A Call to Pray
Like many of you, we have been following the news about a large, coordinated crackdown on an urban house church network in China. While many details are still coming in, and there are many things yet unclear, we know our Heavenly Father’s will for us is to mobilize in prayer on behalf of our brothers and sisters.
The author of The Hiding Place, Corrie ten Boom, wrote, “The wonderful thing about praying is that you leave a world of not being able to do something, and enter where everything is possible.” And so, Corrie followed with the question: “Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?”
It was Betsy, Corrie’s older sister, who taught Corrie to pray in every situation, while giving thanks (Philippians 4:6). Easy to preach and teach; much harder to practice. Over time Corrie would respond, “Dear Jesus…how foolish of me to have called for human help when you are here.”
And so, even though the needs before us loom large, we may enter his realm and ask in faith for the impossible.
My Hiding Place
When Corrie, Betsy, and her family were facing the impossible they took great joy and courage from two verses:
“You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.” Psalm 32:7 NIV
“You are my hiding place and shield; I hope in your word.” Psalm 119:114 NKJV
As we hear about leaders and workers in the church in China who are being tested and are trusting their “hiding place” in real time, please join us in asking our Everlasting Hiding Place to shield and surround them with songs of deliverance.
Kerry Schottelkorb
President
Ways to Pray
Praise
- Praise the Lord that he is our hiding place and shield, and please pray for those in harm’s way to know his peace and protection.
- Thank God for the joyful and sustaining presence of the Holy Spirit even in the midst of suffering and rejection. Pray that our brothers and sisters who are suffering will know the peaceful and powerful embrace of our Lord.
- Thank the Lord for growing interactions between Africans and Chinese resulting in mutual ministry and missions. Please see Crossroads of Faith between China and Africa: Historical Relations and Christian Witness, by John Cheong, October 10, 2025.
- Praise God that the Mid-Autumn Festival can show the way to the eternal reunion by way of the cross! Please see: The Quest for the Perfect Circle: Mid-Autumn Longing, the Cross, and Eternal Reunion, by Daniel Lam, October 06, 2025.
- Rejoice with us for the many resources there are to aid us in our personal worship, as well as pray for the people of China and the diaspora. Please see All Things in Light of Eternity, by Joann Pittman, September 30, 2025.
Prayer
- Please pray for the joy of the Lord to be the strength of those who are being penalized for their faith and service to Christ. Pray also for daily strength, courage, endurance, and perseverance.
- Please pray through the ChinaSource Journal with us! Please see Praying Through the ChinaSource Journal: Divine Wisdom in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, by Joann Pittman, October 13, 2025.
- Please pray that the people of God will seek ways to “walk alongside China’s youth and international students—listening, welcoming, discipling, and bearing witness to the presence of Christ.” Please see Chinese Youth and International Students: Faith, Challenges, and the Future of Ministry, by ChinaSource Team, September 23, 2025.
News and Notes
ChinaSource Team News
- In October, Brent Fulton had an article published in a magazine by Stefanus International, an organization in Norway that reports on the persecuted church. The article name in Norwegian is: Når forfølging ingen ende har which translates in English to: When Persecution Doesn’t End.
- Brent Fulton participated in an online reunion for those who attended the Fourth Lausanne Congress in Seoul a year ago.
- On August 15, Christianity Today republished Andrea Lee’s article: China’s Quiet Revival, One Handwritten Bible Verse at a Time. See the original article: Ink That Binds: How Bible Handcopying Drew His Children Together.
- ChinaSource is on Instagram! You can find us @chinasourceorg (previously @chinaiscomplicated). Please follow us and encourage your friends, family, and network to join us.
In Case You Missed It
A selection of recently published items:
- So Many Tones!, ChinaSource Blog, October 14.
- Praying Through the ChinaSource Journal, ChinaSource Blog, October 13.
- Crossroads of Faith Between China and Africa, ChinaSource Blog, October 10.
- ZGBriefs, October 9.
- Following in Footsteps, ChinaSource Blog, October 7.
- The Quest for the Perfect Circle, ChinaSource Blog, October 6.
- Why Biblical Theology Matters in Global Mission and the Chinese Church, ChinaSource Blog, October 3.
- ZGBriefs, October 2.
- All Things in Light of Eternity, ChinaSource Blog, September 30.
- State Dominance of Religion, ChinaSource Blog, September 29.
- Traditional China Meets Christianity, ChinaSource Blog, September 26.
- ZGBriefs, September 25.
- Chinese Youth and International Students, ChinaSource Blog, September 23.
- Thin Office Walls and Thinner Egos, ChinaSource Blog, September 22.
- Loving the Pope: Reflections on China’s Catholic Story, ChinaSource Blog, September 19.
- ZGBriefs, September 18.
