tight times

If you've been tracking with us, you've probably gathered that this is a little bit of a tougher season than we've known before.  In other provinces in China there are often more freedoms and less security but this province is a tenser place and these are tenser times.

This BBC article gives a bit more info on the increased security here now.  Also, we updated you recently that all of our local U friends who rent a home in the capital city are being required to return to their hometowns to obtain a permission card that will allow them to rent a residence and live in the city.  This has been a great hardship for many local friends as they would like to continue with their jobs rather than having to be uprooted for sometimes several weeks in order to get back to their family's roots....  It's been costly both in finances and opportunities for these people.  Usually, they've been required to leave pretty nearly immediately...  And then, sometimes the permission cards have been difficult to acquire.

All of this means.... Tension.

We've heard that all road travel, train travel, and air travel are equally tight....  road blocks have passengers empty their luggage from cars in order to be scanned just like security at an airport.  And because of all these security checkpoints (mentioned in the article) many believers who have had to travel back to their hometowns have not brought copies of the New Testament (which are illegal to have in your possession here) and they've even deleted them from their phone because phones have been checked, scanned as well.

Pray that the Word of God would be planted, as seeds deep into the soil of hearts and minds and lives here.  Pray that these precious seeds would not be snatched away!

Thank you for praying for peace in this land.   For praying for the authorities who have a difficult job to try to bring peace to this land that is torn with religious and ethnic divisions.  Pray for wisdom and humility for authorities.  Pray for the peace of Christ for all!