My favorite part of the week

One day out of the week is spent with one of my sisters in Christ and two Chinese friends that we have met.  I will say that their names are Anna and Joe for their safety, and I will not post any pictures of them.  Yes, I say that because there is still a lot of persecution against Christians in China.  Although there are churches that are allowed there, they are government controlled. If any Chinese person exercises their Christianity outside of it, it is illegal, and they will be severely punished.  Non-Chinese Christians who lead church gatherings outside of these government churches, and a Chinese citizen attends, then the leader may be punished. An example of a punishment consists of an arrest and possible torture in what is called a "tiger bench." Read more about persecution in China here. Even though they are free to study the Bible here in America, if it was found out once they returned to China, anything could happen.  If God graciously saves our friends before they return, we plan to teach them to hold fast, pray, study the Bible, and share His Truth with others no matter the cost...just as we do and all believers should.  However,  it must be done with wisdom, and in no way will I be guilty of leaking who they are.

Anyways, me and my friend, Paige, meet with Anna and sometimes Joe once a week.  Once my husband comes home from work, he, too, joins.  Paige and I met Anna one night at Mississippi College as she came to another of our friend's apartments for a night of girls' fellowship. We ate taco soup, talked about the Lord, and watched the Through Gates of Splendor by Elisabeth Elliot.  Watch here.  It's only 39 minutes.  After the movie, a group of us girls began talking with Anna and sharing the gospel.  She was so excited to learn and eager to hear.  By the end of the night, I figured out that she worked at a university near my home (She's a brain!).  I had already invited Paige to come over that next week, so we asked if she wanted to join if we picked her up when she got off work (she did not drive at the time).  She was so excited and gave us all of her contact information. We drove to the university, which is known for crime in a worse part of town then my home, not knowing where we were going, and as it was nearing dark, we finally picked her up.  She came running to the car! (Now I realize she runs--or shuffles with quick feet-- every where she goes, even inside the house) We had dinner and started teaching the gospel of John.  We simply go verse by verse, alternating readers, and pause when clarification is needed.  This is often (If you ever read John and go through how you would explain it--which we all should be able to through the Holy Spirit and need to to equip others--it's pretty weighty), but it is SO good because we have to explain the gospel over and over, every single detailed piece.  Anna left by saying, "We will do this every week." Ha. We love how assertive she is at times.  Of course, Paige and I agreed.  That was the first week of November, and we are still meeting every week! 

Neither Anna nor Joe are believers in Jesus.  They have shared with us many things that "their culture" believes.  It was confusing at first because Anna's excitement and eagerness to learn made it seem like she had believed.  Then she made it pretty clear one night.  I respect her so much that she will not be naive to believe something she has heard for the first time, and she is truly seeking God for the truth. She is like the Bereans who search the Scriptures daily to see if what we are teaching is true (Acts 17:11).  If I have never truly grasped how it is nothing of us but is the Lord who changes hearts and brings salvation, I do now.  It will be Him who works miraculously in her and draws her to Himself.  She truly is in the Word every day and hangs out with Christians multiple times a week.  We pray that during those times that He will reveal Himself to her and save her soul.  Our labor is not in vain as we pour our lives into her and love her (1Cor. 15:58).  His Word tells us that.  We plant the seed, and He grows it (1 Cor. 3:6).  Nothing is impossible with Him (Mark 10:27), and He can melt the heart of stone (Ezekiel 36:26).

Joe does not speak English as well as Anna.  I do not think he cares too much about learning the Bible either.  I think he just enjoys to come with Anna.  Praise the Lord though! He does listen and ask questions at times, but his heart is very hard and confused.  This is still not too difficult for our Almighty God though!

Some things that Anna has said that gives us hope:

"One day maybe my soul will be made alive, too."
"We say 'oh my God' in China." After explaining to her through Exodus 20 why we do not say this she said, "Ohhhh..... I will not do this anymore." She fears Him !
"You are the planters, and I am the one you are planting seeds into."
Paige: "Excited to see you tonight!" Anna: "Yes. I thank the Almighty God for bringing us together."
"Why did everyone want to kill Jesus? He was perfect."
When we gave her a new Bible she said, "Thank you! I can take this back with me to China."
"I realized the difference in romantic love and Christian love. I love you."

And man do we LOVE her, too! So much.

Those are just the main ones I can think of right now.  Paige, Shane, and I learn so much during this time as well.  There is nothing like being constantly reminded of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and teaching someone the Bible who has never heard it before is a rewarding and satisfying feeling. We labor to preach with internationals living in this area with the hope that God will save them.  Once they return to their own country, we pray that they may spread the gospel there, and He will multiply His church.  I praise God for her and Joe daily and beg for Him to save their souls. I pray that the Lord is preparing Paige, Shane, and me for the people we will invest our lives in in the future He has planned for us. Please join us in prayer for these things.

"And thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on someone else's foundation, but as it is written, 'Those who have never been told of Him will see, and those who have never heard will understand.' "
                           Romans 15:20-21

Anna gave Shane and me each a Chinese Mandarin Duck Bookmark.  It represents love and happiness in our marriage. I need to post a picture of Paige's because hers is a little Chinese girl that is SO CUTE. Anna said it reminded her of Paige which if you know her--little, bubbly cute Paige--it is so true!

These are "rice sugar sesame seed balls" that Anna brought us for dessert. haha

They look like boiled eggs.

 

This is the inside. The outside texture is extremely mushy and has zero taste, but once you get to the middle, it tastes like peanut butter.  It was not bad, but I cannot say I would desire to eat another one. Ha. 

This is the Bible we gave Anna. It is the NKJV because she liked it more than the NIV that she had.  Even though she prefers to read the Bible in english, we still got the Bilingual Bible so she could have the opportunity to share it in China, Lord willing, if He saves her. We engraved her name at the bottom which she jumped up and down and screamed as she saw it.  She said, "It is Mine." It was very personal and precious to her:)

Joe's wife and son came to visit him from China for a few weeks, and she brought us these Chinese language books.  Anna says they are very easy. Nope. They are very much not! We will enjoy them though:)

Joe's wife also brought us this giraffe to share.  So sweet.  We gave it to one of our friends who loves giraffes AND just had a baby girl a month ago, so it was perfect.