2015 saw many ordinary Christians who found themselves in extraordinary situations that tested their faith to the limit—and succeeded in serving as shining examples of virtuous believers and followers of Christ.

WorldNetDaily columnist Linda Harvey, who is also the head of the Christian right organisation Mission: America, has come up with the top 10 acts of Christian courage shown by these Christian exemplars, WND reported.

10. Pro-life advocates showed their dedication to oppose abortion and save the lives of unborn children by gathering on a daily basis outside Planned Parenthood clinics across America to provide sidewalk counselling and encourage prospective patients to choose life instead.

9. Crystal O'Connor, owner of Memories Pizza in Indiana, refused to cater to same-sex weddings despite receiving "vicious calls and emails from gay sympathisers, including one tweet advocating arson." The harassments eventually forced her to close shop. Fortunately, she received over $800,000 in donation through a crowd-funding effort, allowing her to reopen her restaurant.

8. Jack Phillips, a cake designer from Lakewood, Colorado, upheld his Christian faith by refusing to sell a wedding cake to a same-sex couple. He remained steadfast in his defence of his religious freedom despite two lower court rulings finding him guilty of "discrimination."

7. Barronelle Stutzman, a grandmother and florist in Washington state, asserted her Christian faith as she appealed a lower court ruling that she violated the state's "sexual orientation" discrimination law when she rejected a wedding floral order for a gay couple in 2013. She then filed a counter suit against the state of Washington in a U.S. District Court even though the expected legal fees and fines could financially ruin her.

6. Dr. Paul Church was expelled from the medical staff of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, where he had been practicing medicine for 28 years, because he spoke out about the health risks of homosexual behavior, and the hospital's inappropriate promotion of LGBT activities.

5. Aaron and Melissa Klein, former owners of the bakery Sweet Cakes by Melissa, paid a fine of $135,000 this week as ordered by the state of Oregon Department of Labor. A lesbian couple earlier filed a complaint when the Kleins declined the couple's order for a wedding cake because doing so would compromise their Christian faith.

4. The voters of Houston trashed the so-called pro-LGBT "equal rights ordinance" in November. The measure would have allowed men in women's restrooms.

3. The Center for Medical Progress "launched possibly the most daring and effective pro-life campaign ever" when it released a series of undercover videos showing Planned Parenthood clinics trafficking in human baby body parts.

2. County Clerk Kim Davis bravely went to jail after defying court orders for her to issue marriage certificates to same-sex couples, an act she refused to do since this would go against her religious principles.

1. The most courageous Christian act was none other than the one displayed by the Christian men who were forced to kneel on a beach before they were beheaded by their Islamic State (ISIS) captors. Harvey called them "saints of the faith."

She warned that "if Americans cannot retain religious liberty and freedom of speech, under daily threat by the 'progressive' left, we face physical persecution in the not-distant future."