UPDATE: watch this first– it explains what is going on…
I am a white, American middle class male. I trust in the Lord God and follow His way, believing He will triumph in the end. In many ways I and my family are so very different from the oppressed and slaughtered in Iran today. Nevertheless… you must read this. I had to stop 1/2 way through and just sob with my head in my hands. These people simply want freedom– to laugh, to find a job, to take a trip or read a book. To vote for leaders who take care of them, instead of sending thugs in the night to smash their cars, computers and homes, or to knife or shoot them in cold blood on the street.
I disagree with and firmly reject Islam. In fact, I believe that at it’s core it is a religion of dictatorial violence and death, and it forms the foundation for the horrors we read about every day on the streets of Tehran. Yet, I cannot stop admiring and praying so hard for the safety and welfare of these courageous people. In our American revolution, though our armies were vastly outnumbered, we did have guns and the ability to organize. Iranians don’t have that; the women on the street have only the green headband, an eye of steel and the willingness to get beaten or die for what they believe in. Many of those attacking them aren’t even Iranians, but imported thugs from Hezbollah. I have read that members of the police, the army and even the Revolutionary Guards are being arrested because they refused to slaughter their own people in this heinous way. So far, there are not enough. The greatest test will be tomorrow, Jun. 20, when the first mass rally specifically forbidden by the supreme leader of the mullahs takes place. I am anxious about this; there may be a horrible catastrophe.
If you pray, pray for courage and safety for all those in Iran who want their votes to mean something, and are willing to die to get it. Pray especially for God’s people; I have also read of a great spiritual harvest going on right now, because many are so hungry for hope and salvation. Lastly, start wearing something green– a piece of cloth, an armband, something– and explain to those who ask that you are remembering the oppressed and dying who yearn for freedom in Iran.