China (MNN) — China's notorious one-child policy may be coming to an end. Why? The male-female ratio in China is said to be 119 males to 100 females. The other problem is the aging population will lack caregivers. With one married couple left to take care of four aging parents, the pressure is great.
Jonathan Brooks, President of Bibles for China–a ministry of Voice of China and Asia, says this is old news. "The people of China seem kind of surprised that we would be asking about it because to them it was old news. What we see as a new policy in China, that you can have more than one child. People generally — especially in Christian circles — don't realize that this is really old news, that the policy has changed."
While some news reports suggest the one-child policy has only been changed in certain provinces, Brooks is seeing change in China. He says the church is just one example. "We're seeing a great awakening in China, and what we're hearing is there is a real fervency in the believers in China. And this isn't just in the underground church, but the above-ground church."
While the registered churches aren't free as they are in the United States or Canada, Brooks says they are free to preach the Gospel. He says many are turning to Christ because of it, and Bibles are in high demand.
"What we're hearing from the United Bible Society is that the Bible is the unofficial best-selling book in China. It's available in large population centers," says Brooks.
However, he says that's a problem. "70-percent of China's new believers that are coming to Christ are out in the rural areas. They don't have access to the larger population centers where Bibles can be purchased in the registered churches." Even if they could get to these areas, they wouldn't be able to afford to purchase them. Each Bible costs a significant percentage of their income.
Bibles for China was born out of this need. "For $5 we can purchase a legally-printed Bible. We can transport it. We'll even have the assistance of the government officials to help us transport these Bibles and take us right into their registered churches."
Brooks says your financial support touches lives. "For every Bible we pass out, our past surveys have shown us that that Bible will be read by five people. And out of those five people, at least three people will come to Christ."
While you can't just step off the plane and go distribute Bibles, Brooks says if you follow the rules, you can have uninterrupted ministry.
If you'd like to support Bibles for China–a ministry of Voice of China and Asia, click here.
