Dear Missionary Lady,
Happy Easter! Or I know many Christians prefer to say Happy
Resurrection Day, which is more meaningful. Lots and lots of people in the
world will be focused this weekend on Easter and even on the religious aspect
of Christ's death. Sadly, many of them are ignorant or blinded as to what it
really means. I trust that you will have opportunities through ministry this
weekend to share the hope of the Gospel.
I was recently very encouraged by the magazine from Voice of
the Martyrs, and I wanted to share a couple of the stories with you as well -
as reminders that God can do His work even in very hard places.
The first story was about a North Korean businessman. What
hope is there for this man to be saved? Maybe if he were able to leave the
country. Well, he did in 2004, going to China for an extended business trip.
That doesn't sound so promising either, does it? Nevertheless, while in China
he heard the gospel and was saved.
Five months later, as a baby growing Christian, he returned
to North Korea. One of the Chinese Christians asked if he would accept a
shipment of smuggled Bibles. He knew the danger. If caught with even a few
pages of the Bible, he could be tortured or killed. If he helped, it was very
likely he would end up in a brutal prison camp. Because he now belonged to
Christ, he said he would help.
A few months later he went to the river in the middle of the
night to receive duffle bags of clothing, in which were hidden ten Bibles. But
how would he give them to anyone? Saying the wrong word to the wrong person
would place him in extreme danger. He didn't even trust his wife. He hid the
Bibles and waited for God to direct him to the right people. Sounds hopeless,
right?
A few months later he heard a man whistling a Christian
hymn. He followed the man to learn where he lived. During the night, he went
back and left eight of the Bibles, again hidden inside clothing, at the man's
door.
Later in the year, this Christian businessman tried to
defect while in China, but he was arrested and sent back to North Korea. In
prison he met a former friend, whom he learned had been arrested for being a
Christian. How did that second man get saved? His uncle was the man who had
received the eight Bibles. He had shared those Bibles with family members, who
accepted Christ. The entire family - 27 members - were arrested when they were
overheard singing in a secret church service. All were sent to a concentration
camp. The persecution is sad, but the work of God is amazing.
The second story was about a pastor in Iran. A prayer
meeting was interrupted by police. The pastor, his wife, his son, and four
other church leaders were arrested. Though ordered not to tell other prisoners
why they were arrested, they did anyway.
Some of the other prisoners showed interest. The Christians
received multiple warnings to stop talking about Christianity, but they didn't
stop. In need of the Bible, they wrote down memorized verses and shared them
with each other. After more than eight months, the five men still imprisoned
were able to communicate with family. They asked for hand-written passages of
the Bible in English. These materials survived the scrutiny of the guards, and
the English-speaking prisoners translated to Farsi. More and more copies of the
Bible were being made as time went by.
As the work of the gospel kept spreading, the guards got
angry and took action. They came up with the brilliant plan of separating the
five men. Now the gospel was being proclaimed in five different parts of the
jail instead of just one! Additionally, the guards kept transferring the
prisoners to different sections of the jail as punishment; with the subsequent
transfers, the gospel spread to more and more areas. Eventually, the pastor was
placed in what we would call Death Row, where men whose lives would shortly end
accepted Jesus also.
The persecution and suffering are sad. Both of these men,
now living in other countries, still face uncertainty and danger. The power of
God is incredible. It is thrilling that God can send His Word to people in such
unlikely places. It is wonderful that He gives them courage, in spite of the
danger, to spread the Gospel. Truly "the word of God is quick and powerful"
(Hebrews 4:12). The gospel is "the power of God unto salvation to every
one that believeth" (Romans 1:16). It is able to reach people and
transform lives even in the most unlikely situations.
I hope these stories will encourage you to press on in your
ministry, trusting in the amazing work of God and the convicting power of the
Bible to do their work even when results seem difficult from a human
perspective. God will build His church, and He is not limited!
Love in Christ,
Peggy Holt
member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA
www.pressingontohigherground.blogspot.com
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