My team of six has been living in China in a town on the border of two provinces that was described to us as a “no man’s land” upon our arrival here. Literally, the entire town is under construction. There is dirt, rocks, trash, noise, and equipment everywhere. The police presence here is minimal which has probably has helped us stay under the radar. Our team is one of the only teams that has not been asked by the police to leave a town.
The two main people groups here at our ministry site are Han Chinese and Muslims. We are the pioneering team in this town so our primary goals have been to 1. learn what we can about the people and culture, 2. make a map of the town and surrounding villages so that future missionaries will know where to go for food, toiletries, money, school contacts, transportation, etc., 3. start to build relationships with English teachers in the surrounding schools, and 4. pray over the people and community.
We were told upon arriving that there are no known believers here and found that to be true. Most people here are of the Muslim or Tibetan (sect of Buddhism) faith and attend their respective temples. The eerie sound of the Muslim “call to prayer” sounds multiple times a day and I pray over it every time…asking the Lord to fill the town with His song instead. The spiritual feel of the town here is flat and empty, but there are signs of God’s presence, creation, and power all around. The town is surrounded by beautiful mountains and the Yellow River flows through, representing new life and hope.
We have traveled to multiple elementary, middle and high schools around the area and have built relationships with English teachers in three of them. While at the schools we have been invited into the teacher’s dormitories to chat, welcomed into their classrooms to interact with the students, and played basketball and ping pong with students and teachers during their afternoon break from classes. We have also had the opportunity to have dinner with the teachers as well as a group of four high school students. Religion is not something that is discussed much in this culture AND there is a language barrier even with the English speakers…but even still, we were able to share some about our faith and trust the Lord to sew what was planted.
We have come to love the people we have met here and that love cannot even compare with the love that God has for them. This place that is called “no man’s land”…this place that is a mess of construction and dirt…this place that seems spiritually empty and flat…is not unseen or forgotten by God. Our prayer is that just as the physical/structural foundation is being laid in this town, that God would use our presence here to lay a spiritual foundation that will multiply.
