China (MNN) – The pandemic’s repercussions continue to resonate through personal lives and national conversation. In fact, it’s only now that China has opened its doors to organizations like China Partner. Yes, there are plenty of laws and regulations still restricting the registered church, but the Church is continuing to operate in China.
By working alongside the registered church, China Partner can legally visit and collaborate with Christians in China.
“One of the greatest opportunities is to see that the Church has reinvited us back,” says Erik Burklin from China Partner. And they’re not just asking for a visit – they want tools to continue to grow the Church. “They want us to come back with trainers, with pastors to help them, to serve them.”
One of the first things China Partner has planned is a symposium. Leadership of the China Christian Council will meet in Shanghai for the first symposium since 2015.
“I’ve invited some pastors and Christian leaders and ministry leaders from outside of China to come join us for the symposium,” Burklin says. “The goal of this symposium is literally just to come together to listen to their story, to find out where they are, and to learn from them, because their situation has changed since the pandemic.
“We want to be careful not to overdo things too quickly, but to also share with them and let them know we’re still wanting to partner with them. We want to serve them.”
The symposium will take place from October 15-17. Burklin asks that the global Church pray for the symposium’s success.
Pray that “God would really use this time to allow us to learn from them and to see how we as a foreign organization and other foreign organizations can continue to partner with our brothers and sisters in China.”
If you want to find out more about China Partner’s plans, both now and in the future, you can do so with the link right here. You can also support their work financially.
China Partner is only just getting started – they’ll be resuming even more projects in the future. If you want to keep up to date with their work, follow along with Mission Network News.
Header photo courtesy of Freeman Zhou via Unsplash.
