*Written on the plane ride from Honk Kong to Nairobi*
Well, my friends, we have been finished with our work in China for a few days now and have been waiting in Hong Kong to make the continental shift to Africa. Most of my other squadmates have already posted multiple blogs describing the previous month. However, between the continuous stream of errands I had to run, our limited interent time as the 8 teams took turns, the exhaustion of getting very little sleep on our train ride from Beijing to Hong Kong (because of the very loud-snoring Chinese woman in my cart) and the chaos of responding to a month’s worth of emails, facebook messages (and checking sports scores… Go Heels!), I just haven’t been able to write one yet. I could also write books about how incredible China is and how evident it is that God is moving mightily there, so trying to process everything and condense it to a blog post or two just seems overwhelming.
So as I took our pen and paper to begin, while flying over the ocean about midway between India and Kenya, I was still trying to decide where to start. As I opened up my Bible, to read a little bit while thinking, God gave me my intro.
“Oh! Are you Christian?!”
That would be Elsie – Nairobi native and our pilot’s wife – as she noticed the book of Proverbs over my shoulder in my lap and “Matthew” in big letters in Janina’s Bible beside me. (Side note, we were on this plane for nearly 15 hours – this happened about 30 seconds after we each switched from sleeping, or trying to with the lights off, to turning our lights on and beginning to read. God’s timing).
A little startled, especially after a month of talking in code and being a little on guard about the PSB, I responded, “Yes! Are you?”
“Oh yes, I have been born again for many years now!”
After a few moments, the conversation shifted to our group and also China. Elsie went on to say that she had a heart for China and had been there once before.
“Where did you go in China” we asked?
“Chengdu.”
(Amazed pause). “Us too!” we cried in unison with smiles on our faces and looks of astonishment. I mean China is a big place, and have you ever heard of Chengu before? Craziness… of should I say, God.
While this divinely random meeting provides for a good transition from China to Kenya as we move forward in the Race, is also reveals a deeper significance for our time in China and provides a good way to sum up the month since there are so many stories that will unfortunately be left out, at least from this blog.
Throughout the month, I had the picture of the farmer and the multiple steps of the harvest. A farmer must first trod the soil to prepare the ground for seeds (such as praying, prayer walking, or simply setting foot on it). Then the seeds can be planted (sharing the Gospel for the first time, simply mentioning the name Jesus, or building relationships). When the seed is planted, you can help it grow (watering with love and letting your own light shine forth as an example). Finally, it is harvest time – and you can welcome new brothers and sisters into the Family of God.
Judah was greatly blessed this month with the chance to see a lot of growth through many sharing opportunities and even some fruit from the Harvest, as we saw three girls and a guy accept Jesus as their savior for the first time. As I said, though, I saw the full growth cycle in my mind all month. It was evident to me every day that God – and God through others – had been working this land for a long time before we ever showed up. Our path, as we so often pray here, had been prepared before us.
I knew this in my heart. Elsie gave confirmation. And again we return to the Body of Christ. We all work together – even if years (and/or places) apart. Some of our other teams got to be those pioneers preparing the soil and planting the seeds in virtually unchartered waters of China. I simply ask now that you continue to pray that those seeds will one day be harvested as well and that God will continue the powerful work He is doing there. China is filled with many small sparks – which is all it takes to get a fire going – bringing light to a once-dark land. Friends I bring you news that China is slowly turning to God – and for that, they are on the rise.
Only a few more hours left on the plan. The eastern coast of Africa is near…
