If I had a thousand pounds China should have it- if I had a thousand lives, China should have them. No! Not China, but Christ. Can we do too much for Him? Can we do enough for such a precious Saviour? -Hudson Taylor (circa 1900)
The church in China has been growing rapidly for many years. We know some things about the development student ministry in China but it is still somewhat of a mystery to the outside world. Yet one thing that China has a lot of is students. So what challenges will the Chinese church face in the coming decades as they raise up the next generation of young leaders? How will they provide the needed mentoring to grow the church and reach the millions of Chinese who do not yet know Jesus? Here are 5 current needs for mentoring among Chinese church leaders…
MENTORING NEEDED IN CHINA
Eric Lee from the blog, China Source has written a timely article that sheds some light on the needs of the Chinese church. We have so much we can learn from these Chinese brothers and sisters as they spread the Gospel in their context. This article helps me know some ways that we can pray specifically for the broader church movement in China.
WHAT MANY CHINESE CHURCH LEADERS FEEL
Lee claims that there is wide agreement among Chinese church leaders that mentoring is desperately needed. Here is what he claims that the average Chinese church leader suffers from:
- Not having a loving “father” in his earthly life;
- Not having a godly “shepherd” in his spiritual life;
- Not having a skillful “coach” in his ministry life;
- Not having an intimate “friend” in his social life, and
- Not having a committed “companion” in his suffering life.
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WAYS TO STAND WITH THE CHINESE CHURCH
- Pray specifically for each of these 5 common needs among Chinese church leaders.
- Grow in your knowledge of ministry in China:
- Read Eric Lee’s Article: Five Profound Mentoring Needs in China
- ChinaSource Quarterly. Published four times per year, ChinaSource Quarterly takes an in-depth look at issues facing the Chinese Church today.
- ZGBriefs is an email summary of news in China, sent free-of-charge to nearly 5,000 subscribers each week.
- Chinese Church Voices connects leaders and the media outside China with the thinking of China’s Christian leaders. Featuring translated articles, stories and blog posts from web and social media sites within China, Chinese Church Voices provides a unique window into today’s rapidly changing Chinese church.
- Support ministries that are actively seeking to meet these needs. There are many great organizations but here are three of them that I can recommend: