Have gone to my first church meeting at my new church. I know belong and attend an AOG church that speaks no English. They welcomed me and when I told them that I was a carrier for China they seemed OK with it. I am going to this church as I feel lead to it.
Some things I should make clear I was and still am a member of the Ingle Farm Salvation Army but as a christian I need to be accountable and lead by a church this is the one I have chosen.
Let me tell you why:
I was prayer walking the area one night when I ended up out side this church I looked at it for a while and God told me this was to be the church I would go to. I told him I did not know the way to get there and if he would help me find it again I would make it my church, a few weeks later I was riding around the town and came across this very same church I asked a few locals when the meeting was and left. After that I was sent to Thailand for a while as soon as I got back I went to the church.
I belive God has a plan for me in this church. posted by pete footer at 4:57 PM ::: 3 comments
Laos
Just got back from working up in Thailand it was very fruitful and we we're able to bless a large amount of people. there are more pictures of our time on the picture page. posted by pete footer at 4:54 PM ::: 0 comments
A uniform at a realistic price
Monday, April 10, 2006
http://www.salvation.org.hk/Services/Trade/catalogue_E.htm
I just found out that the uniform costs $600 Aus!!! How can we be a ministry to the poor if we expect that much for the uniform? Do we expect to save poor people or not.
This link is to a realistically priced uniform I would advise that you use until I can find something cheaper. posted by pete footer at 3:51 PM ::: 2 comments
Sponsorship program
This projects been placed on ArmyBarmy so I'd better explain it a bit for every one.
Thousands of Chinese people can not afford a primary school education so must work for the family in order to survive, they can not read, write and many do not even know Chinese!!
The plan is simple for$36 (Aus) a year you can support a Child’s education.
The project is run by the Hong Kong Christian council (of which the Salvation Army is part of) they are not allowed to preach the gospel. HKCC will send you photos, personal information on the child and school reports. All I need is the name and address so that the books can get to the people. I can not go into details of how these books will get there for obvious reasons.
you can do that here: http://hkcc.org.hk/BTS/e010.asp
Another option for those interested is to sponsor a whole CHRISTIAN SCHOOL.
Christian schools are illegal and need financial support. The sponsorship programme has no set price but I would be looking for a larger monthly payment than the government supported program (around $50Aus). That money will go straight to Christian children who are eager to learn about Jesus and his grace. However it is not tax deductible :)
Why is it illigal
Sunday, April 09, 2006
just a quick question and it is a question. If bibles are printed in China and cheap for every christian to purchase why is illegal to take bibles into China? posted by pete footer at 1:38 AM ::: 3 comments
Bibles allready in China
Saturday, April 08, 2006
Bibles don't endanger people, people endanger people :)
Someone who sadly wishes to be anonymous has commented recently on 2 of my blog articles rather than delete his comment I have decided to hopefully offer the opinion of the 50 million Chinese people without bibles.
The comments posted where well thought out and a very good opinion (I also appreciate that you have taken the time to write in English as I do not yet know Chinese Characters). Firstly I should say I do not sell the bibles or force them onto any one.
The only times I take bibles into China are when people ask for them, I still take bibles into China so I guess China just doesn't have enough. Not that I don't mind helping out with the need, no government should have to pay for the 50 million bibles needed it just doesn't seem fair that the government has to pay.
When you say that bibles are already being printed and have been for years I think you are referring to Amity press (I have left a link for them as well as the link you advised if any one is interested) they have printed 40 million bibles in 30 years!! Praise God that this is possible, however if 40million was all that was needed and China was open to the word of God why are 50 million people asking me for bibles and why are so many of my friends being arrested and abused in China?
As for breaking the law of man when it goes against the Law of God (tell the whole world about Jesus) Jesus broke the law when he healed on the Sabbath, Paul and Peter where also told on many occasions to not to the word of God into un-reached countries it did not stop them.
I think if you truly believe that taking bibles into China is against the law of God as well as man then maybe I should refer you to this site http://www.greatsite.com/timeline-english-bible-history/ and look up Martin Luther , William Tyndale and John Wycliffe all of these people broke the law for their faith and as a result we now have the bible open to the public.
As for your suggested strategy to get bibles into China (of which I have taken careful consideration) it is very hard to find a registered church that 1 has the bibles in stock 2 is willing to sell 20 bibles and 3 is willing to sell to unregistered church goers. Maby to fully understand the need for bibles I should refure you to a more learned man Brother Andrew the man who took 1 million bibles into China in one night http://www.opendoorsuk.org/china_library_toc.php but if you do not have the time then maybe I could just refer you to this quote ” It may be that half of all Christians in China still do not have a personal Bible. Thus it is still important to take Scriptures to them in quantities larger than can be legally produced.” This is a direct quote from Open doors ministry, if you wish to discus this more in-depth I would suggest sending an E-mail to them as they know more about the situation than I do as I said I only take bibles into China when people ask for them.
The thought of not taking bibles into China is firmly out of the question, if a man asks you how to be saved from the fires of hell would you tell him? In China this would be considered illegal would you still tell the man how to be saved? Of corse you would! Hell is very much real just as is Heaven the consequences of eternal punishment by far out way any temporary punishment another soul could offer.
If you still require more information I would suggest you purchase a copy of Jesus in China at your local Christian bookstore unless you live in China then it is probably not available. posted by pete footer at 5:23 AM ::: 0 comments
I try not to post to many of these testimonies online as it is not really as safe as I would like to think to do so but this was just to amazing to not.
Today God has allowed me to stretch my faith a little bit more I filled a cardboard air conditioner box with 100 bibles and tried to walk through the boarder. Mainly we take about 50 – 75 bibles in one shot but today God was stretching my faith. We walked up to customs and past the scanner together the customs eyed us off for a while but didn’t stop us from walking by into China then came the tricky part, the box was to heavy to physically lift into a taxi, at first we tried to go into a toilet block so that we would not be seen whiles changing from a box to a 3 empty back packs that we had brought along with us, how ever we were being watched as you would assume would happen when 2 white people try to go into the same squatter toilet at once with a giant box, next we tried to pick it up into a taxi but could not lift it a had to give up. After a few more minutes hunting we found a deserted toilet block with no lights and a lock on the door. So we started to unload the bibles, then suddenly a guy walked in apparently the lock on the door was not working we quickly jumped up and pretended to be going toilette as soon as he was gone we quickly pushed the rest of the books into bags and got out of that cubical by that stage we ashamed that the PBS (state police) had been told of 2 white people acting suspiciously in the toilet so we moved as quickly as possible towards the Taxi stand then came the next problem there was no escalator going down so we had no way of getting away in a Taxi!! We quickly found a white man and asked him if he could carry some of our bags for us down the stairs (white people don’t charge or report you to PBS) Finally we got into the Taxi. When we got to the drop off point 2 communist guards were weighting to help us unload our bags! We tried to laugh a lot when they commented on how heavy the bags were. As soon as we could we got to the drop of point and collapsed, it truly was the day I nearly got caught in China twice. That day we got 200 books across the boarder praise the Lord. posted by pete footer at 4:23 AM ::: 0 comments
William Booth
Friday, April 07, 2006
William Booth knew what he was talking about Apply this to your day and it might just change your whole life:
" am glad you are enjoying yourself. The salvation business is a friend of happiness. Making heaven on earth is our business. Serve the Lord with gladness is one of our favorite mottos. So I am pleased that you are pleased! But amidst all your joys don't forget the sons and daughters of misery. Do you ever visit them? Come away and let us make a call or two. Here is a home, six in family, they eat and drink and sleep and sick and die in the same chamber. Here is a drunkard hovel, void of furniture, wife a skeleton, children in rags; father now sleeping, the victims of his neglect. Here are the unemployed, wandering about, seeking work and finding none. Yonder are the wretched criminals cradled in crime passing in and out of the prisons all the time. There are the Daughter of shame deceived and wronged and ruined. Traveling down the dark and blind to an early grave. There are the children, fighting in the gutter, going hungry to school. Growing up to fill their parents places. Brought it all on themselves, you say? Perhaps so. But that does not excuse our assisting them. You don?t demand a certificate of virtue before you drag some drowning creature out of the water. Nor the assurance in a man of faded grace before you deliver him from the burning building. But what shall we do? Content ourselves by singing a hymn? Offering a prayer? Or giving a little good advice? NO! Ten thousand times no! We will forgive them. Feed them! Reclaim them. Employ them!Perhaps we shall fail with many. Quite likely. But our business is to help them all the same. And that in the most practical, economical and Christlike manner. So let us hasten to the rescue for the sake of our own peace, the poor wretches themselves, ____ (dean?) of these children, and the danger(Savior?) of us all. But you must help with the means. And there is nothing like the present. Who in this company will lend a hand by taking up the gauntlet? "
http://www.sermonindex.net/modules/mydownloads/viewcat.php?cid=16 posted by pete footer at 1:58 AM ::: 0 comments
New plan
Monday, April 03, 2006
This is in no way criticising any one but me (as the bible says not to do so)
Yesterday I met up with a Church called RCC they are the only Hong Kong people to take bibles into China.
The preacher and founder was a guy called Dennis Balcombe who as been working in China for 30 years, seen millions of illegal Christians saved and is known as the second Hudsen Tayler.
He is fluent in Cantonese and Mandarin and it only took him 8 months to learn! This man is really like the Brother Andrew of China and what he has done in life really demands respect.
His message was simple but powerful God said sell all of your personal belongings and serve God, he also mentioned that a lot of people live of less than $1hk a week ($6HK to $1Aus)
He also touched on a topic that in the west is very dead, faith without works is dead it really touched me that I need to be doing more.
My new policy on money is this: if I can afford a DVD I'm not giving away enough money to God. I don't belive in "life's essentials" but do now belive that giving away as much money as I can to people poorer than me is essential for life. posted by pete footer at 8:08 PM ::: 5 comments
jail for Christ
last week we all got caught when the first guy had unloaded his bag he grabed a different bag that was stil full and walked out same happend with the next guy then I walked behind the custumns desk whilse no one could see me picked up some one elses parssport and they just walked off with their bag thenn there was 2 of us left and only one bag with bout 3 bibles in it, so we weighed that bag and let them have it, they didn't knowtess that the bag only weighed 13Kg insted of 80Kg !!! so he was able to go, then comes the real fun bit custumns then asked me for my bag I looked around for a bit and asked them if they had seen it then they came to the conclusion that one of the others must have taken it they told me that if I didn't ring up my freind and tell him to bring the bibles back I would go to jail!! this was a real moment in growth for my faith right then so I decided that jail sounded like the better option rather than say 80 bibles not going to China and blessing them so I told them sorry but I can't ring my freind. They talked for a while and then decided to let me go into China. This was an amazing miracle of God I don't think they can afford to put some one i jail for bibles but they where certanly keen to. Praise God posted by pete footer at 8:02 PM ::: 2 comments
Saturday, April 01, 2006
Here's a great thing I've just found that the Hong Kong christian council are running China is full of people who have had to drop out of primary school because their parents could not afford the education. Yes this is one of those sponsorship things, for $36 Aus a year you could give some one an education, they will give you a photo, school reports and information on the child more importantly as It's illegal for the organisation to do you can send them letters about Jesus and stop these children from going to Hell.
If you really like you could send the letters to me and I can add the Chinese children's bibles in them and send them off again. It is OK to have one bible each for personal use but to have more than one is against the law.
Please really think about this these people are asking you for the price of a DVD a year so that they can at least learn to read. I'll try and get the brochure online ASAP till then just drop me a line if your interested. posted by pete footer at 10:21 PM ::: 0 comments
