Warm Greetings from Chilly
Beijing, December 2017
Like many of you, we have
been on intensive holiday mode since before Thanksgiving. In a city of 23
million, nearly everything – including holidays - are on steroids! Actually our
“days” of Thanksgiving and Christmas are normal work days here. Members of our
church carry on their normal duties of work and study. Yet it seems the
“forbidden fruit factor” makes people yearn even more for these holidays they
cannot have – believers and not yet. So, holiday time is gospel harvest time!
Christmas Eve Sunday was a
wonderful day at Beijing International Christian Fellowship ZhongGuanCun! Our
Lord who came to save was praised all day long – in Mandarin, Korean,
Indonesian, Japanese and twice in English. Each service was filled, some came for
the first time, and many who had long ago memorized the carols.
Arriving Sunday morning we
were greeted by a squad of policemen with scanner wands sent to “keep us safe”
(thanks, guys!) and a Muslim couple from Bangladesh who said they always wanted
to attend a Christmas service if that was alright with me? “Of course,
welcome!” A highlight of our morning English service was Pacific Islanders
(from Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Hawaii, and Haiti),
including Mama Dayna, dancing to “The Christmas Star.”
Afterwards the entire
church was invited to a University dining hall across the street for an
11-course Chinese lunch for $ 6 usd (40
RMB)! About 200 happy eaters joined in. Then our “scouting carolers” set off!
We’ve heard a lot in the local news about how “western
traditions” i.e. Christmas! must stop being imposed. So, we wondered whether
caroling near the busy mall might end with new prison epistles? As we sang our
carols a couple dozen people quickly gathered, nearly all of them taking
pictures. The security guards concluded we were blocking foot traffic. But they
just asked us to move slightly aside. Then the manager of the mall came and
invited us to sing on their center stage that night! So after the evening
service a big group (above) went to sing, and handed out lots of Christmas
tracts and candy canes!
More than 150 people scurried in from campus and workplace
to enjoy Thanksgiving Dinner on November 23rd. We gathered in “Café
Heaven” - operated by members of our Korean congregation. Since Turkeys are
expensive here, and we do all we can to keep things cheap for our many
students, we wonder if the pilgrims also enjoyed spaghetti and fish sticks? We
did! Best of all we enjoyed the rich fellowship of brothers and sisters and
seekers from 50 nations!
Thank you for praying for our trip to Kazakhstan in
early November. We had the privilege of introducing John Ensor the President of
Passion Life to friends and former colleagues in ministry there. His message of
life in Jesus – beginning at conception
– was much appreciated in that land so badly scarred by abortion. John and Mark
had a full day sharing with many of the pastors of Almaty, a number were our
students back in the last century! It was also a joy to introduce John to the
current staff and students of the Tien Shan International School where Dayna
taught for a decade and our three sons graduated. See more at www.passionlife.org (Of course, we loved being with Josiah and Maylee for
a week there!)
Thanks also for praying
for the teaching Mark led in November. He modeled “Leadership” in getting other
pastors to teach 2 of his 4 classes – a fellow BICF pastor and a seminary
classmate we had not seen for many years Pastor Tom Kenney. Then, since nobody
sent suggestions of how to re-brand his course, “Life and Work of the Pastor” we
went with “Thriving in Ministry.” Here are the people we tried to fool, but they
soon discovered behind the new brand was the same old teacher with the same old
notes!
In October Dayna and over
50 ladies had a great 3-day Retreat studying through the Book of Ruth.
Every year BICF is one of
the host locations for the “Global Leadership Summit” from Willow Creek Church
in Chicago. This conference seeks to encourage and instruct leaders in church
and society. Each year we share this equipping opportunity with local leaders
in churches, business, and government. Depending on the winds of change, sometimes it has
been labelled too much “foreign religion” and numbers are limited. This year
the wind was favorable and we were able to host the 2-day program in our
largest auditorium, nearly filling its 2000 seats with many who said it was
their first time to hear the Good News. It was great!
One of our members, a
doctoral student from Tanzania, said he had a few of his classmates from South
Asia – India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh – Christians and Muslims, coming over
for an exploratory Bible study group and time of fellowship. Here is what those
few friends – fields ready for harvest – looks like…
We were again welcomed by
the Haidian Christian Church to hold our International Christmas program in
their large auditorium. For 2 nights, December 8 and 9, we shared with almost
2000 people that “Jesus is our Peace” in songs, drama, dance, and preaching. Each
night we invited people to join discussion groups to ask questions and think
more, more than 300 lingered. Those who hurried off took Christmas tracts and
the Gospel of John in Mandarin and an apple (the Mandarin word for “peace” is
like “apple”!) This was the 7th year we have had this marvelous
opportunity to share the Christmas Gospel in this large church open to all
people. Our teachers were allowed to invite all their students and our students
were able to invite all their classmates. Lots of them came. Pray for the
Gospel seed to bear much fruit.
Preaching through the last
chapters of Genesis have been a vivid reminder of the grace and mercy of God
for us and our families. If it were me, I would try to find the most noble people
possible to steward the blessed promise to Abraham for the blessing of the
nations. Maybe God did. But it is painfully evident even the noble fall so
short of his glory! Dads who play favorites. Sons who sleep with Dad’s woman,
kill all the men in town, and sell their brother off as a slave! But God’s
relentless grace does not quit before all those bad boys have bowed their knee
to him and made their peace with each other. What man intends for evil, God can
use for good, and the saving of many people! 4000 years later, He still holds
the world in His grip.
We pray that the year ahead will be one of great
blessing for you and your family. The promise of Abraham is ours in Christ. As
we now sojourn through earth, may your hope be fixed on that City where all of
us in Jesus will gather with great joy!
In the joy of Him who has Come and will Come Again, Mark and Dayna
Blair
Our Mission Pioneers - 10123 William Carey Dr -
Orlando, FL 32832 USA
Checks
to ‘Pioneers’ – with attached note: ‘Mark and Dayna Blair, Beijing.’
(Our Account # is 110565, Mark and Dayna Blair)
