Daily Devotion

“She looked straight into the eyes of her persecutors with astonishing calmness and said, 'You may destroy this fragile body, but my life is already hidden with Christ in God. This very day, I shall be with Him in Paradise.'”

Luella Miner · China's Book of Martyrs

Scripture

Luke 23:43 Jesus answered him, 'Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.'

Reflection

'Today you will be with me in paradise' (Luke 23:43) and 'your life is now hidden with Christ in God' (Colossians 3:3) together declare the greatest hope of Christians that transcends life and death. The calmness of martyrs in desperate situations stems from a genuine assurance of resurrection and eternal life. We are often troubled by earthly gains and losses, the fragility of the flesh, and temporary storms, even feeling fearful and shaken under pressure. However, when our lives are truly 'hidden' in Christ, earthly persecution and suffering lose their ultimate power to intimidate. The promise of the cross reminds us that death is not the end, but the entrance to eternal life. Facing the storms and challenges of life, do you also possess this ultimate peace that looks straight at suffering with paradise in your heart?