Lessons from bin Laden

A few warnings before reading:

I would like to preface this post by saying that I in no way support religious extremism, terrorism, the Taliban, Osama bin Laden, or persecuting others because of their religion (or any other reason, for that matter). I am in no way suggesting that Christians should go out and kill thousands of people to get their point across. I would also like to point out that the average Muslim does not support the extremist cause or feel that literal extermination is the appropriate way to eliminate non-Muslims.

Osama bin Laden was proud of his work. Why? He believed he was doing the right thing by killing thousands of "infidels." Though his actions are considered wrong according to a vast majority of earth's population (typical Muslims included), Osama bin Laden thought that what he was doing was right in the eyes of his god. He risked his life, as well as the lives of his friends, family, and anyone who came in contact with him. He left his home and trained for decades. He spent years dedicated to developing master plans to achieve his goal. He put forth all his money, broke local/national/international laws, and successfully killed thousands so that he could proclaim the name of Allah. He was one man who single-handedly changed the face of his religion and forever changed the world in the name of Allah.

So, what are you doing? If the poster child for wickedness can fearlessly fight to proclaim the name of his god, one that isn't even real, why can't Christians fight for the true God? Sometimes it's a struggle for us to even let people know we're Christians, much less stand up for him in the face of a world seeking to destroy you. We often have a hard time paying attention to 5 minutes of a worship service, much less devoting our lives to glorifying God. If we had a passion for saving souls like bin Laden had a passion for eliminating infidels, this world would be a vastly different place. If we truly believed that we could change the world in the name of the Almighty God, I believe that that the results would be earth-shattering.

What's even better is we don't have to fight with plane crashes, bombs, and AK-47s. Ephesians 6 tells us that we aren't fighting flesh and blood, but we're fighting evil forces, aka Satan. God has provided us with a belt of truth, a breastplate of righteousness, the readiness of the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit (the Word of God). Not only that, but our all-powerful God will fight for us. Furthermore, we already know that we win in the end. We have no reason not to fight. If we were all better Christians than bin Laden was a Muslim extremist, the world could certainly say that the battle belongs to the Lord.