The Children Have Captured My Heart

February 1874

As I continue to settle into my mission work here in Tung Chow, I have become particularly fond of the children. Their shining black eyes and comic pigtails give me joy each time I see them. Although they have solemn faces, I've discovered that when they try to teach me a few Chinese phrases, their faces light up with laughter just like the children I used to teach in the States.

Again, I'm overwhelmed by the great need for more workers to join me here in China. In particular there is a great need for young men to come and join in the work. I agree heartily with the Corresponding Secretary of the Southern Baptist Foreign Mission Board (now the International Mission Board), who has said, "that a young man should ask himself not if it is his duty to go to the heathen, but if he may dare stay at home. The command is so plain: 'Go.'"

Thank you for your continued prayer support and heartfelt interest in the work in China. Additional updates about how God is at work in Tung Chow will be shared later in the fall of this year. Please remember to pray for all missionaries who are sharing the Gospel in China.

Christmas in China

December 24, 1873

I want to wish all of my family and prayer partners a blessed Christmas. These last few weeks as Christmas has approached, I've thought of you often. I've also thought about past Christmases and have come to realize that here in Tung Chow without decorated trees, children anxious for Santa's visit, smells of wonderful baked goodies and family gathering together, my focus has been on the real reason for Christmas - the birth of Jesus. This is the very reason I've surrendered my life to serve in China so that millions of Chinese who have never heard will come to know Him as their personal Lord and Savior.

I believe I'm just beginning to understand the words Paul spoke in Romans when he urged all Christians ..."to offer your bodies as living sacrificies, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship." I want my life and my worship to be pleasing unto God. I have such a desire to make a difference for His kingdom. How can any of us who have come to know Jesus as Lord and Savior do any less?

In thinking about new ways to reach the lost here in Tung Chow, I've decided to turn my enjoyment of cooking into a mission strategy. If I were back in Virginia I surely would be baking Christmas cookies. Perhaps if I capture the interest of the children by making cookies - who can resist the smell of cookies baking - then I can also gain the trust of their parents. I think once I've gained their trust I can share Jesus with them. Pray that God will use this strategy for His glory.

Again thank you for your prayers on behalf of the people I serve and for my work here in China. Please continue to pray and give so that many more can come and join with me and my colleagues in sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Mission Strategies

December 1873

After a number of bleak and cold days in late November, the sun came out to give us a reprieve from the elements and it certainly lifted my spirits as well. One of the veteran missionaries announced that because the sun was out we were going on a “picnic.” I soon realized, as four of us left the mission area along with one of the national believers, that we were going out to the villages in the countryside to evangelize. This was really my first opportunity to be on mission and to reach out to the Chinese. In reality, I did more observing of my senior colleagues since my language study has just started.

All of the women in the group traveled on donkeys or were carried in chairs supported by coolies. Our national Christian brother was certainly courageous to venture out on this outing with us. We made quite a sight as we traveled from village to village trying to share the gospel. Our dear national brother in Christ gathered larger interested crowds than any of the women. In several villages the children and women fled from us as most likely they had never seen a foreigner.

Even our “picnic” proved to be quite an adventure. The Chinese gathered closely around us as we ate to get a good view of how foreigners eat. When we began eating with our knives and forks this sparked many comments. Once again, I observed that the Chinese are most outspoken. I can only imagine that we provided for lots of stories that evening as the Chinese talked about the foreigners who had come to their village.

Although our day of evangelizing was filled with opportunities and mixed reception, we returned to our homes trusting God to water the seeds which had been planted. It is going to take patience and varied strategies to reach the hearts of the Chinese for the Lord. But with God’s power, I’m determined to do my part. However, what I can’t understand is how the one million Southern Baptists at home can barely muster enough through their giving to send only a handful of missionaries to win all the millions of Chinese to the Lord. I don’t know how that looks in heaven, but it certainly looks peculiar in China.

Chinese Dress

Many things in China are done in a simple way. Even these simple, yet durable padded clothes help guard against the cold winters in China.

So Many Things to Learn

Mid-November 1873

If the sheer number of people who need to be reached for Christ isn't overwhelming enough, also trying to adapt to the Chinese culture sometimes pushes me to my limit. I have started my language study and although I have always been a good student and love learning, this presents a new challenge for me. I seem to be able to write the odd-looking Chinese characters better than I can speak. However, I'm praying that God will give me ears to hear the pronunciations correctly and then be able to reproduce them so that I can tell all my neighbors about the love of Christ.

It has been my experience already to learn that the Chinese are very outspoken. While I might think a certain thing about a person, but never say it, the Chinese just go ahead and make the proclamation. Thus, I've been called "foreign devil" on more than one occasion. Overcoming their fear of foreigners will require patience, persistence and a willingness on my part to try new methods of reaching out to the Chinese.

God has placed on my heart that if I'm going to make an impact for His kingdom here in China, I must give up my Western ways. After all, I no longer live in Virginia but in Tung Chow. It is going to be important to my witness to dress, eat and live as closely as possible to that of the Chinese who surround me. From a practical standpoint, I'm learning that the clothing of the Chinese is much more suited for the cold winters than the clothing I brought from the States.

The Harvest

Late November 1873

As shown by this photo, the potential harvest of souls in China is abundant. I've been told that as of this year there are about 360 million people living in China. There are a total of six Southern Baptist missionaries working to reach these millions of people. The task is more than huge, and I know our Lord wants each and every Chinese to know Him as their personal Savior. We will have to be creative in our strategies for reaching so many people.

This Is Where God Called Me

November 1, 1873

I arrived in Tung Chow about a week ago. I've already completed my first mission report complete with all my expenses and sent it to the Corresponding Secretary of the Southern Baptist Foreign Mission Board (now the International Mission Board). In completing this report, I once again realized the absolute necessity of Southern Baptists giving so that not only I can do that which God has called me but that many more can also come to serve alongside the few of us serving here in China.

Although it was great to arrive in Shanghai, I felt an urgency to travel on to where I would at last see my sister and be able to begin my mission work. While in Shanghai, my colleagues helped me become familiar with Chinese ways. I experienced my first scalding Chinese tea and the oiliest delicacies I've ever tasted.

When it was time to leave Shanghai and travel on to the Shantung Province, I had yet another rough sea trip. This time our ship was confronted by a typhoon. God's grace once again sustained me, and I am now in the beautiful city of Tung Chow. I've learned that this city has the reputation of being the cleanest in China. Based on my limited knowledge of the country, I would certainly agree.

The city is especially beautiful to me because of all the people. The very people I came to serve are all around me. Everywhere I go there are people who need to know about Jesus. Please pray that God will give me wisdom and discernment about how best to present the gospel. Also pray that God will call out others to come and work with us. The task is so great and the laborers are so few.

Stormy Seas, but at Last in China!

October 15, 1873

The forty-eight hour trip to sail from Nagasaki to Shanghai turned into several days as our ship was struck by a hurricane the very first night out at sea. The storm was so violent, I could hear glass shattering in the dining room and eventually because of the ship being tossed about by the howling wind, the ship's rudder was lost. Because the ship could not be steered, it ended up being blown back over the very course we had just sailed.

It was a very challenging time on the ship for everyone-crew and passengers-and many felt that we would not survive. Although I was prepared to die in the Lord's service, I had not envisioned dying at sea.

God was faithful to respond to the prayers of His servants and the storm subsided allowing the Costa Rica to limp back to the port it had sailed from for the much needed repairs. Once the ship was again seaworthy, it sailed on to Shanghai successfully arriving there on October 7.

The journey from San Francisco to Shanghai took thirty-seven days, some of the most challenging I have yet faced in my life. What a joy to be greeted by several Southern Baptist missionaries who made me feel most welcome and helped me with the adjustments of living in a new culture. How thankful I am to God the sustanier of all life for my safe arrival in China. Now I am able to join God in His work among the Chinese! I believe this is the very purpose for which I was created.