Because You Prayed . . .

The following is an adapted excerpt by Mark Edwards, serving in Taiwan

In response to prayer requests written as far back as January 2009, many of you prayed for the proprietors of a local eatery in Four Lakes—Mr. and Mrs. Tsai—along with his mother and the couple’s three boys. A little over a year ago, Mr. Tsai was diagnosed with lung cancer. In mid-November 2011, Alliance international workers, who were visiting the couple in the hospital, asked the Alliance family to pray for Mr. Tsai, who was now in the last stages of cancer and considering putting his trust in God, along with the ramifications of that decision.

In answer to those prayers, the Lord used several Christians from different churches (including our local Alliance congregation) to lead Mr. Tsai to Christ a week or so before his death in November 2011. At the encouragement of Mr. Tsai’s former high school classmate (who had witnessed to him) and her pastor, the family chose to conduct a Christian funeral. For our community, so deeply entrenched in Taiwanese traditional folk religion, this was a very big deal!

The tent erected on the street for the funeral service was filled to capacity with family, friends, and acquaintances, the vast majority of whom were not Christians. Other mourners stood outside the tent, listening from a distance as the good news of our hope in Jesus was proclaimed.

Although our church played a minimal role in conducting the funeral, I was able to speak briefly about the Lord’s Prayer, which Mr. Tsai and his wife had asked me to teach them while he in the hospital, as well as the story of the Benevolent Father (an abbreviated version of the Prodigal Son), and Naomi’s story from the Book of Ruth. Prior to, during, and after the funeral, we have been able to spend many hours with the family and extended family. One Sunday night, two of the boys came over to our church location to join us for games.

Pray that the extended family and all those who heard the gospel at the funeral will come to know Christ. Also, pray for sustained enthusiasm for us as we visit people in their homes and businesses, even when the results are sometimes discouraging. Pray that by demonstrating Christ’s compassion, we will “love people into the Kingdom” and that many will decide to join our church home.

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Pray for Alliance workers in Taiwan and their colleagues around the world.

 

 

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