Finding God in China

 

My wife Ione and I (Allan) have lived in Hong Kong for the past 20 years.  We raised our family here and love Hong Kong and China. "Finding God in China" is a mix of news about our lives and work (we work with WorldVenture) along with China news and prayer requests. Recently we opened an employment agency to help Filipinos find work in Hong Kong. Through this venture we have been able to share Christ with many new people, and our Jubilee Church now has a thriving Filipino congregation.

Disclaimer:  I am not a China expert. My goal is encourage people to think about, better understand and pray for China. We love to network and if your church would like to get involved in China, we can help. Drop us an email.

Heavy rain in southern China forces 150,000 to flee

I hope this report from Reuters will stir you up to pray for China, and for the church there. Catastrophies like this, are also a chance for the church to demonstrate Christ's love by serving and loving people in need. 

Reuters. Saturday, July 4, 2009; 4:45 AM

BEIJING (Reuters) - Torrential rain battering southernChina has forced more than 150,000 people from their homes, toppled hundreds of houses and punched a dangerous hole in the spillway of a dam, Xinhua news agency reported on Saturday.

The destruction after just three days of downpours was a reminder of the havoc that parts of China may suffer during the wet summer months ahead.

The rain sweeping parts of Jiangxi province and Guangxi region has so far killed three people with four missing, Xinhua reported.

Many towns in Rongshui County, Guangxi, reported rainfall of up to 200 mm (8 inches) from Wednesday to Friday, said Xinhua, adding that more than 5,600 dwellings and buildings across Jiangxi collapsed under the downpours and resulting flooding.

In Jiangxi, more than 80,000 people here moved out of fear for their safety, and in Guangxi another 70,000 were moved. Often, Chinese officials moved people only short distances from flood-threatened areas.

State television news showed footage of locals and troops struggling to contain a breach from a flood diversion tunnel at the base of the Kama Dam in Luocheng County, Guangxi.

A 13.5-meter (44 ft) long section gave way under the weight of the water and a nearby hillside was also in danger of collapsing. Local officials ordered more than 7,500 locals living downstream to flee, fearing the dam might crack.

The threat was intense enough that Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao issued orders to "ensure the safety of the public," Xinhua reported. By Saturday afternoon the danger was receding, a later report said.

But forecasters in Guangxi have said that torrential rain was likely to hit parts of the region again Sunday.

(Reporting by Chris Buckley; Editing by Alex Richardson)

Netizens in China fight corruption

Recent events in Iran have reminded us of the power of the Internet. So called 24 hour news channels like CCN and FOX news  totally missed the first day the unrest in Iran, while blogs and twitter spread the news to the world. In China, citizens are also using the Internet, not to fight their government, but to help their government fight corruption. See the video below for the full story.

Schools are closed

Yesterday the Hong Kong government closed all the schools for two weeks to avoid the spread of the H1N1 virus (swine flu). One local school had 12 students come down with the illness, and seeing the writing on the wall, the government closed all schools. 

Last Sunday I participated in the dedication of the new Yan Lam Church. Their new facility is beautiful! In the afternoon, Andrew Pang was ordained! What a great day!

Next week Rev. Pang and I are travelling to India to visit our worker, Angela Chang. We also want to build relationships with local pastors and churches, and perhaps initiate some partnerships.  We have another worker going for 8 weeks this summer (Florence Leung) and we hope to finalize preparations for her stay and ministry also.

I am also trying to visit some possible homes for Pastor Jorge and his family. They are  scheduled to arrive August 1st.  Please pray for our trip to India.  Pray for Florence who will be spending the summer in India. Please also pray for a good affordable place for Pastor Jorge and his family to live.

Ione is in the States visiting family, so pray for safe travels for her, and sanity for those of us who are muddling through without her. Thanks for praying. 

For the Smiths,   Allan

 

Civil Rights in China

I had the day off today, and watched a program on Al Jazerra News about "black jails" in China. Al Jazerra is the cable news network, based out of Dubai, which aired the Ben Laden videos. It is one of the free news channels available on our Hong Kong cable, and we have been surprised by the comprehensive nature of their coverage. I searched google news and found the following article on the Radio Free Asia website. Please continue to pray for the leaders of China.  

China Vows To Improve Rights

2009-04-13

China launches a national plan to improve the civil, economic, and political rights of its citizens over the next two years.

AFP

Chinese petitioners outside a courthouse in Beijing, April 3, 2008.

HONG KONG—China's cabinet pledged Monday to improve human rights protection for its citizens, including hiring public supervisors to oversee the country's prison and detention system, guaranteeing the right of journalists to write critical material, and televising trials.

“China still confronts many challenges and has a long road ahead in its efforts to improve its human rights situation,” according to the text of Beijing's “Human Rights Action” plan, which aims to boost protection for civil, political, and economic rights over the next two years.

The move comes in the wake of public outrage—mostly expressed on the Internet—in recent months at deaths in police custody, controls over online freedom of expression, and the plight of China's “petitioners,” who seek to lodge complaints against alleged official wrongdoing through legal channels.

Last week, a group of civil rights organizations issued an open letter protesting the "illegal exercise of police power and the rude violation of Chinese citizens' personal freedom."

Calling for reforms of China's authoritarian one-party political system, the April 3 letter was signed by eight groups promoting civil rights.

It called on the ruling party not to "trample the Chinese Constitution and the law at will in the name of social harmony and stability and get on a path on which they regard people, humanity, and human rights as their enemies."

Persecution in China

I attended a training event today, where some of the trainers were from the US. At lunch, one of the trainers asked me, "Do church leaders still have to be afraid of being arrested?"  I answered "It's not too bad now. Things are much better than before." Then I returned home to find this email from "Voice of the Martyrs" in my inbox. Freedom of religion and speech IS much improved in China, but it is not yet universal. I hope this encourages you to pray.

DAY 68: Gao Zhisheng Held Hostage

Christian human rights attorney Gao Zhisheng, has now been missing 68 days, and there is increasing concern for his life. He was last seen being hauled away from his home by more than a dozen police officers on February 4. Reports from inside China indicate he is undergoing brutal torture.

The situation is critical, and with each day that passes, Gao Zhisheng's life hangs in the balance.

Because of Gao's work defending house church Christians and others persecuted in China, the Chinese government wants to silence his voice. ChinaAid president, Bob Fu calls Gao's torture "the most severe persecution in China's modern history." Gao's wife and two children, who have also been abused and tormented by the police, escaped to the U.S. less than two weeks ago. His family is afraid that authorities, furious at their escape, are taking revenge on Gao.

ChinaAid and The Voice of the Martyrs, together with Gao Zhisheng's wife and children, call on all Christians and those who value human dignity and justice to speak out on Gao Zhisheng's behalf by signing a petition to free Gao.

» Sign the petition at www.FreeGao.com

Jubilee Filipino Fellowship at 2 years old

Last Sunday we celebrated the 2 year anniversary of Jubilee Filipino Fellowship, and the 1st anniversary in of our Jubilee Center in Shatin. We had a fantastic time, but as you can see from our pictures, we are fast out-growing our location. Please pray for Jubilee Church. We are hoping this group can expand into other venues around Hong Kong, but we need to develop leaders first. Thank you for praying!

India Arising

Ione and I recently spent a week in India visiting one of our HK ladies who is living and working in Bangalore. We also spent some time in Delhi learning about what God is doing in Northern India.  Great things are happening in N. India and there are a number of indigineous church planting movements occurring acros N. India. It was exciting to see and hear what is happening there.  Take a look at our brief slideshow. 

The Church in China: Emerging from the shadows

My friend, Paul sent me this link to a series of articles and videos from the Chicago Tribune on new developments in the church in China. Please read and watch the videos prayerfully.  Allan

Zion Church in Beijing

Jesus in China: Christianity's rapid rise

The rise of Christianity is reshaping the officially atheist nation, its politics and the way many Chinese view the world. The Tribune's Evan Osnos reports from Beijing and the countryside.

By Evan Osnos | Tribune correspondent

4:57 PM CDT, June 22, 2008

Rev. Jin Mingri, founding pastor of Zion Church, gives a sermon. (Tribune photo by Jose M. Osorio / June 21, 2008)

Chinese New Year OFW (Overseas Foreign Worker) Retreat

Wow! While my family and I were in the Philippines for a short vacation, a short term team from Capitol City Baptist Church stayed at our home and led a retreat for OFWs working in Hong Kong. The retreat was conducted at Jubilee Church.  Below is Pastor Jorge's report on the retreat. We had a number of people waiting for baptism, and no church would loan us a baptristy  (mainly because Chinese New Year is the biggest holiday of the year). One church with a built in baptismal tank (rare in HK) turned us down, because they didn't want their baptism tank "overused". Anyway, with 11 people waiting to be baptised, and the weather very cold, what was Pastor Jorge to do? You can look at the pictures and read his report below. Please pray for those who received baptism!

OFW Retreat Day 4 -Baptism

Dear Friends,

Thank you for remembering us in your prayers.  

We were able to conduct a retreat/camp for the OFWs working in Hong Kong.  This was held during the Chinese New Year's holiday – January 25-28 – where employers would be giving their workers extra days off.  Most of who attended were recruits by Arrow Employment Agency – an agency started by a WV missionary, Mr. Allan Smith.  But interestingly, these ladies invited their fellow workers to join the retreat.  So on the first day, which is also the time the Sunday worship service was held, there were 100+ who attended.  On the second day 68 came and on the third day 58 participated in the retreat.  The retreat was held at a CB church in Hong Kong called the Jubilee center in Sha Tin. 
 
The retreat is designed in a way that a day's attendance would be complete in itself but if the OFW wants to attend all days, she benefits from all days as well.  Some ladies were given three days off but the others would be lesser than that.  (Read on below)

Continue reading "Chinese New Year OFW (Overseas Foreign Worker) Retreat" »

The following article from freep.com gives a good explanation of how the economies of the US and China are connected. With President-elect Obama saying we are going to have to borrow hundreds of billions of dollars to stimulate the US economy, we need to ask, "Who is going to lend us that kind of money?" In the past, the Chinese have loaned us the money by purchasing US treasury notes. If they don't buy our paper, then who will? Read on, for the freep.com article. "China economic slowdown sparks U.S. concerns It may have less to finance American spending, some say BY TIM JOHNSON MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS

BEIJING -- Nearly every day brings signs that China's blazing, export-driven economy is hitting the skids -- and that's mixed news to the United States.

China's slowdown has generated concerns that it may splash out less money to buy the piles of U.S. Treasury bonds that Washington must sell to finance trillion-dollar-a-year deficit spending.

Some economists say those fears may be overblown, however, and they point to other factors that could test China's resilience as millions of workers get thrown out of jobs, factories shut down, port activity slows and economic growth hits the doldrums for the first time in a generation.

In one of the most dramatic, but little-noticed, indications that manufacturing activity is slowing sharply, Taiwan announced last week that its exports to the mainland fell 54%. That signals a collapse in the supply pipeline of components that go into laptops, mobile phones and computer chips, which assembly plants in China pump out for the world market.

Shanghai, the once-throbbing hub at the Yangtze River Delta, saw an extraordinary double-digit decline in its industrial output last month, the China Daily reported Friday, citing an economic magazine, Caijing.

Where will the US get the money to stimulate the economy? China???

The following article from freep.com gives a good explanation of how the economies of the US and China are connected. With President-elect Obama saying we are going to have to borrow hundreds of billions of dollars to stimulate the US economy, we need to ask, "Who is going to lend us that kind of money?" In the past, the Chinese have loaned us the money by purchasing US treasury notes. If they don't buy our paper, then who will? Read on, for the freep.com article. "China economic slowdown sparks U.S. concerns It may have less to finance American spending, some say BY TIM JOHNSON MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS

BEIJING -- Nearly every day brings signs that China's blazing, export-driven economy is hitting the skids -- and that's mixed news to the United States.

China's slowdown has generated concerns that it may splash out less money to buy the piles of U.S. Treasury bonds that Washington must sell to finance trillion-dollar-a-year deficit spending.

Some economists say those fears may be overblown, however, and they point to other factors that could test China's resilience as millions of workers get thrown out of jobs, factories shut down, port activity slows and economic growth hits the doldrums for the first time in a generation.

In one of the most dramatic, but little-noticed, indications that manufacturing activity is slowing sharply, Taiwan announced last week that its exports to the mainland fell 54%. That signals a collapse in the supply pipeline of components that go into laptops, mobile phones and computer chips, which assembly plants in China pump out for the world market.

Shanghai, the once-throbbing hub at the Yangtze River Delta, saw an extraordinary double-digit decline in its industrial output last month, the China Daily reported Friday, citing an economic magazine, Caijing.