Tortured For His Faith

Tortured For His Faith

Little did he know what lay ahead.

AFTER finishing high school, Haralan Popov left his village in Bulgaria and went to the city of Ruse looking for work. There he lived in a tiny room with Christo, a friend from his village.

One evening Christo invited Haralan to a Baptist church, even though he knew Haralan was a convinced atheist. Haralan was impressed by the beautiful music and the intelligence of the speaker. All he could think about when he returned home that night was the question “Is there a God?” To help Haralan find the answer, Christo introduced him to his friend Petroff. When Petroff explained what Christ meant to him, his face seemed to reflect God’s love, and it became obvious to Haralan that God existed.

As he spent more time with Petroff, Haralan came to understand that he wasn’t seeking God, God was seeking him. He received Jesus Christ as his Savior, and his life was changed!

To prepare himself for Christian service, Haralan attended Bible institutes in both Germany and England. He fell in love and married a Swedish Christian woman. Returning to Bulgaria, he pastored a church and served as an evangelist. Then in 1944 the Russian army invaded, and by 1947 Bulgaria was under a Communist dictatorship.

At 4:00 A.M. on July 24, 1948, Popov’s doorbell rang, and he was snatched from his wife and two children by the police and sent to prison.

At first, Popov was made to stand facing a wall all night without moving while being constantly questioned and berated. Then on August 5 he was put into solitary confinement and subjected to “the wall” twenty-four hours a day. For fourteen days he faced the wall, not allowed to move or eat or drink, and was constantly interrogated and beaten.

When the guards realized he was about to die, they gave him food and water and let him lie down. Popov thought that the worst was over. However, the next day, August 20, 1948, the guard pointed a gun to his head and said he had five seconds to admit he was a spy. At this point Popov was gladly anticipating death so he could be with Jesus. When the officer paused after counting to four, Popov, strengthened by the Holy Spirit, shouted, “Don’t wait! Shoot me straight in the head!” The guard, who had been bluffing to extract a confession, was shocked by Haralan’s bravery. Feeling like a puppet on a string, Popov, cried out to God, “I was faithful to the death, but death didn’t come.”

Popov’s imprisonment continued, and despite the pain and suffering, he had the joy of leading many prisoners to Christ. He was released thirteen years and two months after his arrest.

After his release he longed to be reunited with his family. They had fled to Sweden during his imprisonment, seeking religious and political freedom. Not sure if he would ever see them again in this life, Popov worked tirelessly organizing underground churches and helping produce Bibles for them.

Finally, Popov and his friends decided that he should attempt to leave Bulgaria and join his family in Sweden, where he could serve as the outside source for Bible smuggling. They knew it would take a miracle for the Communists to grant Popov a passport. With hundreds praying fervently, Popov’s attempts to obtain a passport were repeatedly rejected. Then inexplicably he received a letter saying that he was free to go!

On December 31, 1962, Haralan Popov was reunited with his wife and family. It had been fourteen and a half years, and now they were together in a free country! Haralan Popov became a world spokesman for oppressed Christians behind the Iron Curtain.

Reflection

Over and over Haralan Popov was given strength and courage when he prayed for it. Do you ask for strength and courage when you need it? Do you expect it to come? How would your faith hold up under similar circumstances?

Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or are hungry or cold or in danger or threatened with death? . . . No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

Romans 8:35-37