But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection… All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised.  For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us.

Hebrews 11:35,39-40

This week I read of a recent massacre of Christians in Nigeria. Later, I read that there have been over 5,000 people martyred for their faith in Nigeria since 2015. How do we not hear those stories?

We don’t know those people, these unsung heroes, but their story is much like the ones mentioned at the end of the great Faith chapter of Hebrews. The writer also reminded us that, “some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in prisons. Some died by stoning, some were sawed in half, and others were killed with the sword. Some went about wearing skins of sheep and goats, destitute and oppressed and mistreated. They were too good for this world, wandering over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground” (Hebrews 11:36-38).

Some would have us believe that the Christian faith is all about living your best life, but we know this – “God has something better in mind for us” beyond the life we lead today.