Yun's Advice on Praying for the Persecuted

Brother Yun is an amazing man! I had read his book, The Heavenly Man, about seven years ago when I first became a Christian. Going back through it now that I've walked with the Lord for several years made it even better. God gave Yun much wisdom and his advice on praying for Christians that are being persecuted is phenomenal. I'm going to share an excerpt on praying below.

"Whenever I hear a house church Christian has been imprisoned for Christ in China I don't advise people to pray for his or her release unless the Lord clearly reveals we should pray this way.

Before a chicken is hatched it is vital it is kept in the warm protection of the shell for 21 days. If you take the chick out of that environment one day too early, it will die. similarly, ducks need to remain confined in their shell for 28 days before they are hatched. If you take a duck out on the 27th day, it will day.

There is always a purpose behind why God allows his children to go to prison. Perhaps it's so they can witness to the other prisoners, perhaps God wants to develop more character in their lives. But if we use our own efforts to get them out of prison earlier than God intended, we can thwart his plans, and the believers may come out not as fully formed as God wanted them to be." (The Heavenly Man, p. 313)

Brother Yun did not say this lightly or without experience of his own. He spent many years in Chinese prisons for his witness for Christ. He endured many beatings and times of torture for his role as an illegal (in the government of China's eyes) house church leader. He knows the how the Lord can work in a believer's heart while in prison.

For those of us who are believers in the West, this goes against everything we've been taught and experienced. Western believers like comfort and anything that causes discomfort we try to remove as quickly as possible. However, many times the hard, uncomfortable things are what God uses to refine us and make us more Christ-like.

So, instead of praying for the immediate removal of the trials, pray that God's will would be accomplished and that He would be glorified in His children's suffering.

Gao Zhisheng

I have written about Gao many times before and there is not really any more news since I last blogged about the courageous Chinese brother. I did receive an email recently that says since he was kidnapped again by the government of China on April 20, 2010, no one has seen or heard from Gao Zhisheng. His family does not know whether he is dead or alive at this point.

On August 6, at the American Bar Association, Gao received the International Human Rights Lawyer of the Year Award. His 17 year old daughter, Ge Ge, accepted the reward for him. She said, "Deep in my heart, my father is the type of person I admire very much. He can get over any difficulties, and he is not afraid of anything. I feel that my father is an outstanding father."

In closing, I would like to remind everyone to please keep Gao and his family in your prayers. May the Lord be glorified in this situation!

Churches in China

When sharing about persecution in the country of China, sometimes people will disagree and say, "There is religious freedom in China! I've seen pictures of Christians entering churches and worshipping." What many don't realize is that those churches are government sanctioned and run.



Churches that the government allow are part of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement. These are the only "open, legal" churches that the Communist government of China allows. And these are also the churches that many Western people see.



Brother Yun in his book, The Heavenly Man, said, "We see the Three-self Patriotic believers as caged birds. Yes, they are able to sing to the Lord, but their environment is controlled and their wings are clipped. They are free to sing only within the restrictions imposed on them." Government leaders have severely restricted Three-Self pastors. Any sort of ministry outside of the normal Sunday service is not allowed without permission. Evangelism is strongly discouraged and certain parts of the Bible are forbidden from being preached out of. Teaching on the Second Coming of Jesus, divine healing, and the book of Revelation are banned.



When one reads about persecution in the land of China, you can assume that you are reading about Christians in a house church. The government has dedicated a great amount of energy in trying to wipe out the house churches that dot the landscape of China. People within house churches refuse to be bound by an atheistic government telling them how the can and can't live the Christian life. They still honor their leaders and prayer for them, but they have chosen to obey God rather than man.



So, yes, there are churches allowed by the government, but not the true church of Jesus Christ. Churches, but not religious freedom. For an in-depth look at the Three-Self Patriotic Movement, I would encourage you to read The Heavenly Man by Brother Yun and Paul Hattaway.

Sarah's Trail of Blood

Update on Gao Zhisheng

It has been a while since I received on update on Gao Zhisheng or his family. The latest one is not encouraging. As we last knew, he was still being held under tight security by the Chinese government, but he did contact his family.

During April 15 and 16, Gao visited his in-laws in Xinjiang and told them that he would be flying to his apartment in Beijing on April 20. He never arrived back home and nobody has seen or heard from him since.

Once again Gao Zhisheng has disappeared and China Aid does not know where he is or how to contact him. Please pray for his safety and for repentance amongst the leaders of China. Pray also for Gao's family, this is a most stressful situation for them.

Update on Gao Zhisheng

Rumors have been flying around since December 2009 that Gao Zhisheng has died from the brutal torture he received at the hands of Chinese police. Recently, Gao's brother, Zhiyi sought and found the police that originally detained Gao. He was told that Gao "went missing while out on a walk".

This is the first time the Chinese government has actually said anything leading to the belief that they no longer have Gao in custody. ChinaAid believes this means Zhisheng's health has taken a turn for the worse.

Bob Fu, president of ChinaAid, says ""We have every reason to suspect that the Chinese government has something very serious to hide. Gao's family has every right to know what happened to him. It is unbelievable that a high security prisoner would go missing while 'out on a walk,' without suspecting that there is a major cover up of his condition."

Please pray fro Gao's family. They are under extreme stress because they don't know what has happened to their husband/father/brother. Gao's daughter, Gege became very emotionally upset upon hearing the rumors of his death and had to be placed in a hospital. Pray that the leaders of China will stop persecuting Christians and that they will turn to Christ.

For more updates on the persecuted church, please check out the Persecution Blog.

Day 308: Gao Not Doing Well

In an email update I received about Gao Zhisheng, VOM and ChinaAid say he is not doing well. Quoting from the email: "ChinaAid recently received another report from inside sources in China that Gao Zhisheng has been severely beaten by authorities. The report stated his current living condition is worse than death and that Gao is crying daily in pain and desperation."

China has responded to pressure, but not in a good way. They refuse to release Gao and the Chinese government has also cut off communication with two of Mr. Zhisheng's siblings.

Gao's older brother, Gao Zhiyi, said, "For every question, there are three unknowns. No one knows anything. They won't talk to us and they won't meet with us... Even if Gao Zhisheng had committed a terrible crime, his family would still have the right to know what had happened to him!"

If you have not already done so, please sign the petition at FreeGao.com and ask that they release Gao Zhisheng. This is an awesome way for Christians to ask for the release of a hurting brother. Add your voice to the 117,196 people that are speaking out for Gao already.

Also, please pray. This is a Christian's greatest "weapon" in this world. Ultimately, we are not struggling against humans, but we are struggling against dark spiritual forces that want to destroy Christians and keep people in bondage.

Day 225: Gao Alive!

I just received an email from VOM, Gao Zhisheng is alive! News was received from the Chinese Embassy in Washington DC that Gao was put on parole in August. ChinaAid has confirmed this, but his condition and whereabouts are unknown.

Thanks to all those who signed the petition requesting Gao Zhisheng's release. Over 110,00 people signed the petition!

Please keep praying for Gao and his family. Ask the Lord to do a mighty work through this man. Pray that physical, emotional, and spiritual healing would come from God.

Prayer Bulletin #2

Today's prayer bulletin is for the house churches in China. There are many house churches active in the Shandong province, however, the believers suffer great poverty in the rural areas. The numbers in the churches remain comparatively low. Please pray that God will do a mighty work and save and strengthen many people.

To receive daily prayer bulletins, subscribe to Open Doors USA newsletter.

Take It Away!

It's day 168 after Gao Zhisheng's kidnapping and ChinaAid did deliver our petitions (over 10, 000!) to the Chinese Embassy. Sadly, when the embassy staff saw what it was, she said, "I'm sorry, sir, I'm sorry! Take it away!"

David E. Taylor, who is the American attorney who tried to deliver the petition, left it at the front door saying, "The Chinese Embassy was legally served with the petition even though they tried to avoid it."

Don't give up, God can do miracles! Keep praying that God Almighty will move on the hearts of the Chinese officials. Also, pray for Gao and his family, that the Lord will provide for their every need.

Raid on Christian Youth Camp

On July 13 at 10:30 AM, police made a raid on a Christian Youth camp in Tengzhou city, Shandong province. 28 Christian youth and 4 adult workers were arrested. The police then threatened and beat the youth. also, five of the people who organized the camp are still being held in prison for another 5-15 days.

China Aid reports that the youth are still in shock, so please pray that they will recover quickly.

For more stories like this, please check out the Persecution Blog.

Pastor and Wife Sent to Labor Camp in Henan

Recently, Pastor Dou Shaowen and his wife Feng Lu were sent to a labor camp for one year of "re-education" because of their “engaging in illegal religious activities.” For the whole story, click on this link.

Also, on the link is contact information so you can request that the Zhengzhou city authorities release these Christians.

105 Days of Prison for Gao Zhisheng

Today marks 105 days since Chinese Christian attorney, Gao Zhisheng, was kidnapped by Chinese police. Please pray for him and his family.

Also, if you have not already signed the petition for his realise. Hopefully, this will make the government of China aware that the world is watching. Follow this link to sign the petition and to watch a short video about Gao.

Chinese House Church Leaders Arrested

Eighteen house church leaders and members were arrested on April 30. The Public Security Bureau (PSB) arrested the Christians while gathered for a communion service in a house in Xinye city, Henan province.

Once at the police station, the Christians were each forced to pay to pay a 1000 Yuan, which is about $100 US.

There are still sixteen believers being held. Ten out of that number are preachers. The names of the imprisoned pastors are Wang Donggui, Yang Chengqun, GuoDaying, Hao Xuecheng, Lun Zhidian, Lian Fengmei, Chen Mingao, Ren Zhiai, Zhai Laoxue and Zhai Jinai.

For more stories on the persecuted church, please visit persecution.com.

ChinaAid Delivers Petitions to Free Gao

The Latest on Gao

Check out the Persecution Blog for a short update on Gao Zhisheng. He has now been imprisoned for 82 days by the Chinese government for speaking out on behalf of persecuted believers in China. His family hasn't heard from him and he has most likely been severely tortured.

Keep On Praying for Gao Zhisheng and Sign the Petition!

Over the last several months, I have blogged about Gao Zhisheng twice. The second time, I asked that you sign a petition asking the Chinese government to release him. If you have not signed the petition, I would encourage you to do so.

Please go to freegao.com and add your signature along with thousands of other people.

Petition For Gao Zhisheng

A couple of months ago, I wrote about Gao Zhisheng, a missing Christian human rights attorney. He was last seen being taken away by Chinese police.

Please pray that he will be released. Also, please sign a petition that will be sent to the Chinese embassy. Click here to sign the petition and then send it to friends and encourage them to sign it.

Pray for Gao Zhisheng

Please pray for Gao Zhisheng. He is part of ChinaAid's Legal Defense Team and was kidnapped on February 4. This is not the first time this has happened and Mr. Zhisheng has endured horrible torture in the past. (To read more of his story, click here)

The Chinese government has been trying to silence Gao Zhisheng (who is a former Chinese Communist Party member) since 2005. Recently he even wrote an open letter to members of the US congress describing some of the tortures he has been subjected to, which is just part of his out spoken help to the underground Christians in China.

Pray that Gao will be able to stand in the strength of the Lord and not cave into the pressure put on him by the Chinese government. Seek the Lord for him and ask the he be more than a conqueror in this situation.

Christian Released in China!

Shuang Shuying was released from prison. She went to see her husband in the hospital, who is deathly ill at the age of 91.

Shuang endured many hardships while in prison. To read her story, click here.