“May the peoples praise You, O God; may all the peoples praise You.”

Psalm 67:3

National People’s Congress

Almost three thousand delegates headed to Beijing in March for the annual meeting of China’s National People’s Congress (NPC). Security was tight to ensure the session ran smoothly, although most Chinese have no idea who their representative is and believe the meeting simply rubber-stamps Communist Party policy.

Premier Wen Jiabao presented his annual report, pledging to do more to save energy and cut pollution, to increase spending in the countryside, and to improve schools and hospitals. “We need to greatly improve the quality and efficiency of economic growth. We must attach greater importance to saving energy and resources, protecting the environment and using land intensively,” he said.

The president of the Supreme People’s Court promised the Congress that the crackdown on crime would continue. “Make protecting social stability an important task in criminal trials, and harshly punish according to the law the various crimes that are a major threat to public safety,” he emphasised. At the same time, he called for courts to “strictly control and cautiously apply the death sentence and improve ratification procedures and sentencing standards in death penalty cases. Ensure defendants’ procedural rights according to the law.”

China will increase defence spending by 17.8 percent this year, the NPC heard. Spokesman Jiang Enzhu commented, “In recent years, China has steadily increased defence spending based on its economic development. China has neither the wherewithal nor the intention to enter into an arms race with any country, and China won’t constitute a threat to any country.” President Hu has ordered the military to procure more materials on the open market to help stop corruption and abuse of power.

Premier Wen said that the government’s aim in all this is to “protect social equity and justice, and let all the people together enjoy the fruits of reform and development.”
 

Valuable Materials

“Thank you, thank you,
thank you to everyone.”

“Thank you so much for coming.
We have been praying
for this for a long time.
Thank you for
bringing such
valuable materials.”

Those were the reactions of two of the contacts in China that our courier team delivered materials to during March. Now that we have our own store house within China, we are able to provide the Chinese Christians with a greater variety of different titles each time we make a delivery. This has been greatly appreciated by all the recipients.

This most recent courier team made a large delivery to a small, remote province in China’s Northwest. It was the first time one of our teams had been to this province and the first time the churches there had received such materials. We were delighted to hear that many of the churches there had come together to receive and store the books. They told the team that they would divide the materials out according to the size of each church. A number of the local Christians had been questioned by the authorities in the past and one passed on his apologies for not being able to meet the team, as he was being closely watched. Yet the believers constantly expressed their thanks for the team’s “sacrifice” in coming to see them and their leader was in tears as she saw the group off on their return journey.

The team also delivered two large consignments of Bibles and Christian teaching books to three contacts in one of China’s main cities. As they handed over each consignment of materials, team members were encouraged to meet Chinese believers who had a heart to share the Gospel with those in other less-reached parts of the country. One couple was in the throes of moving to Tibet to set up a business and pastor a church there. A young man had recently returned from a year living amongst an unreached minority group in South-western China. And the third contact introduced the team to a graduate who was moving to another city to reach out to university students.

“I’ve prayed for China for many years,” one team member told us. “I’ve given to China for many years. But when I stepped into China for the first time, my heart leapt.” There is still time for you too to experience China for yourself by joining our next international teams departing at the end of July. Contact your local AM-CCSM office for further details of the courier, Friendship English, intercession, intercessory trekking, mercy or youth courier teams.

GIFT Team

“I wish to give glory to God for using us ordinary folks to share the Gospel with the Chinese people and for the joy of leading some to accept Jesus as Lord in their lives. Generally I found the Chinese people are open to the Gospel. Opportunities to share the Gospel with students were plentiful; many of them were keen to practise their oral English.

It was a wonderful experience to worship with our fellow believers in the house churches. What impressed me was that their prayers are passionate and outward looking. I can still hear the many loud ‘Amens’ that the whole church echoed in unison and agreement to the prayers offered during the meeting. For me, it was a new experience to share my testimony in Mandarin with some people.

This mission trip opened my eyes to some of the needs of China. It will give me a boost in my prayers for China as now I can ‘see and feel’ for the nation better. I wish to thank the Lord for His protection and mercy over all of us throughout the trip. To Him be glory for ever and ever.”

We praise God for this lovely testimony from a Malaysian brother who joined our first-ever GIFT (Go, Intercede, build Friendships, Teach) team in March. The team, made up of Malaysians and Singaporeans, visited two cities where they had the opportunity to work together with local Christians in evangelism and teaching, as well as spending time interceding concerning specific local needs. The team leader summed it up saying, “It was a successful trip and I felt the team had done exactly what the Father wanted us to do.”

We are expecting our second GIFT team to be heading for China at the end of this month. Please pray for another successful trip. Those from the Asian region who are interested in joining future teams (the next planned team is in December) should contact their local AM-CCSM office.

Brain Drain

“China suffers from the world’s most severe brain drain,” according to the BBC. About two-thirds of Chinese who have studied abroad since the 1980s have chosen not to go back home. A report from the Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing says that this ratio is the highest in the world.

“It has been a great loss for China… to see well-educated professionals leave after the country has invested a lot in them,” said Li Xiaoli, co-author of the report, and added that China is now “in dire need of people of expertise.” He estimates that more than 200,000 students have gone abroad each year since 2002, but only 20 to 30,000 have returned. The ‘China Daily’ newspaper suggests that, “Many talented Chinese emigrated overseas because they could not find opportunity at home.”

The report also estimates that around 35 million people of Chinese origin are living in more than 150 countries around the world. Some of these emigrants are based in countries where there are active and vibrant churches. In Vancouver, Canada, for example, there are over 80 churches specifically aimed at Chinese people. The United States, too, is home to around three million Chinese. Southern California alone has over 500,000 Chinese people and over 230 Chinese churches.

Other Chinese are living in countries where there is little opportunity to hear the Gospel. Myanmar (formerly Burma) has about three million Chinese, but under the military dictatorship all foreign missionaries are banned. Over 230,000 Chinese live in Central America, but only 0.6 percent of them are believers. Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons and traditional Chinese religions have made strong inroads into the Chinese community in Costa Rica, but few Chinese have put their trust in the Lord Jesus. Five hundred thousand Chinese live in Japan but most are unevangelised.

From our China-based Co-workers

“I went to a village school where the headmaster begged me to teach English. It was holiday time, but 50 children turned up. They had made a ‘Welcome’ placard and paraded me through the village market. It took several hours to get there by bus and car so they suggested I stay over night each week if I would come. There is much need and few to help.”

“I spend time with Christian leaders who beg for teaching. The responsibility is enormous. Who am I to teach them? Any error will be repeated to others and I shall be answerable. How can I not pass on what I know? The fields are ripe! Come and see!”

“Your generous donations have been used to connect B’s village home to the water supply. Normally his mother has to carry water from the well in buckets. She was so delighted that she produced a home-knitted cardigan for me.”

“Please pray for ‘H’, a good friend who saw God’s power in a speech competition and who needs to see it again in her dilemma about ‘unfair preparation’ given to only to a few selected students for the entrance examination to a further two years of study at university. She is a girl with a strong sense of justice and fairness, reluctant to be involved in anything seen as cheating. I have tried to encourage her that she is well qualified and will see God’s vindication in doing right. Please pray for her to make not only the right decision here, but also in the Biggest Decision.”

“I've been having lots of Chinese lessons lately and I have a new very excellent teacher. It's been good to catch up with my Chinese friends again after the Chinese New Year break. I've also just started teaching English to primary school children one night a week. The scheme is more for reaching out to the families rather than just the children, to help the children to have fun while learning and for the families to have a support group where they can share any problems they might have. The Chinese culture does not encourage people to speak out any hurts they may have because they will 'lose face'. I've heard of people who haven't told anyone that their baby died because they didn't want to lose face for exposing any grief.”

Leaving Tibet

In September 2006, Chinese troops shot dead at least two of a group of Tibetans who were seeking to cross the border into Nepal via the Nangpa Pass. The incident made world headlines as it was witnessed by a number of overseas mountaineers and video footage was provided by a man from Romania. A British climber said, "We were probably around 300 yards away from the Chinese who were shooting. The soldiers were putting their rifles to their shoulders, taking aim, and firing towards the group."

During 2006, at least 2,445 Tibetans are known to have crossed the Chinese border successfully without official travel documents and reached Dharamsala, home of the Dalai Lama and a Tibetan government-in-exile. Most were teenagers, like the 16 year-old who shares some of her story below:

“It was a really, really difficult experience. I had never walked for that long without proper food and water before. I became sick and could not walk very well and if I’d stop walking I would fall asleep. At that altitude, I could not get enough air, so I felt giddy and started vomiting. The guide kept on telling us that tomorrow we would arrive, but it seemed we’d never arrive, we’d cross mountain after mountain and he would say it’s after the next mountain but it never was, it never finished. I had never seen the Dalai Lama in real life but we did have pictures of him. When we were in trouble on the way, when it got too hard, I would imagine he was in front of me and I would talk to him. I talked to him a lot in my thoughts. And I really felt that he knew exactly what I was saying to him.

At some point, the guide said we had just passed the border but I could not see any difference. The police took us and we were held in detention for four days. They put us in a bus to Delhi and then another one to Dharamsala where the Dalai Lama lives. We went to see the Dalai Lama. It was an audience for 30 or 40 of us. Everybody was crying, and so was I. He spoke in the Lhasa dialect so I only understood his greeting words really, but I felt like I understood each and every word. Back at home I did not believe much in lamas. There are too many small lamas. My mother and sisters would always go to such lamas when they were sick instead of taking medicine. I found that ridiculous. But this time it was different, and at this moment I really believed in religion. After that, I was crying all day long and could not eat. It appeared so unreal. I couldn’t believe whether it was true or not that I was really here and that I had met him.” [Tibet Information Network]

A message from our Australian Director

AARON'S CALLING TO VOICE GOD'S CRY

I was reflecting recently upon the call of Moses to deliver the children of Israel from the bondage and oppression they were experiencing in Egypt (Exodus 4-6) and I observed some interesting parallels to what many Christians in China are experiencing today. When Moses was called to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, he responded in a manner not unlike some Christians today. He focussed upon his weaknesses and inadequacies for the calling, rather than upon the greatness of God Who was calling him. He reminded God that he was not eloquent and that he was slow of speech and slow of tongue. Although God was annoyed at his response, He still maintained His call upon Moses, but agreed that his brother Aaron would speak for him.

Over the past 50 years, the Church in China has been silenced, unable to speak and to voice its cry, so God has used the ministry of AM-CCSM, along with many other ministries and individuals, to be its Aaron, to speak for it. The cry of Moses through Aaron (to let the people go so that they might freely worship God) is expressed in a variety of ways through our prayers every day, as we come not before Pharaoh, but before the God of Heaven, the Just Judge of all the earth. As we continue to pray for the brothers and sisters in China and for the Kingdom of God to be established in China as God has decreed in Heaven, God will perform amazing signs and wonders to demonstrate that He is in control, and the authorities in China will finally release the Christians to freely worship Him.

RELIGIOUS SYMBOLS, BUT NO KNOWLEDGE OF HIM

On a recent visit to China, I was able to experience the amazing celebrations that take place over Chinese New Year. I visited a large market in Beijing to buy a couple of handbags for my daughters. Among the many sellers who were almost ripping my arms off to get me to their stall, I noticed a young Chinese lady with a chain and cross around her neck. Pointing to the image of Jesus on the cross, I asked her if she knew Jesus Christ. Her response saddened me. "No, I don't know who He is," she said, "I just like the jewellery." By this time a number of other nearby sellers had gained interest in the Westerner talking to this young lady about Jesus and they came closer to hear our conversation. For the next five to ten minutes I shared about Jesus Christ to a number of these young ladies, who listened attentively to what I had to share. I was shocked and saddened to discover that not one of them had ever heard His Name. It really brought home to me that, even with the vast numbers coming to Christ every day in China, the task is so huge and the need for labourers has never been more urgent.

Yours together in His love for China,

James Goss