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Conducting Underground Prayer in China As Chinese music blares in the background, I am flipping through memories to share about my 19-day journey (that ended Sunday, October 26, 2003) to the Asian Summit in Indonesia and the Prayer Journey to China. As you can imagine, the experiences are many and to be sure, my life will never be the same. Indonesia—I can testify that Jesus is at work in the 10/40 Window! The emphasis of this dynamic meeting, that spanned denominational borders, was for the “Revival of the Apostolic and Prophetic Ministries in the Body of Christ.” It was beautiful to see how the revelation of Jesus is impacting church leaders from various traditions and other “Christian” backgrounds. As a result, there was a strong undercurrent of unity that flowed among the summit participants. The hunger of the Indonesian church for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit and their desire to participate in gathering the harvest in other lands was an inspiration to us all. Indonesia, the world’s most populated Muslim nation, just may be the starting point that Jesus uses to turn the “window” into a “doorway” of His glory, revelation, and power. The light that dawns as a result of strategic prayer with understanding has been, and still is, the key to seeing the powers of darkness evicted from strongholds. I left feeling equipped and eager to share many of the things I’d learned while in Bali. We all know that Jesus is Lord, but to see Him exalted in the midst of such idolatry was an experience I’ll not soon forget. (Editor’s Note: We will be publishing another mission’s account to Indonesia next week.) China—One week in China, spent visiting three strategic cities,
just wasn’t enough.
■ Conversational prayer It was definitely unconventional, but the experience kept us “always on” no matter how many pictures we posed for or how much we may have looked like tourists to the untrained eye. The varied scenes that flashed through our motor coach windows are too many to share. However, I do want to share two things with you that I hope will turn into prayer points. The 1.4 billion Chinese who live in mainland China are in desperate need of our strategic prayer efforts. ■ Untrained Leaders—In conversations with church leaders from Hong Kong in the south to port cities along China’s eastern edge, the greatest need in China today is for leaders; more specifically, trained leaders. The government sanctioned “Christian Church” (3-Self Church) is riddled with false doctrine, the most recent of which states that the “Bible is not the inspired Word of God.” Unregistered churches, known in the West as the “underground church,” have little or no means of receiving training or fellowship with other believers who refuse to accept the 3- Self Church’s changing interpretation of Scripture and basic Bible doctrines. Today’s church leaders are starving for fellowship and leadership courses that will enable them to become more effective in managing the growing Christian tide with the continuing persecution. Providing training materials and creative ways to safely conduct training is of major concern to missions mobilizers across the board. ■ Spiritual Instability—The current generation is rushing into the major cities to find jobs and experience the benefits of capitalism. While this may sound good to most Westerners, it is a dangerous time spiritually for the country. It would be sad for this Chinese generation to emerge from atheism and trade it in for materialism. There is a growing need for a Christian leader like Dr. Sun Yat-Sen, considered the Father of Modern China, who helped end the oppressive Chinese feudal system in the early 1900s. Today the challenge for such a leader is to move China toward an end of Communist rule and a return to the worship of the one true God. In Dr. Sun’s case, a devout Christian for over forty years, he spent only three months in a top government position; still, he changed not only the landscape of China, but its heart. The turning of China from Communism does not need to be a bloody, drawn-out campaign. Our prayers can enable the Hand of God to lift upmen and women in the Chinese government today who can steer the country back toward Him. Backlash— We were warned that a spiritual backlash of this nature was to be expected; however, prayers kept us safe during our stay. Upon my return to St. Louis, I received an urgent email message regarding a situation that has jeopardized our Christian tour guide and at least two contacts from the trip. Still, as a result, trips to and from China have been cancelled, training seminars are being rescheduled, and one Christian worker is leaving prematurely for furlough. I ask you to join us to pray that:
■ The investigation about our group’s
activities would cease.
ninetyandnine.com © 2003, Angie Clark --------- Angie Clark lives and works in the St. Louis metropolitan area. |
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