Prayer has been of high value these three months. Since the police raid in October our church has been through many faith-building experiences. Our people have grown in the Lord, have stretched themselves and given of themselves to remain faithful to the Lord and His Word.

In December our church held a revival meeting in the same building that the police raided. We had three Chinese church-planters come with their families and every evening they delivered two messages to our people. These three pastors were all men that have been sent out of our church and are currently financially supported by our church. (One of these pastors planted his church two weeks after the police raid!) That alone is a testimony to how God is working. It was incredible to see men who were trained in our church and sent out to then return and minister to our people in a great way. It really was a week of revival. The sermons were powerful and in light of the recent activities, many people were changed and made decisions to have a more serious relationship with the Lord. Mywife and I were also greatly challenged. Recently we have been through a lot, but through the preaching the Lord reminded us that to be effective, we are going to have to really give it ALL.   

The day after the revival closed, the two plain clothes police officers visited the building we have been meeting. God’s timing was perfect. I had just left the building, and there where only two of our men there. Their visit was actually helpful in that we were able to get a very clear idea of just how much the police know about us and our work and just how far they are willing to go to make things difficult for us. In a nutshell, They knew we were continuing to use the building for church meetings, and they were adamant that would have to stop. They also ask question about the school and made it clear, though it could continue to operate, the Bible was not be used during classes. They were very familiar with what we were doing, but at the same time they seemed only to care about us continuing to meet at that location. This visit in and of itself was odd. They had to know when we hold services, but they didn't come during service times. I am sure they know when the school is in operation, but they chose not to come during school hours. They came only to warn us not to meet at this location. This type of thing is more common than you might think. The police have reasons for not wanting to pursue the matter (more trouble than its worth, interagency conflict, etc.).  I will not speculate as to the reasons why they are not reporting this to the Religious Bureau, but we are thankful for the Lord keeping us safe through all of this. Recently we have been meeting at a different location every Sunday. and Thursday. Although it’s hard for everyone, we are experiencing a sense of closeness and we are witnessing a great amount of growth. Some have been MORE faithful to church while others are developing a loyalty to the Lord, their church and their pastor. The Lord is good and He is continuing to use this situation for His good. We needed it!

Please pray that the Lord would direct us to a new meeting place. Finding a place for a church of our size to meet has never been easy, but with tightening regulations it is even harder than before. Many decisions have to be made, so please pray for wisdom.

Because of recent changes to Chinese visa policy, our family has change to tourist visas in order to stay in China. We will now have to  leave the country every 90 days. Please pray for this situation. It is inconvenient, expensive, and time consuming. The Chinese government is working hard to make it very difficult for us to be here long term. However, we are determined to stay. The Lord brought us here and we are willing to work as hard as we have to in order to be here and to see the work move forward.   

We recently attended a Bible Conference at  New Hope Baptist Church in Beijing. The conference was great blessing to our people. We are thankful that even during these times of government interference God is still at work. Not only is the Peking Committee Bible gaining traction, but more and more Chinese Christians are trusting God, believing in His promises, and standing for His Word! 

In Christ,

Neal, Beth, Lois, Abigail and Naomi

Prayer Request:

Pastor Huang (Beijing)

Pastor Xu (Xi’An)

Pastor Fan (Tai Yuan)

Church meeting place

Pastors in training

Visa situation