Prisoner of God

In the book "The Road Trip that changed the World" by Mark Sayers he recounts a section from a book by historian William Dalrymple called "From the Holy Mountain: A Journey Among the Christians of the Middle East"

In it it describes a meeting between Dalrymple and an old man in a persecuted area in the middle east.

"In one Lebanese valley, Dalrymple comes upon an ancient old man who stares at him warily from a grove of trees. In a low voice the old man asks if Dalrymple is a Christian. Dalrymple nods,and the old man beckons him, grasping his hand. The old man leads him to his hut, which is attached to a small chapel. Dalrymple discovers that the old man is the only Christian priest left in the valley. Each day he worships alone in the tiny chapel, his only audience God. Dalrymple, concerned for the man's well-being, asks if his life is a happy one. 

The old man pauses before replying, "Yes it is happy, but only because it is difficult." Despite the loneliness and depression the old man experiences, he shares his sense of "the indescribable joy of feeling the presence of the Lord." Dalrymple before departing asks the old priest if he will emigrate to escape the violence like so many others. The old man replies, "Whatever happens, I will stay. I am a prisoner of God. I cannot leave this place." How different an attitude from the one we find today in our culture of the road! I wonder how many believers in the West would describe themselves as prisoners of God? "

A very sobering thought as we complain about so many things - Starbucks coffee cups, stay-at-home during COVID-19. I hope to be brought to a faith like the old man in the valley.