A Nigerian Pastor Reflects on Partnering with Christ in Suffering

Christians can find a strange happiness as we grow in our willingness to face persecution.

Christians being persecuted for their faith is a daily reality in contemporary Nigeria. I live in a community where Christians are discriminated against and denied our rights to development, good infrastructure, stable jobs, education, and so on. We also face the danger of being attacked by our Muslim neighbors. I still live with the traumatic memory of the death of my dear cousin who pastored a church in the city of Kaduna. During the religious crises in Kaduna, he was killed in the presence of two of his children.

Christian farmers, in particular, face persecution as Muslim herdsmen migrate into our region and seek to overtake our ancestral land. Guerrilla warfare and raiding tactics are often used to chase rural Christians out of their farmlands. In many cases, herdsmen release their cows to graze on a Christian’s farmland, destroying the farmer’s crops and livelihood. Last year, Zinnia (a pseudonym)—a Christian mother of four who was the breadwinner for her impoverished family—lost four hectares of crops in this manner. Her fields were so destroyed that Zinnia could not harvest a single grain. Zinnia felt she wouldn’t be given a fair hearing and that seeking legal justice could instigate more raids against her community. So she decided not to take the case to court. Her family endured this tragic loss because of their faith in Christ. Experiences like Zinnia’s are shared by many Christians here.

Faith in Christ does not shield us from suffering or pain. In fact, Scripture assures us that our faith in Jesus will often bring suffering. As the apostle Peter wrote, “Don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. Instead, ...