This is the 52nd episode in the “Prison Pulpit” series on the China Compass podcast! I started in mid-October of last year. Today's episode starts with remembering Pastor Wang Yi, and then we look at the remarkable similarities in the legacies of Charlie Kirk and the millionaire missionary, William Borden, and how we ought to pray in the aftermath of the death of our heroes in the faith. Enjoy!

Bill & Charlie: To Die Is Gain: https://chinacall.substack.com/p/bill-and-charlie-to-die-is-gain

(Follow and/or message me on Twitter/X (@chinaadventures) where I post (among other things) daily reminders to pray for China.You can also email me @ bfwesten at gmail dot com. Last but not least, to learn more about our ministry endeavors or get one of my missionary biographies, visit PrayGiveGo.us!)

It All Started With Wang Yi

I want to start out today by going back to Pastor Wang Yi. It’s been awhile since I looked specifically at any of his writings leading up to his imprisonment (we don’t have any from his time in prison), but his story was the reason why I considered starting this special Prison Pulpit series to begin with. 

Wang Yi's Prison Preaching Plan (Here's the very first Prison Pulpit!)

https://pubtv.flfnetwork.com/tabs/the-pub/podcasts/30293/episodes/30

In the coming months, as the anniversary of his arrest and the forced closure of Early Rain church approaches, we will go back over much of what was written during that tumultuous time in late 2018. But for now, let me just encourage you, using an inverse of Hebrews 13:3, not to FORGET Pastor Wang Yi!

Continue to remember him in prayer and intercession, attempting to place yourself in his shoes so that you might pray relevant prayers that he would want you to pray. There’s no way to know for sure, but half an hour spent imagining what it would be like to spend nearly a decade in a Chinese Communist prison will probably give some perspective on prayer that you would probably otherwise lack. 

Bill & Charlie: To Die Is Gain

https://chinacall.substack.com/p/bill-and-charlie-to-die-is-gain

Now there is still hope that Wang Yi will be released here in a couple of years, but what should we do when there is no hope of release, or when we suspect the person we are praying for has been killed, or (as in the case of Charlie Kirk) when a Christian leader has indeed been martyred for the cause of Christ?

That’s what I want to talk about today, in part by walking through an article I just published on my substack (ChinaCall.Substack.com) yesterday on what would’ve been the 32nd birthday of Charlie Kirk. 

How do we pray, not for the dead themselves, but for their godly legacies to continue to make an impact for generations to come. William Borden is a great example of this, and in this article I compare and contrast his life and legacy with that of Charlie Kirk. The resemblances are remarkable.

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