Ten Bold Believers Stories from 2008

Each day through the end of the year, I will be posting one of the top 10 “Bold Believers” stories of 2008, as reported by the Voice of the Martyrs Kids of Courage.

8. United States:

Student Stopped from Sharing Scripture

Fifteen-year-old Stephen C. of New Jersey traveled to China with his grandfather in 2008 during the Olympics. But they didn’t go to the Olympics. Instead, they and two others in their group carried Bibles into the country to share with Christians. China’s government prints Bibles, but there aren’t enough for all the Christians there.

Stephen carried about 100 Bibles in his suitcase. The Bibles never got to the Chinese Christians. Airport officials stopped Stephen’s group and refused to let them take the Bibles out of the airport. They took Stephen and the others into a room and questioned them. The Americans stayed in the airport for more than 20 hours. They left after they found out about a 2007 law that says visitors may bring only one Bible into China. The Word of God tells Christians to share the gospel with people in all nations (Matthew 28:19, 20).

Stephen hopes to be a professional skateboarding photographer someday. He would also like to visit other countries in the service of the Lord. He says the trip to China helped him grow spiritually, and he recommends that other kids go on missions trips. “It helps you see things differently,” Stephen said.

To protect their identities, the names of some of the people on this site and some identifying details have been changed. Some of the quotes and stories have been edited and paraphrased from the original sources for clarity.