Equipping the next generation

Open Doors continues to be as committed as ever to strengthening the Chinese Church and responding to its requests for help.

One of our co-workers, Pastor Chen, says: "Today the biggest challenge is to introduce the idea of faith in God to young people between the ages of 15 and 30. They have grown up in a spiritual void where materialism is rampant. They're facing emptiness and a loss of faith in Marxist ideology. They are seeking new meaning. The choice is between materialism and religion. Our parents and grandparents had Bibles that spoke to their hearts, in their own language. But those Bibles were written in old language that was understandable to them. Young people today struggle to understand the words and phrases. The words are from another time. How can we expect them to be effective followers if they don't even have the Word of God to guide them in their lives?"

Brother Andrew, founder of Open Doors International, concurs. "We do need new materials for China and the best way to get in there is with children's and youth Bibles. They need that more than anything. So Open Doors wants to focus on what is the biggest need – supplying leadership for the next generation. And that, God willing, is exactly what we're doing."

After researching the issues faced by China's urban Christian youth, Open Doors has designed a youth Bible that will communicate God's Word and biblical principles in a contemporary language and format. It includes discussions of topics that relate to young people in China. Our prayer is that a Christ-centred value system will transform China from within through the lives of young people who know their God.

Brother Andrew adds, "The request that comes from China today to us is, 'Train our young generation and equip our Sunday School teachers, pastors and evangelists.' There's a dire need for that. The battle for the souls of the people in China is still on. We must continue our effort and we must do more."