"Be quiet, or someone will hear you!" That was the phrase my cousin used one night when we were sneaking back into our house! Needless to say, someone DID hear us - and it was Dad! Needless to say, it wasn't exactly a pleasant finale to our night out!
Being bold for the Lord was not as easy for the disciples as it is today! We are have a document called the Constitution and its Amendments - the first amendment guarantees our right of freedom of speech with out censorship or limitation. We have the permission of our government to tell people about God (not that we need it). Our constitution says so! But lately, it seems like our government is trying to silence the voices and ideals that this country was founded on! The reason we wanted our "independence" from England in the first place was to be free to worship God our own way and not be compelled to worship in the ways of the Church of England.
The phrase "separation of church and state" is not written in the constitution, nor is it an amendment. It is a principle derived from the First Amendment which reads: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..."
We have the right AND an obligation to tell the world about God, about how he sent his son to pay for our sins and how we can attain everlasting life! He tells us the same thing he told Paul - do not be afraid - keep on speaking - tell the world about me and all that I have done for you! If we as Christian would put half the effort into that as we do in the worldly areas of our lives (such as our devotion to our favorite sports team, our favorite recording artist, even our favorite video games), God's word would be spread to all the world! Tell someone about God today - he'll be glad you did!
