China China China, there is so much to write about and that its hard to choose where to begin.! So I will begin with the areas God showed me about this culture, the areas that they excel and the things they are missing.Serving in this country and learning about their culture has been absolutely amazing!! God has seriously taught me so much about what love looks like. The Chinese are some of the most hospitable people I have ever met, they love strangers like they love their family. !! By the way they love I am shocked that they dont know Jesus, and that some have never heard His name before. The women we met love better than I do. How is that possible? That I know Jesus and know the love He has given me, yet am learning from people who have never met Him, on what love truly looks like.
This reminds me of a day that Emily, Carrie and I, attempted to go shopping at a particular market for a couple of jackets for a killer deal. Unfortunately we had only been to this market once or twice but had never gone on our own, we proceed to get directions, get on the bus and head to the market. After walking around for hours and hours, and attempting to get directions from the locals as we play shirades in hopes they would understand what we were trying to tell them, and failed. We end up walking into one of the nicest hotels I have ever set my feet in, and meet a greeter who speaks English, HALLELUJIAH ! We explain where we want to go, he writes down the address, calls a cab , invites us to sit down on one of the most comfortable couches ever as we wait for our cab to arrive. Once the cab arrived he escorted us out and explains to the cab driver where we need to go. FINALLYY we are on our way to our market,coats here we come!!!! WRONG, we end up getting dropped off at the gucci mall, with brand stores and ridiculous price tags.
As we were walking we could feel the market was at our fingertips, but we never made it in the doors of our market, jacketless, tired, and with sore feet. Which is how I feel the Chinese are. They recognize Jesus, and love like HIm, but they dont know HIm. He is at their fingertips but they have not taken hold of Him. I feel this is a lot of the Christian church in America as well. We know ALL about Jesus, we know HIs word, how He lived HIs life, know what He saved us from, the purpose of HIs life, but we never grasp hold of Him. THerefore we are not truly transformed and made new. We keep living our lives the way we did before we met or found out about Jesus, and we end up tired, unsatisfied, cold, and in search for something more.
What's worse? TO know about Jesus yet never take hold of Him, or to have never heard His name but you can recognize His face? The truth is both are equally sad, because they both have the same outcome. None end up receiving the keys to the kingdom of eternity.The ONLY way to heaven is knowing Jesus Christ, and once you meet Him you will be forever changed. Our life is not about being good enough, but about a King who saved us from a life lived without His presence. Once we can understand that there is absolutely NOTHING good in us apart from Him. That Christianity is not merely to know about Him , but to know Him and Remain in Him. To know that the only thing required in Christianity is to surrender, and the more you understand and know Him the more you realize that EVERYTHING else is garbage , and worth giving up in gains on knowing Him. !!
MY challenge to you after reading this is to truly ask yourself if when you met Jesus if you are truly changed? If not I challenge you to grasp hold of Him in HIs fullness . IT is worth IT ! He has so much more in store for you to experience !
