According to The One Year Book of Christian History (got a copy yet?!!) and Wikipedia (hey, it's actually an article with 279 footnotes!!), February 23, 303A.D. was the beginning of The Great Persecution of Diocletian against Christianity throughout the Roman Empire when the Emperor ordered the new church in Nicomedia burnt to the ground. The next day he issued edicts calling for the destruction of Scriptures, forbidding Christians to assemble for worship, and mandating the destruction of places of worship. I wonder if this prompted folks to Scripture memorization programs?!!Today In History has some other interesting entries for this date:
In 155AD, Polycarp, an Early Church Father was burned at the stake for refusing to deny his Christian Faith.
In 1744, David Brainerd, who got booted from Yale for saying that one of his teachers was as spiritual as a chair earlier in his life, wrote in his journal, "There is a God in heaven who over-rules all things for the best, and this is the comfort of my soul."
In 1836, the Thirteen Days of the Siege of Alamo (a former Christian Mission) began, ending on a Sunday that cost Santa Anna 33% of his army in casualties, as well as turning "Remember the Alamo" into a rallying cry that eventually defeated him at San Jacinto.
John Newton's letter of 1775 to someone not stated is a good note to end this post: "How great and honorable is the privilege of a true believer! That he has neither wisdom nor strength in himself is no disadvantage, for he is connected with infinite wisdom and almighty power."
That'll do for now.
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