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In the wake of the travesty targeting American Christians, evangelist Greg Laurie says now is the time Christians need to stand up for their faith.
"Should we retreat and try to blend in? Should we no longer speak up for what we know is true? No, we should be even bolder and stand our ground and speak up for our faith," Laurie says. "Events like this can be frightening, I know. But remember this: each of these courageous believers were welcomed into heaven by the Lord."
Laurie penned the words in response to the Umpqua Community College shooting where Chris Harper-Mercer killed nine, allegedly for their faith.
Report after report indicates Harper-Mercer asked if the students were Christians before he pulled the trigger.
Laurie isn't the only one identifying persecution against Christians after the atrocious shooting.
"Persecution and targeting of Christians isn't just in Iran or the Middle East, it's right here in America," Franklin Graham says. "The bold souls at Umpqua Community College who stood up to say they were followers of Jesus Christ were heinously gunned down with no mercy."
Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Coalition, joins both Graham and Laurie in crying out on behalf of believers being slaughtered on their own soil.
"Accordingly, as a nation, we must repudiate all religious bigotry—without exception. More than ever before, we must stand committed to protecting our God-given and constitutionally protected right of religious liberty," Rodriguez says.
While some politicians look to gun-control measures to reduce violence, both Rodriguez and Laurie point to the issue of sin as the true root of evil.
"When an event like this recent shooting takes place the question is always asked, 'Why?' Mental health and gun control solutions are usually brought up, but the one thing you rarely heard said is, 'It happened because people are evil,'" Laurie says. "Yes, just as surely as there is a God in heaven, there is a devil, who I believe is behind this persecution against followers of Jesus."
To address the atrocity, and to even prevent more, Rodriguez is adamant Christians need to stand up against sin and how its shaped America.
"The discussion should not be limited to guns, laws, rights, mental illness and prevention," Rodriguez says. "At the end of the day, our conversation must compel us all to address the issue of sin, resulting in hatred, intolerance, animosity, bigotry, apathy, complacency and murder."
With lives at stake, the issue of faith goes much deeper than embarrassment over potential disagreement, Laurie says. Rather, the threat of death should embolden us to live stronger lives for Christ. 
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Thanks for sharing. Blessings on your head from the Lord Jesus, Yeshua HaMashiach.
Steve Martin
Founder
Love For His People
Charlotte, NC USA