Stories of Faith - Episode 7

Source: www.opendoorsusa.org

Brother Andrew started with bold beginnings by smuggling Bibles into Eastern Europe in 1955, started Open Doors to serve the persecuted church and wrote God's Smuggler, one of the best-selling Christian books of all time.

God led Andrew into a lifetime of adventures, like the one he describes below.

During the height of the Cold War, Communist countries were keeping a tight control on their borders, but God had called Brother Andrew to help the Christians behind that Iron Curtain. “When I pulled up to the checkpoint on the other side of the Danube, I said to myself, “Well, I’m in luck. Only half a dozen cars. This Romanian border crossing should go swiftly.”

“But when it took forty minutes to inspect the first car, I began to worry…literally everything that family was carrying had to be taken out and spread on the ground.

“Every car in line was put through the same routine. The fourth inspection lasted well over an hour. The guards took the driver inside and kept him there while they removed hub caps, took his engine apart, removed seats.

“Dear Lord,” I said, as at last there was just one car ahead of me, “what am I going to do? Any serious inspection will show up these Romanian Bibles right away.

“Lord,” I went on, “I know that no amount of cleverness on my part can get me through this border search. Dare I ask for a miracle? Let me take some of the Bibles out and leave them in the open where they will be seen. Then, Lord I cannot possibly be depending on my own stratagems, can I? I will be depending utterly upon You.”

“While the last car was going through its chilling inspection, I managed to take several Bibles from their hiding places and pile them on the seat beside me.

“It was my turn. I put the little VW in low gear, inched up to the officer standing at the left side of the road, handed him my papers, and started to get out. But his knee was against the door, holding it closed. He looked at my photograph in the passport, scribbled something down, shoved the papers back under my nose, and abruptly waved me on.

“Surely thirty seconds had not passed. I started the engine and inched forward. Was I supposed to pull over, out of the way where the car could be taken apart? Was I … surely I wasn’t…I coasted forward, my foot poised above the brake. Nothing happened. I looked out the rear mirror. The guard was waving the next car to a stop, indicating to the driver that he had to get out. On I drove a few more yards. The guard was having the driver behind me open the hood of his car. And then I was too far away to doubt that indeed I had made it through that incredible checkpoint in the space of thirty seconds.

“My heart was racing. Not with the excitement of the crossing, but with the excitement of having caught such a spectacular glimpse of God at work!”

Stories of Faith - Episode 2

Originally published on The Voice of the Martyrs Newsroom on July 31, 2015

Merv Knight is the co-founder of VOM Australia and has ministered to persecuted Christians for more than 46 years. When I have the opportunity to collect insights from Merv, my ears are wide open and my pen is usually busy scribbling notes!

This time, Merv shared about a Christian man who was called by God to distribute Bibles in a remote part of Vietnam, even though he knew that it was risky. He was certain that if he was found with a box of Bibles, he would be taken to prison and perhaps even tortured (This still happens today in Vietnam. Click here to learn more).

In spite of the risk involved, this brother knew that he had to answer the call. He prayed hard, and then summoned all of the courage he had. The only option for transportation was a public bus.

So, he boldly purchased a bus ticket for a 12-hour ride from Ho Chi Minh City to the inner regions of Vietnam and climbed on board with a box filled with Bibles. He knew there would be checkpoints along the way, but he hoped that somehow the guards would miss this box.

As he prayed and waited for the bus depart, he was surprised, and more than a bit worried, to see a uniformed police captain board the bus. The captain walked toward the Bible smuggler, and selected the seat next to him.

Strangely, the captain quickly settled in to a very deep sleep. But, just before the captain fell asleep, he gently rested his hat on top of the box of Bibles.

While the smuggler watched and waited, the captain slept. It wasn’t long before they reached the first checkpoint.

As the Christian expected, the guards boarded the bus and began checking the identification papers of each of the passengers. Then the guards asked the passengers to open their bags while they inspected the contents.

When the guards reached the Christian’s row on the bus, they glanced at the box, at the captain’s hat resting on top, and at the slumbering captain. Then, without a word, they quietly moved on to the next row.

Repeatedly during the next 10 hours, checkpoint after checkpoint, the police captain slumbered and the guards quietly moved by without ever checking the box.

This testimony reminded Merv of another brother who was searching for a lady with a reputation for having “great faith.”

He asked around her village, and when he finally found her, he asked, “Are you the lady with great faith?”

“No,” she replied, “I am the lady with the simple faith in a great God!”

What miracles does God have in store for us as we learn to “walk in faith” like this Bible smuggler?