To serve the Lord, Christians choose different ways such as pastoring, giving offerings, and joining in church construction... Apart from the obvious work, some believers offer what little they have to respond to the love of the Lord.
Offering boiled water to pedestrians
Since the dedication of its new church building in 2017, the Baoji Shuguang Church in Shaanxi province has a machine that electronically makes water drinkable (Chinese people prefer to drink boiled water) which is then provided to people passing by the church entrance. The boiled water is mainly for nearby sanitation workers, elderly people who do exercises at a square in front of the church, tourists, and surrounding residents.
Brother Yang, the church's doorkeeper who became a Christian a decade ago, fills up the container. He said, "A Christian needn't do big things to serve the Lord. As a drop of water reflects the light from the sun, small things make people feel the love of God. "
Giving a cup of hot water to construction workers
Yang also said that a church worker gave a cup of hot water to a worker who delivered cement to the church. Moved by the kindness, the worker said no one gave him water to drink when doing delivery work. The Shuguang Church also invites workers to eat together with them during meal times.
Two hours of prayer
Sister Shao from the Baoji Shengli Church starts her two-hour prayer at 4 a.m every day. Her regular prayer topics concern the world, different countries, unreached places, her church ministries, ongoing events in her church as well as prayer requests from other believers. This is her normal agenda and she has been following it for over ten years.
Repairing broken Bibles for believers
In his seventies, Elder Xu from Inner Mongolia has been mending broken Bibles for over twenty years.
Believing that Christians should reach out to love people because of the love of the Lord, he also serves believers through sharing the word of God, transporting believers to and from churches in a three-wheeled rickshaw, and encouraging young people to help elderly Christians trim their fingernails.
Donations from a low-income resident
The family of Sister Ren from Qitaihe, Heilongjiang province receives a subsistence allowance of just 490 yuan. The 70-year-old woman and her husband are both sick.
The woman, who has physical difficulties, is engaged in prayer ministry for her church which is constructing a new building. She never buys new clothes because all that she wears is donated by some sisters. In addition, she gives to the church the moneys given to her by her children, relatives, and friends.
"I'm grateful to be part of God's ministry," she said.
- Translated by Karen Luo
