Some Brass Tacks of China

I want to share about the country I will be moving to next year...China.
There are so many misconceptions of this land and I want to present some facts that are wonderful!
God has been doing a tremendous work in China since 1807, when the first protestant missionary, 
Robert Morrison, arrived in China.


In 1949, the Communist government took power and there were about 70,000 Chinese Christians. 
For the next thirty years no foreigners were involved in the development of the Church in China.
It wasn't until 1978 until anyone from outside of China could get back in to see what had happened
to the Church.  Under severe persecution and without help or support form the Western world, the
Chinese Church had grown to nearly one million Christian believers!


We continue to hear stories of the massive growth of the Church in China.   Some Chinese analysts 
have called it "the greatest evangelical movement the world has ever seen."  Estimates indicate that
there are over 70 million Christians, and the Christian Church in China is growing at a rate of 6% a year.  


In Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and other cities, there are universities with Departments of
Christian and/or Religious Studies.  These departments have spread rapidly and have been a catalyst
for revision of government policy on Chinese Christians.  Their goal is to make Christianity a visible force as China searches for a new intellectual order in the 21st century.  


An increasing number of Chinese Christians have a heart to see the advancement of God's good news, and have found new ways to serve in China.  Some have started non-profis to help meet the needs of
the poor in their villages and provide services, like English, job training, after-school programs, medical assistance, and basic needs like shoes, clothes and backpacks for school children.  It is another step toward the Chinese Church's complete self sufficiency.


Since 1988, the Amity Printing Company has been printing Bible In Nanjing, China.   In 2007, they printed over 3.4 millions Bibles for the Chinese Church.  They continue to print a wide variety of Bibles, including study Bibles, pocket Bibles and large print Bibles.  They have the capacity to print over seven million Bibles a year and have completed a 1-acre printing facility that will have the capability to print one million new Bibles every month!


So when I hear of certain negative stereotypes of China, my heart is sad since I know that they are false as well as damaging to God's overall work in China.  I praise HIM for combining the best intentions and the worst mistakes of Western missionaries, and using it all to develop His church there to bring glory to Himself!