We have been honored to share the story of Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, founders of “The Voice of the Martyrs.” Here are links to stories we’ve featured on our blog:
https://pastorappreciationblog.com/2015/03/09/heroes-of-the-faith-richard-and-sabina-wurmbrand/
https://pastorappreciationblog.com/2017/03/08/the-power-of-posts-part-five/
Pastor Richard Wurmbrand left his apartment and headed to church one Sunday morning in February 1948, but he was kidnapped off the streets by Romanian secret police. He would spend 14 years in Communist prisons.
When he came down with tuberculosis and appeared close to death, guards moved Pastor Wurmbrand into the “death cell.” But he didn’t die. Instead, he survived and was eventually ransomed out of Romania. After arriving in the West, he immediately began to tell the story of his imprisonment and of the many Christians still suffering in Communist prisons behind the Iron Curtain.
In October 1967, those stories were typed up and mailed out to Christians who wanted to know more. It was the first issue of what later became the Voice of the Martyrs newsletter.
Something else happened in 1967: The book “Tortured for Christ” was released:
Pastor Richard Wurmbrand’s dramatic testimony shocked the world when it was first released in 1967, and many believers today cite it among the most influential books they have ever read. Pastor Wurmbrand endured months of solitary confinement, years of torture, constant suffering and the anguish of brainwashing simply because he refused to deny the name of Jesus Christ. The book is the story of how one man’s faithfulness and suffering led to a worldwide network of support for persecuted Christians.
Today, the ministry that Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand founded is actively helping Christians in 68 countries, providing direct aid to the persecuted, sending Bibles to those in hostile areas and restricted nations, and assisting front-line workers.
The ministry also continues to tell the stories of these believers, just as Richard did.
Each year, for The International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP), they create a video created specifically for this Day. For this year’s observance, the video told a story from Richard’s personal testimony of those years in Communist prisons. “Solitary Prayer” was filmed in Romania, in the very prison where Pastor Richard Wurmbrand spent three years in solitary confinement. It is a story that reminds us to pray not only for our persecuted brothers and sisters, but also for their persecutors.
“Solitary Prayer” features excerpts from the new “Tortured for Christ” movie, which is set to be released in Spring, 2018. This will be a significant event.
We purposely waited to share this video, as an admonishment to pray, every day, and to “remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them” (Hebrews 13:3).
Note: This is powerful:
pastorappreciationblog.com 