Greetings with joy dear Christians friends,
I begin by mentioning the pictures I have sent in this email update of Jiang Jia Yi. We had so much fun together today. She is swallowing and eating things as she is fed. Praise God, this is a huge improvement and it will no doubt benefit her improving health. Pray for her to see, she still doesn't see normally nor can she focus on anything even when she appears to be "seeing".
When I visited with her, I kept kissing her on the top of her head and joking with her and she just kept laughing. It was beautiful to see her joy and I just kept tearing up. She couldn't see me but I was very emotional as it is such a blessing to see how far she has come. I was talking to both the dad and mom yesterday as we study the bible every day together and felt a need to remind them of how important it has been for me to work to save her life and keep the "pressure" on the hospital, doctors and nurses to "stay the course". The parents know all too well how close she was to dying many times and how for at least 3 times, the medical team wanted to discontinue treatment. I used the conversation as an opportunity to demonstrate how important the love of Christ is and how we need to show more of the love of Christ.
I begin by mentioning the pictures I have sent in this email update of Jiang Jia Yi. We had so much fun together today. She is swallowing and eating things as she is fed. Praise God, this is a huge improvement and it will no doubt benefit her improving health. Pray for her to see, she still doesn't see normally nor can she focus on anything even when she appears to be "seeing".
When I visited with her, I kept kissing her on the top of her head and joking with her and she just kept laughing. It was beautiful to see her joy and I just kept tearing up. She couldn't see me but I was very emotional as it is such a blessing to see how far she has come. I was talking to both the dad and mom yesterday as we study the bible every day together and felt a need to remind them of how important it has been for me to work to save her life and keep the "pressure" on the hospital, doctors and nurses to "stay the course". The parents know all too well how close she was to dying many times and how for at least 3 times, the medical team wanted to discontinue treatment. I used the conversation as an opportunity to demonstrate how important the love of Christ is and how we need to show more of the love of Christ.
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The dad needed a new cell phone and I gave him a phone that was given to me as a gift last year. It is a joy to serve this beautiful but struggling family and yet it is genuinely hard to keep giving out when I have lost so much over the last year and a half. With the recent abduction of Gold Flower and Gold Bar, I am still trying to find out what exactly happened and who was behind that. I can guess it has to do with the the Civil Government, Melody or even Melody with the Red Cross (Red Sickle actually) working with those who worked against me from within, namely Ji Hong and maybe most likely Miss Wu. All of them have a mindset that is clearly against everything I do and have done, even knowing it has been done successfully.
The hardest things for me from a human standpoint is to know that it is so easy to victimize Christians like me knowing I am a foreigner and there is no real protection for me as they clearly have a bias against people who are not their own. I also believe the leaders are encouraging their own nationals to do more charity which is fine, but they clearly don't want to encourage foreigners to have the same opportunities. I can share two stories that tell this very clearly.
I read three newspapers a day (besides all my bible reading) and often find articles that demonstrate that "charity" is truly missing from their society and so is ability from people that they actually allow to do "charity" events. Here is the first story quickly.
A month or so ago there was an article about a countryside man who was going to eat dinner one evening on a drizzly night and before he went into the restaurant to eat, he heard a baby crying, he went over to the grassy area only to find a newborn baby boy in a box crying. He picked up the box and decided to care for the baby, he knew the baby needed medical assistance but he did not have any money nor ability to care for the baby. The article in their own newspaper (same one that trashed me with false accusations by the way) did not mention that this uneducated migrant worker did not have any birth certificate nor any "permission" to care for the baby. The story was written making him a magnanimous generous man who was doing what he could to help. The article even mentioned that this man was going to "re-abandon" the newborn because he had reservations about everything from expenses and his work situation.
The story kept appearing in the same newspaper every other day showing how this man eventually transported the baby to Beijing and took him to the Beijing Children's Hospital (no paper work right?) and the hospital worked with him no problem. A few days later, another article told how this man had received 400,000 RMB to help the baby. Heart surgery was done and some treatment and the baby is fine, and apparently no problem with this guy keeping the baby, and clearly he is being praised up and down for doing all he did.
Actually I love the story and am in total support of the whole process, but why the big deal about uncle Ray, grandma Guo, Maggie and others who not only did the same but on a much larger scale and many more children.
So, in short, this story shows how the leaders do not really want to encourage foreigners like me to do anything of the sort, even though it is very clear I have more skills, more medical contacts and by the grace of God more money to fund it all. Pray this "new Charity Law' will really demonstrate more openness to works like mine.
Now on to the second article, I get the plan of encouraging more locals to do "charity works" but I have to tell you the vast majority of people in this society do not want to get involved and that for a variety of reasons. I do not have time to go through hundreds of reasons but trust me, it results in consequences like I am about to tell you.
The day before yesterday I read a short story about a woman who was pregnant with twin boys, age 30 and she became faint as she was walking on the street, no doubt because she was very pregnant and the weather was warm. She stopped next to a metal fence for separating crowds to guide people crossing streets. The picture is absolutely horrible. She had been resting holding herself by the fence and became dizzy and her head began to settle down on the railing, her head slid down between the fencing and her head was lodged between the metal rails. When I first saw the picture, I thought it was a story about how people helped her dislodge her head to be free. Instead I read that people and even a shop keeper across the street all watched and did nothing to help this woman. There is no way I would not have helped and for sure asked her is she needed help and if I knew she had passed out, I would have asked others to help to get her out and try to revive her.
If you think that is the worst, the article very cold and callously states she was unmarried and "already" had a ten year old boy. I guess this is somehow supposed to explain why they made no effort to save the babies lives. This is the result of a culture that does not value babies in the womb, doesn't value a woman who either was divorced or just a single mom, it reflects a culture that doesn't want to be "bothered" with the risk of doing something for fear they could be blamed for her death. But what about the babies? Oh no, too many! Can't have 3 and she shouldn't have even had the one if she was single and there is no way policy would allow her to have twins with having a boy that was 10. I just weep every time I think of how "love has waxed cold" in this generation.
So in closing, they truly do need a "Charity Law" but more than that, the society needs a change of heart and that is only going to come from Jesus. Pray for these people, pray for my kids, they are a good example of love and generosity and I know their testimony is shining even as they are subjected to such outright oppression. Praise God they are safe, they are in the LORD's hands, no one can snatch them out of His Hand too. Amen?! I say this for Gold Flower and Gold Bar too, even though they are very young, they learned to study, pray and thank Jesus for everything. I will keep fighting for the children that God keeps under my control and as for the evil that just keeps relentlessly coming at me, I will leave it up to God to defeat those enemies.
IN Christ Ray and the 10, Gold Flower and Gold Bar in my thoughts and prayers and tomorrow I go with pictures to visit with Pan Shu Ren, Pan Hai Bo and Lu Ya Ming, the 3 heart surgery orphan boys.
P.S. I met with my French Doctor friend and he has excellent contacts with European TV crews. I am considering bringing yet another TV crew to the "protection" center gate. I have brought 2 already. Keep praying, something has got to break, Lord willing, HE will make it easy on all of us and open a wide door for restoration and more service.
The hardest things for me from a human standpoint is to know that it is so easy to victimize Christians like me knowing I am a foreigner and there is no real protection for me as they clearly have a bias against people who are not their own. I also believe the leaders are encouraging their own nationals to do more charity which is fine, but they clearly don't want to encourage foreigners to have the same opportunities. I can share two stories that tell this very clearly.
I read three newspapers a day (besides all my bible reading) and often find articles that demonstrate that "charity" is truly missing from their society and so is ability from people that they actually allow to do "charity" events. Here is the first story quickly.
A month or so ago there was an article about a countryside man who was going to eat dinner one evening on a drizzly night and before he went into the restaurant to eat, he heard a baby crying, he went over to the grassy area only to find a newborn baby boy in a box crying. He picked up the box and decided to care for the baby, he knew the baby needed medical assistance but he did not have any money nor ability to care for the baby. The article in their own newspaper (same one that trashed me with false accusations by the way) did not mention that this uneducated migrant worker did not have any birth certificate nor any "permission" to care for the baby. The story was written making him a magnanimous generous man who was doing what he could to help. The article even mentioned that this man was going to "re-abandon" the newborn because he had reservations about everything from expenses and his work situation.
The story kept appearing in the same newspaper every other day showing how this man eventually transported the baby to Beijing and took him to the Beijing Children's Hospital (no paper work right?) and the hospital worked with him no problem. A few days later, another article told how this man had received 400,000 RMB to help the baby. Heart surgery was done and some treatment and the baby is fine, and apparently no problem with this guy keeping the baby, and clearly he is being praised up and down for doing all he did.
Actually I love the story and am in total support of the whole process, but why the big deal about uncle Ray, grandma Guo, Maggie and others who not only did the same but on a much larger scale and many more children.
So, in short, this story shows how the leaders do not really want to encourage foreigners like me to do anything of the sort, even though it is very clear I have more skills, more medical contacts and by the grace of God more money to fund it all. Pray this "new Charity Law' will really demonstrate more openness to works like mine.
Now on to the second article, I get the plan of encouraging more locals to do "charity works" but I have to tell you the vast majority of people in this society do not want to get involved and that for a variety of reasons. I do not have time to go through hundreds of reasons but trust me, it results in consequences like I am about to tell you.
The day before yesterday I read a short story about a woman who was pregnant with twin boys, age 30 and she became faint as she was walking on the street, no doubt because she was very pregnant and the weather was warm. She stopped next to a metal fence for separating crowds to guide people crossing streets. The picture is absolutely horrible. She had been resting holding herself by the fence and became dizzy and her head began to settle down on the railing, her head slid down between the fencing and her head was lodged between the metal rails. When I first saw the picture, I thought it was a story about how people helped her dislodge her head to be free. Instead I read that people and even a shop keeper across the street all watched and did nothing to help this woman. There is no way I would not have helped and for sure asked her is she needed help and if I knew she had passed out, I would have asked others to help to get her out and try to revive her.
If you think that is the worst, the article very cold and callously states she was unmarried and "already" had a ten year old boy. I guess this is somehow supposed to explain why they made no effort to save the babies lives. This is the result of a culture that does not value babies in the womb, doesn't value a woman who either was divorced or just a single mom, it reflects a culture that doesn't want to be "bothered" with the risk of doing something for fear they could be blamed for her death. But what about the babies? Oh no, too many! Can't have 3 and she shouldn't have even had the one if she was single and there is no way policy would allow her to have twins with having a boy that was 10. I just weep every time I think of how "love has waxed cold" in this generation.
So in closing, they truly do need a "Charity Law" but more than that, the society needs a change of heart and that is only going to come from Jesus. Pray for these people, pray for my kids, they are a good example of love and generosity and I know their testimony is shining even as they are subjected to such outright oppression. Praise God they are safe, they are in the LORD's hands, no one can snatch them out of His Hand too. Amen?! I say this for Gold Flower and Gold Bar too, even though they are very young, they learned to study, pray and thank Jesus for everything. I will keep fighting for the children that God keeps under my control and as for the evil that just keeps relentlessly coming at me, I will leave it up to God to defeat those enemies.
IN Christ Ray and the 10, Gold Flower and Gold Bar in my thoughts and prayers and tomorrow I go with pictures to visit with Pan Shu Ren, Pan Hai Bo and Lu Ya Ming, the 3 heart surgery orphan boys.
P.S. I met with my French Doctor friend and he has excellent contacts with European TV crews. I am considering bringing yet another TV crew to the "protection" center gate. I have brought 2 already. Keep praying, something has got to break, Lord willing, HE will make it easy on all of us and open a wide door for restoration and more service.