Spring-time Greetings from Beijing, March 2017
A Precious Gift!
KaMakanaOKeAkua Blair was born 8 lbs. 5 oz. on March
15 in a birthing pool in their home in Portland, Oregon. Nathan and Heather and
Kekoapomaika’i are rejoicing in their “Gift from God” (in Hawaiian)! We are
too!!
We have jumped back into life and ministry here at
Beijing International Christian Fellowship ZGC and things are going well. We
thank the Lord for our faithful colleagues who carried the ministry forward
well. Highlights were our Christmas outreach ministries. We had our 6th
International Christmas Concert at nearby Haidian Church. For each of the two
nights there was a full house (almost 1500 capacity), to receive the Gospel in
song, drama, and proclamation. Then first the first time we held 2 Christmas
Eve services because of the demand! Now Mark has jumped into the preaching Book
of Judges in the morning, Gospel of John at night.
Our first Sunday back we hosted Mark’s Bible professor
from Covenant College, Dr. Henry Krabbendam. He was a great encouragement. Our
members greatly appreciated his preaching (morning and evening) and focused times
with preachers and ministry leaders. He have a special connection as he has visited
us in Uganda, Kazakhstan, and now Beijing!
Home Assignment Report
What can we say about the privilege of being in
Hawaii…escaping Beijing winter…with such wonderful family, friends, and
churches? It was delightful. The Lord allowed us to keep all our Sunday church
appointments. It is very humbling to receive such faithful “aloha,” prayers,
and support from such dear brothers and sisters. Words are not enough to
express our deep appreciation. Thanks – Mahalo nui loa!! - for the hours of
friendship, “ono” food, and warm hospitality.
In addition to Sunday services, we enjoyed many home
visits. We made many new friends and met up with dear ones who have faithfully
prayed for us for many years!
In February we were able to lead a workshop entitled
“Is Jesus Enough?” in the “Demolishing Strongholds” conference sponsored by
Evidences and Answers in Honolulu. http://evidenceandanswers.org/
It was a special joy to have Nathan, Heather, and
Kekoa spend their Christmas vacation with us in Hilo. And Josiah and Maylee
were with us for two weeks in February, Maylee’s first visit to Hawaii.
We had lots of fun sharing in
Maylee’s first time for wave riding, ocean canoeing, whale watching, and
snorkeling – along with all the great food that she…and we…enjoyed!! There were
lots of aunties, uncles, and cousins for Maylee to meet for the first time –
see us at City Church in Honolulu (below).
And back on the other side of the
world, Maylee just placed 3rd in all of Kazakhstan in Super G
Women’s skiing! She is 13.
Next month Maylee travels to St.
Petersburg, Russia for schooling. Thanks for keeping her, and her Dad Josiah
(who continues to work in Almaty, Kazakhstan).
Thanks for praying for our youngest son, Aaron, who
still lives and works in Eugene, Oregon.
Spring Outreach
There are thousands of new International students who
have come to Beijing for the new semester. A couple hundred have found their
way to the English, Mandarin, Korean, and Indonesian services of our church.
Next month we will add a 5th service, Japanese. A small group has
been meeting for over a year, and our BICF Japanese pastor thinks its time for
them to launch a church! Please pray with us that they will reach many from
that mighty nation with so few followers of Jesus.
We now have Small Groups meeting on more than 20
University campuses around us, and new ones are forming on 3 more campuses! We
have a great team that is guiding our small groups ministry.
As we finish the Book of Judges soon, I will begin
preaching through Hebrews in the mornings. We plan to have Baptism in all of
our services on Easter Sunday and a number are considering this step of faith.
Later in April we will have a Ministry Leaders short
retreat. We plan to host and hear from a leader from “Serve the City” (https://www.servethecity.net/)
and considering new ministry opportunities.
In May we will
travel to Kuala Lampur for the Missional International Church Network
conference. (www.micn.org)
We have been asked to co-present a workshop there on International Student
Ministry with Leiton Chinn. From KL it is a short flight to Indonesia. We may
have an opportunity to share in ministry in churches there, pray that the Lord
will work out the details if He wills.
So we are “good busy” back here in Beijing. We
continue to be staggered by how many people are here. And troubled to think
that millions of our neighbors are utterly lost with no knowledge of the saving
love of Jesus. Keep praying that God will pour out His Spirit of grace and
mercy on this great nation.
Yours in the Lamb, Mark and Dayna Blair
Our Mission Pioneers - 10123 William Carey Dr -
Orlando, FL 32832 USA
Checks
should be made out to ‘Pioneers’ – with a separate note attached saying: ‘Mark
and Dayna Blair, Beijing.’
Electronic
transfers can be sent to: https://give.pioneers.org/p-75-give-to-a-missionary-or-project.aspx (Our Account # is 110565, Mark and Dayna
Blair)
