They came as she was speaking.
Public Security Bureau officials swooped in as Sarah Yang, a female house-church
leader, finished expounding her text to her congregation. She was whisked out
into the bitter cold. It was December 1998 in northeast China. She shivered in
the freezing cell, waiting for her interrogator to come in.
Soon he swaggered in. Wu Pei Fu was the head of the Public Security Bureau in
the area. For some reason he took an instant dislike to Sarah Yang, and instead
of using more subtle psychological techniques, he began to beat and kick her.
"Tell me who the other leaders are? Who supplies your Bibles?" He screamed
questions, and when she refused to answer, he would rain blows upon her,
slapping her flesh. The police station echoed the sound of his hands stinging
her body.
But Christians were praying. Wu was in for a shock. He interrogated Sarah Yang
for only twenty-four hours, but the hours were full of nasty surprises. First,
he heard his mother was in the hospital from a bad car accident. Next, news came
that his son was very sick with a stomach ailment. Finally, when he went home he
had a fierce argument with his wife, who threatened to leave him.
In the morning he took his frustration out on Sarah Yang, beating her repeatedly
and then sending word to her congregation: "If you don't pay 20,000 RMB for her
release. I will send her to a labor camp for three years." The sum was
exorbitant (nearly $2,500). The congregation could not afford to pay, since in
the area the average yearly salary was less than half that amount. But they
prayed, and a contact in another city agreed to raise the money. Sarah Yang was
released.
Hearing that her interrogator's mother was ill, Sarah Yang went straight to the
hospital to see her. She located the mother, who was lying on the bed with her
other son in attendance, and began witnessing to her. She preached the Gospel to
her and sent word to the other Christians. They all came and prayed at the
bedside. In a matter of hours, the mother and her other son both trusted Christ.
The Christians also prayed for Wu's wife and son. The son was healed.
Wu was amazed at the boldness and the effectiveness of the Christians, and when
his mother started attending the house church of Sarah Yang, whom he abused so
badly, he made no objection. He sent word saying, "I will not disturb your
church. You are good people."
But he gave them this helpful warning: "I had to act against you because one of
your group filed a report with this office. You have spies in your midst. Be
very careful what you do and say, even with each other."
Open Doors, Brother Andrew with John & Elizabeth Sherrill, The Narrow Road,
Grand Rapids, MI: Fleming H. Revell, 2001, p. 270.
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