Imprisoned for his faith, Wenxi Li has brought more prisoners to Christ.
(Image, caption courtesy icommittopray.com)
China (MNN) — A man imprisoned for his faith in China is bringing fellow inmates to Christ. According to Voice of the Martyrs USA, Chinese courts gave Wenxi Li a two-year prison term last summer for trying to set up a Christian bookstore.
His family recently shared an update with VOM, saying Li has been sharing the Gospel with fellow prisoners. As a result, several have put their faith in Christ.
Pray that these new believers will grow in their knowledge of Christ. Pray that God will use Li to disciple the new believers.
Before his arrest, Wenxi Li worked at a Christian bookstore in Beijing. In 2012, Li traveled to Shanxi province to help local Christians open a new book store in the capital city of Taiyuan. But police raided the new business, Enyu Bookstore, and confiscated $6,000 worth of books that Li had brought with him from Beijing.
When Li was asked to come retrieve the confiscated literature, they immediately arrested him upon arrival and put him in jail. Li was reportedly denied bail because of the seriousness of his “crime.”
Cai Hong Li, Wenxi Li’s wife, tells VOM that after the police arrested her husband, they told her it was became Wenxi Li was involved in an “illegal business.” However, the bookstore at which he worked has a legal license to operate, and Li wasn’t involved in managing the business.
“[Wenxi was] just sent to find a rental place for a new store,” Cai Hong Li told VOM.
Since Wenxi’s arrest, Cai Hong Li and their two children have been harassed by anonymous sources. Cai Hong says she fears for her children’s safety.
On its Web site, VOM says “China continues to arrest, torture and jail Christians associated with illegal house churches as they attempt to control or eliminate all religions.” Though all religions are being persecuted, those who follow Christ appear to be the hardest hit.
Despite the government’s crackdown, Joshua Project and Operation World say China holds between 70 and 75 million evangelical Christians. VOM says an estimated 3,000 Chinese people are coming to Christ each day. Despite the threat of persecution, torture, and prison, millions of believers are continuing to meet in illegal house churches.
Learn more about VOM and how they support persecuted believers in China here.
