Opportunities and Challenges

Posted on 15 March 2009.

Thank you for your prayers for the get-together for our China-based co-workers that took place in February. It was a special time, described by one participant as “a great time of fellowship, teaching, refreshment and relaxation.”

It was exciting to hear of the many opportunities our co-workers have to witness for the Lord through both word and deed. Yet living in China also brings with it many challenges.

God has opened the door for ‘P’ and ‘H’ to set up a family home for disabled children. Their loving care has transformed the lives of these children and provides a wonderful example for others to follow. Their vision is to set up a training centre to help parents care for their disabled children at home. Yet ‘P’ and ‘H’ are currently struggling with health issues and urgently need others to come alongside to help with this work. Their visa situation is also a concern, with visas for this type of mercy work being increasingly difficult to obtain.

A small team of our co-workers are based in a minority region. There are very few Christians among the people group who live there, but God’s love is being shown through friendship-building and medical work. We have begun to send short-term teams of doctors to the area to work with our long-termers and so far this has proved a tremendous blessing. One co-worker shared: “Coming back to the village after the medical team was quite something. Just walking down the street and being greeted by so many people who had been treated or who knew about it was so heart-warming, but more it was an indication of the change in the atmosphere.” Yet the areas these teams visit have recently been closed to foreigners for months at a time and already one medical team has had to be cancelled.

At the get-together, co-workers teaching English told of students who are seeking for hope and meaning for their lives, and are so in need of God’s love (see also Day Three). The teachers long to seize every opportunity to share their faith, but face major restrictions from the authorities. “It grieves our hearts that authorities can prevent people from hearing the Good News so freely available to us in our own country; a freedom which we so often take for granted,” they share.

Pray for renewed health and strength for ‘P’ and ‘H’, as well as for our other co-workers based in China. Pollution (see Day Five) in particular can have a major impact on people’s health.

Pray that each of our co-workers would be able to obtain the necessary visa to remain in China and continue their work.

Pray for doors to open and to remain open for both short- and long-term co-workers to visit the minority areas of China.

Pray for great wisdom for English teachers and others as they long to share God’s word but often face restrictions on their activities.