The Kindness of Strangers
So I invited them over one last time and I took notes on everything that they did.
Chris is the leader of one of the largest house church movements in China today. When I asked him how he was chosen above the others to lead, this was his response: “In the House Church movement, the hungriest to find God are chosen as leaders. They are placed in a position of leadership and followed by the others in a quest for more of Jesus.” He went on to tell me a story of finding the Lord:
“When I was a young boy I did not believe in Christ,” he said. “I lived in a poor village with only my mother and she was always getting sick. Our doctor and hospital bills were piling up and we could no longer afford to get her the care she needed. I had heard though, about people in my village that practiced the art of healing. I really hoped that they could help. So I invited them over and learned that they were Christians. I asked them to pray over my mother for healing. When they did she became better almost immediately! We shared a meal together, as is customary in my culture, and the Christians left. My mother remained well for about a month but she gradually became sick again. The Christians returned and prayed for her healing. Miraculously, she got better again. This happened a few times; back and forth it went. My mother would grow sick and the Christians would come. Finally, I decided I could no longer afford to feed them each time that they arrived. It was costing us too much. So I invited them over one last time and I took notes on everything that they did. I copied their words exactly as they spoke them and watched as my mother’s sickness disappeared. We shared a final meal together and I thanked them for all that they had done. The next time my mother grew ill I was ready,” he said with a grin. “I pulled out my notebook and I read what I had copied down before when the Christians were there. How amazing it was to see her immediately get better. Later that night, when I was alone on my bed I began to wonder who had done the healing. I knew I didn’t have the power within me and the Christians were not there,” he said, becoming thoughtful. “These questions sent me on a quest to find God. It didn’t take long for me to accept Jesus into my life as my Lord and Saviour. I read the Bible that a friend gave me and my knowledge of Scripture grew. I became a teacher and a church planter. It was only a few years later that I was chosen to be the leader of the house church movement that I belonged to,” he finished with a humble dip of his head.
Chris’ story is just one example of how the Lord chooses to work in our lives. His belief in the Christians’ words was absolute and God honoured his faith.
1 Corinthians 4:20 says: For the Kingdom of God does not consist in words, but power.
Chris soon learned that it was not mere words healing his mother, but the power of the Living God.
