Kids of Courage

Petr (left) with another prisoner

One night, Petr Jasek had a troubling dream. In the dream, he was locked in a prison. He saw the prison door shut, and he heard the lock click into place.

Petr was still thinking about the dream the next morning at church. A friend even noticed that he looked upset and asked him what was wrong.

The Dream Comes True
Shortly before Christmas about two years later, Petr was at an airport preparing to leave Sudan. As part of his job with The Voice of the Martyrs, he had been meeting with Sudanese Christians to discover how VOM could help them.

Suddenly an airport security officer tapped him on the shoulder. Authorities took away his camera and laptop, and questioned him for almost 24 hours. They knew about his Christian work in Sudan. But they falsely accused him of spying and other crimes, then they put him in prison at 1:30 in the morning.

At the Sudanese prison, Petr was amazed to see the same prison door and to hear the same lock clicking that he had seen and heard in his dream! The memory assured him that God had known what would happen to Petr in advance, and that He was in control.

Unfriendly Cellmates
Petr’s cellmates were sleeping on the floor when he arrived. They squeezed closer together to give Petr a small space to sleep. The next morning, they asked him for news from the outside world. He told them about an attack on innocent people in Paris by radical ISIS Muslims. When they heard the news, the prisoners jumped up and shouted for joy. Petr realized that his new roommates were also radical Muslims.

Day by day, the Muslims grew harsher toward Petr. They called him “filthy pig” or “filthy rat,” and they hit him when he didn’t answer to the insulting names. Petr prayed to be released.

A New Purpose
One night, 14 new prisoners from Eritrea were stuffed into Petr’s cell. Petr shared his testimony with them and told them the good news of Jesus. Two of them decided to follow Christ!

“From that day forward, I dedicated my prison time to the Lord,” Petr said. “I prayed, ‘If You will allow me opportunities to share the gospel, I will stay here as long as You want!’ I even stopped praying that I would be released from prison.”

Note: Petr was released after 14 months in prison, and he returned home to his family in the Czech Republic.

To Talk About
*If you were in prison for your Christian activities, what would you want Christians on the outside to pray for you?
*Why did Petr stop praying to be released from prison?
*Think of a task or chore that you don’t like to do. How could God use you in that situation to help you know Him better or to be a blessing to others?
*Petr met 14 new people in prison. They stayed in his cell for less than a day. Ask two or three people to act as newcomers and to role play the situation with you. What would you tell people about Jesus if you had only a short time with them?

Sudanese girls

Parents and Teachers: The July 2017 issue of The Voice of the Martyrs magazine includes stories about courageous Christians in Sudan. To subscribe to the free monthly magazine, visit our subscription signup page. As you read the magazines, you may want to share stories from this site with your children. Then pray together for the people in the stories.

1.    Since 2012, the government of Sudan has dropped 4,000 bombs on Christians and others in the Nuba Mountain region of Sudan. Do the math: Is that more or less than one bomb a day? Watch a video of children in Sudan hiding from danger.

2.    Four of the most dangerous places to be in the Nuba Mountains are church buildings, schools, hospitals, and fields of crops. Bombers target the shiny roofs of buildings and crops that produce food.

3.    Christians continue to worship and encourage each other. Watch a video that tells what some Sudanese Christians did after their church was bombed.

4.    Only two doctors and three medical facilities are left to help more than one million people in the Nuba Mountain region. One of the medical facilities is a tent.

5.    The Voice of the Martyrs brings medical aid and medicines to the people.

6.    Thirteen VOM staff members have traveled to the war zones. One of them, Petr Jasek, was jailed for 445 days because of his Christian work in Sudan. Read more about Petr.

7.    VOM also brings Action Packs and other aid to the area. Watch videos about Action Packs here and here.

8.    Some Sudanese Christians feel forgotten. VOM’s visits are as important as the gifts they bring. “We don’t look at what you’re carrying,” said a Sudanese pastor, “but how often you come.”

9.    Sudanese Christians have a request. “Please tell the American church to pray for us,” said a patient at a VOM-supported clinic. “And also don’t forget us.”

10.    Sudanese Christians share aid they receive with their neighbors, even Muslim neighbors. Some Muslims are opening their minds and hearts to Jesus. “The Muslims in the region are so open to the gospel right now,” said VOM’s Africa Regional Director, Sean Paton. “All the support they receive is coming from Christians.”