Verbal Abuse
“I am confused and troubled. What the church leader says and what I have experienced contradict each other. He belittles me as weak and cowardly, wounding me with his words. Not just once, he would only be fond of those with personalities like his. Now I do not even want to face him, I do not want to attend gatherings. Praying remains futile. I suffered a severe mental blow after my mother’s accident. I wake up from sleep like a startled bird. Anxiety often dominates my emotions, and I have been troubled by depression and self-pity for seven or eight years. It’s painful that no one understands me. The pastor always says I have issues with my personality, criticizing me this and that. Since I was little, my parents have always verbally attacked and belittled me, leading to my insecurity. I hate myself, but I can’t change who I am now. What should I do?”
(Sister Chan)
- Living God, Sister Chan needs love, needs to be accepted, affirmed and encouraged. We ask the Lord to heal her, let her experience the Lord’s love, look to the Lord without being affected by others’ words, and strengthen her heart to see herself rightly.
Discrimination Disputes
The job market competition in the mainland is fierce, and some companies propose conditions unrelated to the job duties when recruiting, such as family background, dating experience, as well as restrictions on height, hometown, zodiac sign, requiring blood types of applicants and checking their palmistry during interviews. The existence of employment discrimination is due to several reasons including low costs for violating laws and regulations, with very few being investigated; on the other hand, the costs for job seekers to pursue their rights are high, the legal process is time-consuming, plus most companies do not explicitly state the precise reasons for rejection, making it relatively difficult to provide evidence.
(“China Youth Daily”, July 5,2023)
- May God open everyone’s eyes to see the value in each person. May companies establish reasonable mechanisms in the recruitment process, giving everyone equal opportunities, so that no one loses a job where they can excel due to irrelevant reasons.
Doubly Tormented
“I am a sister in Christ and over the past few years, because of my greed for material possessions and glory, I now live in a life of debts. I feel a great deal of suffering and know that I am a sinner. Every day, I listen to radio programs which give me strength. I presently work at a restaurant owned by a Christian, but I cannot understand the way he operates the business and am unwilling to obey him. I feel uncomfortable every day and find him sometimes even worse than non-believers. I am unsure if I should leave or stay, as this is a Christian-owned restaurant after all. I am conflicted. The Bible teaches us to submit to those in authority, but I cannot accept the way my Christian boss operates the restaurant. What should I do?”
(A Sister)
- Loving Lord, please help “A Sister” have the strength to pay off her debts, repent of borrowing and work hard. Give her also the courage and patience to face her boss’s wrongdoings and find opportunities to express her views. Pray that the Lord grant her wisdom.
Dispute Over Rights and Interests
Why should we block the beautiful scenery of our great country? Recently, there have been incidents of “fenced-off views” on highways, where tourists can only enter the scenic area by buying tickets, leading to accusations of “land-grabbing for money.” Some scenic area workers have responded that this is for safety considerations to avoid traffic accidents, not to prevent tourists from “peeping” at the scenery. Some scenic areas have proposed the idea of “ticket economy,” explaining that they hope to increase the revenue and support the local people, thereby improving their living standards. After extensive reporting, some scenic areas have now dismantled the barriers, but the underlying issues of tourism rights and interests still need to be clarified.
(“China News”, July 5,2023)
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Father in Heaven, natural scenic areas are public resources that all people have the right to enjoy. Pray that there will be perfect solutions to balancing the needs of all parties, and no conflicts of interests will happen again during their development of tourism.
Gospel Broadcasting
- Radio Liangyou 74: Radio Liangyou has been serving for 74 years under grace. Thank God for letting us build different people’s lives on a solid foundation during all these years. We have also nurtured believers to establish a healthy spiritual life in face of various challenges they have encountered in their lives. May God continue to bless the people worldwide speaking Chinese through Radio Liangyou.
- Self-learning Platform: The brand-new online self-learning platform of Liangyou Theological Seminary (LTS) has finally launched. Students could participate in the Navigation Program through the mobile LTS app in the past. However, we have to ensure the app is compatible with different operating systems of mobile phones and update the app from time to time. We hope that the self-learning platform can offer an easy-to-use and convenient one-stop learning experience to the students.
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