Sunday, August 5

For the last several days we have lived in a private orphanage, one that is not supported by any government funds. As the rare sight of 11 Americans in the nearby village would’ve created too much attention and perhaps alerted the authorities of our presence, we had to stay in the orphanage the entire time. We lived in close proximity with 20 special needs orphans as we learned what it truly means to “serve and give to the least of these”:

Jing Min is a 16-year-old boy who had been living on the streets for four years prior to being brought to this orphanage. He had been badly abused and had developed a threatening infection in his arm. When taken to the hospital, the doctors wanted to amputate, but the Christian sisters who began this orphanage refused this treatment. Instead, they nursed Jing Min to health and saved his arm. Today he is a happy young man, with the use of both of his arms. His mental capacity is limited, mostly due to the abuses of years on the streets, but he is kind and loving to everyone he meets.

Jing Hong Yu is a 22-year-old woman whose body is crippled by disease. Unable to walk, she scoots across the floor, often sitting on a short stool and using her hands to pilot her way. In the pictures that I will post later today, you’ll notice her caring for other orphans. You’ll also notice a photo of her with her notepad, and an additional photo of the Chinese characters she has learned to write with exact precision. This is no small task for someone whose hands have been twisted by a crippling disease.

Jing Di is a 17-year-old girl with MS. She also moves around the orphanage by scooting the small stool upon which she sits every day. Her mind is sharp, but she is unable to communicate well or to care for herself.

Jing Wang Wang is a 5-year-old boy who sits quietly on a stool, unable to walk or care for himself. His mind is alert, though he seldom speaks—any touch or attention brings a smile to his face.

With Jing Ai, Jing Kao, Jing En, Jing Rong, Jing Yao, Jing Jia, Jing Xian, Jing Sheng, Jing Shu Ya, and Jing Chuang the stories continue. Though they have been abandoned by their families and society, these children have been rescued by four Christian women, each of whom leads one of four different, “unregistered” churches. These women are a testimony to God’s faithfulness, as they work every day to care for the children.

During our time at this orphanage, we played, sang songs, danced, changed diapers, wiped faces, and loved these children. On Saturday, members of the unregistered churches joined us for worship. It was a joy to preach to such a receptive crowd of people. At the conclusion of our time together, I invited the leaders to the center of the room. Together with the members of these churches, we laid hands on them and blessed them in the presence of God.

Though the living conditions were the worst that many of us will ever experience and we ate food we could scarcely identify, we left knowing that we will return next summer, and that we will daily pray for this place and tell others of the work being accomplished by this small army of God’s warriors. We covet your prayers for our friends, and we hope you will join us in raising financial support to provide a teacher for these children. You’ll hear more from us in the coming weeks as to how you can help provide for these and other children here in China.

I’ll close this day’s post with words from our students—their words have blessed me, as I hope they will bless you. –Wayne

Preston:
Over and over again the Lord shows me that He moves throughout the subtle occurrences in our lives. Whether planned or unplanned (usually unplanned), He loves to take very small situations and make them bigger. A simple devotional with a group of special needs orphans and their caretakers turns into an unregistered house church meeting later that night. A conversation at McDonald’s with two Chinese students that are learning to speak English evolves into an entire day of witnessing and testimonials. A simple act of kindness helping out German foreigners in the subway station find the Pearl Market gives God that one chance to tell them that He loves them. That is how God works in my life and how He works in China.

Katie:
The Sun has left his blackness and has found a fresher morning,
And the fair Moon rejoices in the clear and cloudless night;
For Empire is no more, and now the Lion and Wolf shall cease.
~~William Blake

China is an amazing country—captive in government, culture, and religion, but completely free, from the Empire of fear, in faith. We’ve worshipped in public among the nations and in secret among the dearest of God’s children. I’ve learned so much about what it means to “sing the songs of Zion” while in a foreign land. Praise God for His sovereign power. Hallelujah. Amen.

Cassey:
This has been an eye opening experience to say the very least. I cannot say enough about the people we have met. I’ve learned much more than I could ever have taught them.

Julianne:
This trip has been one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I’ve been stretched beyond my comfort zone and am better because of it. I’ve made new friends, tried new food and experienced a little culture shock. God has richly blessed me on this trip and I thank Him for allowing me this opportunity. See y’all in four days!

Jenny:
Since arriving in China, I have climbed more stairs than I care to remember at the Great Wall, I have run barefoot through an enormous fountain in front of the wild goose pagoda, I have tried and failed many times to pronounce a Chinese word correctly, and I have seen a collection of terracotta warriors that should be counted among the world wonders; however, I have also held the hand of an orphan boy who could not walk or talk, but sure could smile just because he had company, and I have spent hours with giggling orphan girls just laughing over the simple things in life, because that’s all they know, and I have listened to the leader of an orphanage pray with more power than I have ever felt in my life—I have been moved. These are the moments that I will remember forever.

Lauren:
The opportunity to be a part of this trip has been such a treat, especially since I am working full time now. I graduated in May and I am thankful that the Lord has provided me to take 3 weeks off to love these precious children and be loved by them. NuNu, Zhu Guo Feng and Lo Bin Ning quickly became my little sisters our first week at the Hand in Hand summer camp hosted by Children’s Hope International. This past week, Wei Wei and Li Li, both small helpless babies from a private village orphanage, stole my heart. They both are in desperate need of a miracle. Wei Wei is two years old, but looks like a small baby. He has only one eyeball and in that one eye, he is blind. He cannot hold his head up and his knees and elbows lock. I worked with him in doing stretches throughout the days we were there, but he needs someone permanently. Li Li is under one year old; however she struggles from Down’s syndrome. She has the cutest brown eyes that sparkled up at me. She carries herself with such joy. These babies were in my arms most of the time; although, Li Li was with me more because she tinkled on me less than Wei Wei. Please pray for Wei Wei and Li Li and that the Lord sends help to all these orphans, and that they may feel His amazing love. Several months ago, my sister Julianne and I came up with a theme verse to guide our time in China—“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans…” ~James 1:27

Rebecca:
The highlights of my 2½ weeks in China haven’t been the cultural education, the souvenir shopping, or even taking my purse back from the thief who stole it. Instead, the non-tourist experiences have been the most meaningful. Attending Sunday morning services at Beijing International Christian Fellowship made me think how joyful the Lord must be when his children from different nations, languages, and ethnicities come together and worship. Befriending a nine-year old orphan girl, managing to communicate despite our language barriers, and seeing her wonder as she encountered non-Asians for the first time was priceless. Watching four sisters work 24/7 to run a private and greatly under-funded special needs orphanage showed me that people really can do anything through Christ who gives them strength. Worshipping with a group of persecuted Christians and seeing their love and enthusiasm for the Lord helped me realize how much I under-appreciate my religious freedom and how bland my worship is. To all of you who supported me financially and/or prayerfully, thank you for allowing me the opportunity to experience the Lord through all of this and more.

Colin:
This trip to China has opened my eyes to a whole new world (As Aladdin would say it). I have eaten with the pigs and I have eaten the pigs. I have been to many countries and seen many people who live a life completely different than mine because they do not have the money, a fair government, or opportunity to live a healthy and secure life. In China I have seen and experienced living conditions that I hear about being in third world countries. This trip has definitely changed my life and it is still not over. It has been a great experience and I hope to return again someday. I will now end with the Jedi Code, not to sound blasphemous, only used as analogy:

“There is no emotion; there is peace.”
“There is no ignorance; there is knowledge.”
“There is no passion; there is serenity.”
“There is no death; there is the force.”

Kellie:
As it is 12:30am here and I just arrived back from a store in Beijing that I should have left 4 hours ago, I don't have any deep Jedi quotes to give to you all. However, I can say that being here has given me great insight into Chinese culture. This includes thought and logic processes, freedoms (and lack there of), and a willingness to live off of whatever God has laid before them. In this last attribute I am referring, of course, to the faithfulness and perseverance of the orphanage leaders we have met here. I see now the blessings of my life as well as question that philosophical idea of Moral Luck. It's pretty difficult to hold a child that will probably have no part in deciding their own future when I know I'm flying back to America soon where I am blessed to have to resources to live my life the way I desire. But through it all God still shows his face where you least expect it, and that is Good.

Korie:
I'm almost at a loss of words for what I've experienced thus far in this country. Almost. ☺ It's an opportunity I never dreamed possible. But what I do know is that I'm here for a reason. I just think it's funny how some of the strongest encouragement you can receive can be from someone who lives on the complete other side of the planet. "What you see around you isn't always what's really going on." I think that piece of advice really sums up this trip. Through working with orphans who are well taken care of to ones who aren't, I am confident to say I've seen Christ working in them all. It may seem like things aren't done right because it's not how we do it in America, but here, we just trust. The other half of the advice I was given was, "No matter what trial or storm you may be in, keep yourself centered on Christ, and Christ alone…" and He is the reason these love-filled, praise-filled homes full of children stand as strong as they do. Just remember to walk by faith, not by sight.