Missions Report - December 2006Some missions that we support are very high profile. We all know what the Food Bank is, or Transition House, but what does OMF stand for? What do they do? OMF is the Overseas Missionary Fellowship (OMF). Not very helpful! The former China Inland Mission - ah, that means something - a mission to China. But, surely China is closed to missionaries? So, tell me what does OMF do? OMF sends Christians to Asian countries to live, teach and preach the gospel. Do they get results? Do Asians become Christians? Let me tell you about 2 Asian countries that I visited this summer. First we went to Japan. The staff at the hotel front desk told me that there are no Christian Churches in Tokyo. I have heard that kind of answer in many other countries I have visited, and I usually find one somewhere. I telephoned the OMF office, and yes, indeed there was such a church, American, English speaking, and so I arranged to meet the OMF representative there next morning for 11:00am. I never made it to the service because Jack became sick but I did get to the church. The whole street outside of the building was packed with dancers, I was told Temple Dancers, that is they are dance troupes associated with Temples, who perform ritual dances. I missed the lady I was to meet but connected with her the next day. She told me that Japanese people are very much attached to their temples and their religions and that a tiny % of the country are Christians. The work is hard to break through their self-sufficiency and ancestor worship, but there are the occasional conversions. We may ask does it matter, why not leave them alone? In answer I will tell you about China. There we attended a State Supported Church. There were 2 buildings in a compound, services took place, one after the other, for most of the day. One looked like a traditional Western type of church. A wedding was happening there. The other was a square 2 story building. Services were still running as we arrived. A large crowd of people came down-stairs and we went up. The upper room held about 100 people and was very full, we found a seat and waited. As our Chinese friend had told us the service was in English. After the highly evangelical service finished we stood at the back for "coffee." I was surprised when a young Chinese man came up to me and asked "How do I become a Christian?" After I had gone through the process of repentance, confession, and commitment with him he said yes, that was what he wanted. I found a church member to help him, and his place was taken by a second seeker. This one wanted to hear about my experience of God, and wanted to know how to learn more. After sharing my experiences I took him to a Church member who knew of a starting Bible Study group that he could join. I looked around and noted that here, 20-30 minutes later there were many such intense discussions in process. The Chinese have a vacuum, they know their need of God. The Japanese have filled their souls with false gods and are not searching. The OMF have over 200 missionaries in China, working "under the cover" of regular jobs, and China is responding. There are far fewer missionaries in Japan. The response is very low. Nancy Stevens, who receives funds from our Mission Fund is the local representative for NB. One of her tasks is to find new missionaries. We could help her by raising her personal support through the Mission Fund. China and Japan are needy countries. We have the privilege of freedom of religion, it is easy for us to learn more. Let us help OMF in their task of helping others. - Ann Passmore |
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