Acts 8:1 "And Saul approved of their killing him. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria."

What precedes this is the stoning of St. Steven. Up to that point, the new church, concentrated in Jerusalem, had been encountering a lot of questions and difficulty from the Jewish leaders, but Steven's death ignited full blown persecution. It was the match that lit the powder keg, but it also began the spread of the faith by scattering disciples throughout Judea and Samaria! The bad always is met with the good!

I feel a similar tension building in the world today against the Church. I keep praying that we don't have this powder keg moment, and that instead hearts and minds are changed by love and truth!