Tagged: Audrey Frank

The Lord sets prisoners free. Psalm 146:7 In former Muslim Esther Ahmad’s brave new release, Defying Jihad (Tyndale Momentum, 2019), she describes the supernatural peace she felt even as an angry mob outside her family's home demanded her death. As she stood inside listening to their cruel threats, she thought of Daniel’s three friends in the furnace and the fourth man who stood with them in that fiery prison. Even in the face of possible death, Esther knew she was a prisoner set free by the One who stood beside her on that terrible night. She knew the Lord who sets prisoners free, and even in her darkest hour, she was free indeed. Prisons cannot hold those who trust in the Lord.  Instead of captivity,… Read More

During the month of June, I will be writing a series of devotionals based on my upcoming book, Covered Glory: The Face of Honor and Shame in the Muslim World, published by Harvest House Publishers August 2019. You will no longer be called, “Abandoned”…Indeed, you will be called “My Delight is in Her”…For the Lord will take delight in you…As a bridegroom rejoices over a bride, so your God will rejoice over you (Isaiah 62:4-5, NET). Ratna daydreamed as she washed dishes in her small, sunny kitchen. Lutfi would be home soon and she had prepared his favorite lamb stew for lunch. Recently married, Ratna and Lutfi lived in a  small apartment adjacent to his father’s home.  Crack! Ratna snapped to attention as a glass… Read More

During the month of June, I will be writing a series of devotionals based on my upcoming book, Covered Glory: The Face of Honor and Shame in the Muslim World, published by Harvest House Publishers August 2019. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed (Isaiah 53:5). Her eyes shone gratefully as we handed her a round loaf of freshly baked bread. The woman was an amputee, sitting patiently on the side of the cobbled street in the morning sun. It was too early for most folks to be out and about. On that bright Sunday, we were on our way to house church,… Read More

During the month of June, I will be writing a series of devotionals based on my upcoming book, Covered Glory: The Face of Honor and Shame in the Muslim World, published by Harvest House Publishers August 2019. You have searched me, Lord, and you know me (Psalm 139:1). “I know God sees me. Can you help me?”  Jameelah sat before me, her brilliant blue scarf pulled aside to reveal a face the image of a broken mirror, fragmented and distorted by a ragged purple ridge. Full lips and once-perfect cheekbones bore the scars of cruelty and jealous hatred.  Her beauty and purity had been social insurance for her family in a culture where daughters brought handsome reward and security. But she had refused the much… Read More

The old me, like a seed in the ground, can be forgotten after all. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory (Colossians 3:2-4). The closer the hour drew to the seminar I was to teach, the more anxious I became. I obsessed about my hair. I fumbled with my lipstick. My mind went blank, and I couldn’t remember my subject matter. Past failures and foibles paraded through my mind, mocking me. I was a wreck. I could not blame my nerves on busyness. After a deeply satisfying night’s sleep, I’d enjoyed breakfast in… Read More

I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me (Isaiah 45:4). His name was Kakuna. In the chiDuruma language, kakuna can mean many things, including, “I don’t have,” or “there aren’t any. ” In this boy’s case, Kakuna meant Nobody. I had often seen Kakuna on the edge of the crowds of children that clamored around our house each afternoon. He never drew near. That is until the morning I found him asleep on our front porch. Dressing the world in fresh colors of lemony sunshine, the light dawned quietly over his sleeping form. He lay unmoving, oblivious to the rustlings of women making early trips to the nearby water spout. I leaned down and… Read More

No one can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for them—the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough—so that they should live on forever and not see decay (Psalm 49:7-9). The smiling children in the slides were emaciated but their stomachs bulged grotesquely, skin stretched shiny and taut. I stared in the way a nine-year-old child stares, without inhibition, fascinated and horrified. The missionary man standing in front of our small country church congregation explained how something called malnutrition causes empty bellies to appear over-full, a cruel deception of nature. Other children lay on woven mats, eyes barely open as bare-chested mothers leaned over them, hands gently holding on as if they might keep them from… Read More

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid (John 14:27). There you are again! Your gentle crooning breaks the morning silence and stirs something deep within me, something primal and necessary to my breath and life. As you bring a message of peace for the day, drops of water cling and shimmer like diamonds on the leaves of freshly blooming peonies in the garden. They bob their fragrant heads, nodding in assent.  Peace I leave with you. Faithful mourning dove, messenger of God, you have been with me everywhere I have ever lived. Some find your call sorrowful. I believe it… Read More

@audreycfrank When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (John 11:32). This is Mary, the one who knew she was loved by the Lord. Mary, the one who sat at his feet and listened. She was the woman who broke the cultural stereotype of the day that said women could not be students, disciples of the Rabbi. Mary is the one who “chose the thing that was better” (see Luke 10:42). One day this same Mary would anoint Jesus' feet with expensive perfume before his crucifixion (see John 12:1-8). Mary had a strong measure of confidence in her relationship with Jesus. She knew… Read More

@audreycfrank In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it (Isaiah 30:15). We so often fight against the rest God offers. Instead of repenting, resting in His sovereignty over our lives, quieting our souls and trusting God, we flee. And our pursuers flee swiftly after us. (See Isaiah 30:16-17.) The word for rest here is also used in Exodus 14:14, that famous moment when the Israelites crossed the sea on dry land, only to look behind them to see the Egyptians marching in pursuit with full strength. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still (Exodus 14:14). How ridiculous the wisdom of God seems in the face of our… Read More