A Chinese pastor reportedly arrested and charged for preaching the gospel without government authorization penned a touching letter to her son expressing her "gratitude" and trust in God, despite her dire circumstances.

Pastor Hao Zhiwei, 50, of Egangqiao Church was sentenced to eight years in prison earlier this month, yet her faith hasn't wavered, as noted by the letter published by International Christian Concern.

Zhiwei wrote to her 18-year-old son, Paul, and told him "God is faithful," and the Lord has given her peace despite ongoing uncertainty.

"Do not worry too much about me. My cellmate received her sentence on the 10th: 12 years. Today is the 18th, and she has not been able to sleep," she wrote. "Once I received my first indictment on the 11th, I only had trouble sleeping the first night. I was praying about it and was able to sleep well since then."

She continued, "God's peace amazingly descended on me."

In other parts of the heartbreaking letter, Zhiwei expressed sadness at not seeing her kids—Paul and his brother Moses—grow up. She wrote missing their progression is "painful" and encouraged her son to grow in his faith.

"I hope that you would persist in diary-writing," Zhiwei continued. "Once we reunite, you can share it with me. I especially like to read your stories regarding your growth."

Read the full letter.

To read the entire article, visit our content partner at Faithwire.

To contact us or to submit an article, click here.

Get Charisma's best content delivered right to your inbox! Never miss a big news story again. Click here to subscribe to the Charisma News newsletter.