beliefs in the Lord Jesus Christ.  I couldn't imagine not being able to go to church on Sunday mornings and worshipping my Lord and Savior freely but there are those in this world who could be killed for doing that very same thing.  I just ask that we have the faith and the trust in Him enough to get us through our Christian lives.  It may not be easy but we also need to be in prayer for those who don't have the same opportunities we take for granted everyday in our country.  I hope and pray that we will be allowed to worship the way we do in our country for a long time and that our children are allowed to but it is up to us to stand up and make sure that that right is not taken away, just like William Brewster.  He believed in something so powerful and life changing that he threw away his comfortable life in another country to bring freedom to those in his inner circle and ultimately in our nation.  I want to have a faith like him.  I am so thankful for the things I am learning about my brave ancestor and one day would love to embrace him in heaven.  God bless and have a wonderful weekend in Him.