He stopped abruptly in the doorway. His prison guards, well-clothed in fleece-lined coats, gloves, boots, and hats, were urging him in. But he, in his ragged shirt sleeves and shoeless feet, was horrified to see that this frigid Siberian prison cell was filled with six inches of slushy water.
With a final shove, that made him splash into the water, the guards slammed the door and left quickly for their warm barracks. This dear Christian waded through the water and climbed onto the hard, cold, ledge that jutted out of the stone wall of his new prison.
As he sat there, shaking with cold and dread, the faces of his wife and blonde little girl came before him. He was causing them to suffer hunger and shame. Was it worth it? Was preaching that the Lord Jesus Christ is the only way to God worth this misery? Then another scene came into his mind—The Russian wind was buffeting his uncovered head, while his wife and daughter, with their heads covered in scarves shivered beside him in the snowy woods. But they were surrounded by fellow believers, and they were singing. Faintly singing, so that their church meeting would not be discovered by the KGB, but singing triumphantly and joyously,
When oppressed by foes from every side,
In Thy strength alone may I abide.
Thou wilt give the victory,
All I ever need is found in Thee.
Yes. Yes, it was worth it! The peace Christ promises came to him as He turned to Him. “Thank You, Lord,” he prayed, “that You grant me peace and victory in my imprisonment. Help me to abide in Your strength tonight; and Lord, You know I am weary and that it is much too cold to sleep. Please help me to sleep, even though there is no blanket, and my feet are numb and icy. I yield myself to Your will.” Then he softly sang another verse of the hymn…
Thou my Strength, my Fortress, and my Shield;
To Thee, Saviour, help me ever yield.
Thou art All in All to me;
All I ever need is found in Thee.
As he was singing in his dark, icy cell, he realized he was hearing a sound he hadn’t heard before. It certainly was not any guard; they were well ensconced in their snug, heated rooms. What was that slight “whooshing” sound? Was he dreaming that the ice that caked his socks and pants was actually melting? Was it just his imagination that he was not trembling in the cold so much? No! He was actually feeling relieving warmth! His God had heard his cry and turned the heat on for him, against all plans of his jailers; and they certainly were not going to brave the cold to come check on him. As he stretched gratefully on the hard bed, another verse of the hymn rang through his soul…
Christ revealed by His eternal love—
Can there yet be greater joys above?
This my soul delights to see;
All I ever need is found in Thee.
This Russian Christian, after spending years in concentration camps and prisons for his faith in God, was returned to his family around 1990, when Russia, for a short while, let up on the persecution of believers. His daughter came to America for college, and attended church with me. I will never forget this dear man telling us his testimony, through his daughter’s interpreting, and his weeping all through the singing of this Russian hymn, All I Ever Need is Found in Thee. The basic facts of this story are true (including the watery cell), but I obviously used my imagination in the details.
His story was used in part for BJU’s film, THE PRINTING. If you go to 1:02:21 you will hear this beautiful hymn sung with some accompaniment. The Russian believers wrote the hymn, and all their sacred music, anonymously. Perhaps some of it was to avoid persecution, but mainly because they understood that sacred music should glorify God alone. We have much to learn from these Russian saints of God.