“They are grateful that their daughter is able to share the sufferings of Jesus Christ,” says Voice of the Martyrs Representative Dr. Hyun Sook Foley.  

Representative Foley says that while the idea of Chinese Christians viewing imprisonment and suffering for their faith as a privilege may sound unusual or extreme to Christians in other parts of the world, it has biblical backing. 

“In Acts 5:40-41, after the Apostles were beaten by the Jewish ruling council, scripture says they were ‘rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name’,” says Representative Foley. “The Apostle Paul, who wrote many of his letters while in prison, said in Philippians 1:12 that his imprisonment ‘has actually served to advance the gospel’.” 

Representative Foley says the gospel is advancing through Sister Li Yanping’s imprisonment. 

“Sister Li’s husband, Zhao Chundan, says that even though his wife is not permitted to read the Bible in prison, and even though her memory loss has progressed to the point where she can no longer remember many scriptures, she is still preaching the gospel to her fellow prisoners,” says Representative Foley. She says that seven or eight of Sister Li’s cellmates have now become believers. 

But Representative Foley says that Christians in the rest of the world should not romanticize or minimize the pain and suffering of Christians suffering for their faith in prison. “The founding scripture verse of Voice of the Martyrs is Hebrews 13:3: ‘Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering’,” says Representative Foley. “When Paul was in prison, he asked Timothy to come quickly and to bring his coat and his scrolls. Everyone had left him, and no one was present to care for him. Even today, Christian prisoners and their families are primarily dependent on the body of Christ to care for them.”   

Representative Foley says that in the case of Sister Li Yanping, her husband says she has particular concern for her parents.  

“Sister Li’s parents are in their 80’s,” says Representative Foley. “She hopes that the members of her church and her family will take on the roles she would normally fill as their daughter in caring for them,” says Representative Foley.  

Representative Foley says that Christians around the world can help care for Christians in prison by praying for them as according to the scriptures, by writing them letters when their prison addresses are known and they are able to receive mail, and by providing aid to them and their families through reputable organizations.  

Voice of the Martyrs Korea offers a free resource on ten biblical ways to pray for persecuted and imprisoned Christians at www.vomkorea.com/en/prayer. It’s website lists prisoners of faith who can currently receive letters, as well as instructions on how to write them, at https://vomkorea.com/en/prisoner-profiles/. Representative Foley says that while Sister Li is not currently able to be listed, five other Chinese Christian prisoners are included, as well as Christian prisoners from Iran, Eritrea, and North Korea. Information on how to donate to support families of martyrs and prisoners can be found at https://vomkorea.com/en/donation/.  

 Individuals interested in learning about Voice of the Martyrs Korea’s work in partnership with the house church Christians of China can visit https://vomkorea.com/en/china/.