RCMI Newsletter April 2021
The Persian New Year
Persian Girl
April 2021 Newsletter from Brother Paul
-- Middle East E-Country Missionary
Dear Friends of RCMI, RCC Pastors, Brothers and Sisters,
Peace be to you all! The 21st to the 24th of March is the Persian New Year, which in Persian is written as نوروز.
a Persian Custom: In the New Year, goldfish are symbols of good luck.
E-Country's new year is just like Spring Festival in China: most people return to their hometowns for the new year holiday. But this year, whether to go home or not for the new year has been a difficult choice for many of E-Country's people. Mr M-- drives a taxi in the capital. As it was getting close to the new year, his father, who is getting quite old, wanted him to come home for their holiday family get-together. But as Mr. M-- considered the situation and the pandemic, he finally decided to stay where he was during the New Year.
Despite the fact that E-Country's new year market is in the midst of great financial difficulty, goldfish are selling very well. Just as in China where during the New Year holiday, they say, "every year we have fish" (a pun: the word "fish" is pronounced exactly the same as the word for "more than enough"), in E-Country, goldfish are also considered good luck: each one represents the hope people have for peace and prosperity in their personal lives as well as in their nation.
Distributing Clothing, Shoes, Warm Hats, Scarves, and Food Packets
Distributing Clothing, Shoes, Warm Hats, Scarves, and Food Packets
Thankfully, before E-Country's New Year, coworkers were able to distribute clothing, shoes, warm hats, scarves, and food packets to people living in the slums, poor families, street children, and orphanage children in M City and S City. The warm hats and scarves were made from materials we bought, sewn by volunteers from M City. The food packets included rice, spaghetti, different kinds of beans, canned tuna, sugar, ketchup, tea, eggs, edible oils, feta cheese, and chicken.
Paul and Coworkers Doing an Installation in a Workshop
Lately I've been helping a Chinese brother do an installation in his workshop, although I am a bit old for this. When I work with others, my ability to help is limited by my lack of ability to communicate in the local language. Sometimes when I do help, I cause them more mistakes than if I didn't help, and I end up feeling tired and uneasy in body, soul, and spirit. My hand and elbow joints hurt, and when I exert myself with my hands, they hurt. Please pray the Lord restores my hand and elbow joints to their original condition so I can help in the factory. Also pray for my visa, which I must renew in mid-July.
Sincerely, Brother Paul
Missionary to E-Country
Training a New Generation of the Chinese Church
RCMI -- Church Development
Our purpose is to assist the Church of China to develop on a variety of levels. Pastor Matthew's vision is to train worshipers to live in a way that displays the Lord's glory and beauty -- to praise Him with their whole lives.
Multi-generational Discipleship Training for Revival: Musical Training for the Church of China -- Special Praise and Worship Training
Musical training raises the level of local church worship: to raise the level of praise and worship in the Chinese church, to conduct music mission trips and training, and to disciple worship leaders, all these require a great deal of painstaking effort. RCMI and Pastor Matthew have gone to China for ministry more than a hundred times to places all over the country, and every time brothers and sisters have been deeply touched as they have also gained invaluable ministry experience.
Chinese Minorities Are Talented in Singing and Dancing
Pastor Matthew says we need to train local church Sunday school praise and worship teams, have fellowship and worship together, give instruction in singing technique, rhythm, and the theory and practice of how to play all kinds of musical instruments. Also before and after training sessions we need to have good sharing and interaction with those being trained so they can 'digest' what they've learned. Though training them in musical knowledge and technique is important, most important is demonstrating the real meaning of praise and worship, that is, living the lifestyle of Christ. Pastor Matthew says the main thing isn't musical technique, but the life of the worshiper. True praise and worship happens when we live out the glory and beauty of the Lord -- when we use our life to praise Him!
Musical training in the church of China is comparatively behind world standard; But when we are willing to stand up and offer ourselves, it's like the breaking of the dawn: something good is always going to happen!
A Chinese Preacher Teaching a Song
"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it" (Prov 22:6). Summer training sessions are mainly focused on helping young children establish a foundation in faith, character, and experience so that as they progress by degrees toward maturity, they can build their lives on a foundation of living in community and the teaching of God's Word. In their Bible classes, the children gain a deep understanding of Bible content through self-arranged, self-directed dramas which they act out, gaining first-person experience in different roles in Bible stories. This becomes a spiritual experience for them in which they build friendships, so they can grow both spiritually and socially.
A Lesson From the Welsh Revival
For the church, raising up the next generation is extremely important! In 1904-1905, Wales experienced a great revival; but in 2009, when Pastor Matthew was in Wales, he saw that many church buildings are completely unused or else have been converted into warehouses or hotels or taken over and used by other religions. How is it that the church could have experienced such great revival, but later its condition is like this? The main reason is that the church did not take pains to train the next generation.
The Lord Jesus said, "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you..."
Chinese churches in Europe have only one preacher for every four churches -- there is a shortage of pastors.
Train up a child in the way he should go.
Praise and Worship Training in South China Conducted by RCMI.
For this reason, the Chinese church today must be diligent and focused: we must impart to the next generation what we have received: whether the precious inheritance received from previous generations or what we have built through God's creative power in this generation: all must be passed along diligently from this generation to the next. I like to quote Proverbs 22:6: "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it"! Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth!
Sincerely, Pastor Matthew
RCMI
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