As you may know, Richard and Emily Guentert were in China over Easter, on a mission trip with Global Missions. The following is a brief report they just forward to those of us back home. I know you will be keeping them, and all their travel companions in your thoughts and prayers.
We are now in the middle of a very exciting two weeks in this marvelous country full of kind and hospitable friends. As you know we are traveling with our denomination's office of Global Missions and we are visiting the church's work among Christians here. Already we are deeply and profoundly impressed by the faith of the Chinese Christians and the efforts of mission personnel among them.
It is a resurrection experience to behold their energy and vitality in publishing Bibles (even printing them in braille for the blind), in evangelizing the unchurched, in medical care, in attention to such needs as HIV Aids, a mobile medical team, village health worker's training and health clinics, orphan fostering, teacher training, back to school projects, work among migrant workers, rebuilding schools where they have collapsed, and instigating the building of the largest hospital in China.
A church body called Amity has 30 different community development projects - including loans to begin businesses, environmental protection promotion, and social welfare work.
In addition to all of this there are lay training centers for part-time lay-workers in the church, there are Bible Schools (like our colleges) to train full-time church workers, and there are seminaries to train ordained clergy (of which there are woefully few compared to the great need).
We are truly seeing and experiencing the richness of the resurrection in the life of the Chinese church. These people are truly excited and animated by their relationship to the risen Lord. Richard had the honor of bringing greetings to over two thousand of them in Palm Sunday worship last Sunday, and will have the honor of doing the same in the church at Chengdu Easter Sunday. (This is the site where our Global Mission Partners, the Searles, worked for a number of years.)
Half-way through our trip we have been to Shanghai, to Nanjing, to Hefei, and now Chengdu. Please keep us in your prayers. Likewise we will be thinking of you on this glorious Easter morning. Hallelujah! Christ is Risen. He is risen indeed!!!
Richard and Emily Guentert
1 comment:
How truly inspiring for all of us to know our region's leaders have shared our Christian witness around the globe with Chinese Christians. May such excitement spill over into our own journeys toward personal and congregational transformation!
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