Ministry Update from China

Please keep my son Gabriel and I in your prayers as we work here in China. Here are some updates.

"Don't you hate it when you go to wash some clothes in the bathroom sink and the sink falls off of the wall and shatters on the floor at your feet? Only in China. I think I should forget the room deposit!"

(Nov.1)The children are very curious around us in these areas. The roads to get here were mostly dirt and rough. We are far from any "big" cities. It took close to 14 hours through barren lands to get here. Lots of Yak and sheep being cared for by real Tibetan cowboys!! Snow capped mountains are close by also. There is much Spiritual darkness here and Buddhism is almost exclusively held to. Some of the areas are also Muslim. Big Mosques and huge Tibetan temples. The air is much thinner than I'm used to and it causes me to have to breathe deeply all the time when we are in the higher altidudes. My chest hurts a bit also due to less oxygen but I can handle it even though Gabe says that it's because I'm getting old. (I don't think I'll ever bring him back with me:).

( Nov.2) We just arrived in town after a 7 hour bus and van ride. We left at 6:50am. All is going well. Shared the Good News with a Tibetan on the bus who spoke some English. We will stay in touch. I gave his two of our books to help with his English. He was very happy about it. One was, "Called To die" about a Martyr from Wycliffe Bible Translators and the book, "Bruchko". When we finally head home, we will be very worn out. It looks like we will be crumbing the night before we leave and then get an early bus back to Xining, where we will then catch the train (25 hr ride), and when we get to Beijing, we will immediately get on the plane for the 14 hr flight to Newark and then get our flight from there to Richmond. After we sleep for 5 or 6 days, we will share our experiences with you all.

(Nov. 3) We have a little time today since we arrived in town by 9:30am. Dongxiang is a mountaintop town with a beautiful view.

This town and our last (Hezheng) are muslim. We will invest and then move on to another place tomorrow. Please continue to pray for Gabriel and I.

I'm sorry I can't give too many details in my postings. Every time I get on the internet, I am surrounded by many curious onlookers seeking too find out what the American has to say. Many can read some English even though they can't speak it. The small towns we are crumbing in are without a Christian presence. Much darkness but much loved by YHWH".

It's Oct. 30 and we just arrived in Xining. We will be traveling to 15 towns over the next 15 days. Grueling work, but we can sleep and eat when we get back to the States! Please pray for strength, wisdom and protection.

I arrived in Beijing yesterday. Gabe and I were quite tired and were able to get a little sleep. It is now a little after 4:00AM and I am at the small internet room at out hostel trying to take care of some business before it gets crowded. Our plan for today is to catch a train to Xining. It will take 24 hours to get there. Upon our arrival, we'll meet our contact and get one more night's sleep before we begin our viliage to villiage activities. All of our cargo made it in and we are well stocked to cover much ground even after passing 100lbs. off to a friend for our brothers and sisters in China to use. Please pray for us as we are about the Father's business in China. Walk in victory!

_________________ "Why are we not more holy? Asked John Wesley, addressing his preachers. "Chiefly because we are enthusiasts, looking for the end without the means."

All has been going well. Two nights ago, Gabriel and I were crumbing lots of dark alleys in an area with much housing. After we had worked for approx. 2 hours we walked toward the end of one of the alleys, a man and woman turned into the end that we were heading toward. We turned around and headed in the opposite direction. The couple followed us out to the main street. We crossed the street and he began to yell at us. We ignored and after a while crossed to the other side again. They followed. We jumped in a cab and went about 4 or 5 blocks before getting out to continue our work. After about ten minutes we noticed that a cab was slowly following us at a distance. We turned a corner and then down an alley and the cab followed. We walked past a road obstruction and the couple got out of the cab to follow us on foot again. We jumped in another cab and as we pulled away, the couple jumped into a cab to pursue. With a little distance between us, the pursuing cab didn’t see us do a U-turn around a corner and head back toward them. We passed them and directed the cab to our hotel where we quickly hopped out and entered without being seen.

Please continue to pray for the work in China.

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