In the Presence of My Enemies

Last night I finally finished "In the Presence of My Enemies" by Gracia Burnham.

This book is the incredible story of Gracia and her husband, Martin who were serving as missionaries in the Philippines. On their anniversary, they went to stay at a resort in another area of the Philippines and were kidnapped. They were held hostage by the Abu Sayyaf for over a year. The book tells of their trials, joys, and interactions with radical Islam while held hostage. They suffered physically and spiritually. After over a year, the Philippine army finally caught up with this terrorist group and Martin was killed in the attempt to rescue the hostages. Gracia was the only one of the remaining hostages to make it out alive. Their story is captured in this book and it does a wonderful job of showing their spiritual struggles with God, but also how they continued to remind one another that God is indeed faithful. Gracia was reunited with her children after over a year and they are back in Kansas.

One of the most memorable passages was this:
We sat in the hammock a minute. Martin was in a reflective mood. He said, "I really don't know why this has happened to us. I've been thinking a lot lately about Psalm 100--what it says about serving the Lord with gladness. This may not seem much like serving the Lord, but that's what we're doing, you know? we may not leave this jungle alive, but we can leave this world serving the Lord 'with gladness'; we can 'come before his presence with singing' [Psalm 100:2]."
We prayed together then, something we did often. There was nothing else to do; we were totally dependent on the Lord. We thanked the Lord for bringing us this far safely, and of course we begged him to get us home and back to our kids. We told him we wanted to keep serving him with gladness.

And here is one more..the very end of the book:
The special people God gives us along the way make us stronger to face the trials of an ugly world. Obviously, I never expected to face something of this magnitude. But I thank the Lord for helping me to endure it. I honor the legacy of a wise and godly man who kept me going, trail after trail, gun battle after gun battle. I value the efforts of all who worked so hard to get me out alive. And I resolve to keep living in the embrace of God's gladness and love for as long as he gives me breath.

I love how Gracia talked over and over about how Martin was her rock in the jungle. He was the one to be positive and encourage. They sang hymns together and the only Scripture they had was what they had memorized and what people sent them in letters. And still, still, they see God as being ever so faithful. What great faith! What a great book.

Next on the docket: "Blue Like Jazz" by Donald Miller. I shall begin tonight. :)