Family members of a Lisu Christian in China are asking for prayers, urging believers to pray for Li Guiwen who was arrested on August 2, 2025.
The family’s request for prayer was sent out in a letter on October 27, 2025, which detailed Brother Li’s crime of “organizing illegal religious activities” – a common charge issued to those who host fellowships in their home.
Currently, Brother Li is being held at Yuanmou County Detention Center and much prayer is needed.
Brother Li belongs to a minority group in China known as the Lisu people. Many people in the Lisu minority tribe are Christians. They have a long-standing cultural and religious tradition that has forced the government to allow more autonomy, but this year, the Chinese government has ramped up their attacks on Christians throughout the nation, including the Lisu people.
Below is the prayer request sent by Brother Li’s family.
Dear Friends,
We are the family of Li Guiwen, a Lisu Christian from Pingtan Township, Yuanme County, Yunnan Province. Li Guiwen was criminally detained on August 2nd of this year by the Yuanmou County Public Security Bureau on suspicion of organizing an illegal gathering and is being held in the Yuanmou County Detention Center. Police say he organized illegal religious activities.
He was arrested on September 8 and transferred on October 17 for prosecution.
Our village is predominantly inhabited by Lisu people, many of whom are Christians. Our ancestral home was in Jiangyi Township, Yuanmou County, but we were relocated to Pingtan Township in 2002 due to a natural disaster.
The Christians in the village gathered together in our ancestral home, and continued to do so after the relocation. We primarily gather in our own homes or private spaces, without disturbing others or disrupting social order.
Please pray that this case will be handled fairly. We hope the prosecutor’s office will handle the case impartially, and we also hope that Li Guiwen will return to his family soon. Thank you!
Li Guiwen’s family,
October 27, 2025
Photo from X of Brother Li and Letter from X
