PERSECUTED CHURCH  COLLECTION

PO Box 1485

Cashiers NC 28717

Jondee_pcc@surfbest.net

www.persecutedchurch.com

 

 

CHINA REPORT SUMMER 2000—A VISIT WITH THE UNDERGROUND 

                                                    CHURCH NOW 100 MILLION STRONG

 

IF YOU LIKE BEING BORED PLEASE DON’T READ THIS REPORT

 

Praise the Lord forever.  In tears they said, “we are not worthy to receive this offering.”

 

1.     ARRIVING IN CHINA

 

2.     NORTHWEST  CHINA

  1. PREACHING TO A COSSACK CROWD
  2. VISITING A FAMILY WHOSE FATHER IS IN PRISON
  3. VISITING THE FAMILY OF A MARTYRED BROTHER
  4. THE CHINESE TORTURE BUS
  5. THE HOUSE OF REFUGE PROJECT
  6. JONATHANS’ ARREST AND TORTURE

 

3.     NORTH EAST

  1. NOW A MISSIONARY CHURCH
  2. A WOMAN STARTED 60 HOUSE CHURCHES
  3. A WIDOW SOLD 2 COWS TO COME
  4. THE 3 MOST IMPORTANT DAYS IN THE HISTORY OF MAN KIND
  5. THE CONSTRUCTION OF TRAINING CENTERS
  6. CLOSE ENCOUNTERS
  7. A SEASON OF PEACE

 

4.     THEY DON’T NEED OUR MODERN CHURCH TRADITIONS

 

5.     IN SUMMARY

 

ARRIVING IN CHINA

 

Hold on to your seats as we endeavor to take you with us on our 5th journey into the far upper corners of China.  Our mission is to encourage and support this phenomenal Underground Church with offerings from the Free Church.   They are winning 30,000 a day to Jesus.  A short concise report will not give you the detail you deserve for your investment in the Lord’s Persecuted Church in China.  May I recommend that you make a copy of this and find a quiet place and enjoy? 

 

Dr. Dan and I stayed in a motel near the airport so we would not have to fight the Atlanta morning traffic.  When we arrived at the airport and approached the ticket counter, I swear the check-in line was 100 feet long.  We looked on the board and I couldn’t believe my eyes as it read, “FLIGHT CANCELLED”.  A quick question at the counter sent us up to the gate to get reconnected.  There was no line at all so it was instant service.  We booked on another airline (miracle #1) and found out it had to go to a hanger to replace an electrical panel.  We didn’t panic, just prayed hard.  I knew this was going to be a great trip by how it started. 

 

Miracle #2, the second plane left on time and if everything goes right, we would have just enough time to make our flight out of LA. Three other members of our team were waiting for us there.  We would never have made the connections if we had to check our luggage.  Packing for two weeks in carry-on’s was not easy but experience says to pack light.  After a full run from terminal 6 to terminal 7, we met our team and their friends.  Then a quick prayer and we boarded a 747 into the future, trusting our Lord and your prayers to cover us. 

 

Our team consisted of Doc, a college professor from South Carolina; Hoe an accountant from LA; Ive, his daughter who is a senior at a local university and Timothy Jon, (his second trip with me) a sales engineer from St. Louis.  Thirteen hours later, we landed in Shanghai.  The Lord had arranged this trip differently from any before it.

 

NORTHWEST CHINA

 

We boarded a Russian jet for a five-hour flight across China.  We are heading to Big John’s territory.  He is a great underground church leader. After a bumpy flight there, Big John and his entourage met us at the airport.  We will spend the next week with him as we travel Marco Polo’s famous Silk Road.  We gave Christian names to those that were with him.  There was Jonathan, Big John’s co-worker whom we met before in Shanghai; Peter, a Russian with a Pentecostal background; Matthew and Mark, our bus driver. All these men worked to bless and care for us on this trip.

 

From early on, we could see that our mission was to include being ambassadors of the Gospel.  We had to present a clear image of our Savior and the love He has for these people. As Christians, we wanted to leave a deep penetration of His joy and zest for life in this Muslim region. In this area close to the Russian border, there are no Chinese.  Many years ago, the minority people rose up and killed many of the Chinese.  The rest fled and never returned. So the political pressure and persecution are different here.  The predominant religion is Muslim.  The persecution pressure varies from place to place.  In the first town we visited, we were looked upon as tourists and so there was no religious pressure.  But in other areas, we had to literally hide from the public.

 

We boarded Mark’s mini bus (Chinese Torture Bus) and visited 5 Muslim families in one day.  They all treated us warmly with traditional hospitality.  All of these homes were connected in some way to Muslims that were recently saved or were close to becoming Christians.   For example, Matthew was working on Mark, our bus driver who accepted Christ as Savior the next day. 

 

We were at Mark’s father’s house and being from the United States, we were somewhat of a spectacle.  Folks and especially children would peer at us with inquisitive stares.  As we were enjoying their hospitality, I faintly heard Ive playing her small guitar and singing worship songs.  Timothy and I excused ourselves and followed the sounds of her beautiful voice. 

 

Timothy brought his freshly purchased digital video camera.  Outside the wall that enclosed the courtyard was the small street where our bus was parked.  To our amazement, there was Ive with a crowd of children around her.  She had them singing and doing arm motions and turning around in unison.  I could feel an anointing upon her and sensed the presence of Jesus as I got closer and saw the joy in the children.  Immediately, the lump in my throat came and my vision was blurred with tears.  Neighbors started to come and watch as Ive would, at times, put her guitar down and stand in line with the children and teach them a routine.

Ive is an American born Chinese.  She stands about 5-10 with a spirited personality and a sweet innocence.  She has a smile that could melt an iceberg.  Her position as worship leader at her church was an asset and the children especially loved her.  Being able to speak Chinese, she could give witness to these children of the Savior they were singing about.  Many of the children were part of Mark’s family.  Pray that the seeds Ive has planted will grow and bear good fruit.

 

Mark, our bus driver, is about 35 years old and we were to visit his house next.  His wife had been sent on ahead and when we arrived, she along with her sister and daughters were half way through preparing a full-blown meal that included home made noodles.  All the food was prepared outside in the courtyard on mortar stoves.  Ive took out her guitar and while waiting for the meal the same wonderful scenario happened.  The hospitality this family showed us is unforgettable.  

 

At that moment, Mark was about 10 hours away from accepting Jesus as his Savior.  I won’t know perhaps for a year how his family will respond to his conversion.   Will there be more conversions in his family or will they mark him for death, which is not uncommon?  Mark is an outstanding person with many great qualities.  Please pray for this family that they will all come to know Jesus and overcome the potential religious persecution ahead of them.

 

PREACHING TO A COSSACK CROWD

 

After a six hour bus ride, we stopped at 1:00 am and moteled it in a Cossack tent that could sleep all 10 of us.  It was like stepping into a time warp of about 2000 years.  We were exhausted and wanted to sleep but out host brought in some bread and warm milk. Then two young men came in and started to play a guitar with a neck that was about 5 feet long.  They started singing and if we were not so tired, we would have tried the Russian kick dance.

 

At sunrise, Tim and I took a horseback ride up into the high mountains.  God’s handiwork was breathtaking.  We looked below us and saw this huge lake at 10,000-foot elevation and the long line of about 24 ancient colorful Cossack tents.  Inside one of the tents, as we had breakfast, we watched Big John lead Mark to Jesus.  A special moment as heaven looked on and I witnessed for the first time a Muslim coming to Jesus. 

I had a hunch that we could gather a crowd outside our tent so before we left the area, I asked Ive to start playing.  It worked and they started to come.  Many horsemen came at the outer edge of the crowd to hear Ive sing.  At times, we would sing with her and clap. Occasionally, as I would be overwhelmed by what I was witnessing, I expressed my joy by giving out my famous mountain hallelujah yell.  Big John then told the crowd of the Jesus we were singing about.  More seeds sown in an area so remote that this may have been the first time they heard about their creator. 

 

VISITING A FAMILY WHOSE FATHER IS IN PRISON

 

On the road again and after four hours, we reached our next destination.  We were to visit the family I mentioned in my Fall Report 1999 about the father that was arrested on his son’s wedding day.  We had to visit these families one by one because of the persecution pressure in this area.  Big John was on his cell phone and arranged the meeting place.  This city is so paranoid about foreigners that we had to draw all the curtains on the bus so no one would see us.  It was stifling hot.  We parked in a driveway next to a building and waited for them.  After 15 minutes, the door opened and the mother, her son and his wife boarded.  The surveillance of this family was constant, so the only way we could meet with them was to drive around the city with the curtains pulled shut.   

 

This family is precious.  Because of the surveillance on their home, no meetings are taking place there.   The mother has opened a clothing store so that she can meet and minister to Christians under cover.  The son (his English Christian name is Revival) is happily married and is carrying on in his fathers’ place.  After his mother and wife left the bus, we took him to the next town where he was scheduled to go out into the rural area and teach some Christians.   The father has one more year in prison.  He continues to pray for the Muslim prisoners when they come to him for healing.  His prayers have even healed the prison warden.  The Lord Jesus heals everyone for whom he prays.  He has found favor with the top cadre and was made the chef for the prison.  What a great testimony of a man that would not deny His Lord and would not be re-educated.  Many have become underground Christians in that prison.  We blessed this family again with your offering and encouragement.

 

VISITING THE FAMILY OF A MARTYRED BROTHER

 

On the road again for five hours to our next destination, the family of Brother Steven the martyred brother I wrote about in last year’s report.  We stopped on a side street and waited.   Soon, Samuel the oldest and Timothy the 3rd son climbed aboard the bus.  Their dad died last year in June so this tragedy is still fresh.  I was interested to see how it had impacted them.  We drove a short distance to their mother’s house.  We hurried in with our heads lowered and covered with a baseball cap so we could shield our faces as much as possible. 

 

To our surprise, she had a meal waiting for us.  It included lamb among other delicious foods as well as watermelon and cantaloupe.  After our meal, we started to share with each other.  I told her that I have been praying for her family and because of prayer, we have become part of her family.  So her family becomes my family.  I said to her that she now has relatives in America. 

 

Then she told us something that was startling.  Early in the day, the Lord had spoken to her to prepare a meal because a relative was coming from a remote place.  At that moment, the presence of the Lord fell on us and pierced us with reverence and we quietly worshipped Him.  How marvelous it is to watch the Lord work.  Could it be true that the Lord wants to be that intimate with us and that He finds pleasure in pleasing us?  He used both of us to bless each other.

 

Jesus brought our team across the Pacific and across China to this humble home to comfort, encourages and bring gifts to the family of our martyred brother.  He used her to bless us with her gift of hospitality and exceptional cooking.  The Lord had her prepare lamb, the very best that she had.  She had no idea that we were scheduled to be with her that day.  We prayed that the peace of the Lord, His joy and encouragement would rest on her house and family.  We left leaving a blessing with them.

 

We left in the darkness.  We traveled until we arrived at a hotel and I was in bed at 3:00 am, which was becoming normal. The agony of 16 hours on an old shock-less bus, traveling China’s horrible remote roads is indescribable. But through all of it, I heard not one word of complaint from our team about the grueling conditions or schedule.  To lay my body down was a wonderful relief.  By this time, my feet have begun to swell.  The seating in the bus was so tight that I could not stretch out my legs.  I am told the swelling is because of poor circulation. At the airport, during a quick call to my wife, she asked me if anything was wrong with my legs.  Elaine from my house church was told by the Lord to pray for my legs and she didn’t know why. 

 

On the other hand, this bus became a sanctuary of ministry.  A place where Big John could share about his experiences with the Lord with the locals traveling with us.  There were 12 of us on the bus.  This included the 2 brothers whose father was martyred.   The strain of losing their father, in such a manner, had a negative effect spiritually on them.  I felt impressed to probe and work on the oldest son Samuel. 

 

It came out that he had a problem with self-condemnation that put him into bondage.  I knew we needed to anoint him and pray for his deliverance.  But we needed the power of everyone’s prayers to do it.  Before the bus pulled away, I got the oil out and we anointed Samuel.  I asked Big John to pray without the interference of translation.  The Lord impressed upon me that Samuel needed to pray also and ask the Lord for forgiveness.  It didn’t take long before he broke.  His prayer was intense with much emotion.  Tears flowed and true repentance fueled the powerful engine of redemption promised to us all because of Calvary. 

 

After many miles of sharing with him, Samuel said that I reminded him of his dad.  He said that I have the same love and kindness from the Lord that his dad had.  He asked if I would become his godfather.  Another touching moment, hugs seemed to last forever.  I sensed that Samuel was hugging his dad again.  Now, he was ready, as the oldest son, to take the mantle of his father.

 

I think I received some knowledge from the Lord.  I now understand that this son of a martyr is a special son in the Lord’s eyes.  As a matter of fact, I think the Lord looks after the whole family of a martyred brother with great intensity.  I believe the Lord was personally directing our ministry to this family. 

 

THE HOUSE OF REFUGE PROJECT

 

This project is for Muslim converts who are on the run from the death sentence imposed upon them by their families.  Big John told us that they no longer have to rent houses for the project.  They are now able to find enough families to provide this kind sanctuary for these dear souls.  This is as it should be.

 

The next place we visited was a huge farm that was an underground training center as well as a place of refuge for those on the run.  We went through a large gated entrance into a  farm that looked like it was about 500 acres.  We picked up the owner (we named Paul) a small man whose smile never stops.  He shared how he became a Christian and how he started many house churches. 

 

His wife 25 years ago became very ill with many problems.  She was a physical wreck.  She was schizophrenic and had a heart attack to name just two.  A 12-year-old girl told her that her mother’s God could heal her.  She was prayed for by this Christian lady and was healed.  Paul then became a Christian and with a passion shared his Lord Jesus with others.

 

The Lord gave Paul this vision for the farm.  It is a self-supporting training center and a place of refuge for Christians that are on the run.  This farm grows many crops and has all kinds of animals.  The Christians that come to the farm help in the fields and tend the many varieties of animals.  Because it is so large, there is no suspicion about the people arriving for refuge and teaching.  From time to time, Paul hires local folks to help with the farming.  Before they leave they become Christians. 

 

Paul showed us their new Training Center.  It was almost finished.  It lacked a boiler for hot water heat and rest rooms for the students.  In the winter, it is too cold to be outside so the Training Center runs at its peak.  I asked where the money was coming from to finish.  He said, I went as far as I could and the Lord will send the rest.  I had the rest in my leather bag.  At the right time, after his wife told us about her conversion and during some refreshments, I presented them with enough of your offering to finish the Training Center. As we were leaving, Paul’s wife still seemed to be in shock at the Lord’s provision.  In rural China where money is scarce, completing anything is a long process.  This was certainly a miracle to them.

 

It was time to leave this region.  So we did what Luke 6:38 said.  “Give, and it will be given to you.  A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.  For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”  We gave Big John enough to cover all the needs he presented to us on behalf of the believers in his region.  When we prayed over your offerings, he was visibly shaken and overwhelmed with gratitude and thanksgiving, as the Lord was able to meet all the needs. 

 

JONATHANS ARREST AND TORTURE

 

This is the testimony of Jonathan, his arrest and torture for the Gospel, as told to Ive.  She spoke this testimony into a recorder as we traveled on the Chinese Torture Bus.

 

The way he was beaten, they would use anything that was available to them in the room.  He was beaten with a broom and with their batons.  This became the daily routine.  They would drag him out of his cell and interrogate him with the same questions over and over.  But he would not tell them what they wanted to know.  So, they would beat him all over including his face.

 

The other prisoners who were not Christians continued to complain that this was not humane.  The government was bad.  After they beat him, they took him and put him into the hot sun to bake him and he was there for many hours.  Then they took him back inside the police area and put him in a small room where he could not stand up.  With his hands tied behind his back they beat him with a broom for more than an hour.  They would do this to him two times every month and when he tried to raise his head up, they would beat him with a broom.  When he would not answer their questions, they would beat him again.  He was there for hours and it was so hot that the sweat would roll down like water over his body.

 

So, after one month, God by His grace got him out.  His mother was in another area with the women.  Before he was let out, he had to pay a fine.  Because they said, we went to catch you at night and you have to pay our gas money and other expenses, so he had to pay this fine before he could leave. 

 

After that experience, two years latter in 1991, the police came back to get him but this time he was not having a Church meeting.  He and his mother were out in the field working.  They called them out and ransacked the house again looking for material.  They took them to a much bigger jail for 6 months.  Twenty men were in this cell and they had just enough room to lay side by side to sleep at night.  They beat him every day and they told him that Christianity is a white man’s religion.  If you agree with Christianity you are agreeing with democracy and their form of government and that is illegal.  That is rebelling against the Chinese government. 

 

Every day he was beaten and the Communist government gave him this green book that spoke of all the good things of the government, like brain washing.  While he was reading it, Jonathan saw something that stated the Communist government believes in the freedom of religion.  So he said to the communist officer “what is this freedom of religion, and then you are persecuting me?”  The communist officer said, we allow religious freedom, only our own religious freedom, where we tell you to go.  So, if you want to believe in the Jesus, in this Christ, you have to go to the three self-church, the government church. 

 

They couldn’t get him to talk.  It was totally God who kept him alive and gave him the strength to not give them any information.  After 4 or 5 months, they left him alone and let him live there in the jail.  So they told him that if he wanted to get out that he had to pay money.  Because it was his second time in prison, he would have to pay more money.  His father was on the outside and so somehow his father was able to get the money.  After six months, he and his mother were released. 

 

The government set up a little booth near his house so they could monitor their activities and they watched the family like a hawk.  So they stopped having church in their house.  His future wife was in prison as well but the women were treated better and were not beaten so badly.  The government went to look for him again to put him in prison because they wanted more money.  He was not there but his wife was there, so the police left.  After awhile, they went back to kidnap his wife and then wait for him.  So when they went back, his wife was not there either.  This was truly the Lord because at that moment the Lord told them to move to another city.  So that very day, they packed a few things and left and escaped the government. 

 

Every year the government police would come and take what they wanted and fined them because they were Christians.  The police would laugh and joke saying Christians don’t have anything because we take it.  This is the reason many Christians cannot get ahead because they are constantly fined and have to start all over again. 

 

THE CHINESE TORTURE BUS

 

Forgive me for the slight exaggeration. We traveled all day in the newly named Chinese Torture Bus.  We later learned that they had picked out a nice new bus for our journey.  But they were working on this Muslim that we named Mark.  Because of the potential to win Mark to Jesus, they correctly chose to hire him and his bus.  Now, doesn’t that show the Lord’s heart to win just one soul from eternal hell?

 

This is the part of the world where they have not yet heard of vehicle regulations.  We all prayed for that bus from time to time.  We smelled gas and learned that a long time ago, he lost the gas cap.  The rag that was stuck in the pipe was now floating in the gas tank.  No problem, Mark took a plastic bag and a couple of rubber bands and fixed the problem.  Of course, we had to put water in the radiator from time to time because it did not have a cap either. 

 

It was difficult to imagine what the tread design had been on the tires.  The worst one blew out and I could not believe the spare they put on to replace it.  It would not have passed Pennsylvania’s tire reg’s 30,000 miles ago.  Oh, ask me about the air conditioning as we are going alongside this sweltering humongous desert.  Yep, you guessed it, there was none.  Onward, at top speed of 40 miles an hour because if Mark went faster it would overheat.

 

I must have needed some major humbling from the Lord to get this one particular seat.  It had a half grapefruit size lump right in the middle of the seat where there should have been a curve going the other way.  It was bearable for a little while.  Until I was being rubbed raw.  I found myself trying to get relief by sitting on the front of the seat with one cheek over the side.  It was wonderful to offer the seat to Timothy, as he wanted to talk to someone near me.  Everything was fine until I saw him doing the cheek dance.

 

I really wanted to buy Mark some new shocks, especially after hitting some bumps. There were times his hands were on the wheel and his feet were above his head.  I would have given Mark a 10 at any rodeo.  As soon as the front of the bus came down, it was our turn in the back to hit the ceiling. Although the performance of this bus was a minus ten, it was faithful in getting us to every destination.  It gave us adequate time to minister and be ministered to by the Lord.

 

Now don’t get me wrong, Mark loves his bus.  He knows all the 636 problems with it.  It’s a matter of mechanical savvy and knowing what to do just before she dies.  Mark is going to make a great Christian.  He will overcome any problem that has hindered Christians for the last 2,000 years.  This is one ex-Muslim, the devil is going to steer clear of. 

 

NORTHEAST CHINA

 

To show you the growth of Christianity in China, I want to give you some detail about this church network we are visiting.  It is only 8 years old and has 1,500 house churches in its network.  Its leader is only 30 years old.   He owns and works his farm with his wife.  He takes no salary from the church and the staff is volunteers.  He has the wisdom of a much older brother.  This church has evangelized most of the city in which it is located.  It is a city where there are many minorities.  The police are reluctant to persecute the church as is done in other areas.  

 

We arrived at the airport and no one was there to greet us.  Hoe was on the cell phone and found out there was an accident.  Our host was held up about 45 minutes.  We drove along time before we arrived at the temporary training center.  Finally we got in bed at 3:00am. 

 

The temporary training center is a big home, which is up scale and fairly new.  In a few days, it will go back to being a normal house.  Our host is 69 years old and he and his wife couldn’t do enough for all that gathered at their home. They put themselves at great risk by hosting this event.  He used to be a high official in the Communist party.  One day his wife became deathly ill.  A Christian prayed for her and she was healed.  She became a Christian and so did her husband.  He then turned in his Communist card and retired to serve his new master, Jesus.  They became part of the underground church in this area.

 

A MISSIONARY CHURCH

 

I remember hearing in 1998, the faint whisper from the leaders of the Underground Church that they would be sending missionaries to the world.  My impression was that they were a long way off in achieving that goal.  They were fighting just to survive the persecution let alone the long process of maturity.  Scheduled to speak with us was a missionary from Thailand who is ministering to the Wo tribe.  He was there recruiting missionaries from this church.  I was also surprised to learn that they were now supporting 8 full time missionaries.  Some were in southern China and some in Mongolia.  Many others are sent out two by two on short-term mission trips to evangelize other locations.

 

It is my opinion that for His purpose the Lord has preserved the Chinese people and their ancient culture for this great last day’s harvest.  Our Lord Jesus can call His missionary teams from a human resource of 100,000,000 Christians.  Their qualities come from many centuries of a repressive brutal government that uses fear to control the masses.  These qualities include humility, respect for authority, servanthood, hard work and sacrifice.  They sleep without mattresses and they don’t need a washer, dryer, refrigerator or a color TV. 

 

This poor church sends out missionaries who everyday have to walk 4 hours one way into town so the police cannot find out where they are staying.  Sometimes, they only have enough money for one meal a day.  Some are in poor health because of a lack of nutrition.  I earmarked some of our offering to give these missionaries proper nourishment.  I told the leaders pay for food or pay the doctor.

 

One great obstacle of this challenge is that the underground church has extremely limited resources to send them out.  This is where the Free Church must take up the challenge to equip this heavenly force of missionaries for the Lord’s service.  We can support a missionary in China for about $1.00 a day.  Think of it, for $400 a year you can support one of these extraordinary missionaries.  Is there any one that would like to buy these missionaries a motor bike?  They only cost $800 US in China.

 

A WOMAN STARTED 60 HOUSE CHURCHES

 

She sat in the back and I recognized her as the host of the farmhouse where I had spoken in September 1998 (China report 1998).  I was only there for about 30 hours so I did not have time to get to know her.  But I remembered feeling an exceptional spirit about her.  I greeted her warmly and recognized the same spirit.  I did not know at the time that in a couple of days, we were scheduled to visit her farmhouse again.

 

As we approached the farmhouse, I was told that we were going to the place where I had taught before.  We were greeted by Lydia (the name we gave her).  I asked her some questions and was astonished at what she had accomplished with a minimum of teaching and with no covering from any church.  After finding Jesus as her Savior, she just started to share with others about Him.  Eventually, she would go farther and farther away from home to share the Gospel. 

 

Before long Lydia, who is 49 years old had started 60 house churches.  Then she learned of the house church network we were visiting.  She put all the ones she started under its covering.  All that she accomplished was done with only the leading of the Holy Spirit.  Now, we have more proof of the Holy Spirit’s wonderful control over His Church in China.  I have heard of great works like this before.  But this time, I was there to hear about it personally and have it confirmed by Noah, one of the church’s apostles.

 

Lydia excitedly introduced us to a sister for whom she had prayed.  She was healed and became a Christian.  This sister had pneumonia and the infection traveled to her brain.  The doctors told her family she was at a place of no return and death was near.  Lydia prayed for her and the Lord healed her.  She sang a song that she recently wrote.  She couldn’t get through it without weeping and praising the Lord.  This was another precious and moving moment.  I noticed the great bond of the Spirit between her and Lydia.

 

A WIDOW SOLD TWO COWS TO COME

 

Noah called me upstairs to meet 4 widows that had previously received an offering from PCC.  They all heard that I was coming and they came to say thank you.  I was not prepared to receive what they told me.  There are just some moments that I can’t explain.  You would have to be there in person to feel them.  I had no idea that anyone could be so moved and encouraged by receiving an offering from the Free Church.  All of their testimonies were very similar but this one lady’s testimony in particular, I would like to share with you. 


She started crying quite hard from the time she started until the time she finished.  Her husband died and she experienced grieving as most widows do.  In China, many widows must assume the man’s chores to survive.  Especially, if they had worked a small farm together.  They had been fervent Christians.  But now the wind was gone out of her sails and she was in depression.  She did nothing for the Lord. 

 

The knock came at the door and Noah delivered the envelope to her.  She opened it to find the offering and a letter of encouragement in it.  In tears she said to him “I am not worthy to receive this money.”  Noah witnessed, first hand, the kindness of Jesus to one that was deep in depression and not able to help herself.   He saw how it gave her new life.   

 

Like the other widows, she just had to come to say thank you.  But she lived the farthest away and had no money to make the trip.  So, she sold two cows to come to give me a hug and say thank you.  I tried my best to tell all of them that the Lord must receive all the glory for this blessing, I am just the mailman.  I guess to them; I am like a mailman that only brings good gifts and no bills.

 

One other widow that was too old to make the trip received more than see needed.  So, she started to bless others in need.  I wish you could have been there to personally see and feel the Spirit on how your offerings encourage the Lord’s suffering church.

 

THE 3 MOST IMPORTANT DAYS IN THE HISTORY OF MANKIND

 

The Lord has been helping me with this teaching, since before Easter of this year.  The time period of this teaching includes the crucifixion, the descending into the earth (Hades) and the resurrection of Jesus to the Father.  If you ask the underground church what teaching they would like to hear, they would say, “tell us about Jesus.” All of our team members came prepared and shared a teaching with them.

 

Each morning the church gathered by 5:00 am and the teaching finished at 8:30 pm.  One night, a missionary from Thailand made an appeal to these young Christians to consider becoming missionaries with him.  As they prayed, seeking the Lord until 10:30 pm, I watched as the Holy Spirit fell.  The next day, I was scheduled to teach all-day.  I knew they were near exhaustion so I shortened my last teaching so they could leave early.

 

THE CONSTRUCTION OF TRAINING CENTERS

 

The most critical area of this move of God in China is equipping the many new Christians with enough knowledge of Jesus, so they may be sent out as evangelists in His service.   To be an evangelist is their heart’s desire.  The building of a training center is a most dangerous initiative.  This is a Communist country where they will destroy it and send those involved to prison and worse.

 

We are heavily supporting one in the Northwest and one in the Northeast of China.  They both are disguised as something else and both are expanding.  The course offered to the students is for a period of 2 or 3 months.  This is not a seminary.  It is essential Bible training, equipping these young evangelists for the task ahead.  We must not only help with benevolence but we must help to equip its evangelists and missionaries.

 

CLOSE ENCOUNTER #I

 

We were going through this busy city and were pulled over by the police at a checkpoint.  We quickly closed the curtains as Mark pulled over to the side.  The police were just randomly picking out vehicles to check their paperwork.  This did not look good.  Here are five foreigners in the bus and I was carrying a bag full of money.  Mark had to take all of the vehicle paperwork into a small police station.

 

We started to pray very seriously.  We asked the Lord to guard our bus with angels having their swords drawn.  Our mission of distribution and encouragement was more important than our own safety.  Our hosts would be in big trouble if we were arrested.  We were there way too long, so we knew something was up.  We were told that a policeman had noticed a stamp was missing on one of the documents and he wanted a $60 fine.  That is a lot of money for a simple working man in China.  It was nothing short of legal highway robbery.  All the while this was happening, ministry continued to go on in the bus.  I felt we needed to pray for the sister that Samuel was going to see.  As soon as we finished praying for her, and after paying the fine, we were on our way.  Big John felt the Lord was waiting for that ministry in prayer to take place before we could proceed.

 

Some time later, at the airport, as we were leaving this area, I was able to phone my wife in the States.  She told me of her encounter with the Holy Spirit as He got her out of bed to pray for me.  She started to pray out loud and it turned into shouts and pointing her finger in a commanding way.  A tongue came to her that was unfamiliar to her.  “It sounded like Chinese”, she told me.  As best as I can recall, it was at the time we were pulled over by the police.  Perhaps, when we are in heaven, we will learn why that kind of intercession is necessary.  I wonder what would have happened if my wife would have rolled over and continued to sleep?

 

CLOSE ENCOUNTER #II

 

I was scheduled to teach on the last day of our stay.  So we went to bed expecting to do that.  The men slept together and at 1:00 am, we got a knock on our door.  We were told to pack and get ready to leave immediately.  We were told that the government had been informed that foreigners were at this house.  The risk was too great and we had to leave. Have you ever tried to pack with adrenaline flowing?  It wasn’t a pretty sight but we were ready and waiting as the two taxis came for us.  

 

We were taken to Priscilla’s house in the city.  We learned that one of our team members forgot to cover himself when he went outside and a neighbor got a good look at him.  I can not reveal to you the circumstances as to how Noah found out that the government received the call.  Suffice it to say that as the revival continues to spread it finds its way even into government agencies. 

 

A SEASON OF PEACE

 

Our time here was extended two days because our trip down south had been canceled.  The reason was that the persecution has stopped in this one particular area.   The Lord can influence an impossible situation for His purpose.  The story goes like this.  In this particular area, the Underground Church has done many good things for the community.  It is growing at a fast rate.  The local three self-church (government church) which cannot evangelize outside of its walls, informed the police about some places the Underground Church meets.  It wanted the police to arrest them.  Sounds like a pure case of religious jealousy to me.

 

After reviewing the situation, the police told the three self church that they would not arrest them and actually gave them peace because of all the good they were doing for the community.  Normally, the police will encourage the three self-church to inform them of the locations where the Underground Church meets, so they can arrest them.  Thank you Jesus for this peace.

 

 THEY DON’T NEED OUR MODERN TRADITIONS

 

What I have observed in China is a fresh young church that resembles the early church we read about in the New Testament.  In 1949, when Communism became China’s form of government, Mao outlawed all religions. This turned out to be a good thing.  Christianity now has a clean slate from which to work without the organized systems we know in the west.  Why would we want to impose a system that is in decline upon this church that is harvesting 30,000 new converts every day?  

 

My heart was heavy last year as I witnessed a church from Hong Kong imposing its traditional order of service on a local house church in Shanghai.  The woman in charge was from this Hong Kong church.  She told me that they wanted to get the backward underground church into the 21st century.

 

Being a Christian for 40 years, I have been exposed to the modern traditional church in all her glory and in all her defeats.  My conclusion is that we will ruin this Holy Spirit lead Underground Church if we interfere by trying to implement our traditions on it.  The Holy Spirit is very capable of controlling and teaching this church.  As this Chinese church continues to read the book of Acts, they will act and imitate the early church.

 

IN SUMMARY

 

If you have read through to this point, it means you have a heart of compassion for Jesus’ persecuted church.  The challenge is for us to follow through from our heart to tangible support.  The Lord continually expands what we do for Him.  We started out simply being benevolent to His suffering church in China.  We did it in such a way that integrity was being built in the leaders, so that they could handle more and more money.  This is what happened in the early church as more money was laid at the Apostle’s feet to father a poor, young, struggling church that wanted to learn more about Jesus. 

Now, we are faced with the challenge of supporting their missionaries and helping to build their underground training centers. Many young people are waiting and cannot go because there is no way to support them.  If we do nothing, they will continue as best they can.  How can we send soldiers out without shoes, a bicycle, or enough food to eat?   Remember that the Lord’s kingdom is without borders.  So, these are our brothers and sisters and they need us to distribute the blessings we enjoy because of where the Lord has planted us.  We are the wealthiest nation in the history of mankind.  Let us as Christians act in a compassionate way.  Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:31-46

 

It gives me great pleasure to acquaint you with this marvelous Church in China.  The more we know of them and how they handle their tests & trials, the better prepared the Free Church will be for whatever comes our way in the future. Can I ask you to become a personal missionary to the Persecuted Church?  It’s really easy; pray for them everyday, support them financially and tell your family and friends about them.  PCC is not a mission with money for advertising etc.  What we do, because of its sensitive nature, must be advertised by word of mouth.  All of this information is free and I encourage you to use it for the glory of JESUS.  Please forward this report to every Christian in your electronic mailing list.

 

Paul, the Apostle, mentioned to the Corinthians how impressed he was with the Macedonians response to the needs in Jerusalem. And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.  For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability.  Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints.  And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God's will.  So we urged Titus, since he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part (2 Corinthians 8:1-7). 

 

Remember all gifts are tax deductible, just simply make you checks payable to PCC.  All of our staff is volunteer and they pay all their own expenses.  Our commitment to you is that every bit of the offerings go to the Lord’s persecuted Church.  Before you know it, we will be going back.  Making a monthly support commitment to them will make it easier for you.  While we were there, we felt your prayers. Esther from my house church was awakened twice from a sound sleep and was told by the Spirit to pray for our team.  I want to thank all of you who prayed from the bottom of my heart.  If you pray for the Lord’s suffering Church everyday, then you will notice an increase in sensitivity and compassion for them. Until next time.

 

Living in His design, and loving it,

 

 

Jon Dee (my Chinese name)

 

PS We are working on a video to be given to all those that contribute to His suffering church.