Vineyard Writing Ministry - From China ICOC 2-2 Volunteer dream - in memory of God's work
Preface
Self-introduction: My name is Yulan, and I am living in Beijing. Baptized in January 2012, I'm now four years old in the kingdom. I am so grateful for this opportunity that I could share my experience of walking with God in volunteer work.
My family was in a village, and as the youngest child in family, I have an older brother and an older sister. My parents paid a big amount of fine for having me due to the One-child policy. My mother became very weak after birth due to a massive blood lose. My parents loved me a lot but rarely said it out loud. They had to work hard to raise us. I felt like I was a burden to my family. Growing up in such feeling, I studied very hard but couldn't build a good sense of value and tended to be self-denial. My motivation to be a volunteer at the very beginning for child care in rural area was to help each kid to feel loved and to build their confidence from youth.
1. 2013 Dream came true: Shifo Temple
Preparation: Early 2013, some brothers and sisters were inspired to do something that could have long impact on others. After two months' research in different neighborhoods, we wanted to focus on helping those rural workers' kids building their characters. Therefore, we came up with the Hand-in-hand Volunteer Team. Once during our research, we came to a little hill located within a village in the heart of the city, wanting to overlook the whole village from there. The hill is small but steep. The way to the top became just a rope at the end. That little hill seemed like a sign of the work God prepared for us ahead. On the top the hill, overlooking the messy areas and the kids playing around, we prayed for them. And that very spot, Shifo Temple Village, became the starting point of our volunteer work.
When the team just started to recruit the committee members, I was inspired and wanted to join, but didn't have confidence. I was afraid that I didn't have enough to contribute or the work would have conflicts with my study. March 28th, 2013, I prayed in tears. Then I remembered my similar volunteer experience in college. I knew I did well when interacting with the young kids, and felt like I had same simple heart like them.
"For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them." Matthew 25:29
Thinking of this scripture, I asked myself, do I want to be taken away or be given. The answer is clear. Therefore, I signed up to the volunteer committee.
I was grateful for each member of the committee, Lei Yan, Bing Yang, Li Yuan, Dingdong, Kevin, and I. Everyone of us were passionately "all in". We started each meeting with prayers. Through team building activities, we appreciated and built up each other. Together we drew the blue print of our future volunteer work. We discussed the details of the work such as the timeline and the different needs of different age groups of kids. We set up two classes for older kids and younger kids perspectively. Class for older kids focused on helping them with homework. Class for younger kids focused on building up their characters through story telling, drama playing, singing, and English. Our mission was PPP (Patient Peers Together). Especially Peers meant that we were the partners with these kids in growing our characters. Not only we were to teach the kids by our examples, but also to learn from them their simpleness, joy, and receptiveness.
2. Nothing can stop us
It rained that day when we launched our first volunteer activity, but nothing can stop us. We rode bikes towards our destination Shifosi village. Our aim was to find and got connection with kids with a theme holding your hands, making friends. Many children came to join our activity even though it rained. Kids and volunteers had a lot of fun in the rain. Finally, our team got the title Rocket for we rode our bikes very fast to search the entrance of Shifosi village.
3. Tent classroom
We weekly visited the village after the temporary school started in the beginning, so we got along well with the kids very soon. Every time when the kids saw us riding bikes to the village, they would like to call us teachers, and run to hold us and greet us. We were filled with the happiness. Although I confronted the pressure of finishing my experiment for post-graduate degree, I could not help sharing the joy after visiting them every time. I realized I had thought to give but I got encouraged by their love and connection with us. In the beginning, we taught them in a corner, and we bought tents later and tried to make a better environment for them.
4. Classroom
The tent could shelter us from wind and rain. But we were still distracted by the watching parents and wandering little ones. Sometimes the bad weather would interrupt us too. With the deep concerns for the kids, we prayed for a classroom. What we didn't expect was, right on June 2nd, 2013, a parent told us about a vacant room that we could use. What a blessing! The room was not well maintained. But we felt grateful to have such a place. With a walled classroom, the kids were much better disciplined and it felt like a real school.
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." Matthew 7:7
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5. Landlord complaint, classroom under the sky
The workers living in Shifo Temple Village were mostly renters. One day, the landlord suddenly showed up and forbid us from using that vacant room any longer. He complained that we were too noisy on the street, which mostly because the kids got too excited when they saw us. We were not allowed to have classes inside the village anymore. When we were first driven out by the landlord, the kids followed us to the open ground outside and wanted to accompany their "teachers". Even though the landlord yelled at them, they insisted to stay with us even in tears. We felt encouraged by the bounding, which reflected one of our missions - Together. Another part of our mission was Patient, which called us to hold on to our goal and never give up no matter how hard it became. Therefore, we continued to look for a spot that allowed us to teach the kids. Outside the village, we found a big area of lawn and saw it was a quiet and beautiful place for having our classes. Praise the Lord.
6. Big classrooms in Shunyi historical town
In 2014, we heard that the Shifo Temple Village was going to be demolished and all the kids would have to leave with their parents. We didn't want to stop just there. We had people ready to serve, we had had experience of teaching, but we lost our facility and the kids. How we wished our dream could continue! Coincidentally we heard that there was another group of disciples in Beijing doing the similar volunteer work. They have a team, Loving Dipper Volunteer. We heard that they had two locations and a lot of kids, but they didn't have enough volunteers to help. It would work perfectly if we could joint them. And that's what we did. Together we became Loving Partner Volunteer Team.
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28
Since we joined the volunteer team in Shunyi historical town in 2015, it was not without difficulties. We had long commute each week going there, traffic was bad on our way back all the time, and some volunteers had to bear with bad car sickness. However, we had better conditions more than we could hope for, bigger classrooms, desks and chairs, and even more kids to teach. We were all encouraged. After I got a new job, in order to better adapt to my new responsibilities, I resigned from the committee, but still continued to teach the kids. As a witness for God's work in this historical town, I continued to see all the volunteers fervently serving in the committee. December 27th, 2015, we drew an end to the whole year's work and looked forward to the next semester. With all the volunteers and with God being with us, our work would continue.
7. Reflection
We had a lot of hard times, but God always provided and let us lack nothing. Our curriculum was learned from the sharing of volunteers from different cities. KK teachers' experience helped us on disciplinary, helping the kids on their character traits like passion, gratitude, respect, trustworthiness, sharing, and friendliness. The volunteers from campus were challenged on their time and energy. Every semester we invited new volunteers to join us. Those who kept coming back were proven to be open to the spirit. Many of them got baptized after the service as volunteers. There was also a brother from Germany trying to raise money to help a child he met during volunteering with his medical bills. That child wanted to learn English so that he could personally say "thank you " to that German brother. Christ's love had no borders, which inspired everybody.
Volunteer work brought me so many beautiful memories. The innocent smile of the children, their growth, a word, a card, a small gift, even the massage on the back, all made me feel loved. Those days lit up my boring post graduate days. The work also trained me on handling children, built my confidence, therefore gave me great help on my career as a pediatric dentist. God is faithful. Whoever has will be given more. Being a volunteer seems that I have to sacrifice a lot. But at the same time, I gained even more.
2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
Doing good work is the command from God. And He will always be with us so that we will not lack anything and be fruitful.
Thank God for revealing his deed through our volunteer work. Glory to be God.