A special place to share my thoughts.
A Grandmother's Story
“My heart is breaking for my children and grandchildren who are turning away from the good news of Jesus. He has blessed me since the day I came to Him and I desire that blessing for the next generations. Will you pray for them to see Jesus in their lives.” This was the prayer request given me by a grandmother in Chungong, China.
Three people groups make up the village of Chungon, China. The Chinese, Tai, and the Lisu live and work together. The government has assigned land to each group to farm. It stands above the Salween River. The fields are high above the water source so they are dependent upon the rain in order to grow enough to eat. Life is hard back breaking work but it has a sweet rhythm of dependency on God. In the morning twice a week the narrow streets fill with people. They sit against the buildings in the hot sun with a few vegetables at their feet. It is a time of rest from their labors and a time to hear the news of the village. The only large buildings in town are the school and the church. The laughter and noise of children flow from the school building down the street to the market. There are very few babies or preschoolers in the market with the mothers. At first you think that they are home with grandmother but this is not the case. The one child policy has been enforce since 1970. In all parts of the world large families and farming go together. The family farm in China is struggling with a lack of help due to each family having only one child. As you meet people and begin to hear their stories the effects of the one child policy always rises to the top.
The whole village was afraid that the world was going to end. Someone came preaching that they must leave the village and go to a mountain top and wait for the end of the world. Only those on the mountain will be saved, all others will die. As a young girl she believed the stranger and was afraid she would die. Along with most of the village she packed what little food she had and went to the mountain top. Days passed and the food ran out. Many returned to their fields as the threat of death hung over them. Those on the mountain were cold and hungry. There was no joy or excitement, only the fear of leaving that filled their minds. A month passed and many people were sick, a few even died but fear held them to the mountain. When she was barely able to walk she and others made their way home. They returned to the farms and continued to life routines without hope or expectation.
Years later, after she was married, she heard the message of hope. A man from another village came preaching about Jesus. She listened and gladly gave her life to the one who loved her and gave his life for her to have a hope for tomorrow. Now life had a new glorious perspective.
Her husband worked in a government office. She did not know what he did in that office. Each worker and their families were held accountable for following the letter of the law. They were expected to be an example of a model citizen. After the birth of their first child the government ordained the policy of one child per family. In her heart she felt this was wrong. She wanted to follow God and His leading rather than the government. A short time later she was pregnant with a second child. At the office her husband faced sever criticism and he was told to take his wife to the clinic for an abortion. The law did allow for a second child but the family had to pay a fee each year. With great fear this couple decided to have the second child and pay the penalty. After the child was born an appointment was made for her to undergo sterilization. She cried out to God to stop this from happening. She asked her husband to again go against the government and stand with her. He could not and so took her to have the surgery. Sad and depressed she came home to recover. She now had a paper that said she had complied with the law in having the surgery to prevent any more children. But she did not recover. Each day she became more and more ill. She had a high fever and sever pain. Finally she was taken back to the clinic. They again did surgery and said she would have died if nothing had been done. She recovered and was blessed by her two children. She soon discovered that she was pregnant again. She kept it a secret as long as she could. When told to have an abortion she stood up to the government using the paper that said she had complied with the law. She smiled and said, “I had six children and did not break the law.”
Now at age 61 she lives with her son and his family. One of her children died at a young age. Four of them are not following the Lord. Pain for them is always on her heart.