Amen and amen and amen. Hey, don't start my preaching clock yet. We're going to serious curveball real quick.

Okay, we're going to talk about God and work in just a second. All right. And I know your job's so hard.

All right. And I know you felt like an overcomer because you made it through the rain and through the one less hour of sleep. So you're way to go.

There's a group of pastor friends and ministry leaders

that I'm friends with. We all encourage each other in between services and all this.

And in between services today, it has come to my attention that there has been an incredible

rise and uptick in this world, primarily in the Congo and Syria of some serious Christian persecution.

278 believers were killed in the Congo this weekend and 70 believers in Syria have been beheaded. And hundreds and maybe thousands of Christians in Syria are being rounded up and persecuted by jihadist Muslims.

And so we need to pray. These are our brothers and sisters.

There's only one church in a whole bunch of different names.

And we need to pray, pray, pray for these brothers and sisters right now because prayer matters

a bunch.

And so if you would just posture yourself and whatever, whatever, however that makes sense

for you, whether it's lift your hands or hold up your hands or whatever, and let's pray

for our persecuted brothers and sisters right now in Congo and Syria.

Our good and gracious Heavenly Father, God, you are in charge.

And your word says in Revelation 12, hey, the church will overcome by the blood of the land,

the word of their testimony, and they love not their lives, even unto death.

And so, God, as we got it so easy, relatively speaking here as American believers, God, we pray

for our brothers and sisters right now that are so afraid. God, I pray that you would just

fill them with your courage. God, I thank you that the moment these evil people do evil things,

they are in your presence, and God, I think you that the blood of the martyrs are the seeds

...