By Brianna Nishie
Open Doors
How uncommon is it to own a Bible in China? Thirty or forty years ago? Extremely uncommon. But thankfully, things have since changed. In most parts of China, there is now easy access to Han Chinese Bibles in paper or digital formats. Yet for Christians of certain ethnic groups who are surrounded by Muslim families and neighbors, a Bible in their own language is still a very precious gift. Open Doors worker Peony recently had the privilege of giving one of these Bibles to a young Uyghur brother.
Meeting Jack
Jack became a Christian a year ago. He feels he still has to hide his faith for now, as his father is a communist party member and his uncle is a devoted Muslim who serves as a teacher in a mosque. If his new faith were exposed, the consequences would be serious—his uncle would surely beat him, and his father would probably expel him from their home.
When I met Jack, I had two books in the Uyghur language with me, and asked him to identify them for me. He told me that one contained Luke and Acts, while the other was the New Testament, Genesis and Exodus. When he saw the latter book, his eyes lit up, and he asked if he could have it.
Jack’s Reaction
When I gave it to him, Jack was thrilled. He took the Scriptures to his lips, kissed them, and said, “Now I understand why a voice told me to carry my backpack along when I left home today. I didn’t see any need to do it, but I’m glad that I obeyed. It is to carry this Bible! Now I can hide it in the backpack and no one from the street or my house will see it.
After hearing how he had lost his last Bible, it was a joy to see Jack holding the new one so tightly in his arms.
“I have been praying for another Bible and God sent you to bring me this gift today!” he said. “Thank you so much!”
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