The Price of Truth: Challenges for Christians in the U.S.

If someone asked you, would you rather break your nose or be diagnosed with stage IV cancer, you might tell them, that is a rather silly question. You don’t get to choose in matters like this.

I use this as an illustration broadly comparing what Christians in our own nation have suffered in comparison to believers in China, Eritrea, Nigeria, and many other countries. Although what we face as Americans cannot compare to the brutal persecution in other nations, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus face a cost for their faithfulness.

This article will explore the nature of that price in our beloved United States of America.[1]

The suffering of believers in our own country, which must not be ignored, comes primarily to business owners, nurses, and teachers, though there are certainly other Christians involved in abortion ministry that have suffered also. This article is not meant to be exhaustive. I should mention that this suffering has not been borne primarily by pastors or evangelical leaders, but rather by faithful, ordinary Christians seeking to serve the Lord Jesus Christ.

Let’s consider several of the stories beginning with one from the state of Illinois.

On January 31, 2011, Governor Pat Quinn signed the Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act. What an Orwellian name! This act viewed religious freedom to mean something quite different than what our founding fathers sought to establish.

Later in 2011, Todd and Mark Wathen contacted Timber Creek Bed and Breakfast in Paxton, IL to inquire about hosting a civil union ceremony. Jim and Beth Walder, the owners and sincere Christians, declined the request to host the event, citing their religious beliefs against same-sex unions.

In response, a complaint was sent to the ghoulish Illinois Human Rights Commission. An administrative law judge ruled in favor of the Wathens, finding that the Walders had directly discriminated against the couple.

The judge ordered the Walders to pay $30,000 for emotional distress and another $50,000 for legal fees.

The Walders were also ordered to cease and desist from their discriminatory practices. The Walders appealed the decision, but the Illinois Human Rights Commission upheld the original ruling.

I have shared the brave and inspiring of Jack Phillips before, of the Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood, Colorado. In 2012, he declined to create a custom wedding cake for a same-sex couple, citing his Christian belief that marriage is solely between a man and a woman.

The couple filed a complaint with the Colorado Civil Rights Commission, which found Phillips in violation of the state’s public accommodation law. This particular case lasted about 6 years and ended in 2018 with the US Supreme Court ruling 7-2 in his favor. This ruling was certainly an answer to prayer for Phillips, but the court did not address the broader question of whether a business could refuse such services generally.

This was not the end of the battle for Phillips. On the same day the US Supreme Court announced it would hear his case, an attorney going by the name Autumn Scardina requested a cake celebrating a so-called gender transition. Phillips rightly declined. This case did not make it to the US Supreme Court; it was eventually dismissed by the Colorado Supreme Court in 2024.

Autumn Scardina did not stop with this suit. In 2018, he also filed a second complaint after Phillips refused to make a cake depicting Satan smoking marijuana. Thankfully this case was dismissed in 2019.

Incredible victories, but imagine having to spend 12 years fighting instead of just being able to focus on your business and use the talents that God has given.

There are quite a few other situations that I will divide into three groups. I should emphasize this list is not exhaustive, but it is at least representative of the different situations that man believers have faced.

1] Weddings and the Marketplace

The most visible battleground has undoubtedly been the wedding business where artists and entrepreneurs were pressured to use their God-given talents to celebrate unions that contradict their biblical convictions. While the victory of Lorie Smith and 303 Creative at the Supreme Court in 2023 provided a vital “pre-enforcement” shield for creative professionals, many others spent years in the legal wilderness before this important victory.

Barronelle Stutzman of Arlene’s Flowers in Washington and Aaron and Melissa Klein of Sweet Cakes by Melissa in Oregon faced staggering fines and personal harassment that forced them out of business or to retirement. This unjust pattern of legal harassment extended to photographers like Elane Huguenin in New Mexico, videographers like Carl and Angela Larson in Minnesota, and stationery designers such as Joanna Duke and Breanna Koski in Arizona.

Blaine Adamson faced pressure for refusing to print a T-shirt for a pride festival. Even generic services were not exempt; Cathy Miller of Tastries Bakery in California and Kristi Stokes in Ohio faced state-level challenges for simply wanting to maintain a traditional view of marriage in their storefronts.

These cases illustrate that the “price of truth” in the marketplace often includes not just legal fees, but sometimes also the very livelihood one has spent a lifetime building. It is very important other Christians who have not suffered like this seek to appreciate and support these who have stood for truth.

Let’s not support any legislation that might keep churches “safe” while those working in businesses are forced to comply or face legal harassment.

2] Classrooms and the Public Square

A second front exists within our public institutions, including teachers and civil servants who refuse to trade their convictions for career security. We see this in the stories of educators like Peter Vlaming in Virginia and John Kluge in Indiana, both of whom faced termination or forced resignation for refusing to adopt “gender-affirming” speech or false pronouns that contradicted biological reality.

Similarly, Byron Cross in Virginia was suspended simply for speaking his mind at a school board meeting, though a court eventually ordered his reinstatement. Let’s not forget the brave stand of Kim Davis in Kentucky or Steve Tennes in Michigan, who was barred from a local farmer’s market because of his religious views on marriage.

The demand for total ideological conformity has forced many faithful Christians to choose between their paycheck and their peace of conscience. Thankfully these faithful men and women chose truth over peace. Thankfully also we are seeing some pushback against these dark forces.

Vigilance is still needed.

3] The Medical Front and the Sanctity of Life

Finally, the price of faithfulness is demonstrated in the healthcare industry, where the “culture of death” often clashes with our Lord’s call to value all life. Perhaps the most persistent example is the Little Sisters of the Poor. Their case goes back to President Obama and the Department of Health and Human Services mandating employer-provided health insurance to cover all FDA-approved contraceptives at no cost.

This resulted in over a decade of legal battle in federal courts resisting this wicked mandate. Thankfully they won a significant victory at the US Supreme Court but still face some state-level challenges. This same pressure is felt by individual practitioners, such as Sandra Roja, a pediatric nurse in Illinois, and Cathy De Carlo, an operating nurse in New York, both of whom were pressured to participate in or refer for procedures—including abortions—that violated their core religious identity.

These individuals remind us that “suffering for Christ” often means standing as a bulwark for the vulnerable.

These accounts are not merely legal footnotes; they represent the continued hall of faith and cloud of witnesses of Hebrews 11 and 12 in our own time.

I should also commend the legal organizations that valiantly represented many of the individuals mentioned above:

• Alliance Defending Freedom,
• Becket Fund for Religious Liberty,
• First Liberty Institute,
• Liberty Counsel,
• American Center for Law and Justice,
• Thomas More Society,
• Pacific Justice Institute, and
• Christian Legal Society.

Thank the Lord for good lawyers who stand for truth!

We give thanks for the victories, pray and continue to support those who continue to face hardships, and ask that the Lord will keep us vigilant. Let’s not back down!

Research Note: Our church has prayed for a number of the individuals on this list for nearly 15 years. To broaden this list, find updates, and review my research, I used three different AI engines (Grok, Gemini, and Co-Pilot).

[1] Link to previous articles on suffering in other countries.