China Partnership - Update
China: Remaining friends in a season of re-engagement
“…encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing” 1 Thessalonians 5:11
It seems so long ago that we were able to visit our friends in China. So, it is encouraging to hear from churches and individuals that with COVID-19 God has pruned many things, but the Spirit has only strengthened the resolve to deepen the bonds of friendship with our brothers and sisters in China. Though we do not envision a visit in the immediate future, we know that God’s timing is perfect and we look forward to the day He opens the way. Until then we follow friendship’s multi-faceted pathways.
First, we commit our resources and energy to the relationship. Thus we celebrate that with the hiring of Rev. Dr. Thomas Boone, The Outreach Foundation is investing deeply for China. In addition to him having been in China, Tom’s own family has had a favored relationship with many in China for over twenty years. His father, Dr. Thomas J. Boone, Jr., was considered a foreign expert and taught economic law in several universities throughout China (Tianjin, Beijing, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Chengdu, Changchun, and Wuhan). His mother, Susan, taught English to some of our dear friends who have themselves become pastors, elders, and professors. Building on the good work of Jeff Ritchie, Peter Lim, Choon Lim, and Juan Sarmiento, Tom is committed to seeing The Outreach Foundation’s long-standing friendship with Christians in China continue and flourish to include new relationships.
Second, we sense this is a season for listening. More than instruct and presume, friends listen. So, we are taking time to hear what our friends in China and those who know them best are saying. On a positive note, we have much about which to rejoice!
• Christians remain strong and continue to gather in homes for support and churches for worship.
• Financial support for new church development is strong.
• Words of hope and joy over blessings God continues to shower upon Christians in China.
• Pastors are being trained through the good work of the Oxford Center for Religion and Public Life (OCRPL).
Still, there is need for intercession.
• Across the board, our brothers and sisters continue to experience challenges.
• Even the international church (reformed) in Beijing relocates worship regularly due to increased pressure.
• The government is committing significant resources to the re-establishment of indigenous “religions” such as Confucianism and Taoism, which exerts pressure on all other religious expressions viewed as non-indigenous (e.g., Christianity and Islam). This process is known as “sinicization.” Dr. Thomas Harvey with the Oxford Center for Mission Studies has written an article, The Sinicization of Religion in China, which provides helpful insights into the process. Click HERE to read the article in its entirety.
Third, all this to say, what we are hearing exposes opportunities for prayers both of gratitude and intercession. This in addition to specific prayers over provinces where we have relationships. Over the coming months, we invite you and your contacts to commit to prayer, making intercession in the following ways:
• Christians throughout China, but especially in the provinces of Jiangsu, Shandong, and Heilongjiang, where Outreach has been most directly engaged in recent years.
• The training of lay leaders to continue and thrive.
• China Christian Council and Three Self People Association leaders as they seek to remain faithful to the gospel through the process of sinicization.
• Theological education and seminaries.
• The family of Rev. Chris Wang Bin in Louisville, and his studies.
• Pastors being trained through OCRPL, and for Dr. Wenjuan Zhao (Joyce) who guides the Chinese arm of this effort.
• For the work of the Amity Foundation, a very active Chinese Christian humanitarian organization.
• Don and Wei Hong Snow
• Rev. Dr. Shawn Bawulski, his family, and the international church in Beijing.
THE NEED
The Outreach Foundation is seeking $5,000 to support continuing education opportunities for Chinese Church leaders; $50,000 to provide start-up libraries for lay leaders and recent seminary graduates-one “mini-library” costs $70 and a study Bible is $18; $10,000 to help provide short-term teachers for Jiangsu Seminary and support for Jiangsu Seminary in setting up its branch campus in Suzhou; and $10,000 to help provide short-term teachers for Shandong Seminary and lay training centers in Shandong Province, library resource development, and participation in seminars or forums that explore unique contributions Shandong Seminary can make to Chinese Christianity. You may make a gift HERE or by sending a check to our office.