We all stood in faith that our visas would be approved and they were!!!
During our time in China, blogs and social media posts went on lockdown because we wanted to protect the people we were coming into contact with and those who already have a presence in country. Our specific work was that of PRAYER for the month.
The first five days of our travel was spectacular because we were on a bus tour of TIBET!
Our group as we entered Tibet
The scenery was gorgeous and I was astounded at being able to visit a place where many unreached people live and few foreigners go. G-d outdid Himself with the beauty of His creation here.
One of many examples of the beautiful land we drove through
At one point, we were standing at an elevation higher than that of Mt. Everest Base Camp.
5236 m or about 17,178 ft in altitude
The high altitude was a monster of a challenge taking out half of our squad to some degree but I was fortunate to not have had any ill side effects from it. Thankfully we were able to decrease in altitude by the time we left Tibet for mainland China. We got to see the Potala Palace as well while in Lhasa.
Our group at the Potala Palace
Outside of the Potala Palace
I think touring through the mountains and spending time in Lhasa was my favorite part of being in China. The Tibetan province of China has such a riveting history and pulls at heartstrings when you realize how unreached these people groups are given the isolation, language barriers, etc.
After Tibet we traveled to the part of the Great Wall in Jiayuguan and stayed there helping to teach English in various formats while experiencing cultural events. We also visited Turpan before heading to Kazakhstan where we had some faith day adventures *more info in subsequent post* and realized the language barrier here has been the hardest of any country visited so far. I have a love for different languages and it was very difficult…
The Great Wall of ChinaOur group atop the Great Wall
People created rock messages outside the Great Wall so we left ours too!
What I noticed about our time in mainland China is because we were located in northwestern areas where most foreigners do not typically travel, we were followed quite a bit and taken notice of while simply walking. There were so many checkpoints where our passports were checked and photos taken by police. Some of the heightened security was for our protection due to some violence in the recent past but other times seemed more due to the “big brother” aspect of Chinese government. We did our best to follow the leads given to us without endangering anything going on because the cost would have been too high otherwise. We did however meet some nice brothers and sisters in Christ who I know are being used to spread His name.
Although I did not get to go to Beijing, Hong Kong, or other places in China where I would have liked to visit, G-d did grow my heart for the underground church that is present throughout China. Please join with me and set aside some time to thank G-d for the freedom we have to worship Him in America and to pray for the underground church not only in China but around the world.
1. Pray for their protection
2. Pray that they would feel an extra amount of G-d’s love today
3. Pray for more strength to endure the challenges they face
4. Pray that the church will continue to thrive and not be hindered by the government
