Xi’an, China: a Day in the Life

August: an open month

China is a closed country, meaning there are extensive religious regulations. For example, churches must be registered with the government (and thus controlled) and any lack of compliance to the official atheist Chinese Communist Party leads to arrest. As faith-based organizations are perceived as threats to the Communist Party, distributing religious material or evangelizing in public are prohibited. But, there are still underground churches that continue to grow amid persecution.

Underground house churches exist parallel to state-sanctioned Christian churches; though both face persecution like harassment and detention of Christian believers, blocking entry sites to worship, interrupting gatherings, dismantling crosses, demolishing churches, and disbanding congregations (Council on Foreign Relations, cgr.org).

So, the scarcity of legal work, the heightened tensions between the US and China, and guidance from the Lord left us without a missionary host this month. Instead, we are relying solely on His provision, protection, and guidance in how we can be His hands and feet in a persecuted country.

Here’s what a typical day spreading Love in a closed country looks like:

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06:30 – girls run

Tamara, Laura, Bella and Denise frequently run in the mornings. The air is cooler, the streets are less crowded, and they intercede over the people and streets of Xi’an. They are lihai – Chinese for ‘strong women’.

07:30 – dance class in the park

Meanwhile, Hannah and I go to dance class in the park. We wake up at 07:15, make poor man’s coffee (Nescafe instant), grab our fans, and head out. Here’s how we got there:

Upon arriving to our hostel, the staff gave us a map with some recommendations; one of which being a local park that hosts dance classes every morning at 07:30. The first morning, all six of us went. We were welcomed with open arms, big smiles and gracious hands giving us fans to learn the new dance. After watching us master some coordination, they asked us to show them ‘American’ dance… as they were standing in a circle, clapping to the sound of their most upbeat traditional Chinese music, gesturing for us to perform. Under wildly uncomfortable pressure and sweet nudging from Holy Spirit, I danced and prayed that as they saw us, they saw the light of Jesus. With every move I made, I prayed for movement in their hearts.

Hannah and I continued to attend the dance classes throughout our two weeks there, building relationships with few words, standing firmly on the truth that love & dance transcend language barriers. I am so overcome with gratitude that the Lord used my passions and interests to lead us toward cultivating community here.

08:30 – meet with jenny

Our first day at the park’s dance class was quite the scene – clapping, big dance circles, and lots of laughter. We still don’t know much Chinese at all, so we had a hard time understanding our new friends. A stranger (now neighbor), Jenny, came to help translate for us and ended up hanging out with us every day moving forward. Jenny runs in the park in the morning to prepare for her physical fitness tests going into high school, and we meet after dance class to talk and hang out with each other.

10:00 – meet with emma for English lessons

We took an overnight train (from Shanghai, totaling 16 hours) and arrived in Xi’an absolutely ravenous. I asked the hostel staff for a food rec & they pointed us across the street. We befriended the family who owned the little food stand and their sweet daughter, Emma. We came back again and again – the food was so delicious and we loved cultivating a consistent relationship with these hostel neighbors. Soon enough, Denise and I started teaching Emma English. She was much more advanced than we were anticipating, so we started teaching more complex words – righteous, generous, and racism. Sure, we still taught her concepts like present participles and transitive verbs (LOL), but we tried to instill in her, more than anything, that she is inherently beautiful and she is worthy, a concept we found most Chinese girls struggle with.

12:00 – a mid-afternoon dream

With emphasis on open month, our afternoon time varies widely: quiet time with the Lord, exploring a new part of town, reading through Acts (me, currently), editing and uploading photos, reading the multiple books I’m halfway through (7, Becoming, and Who Am I?), getting to know our hostel staff better, practicing my uke, getting bubble tea (our favorite) or trying to write blogs. We also use this time to coordinate our plans for the week such as…

a street concert with our local friend, David

a Beauty for Ashes event (the World Race’s women’s ministry) with our sweet coordinator, Laura

planning a hike with our Uzbeki friend, Bobby

taking a dumpling class in our hostel

walking around the Muslim Quarter

trying new foods like squid on a stick with our Hong Kong friend, Patrick

taking buses to go see our new friends

then making handshakes with them

The possibilities are almost endless.

16:30 team time & feedback

Every day, we have intentional time to hang out as a whole team, Daughters. We switch off who facilitates, and we’ve had everything from goal setting, extreme Uno, prayer walks, charades, and worship. Because we’re staying in the hostel, friends join in frequently, and I pray that as they see us love each other well, they see the Father’s love (John 13:35).

Then, we have feedback – calling each other higher and encouraging a refinement that only comes from iron shaping iron (Proverbs 27:17). As we call out the Godliness that we see in each other, we become more and more like Christ, and more like who He created us to be (2 Corinthians 3:18).

18:00 – dinner

OKAY, yum. I love Chinese food and will never get sick of it. Some highlights include fried eggplant, hot pot, bouza (steamed buns), chow mein noodles, wonton soup, and dumplings. Talk dirty to me.

19:00 – jenny comes over to hang out

Our friend Jenny (from dance class in the park) lives around the block, so she comes over most nights to hang out with Hannah and I. Her grandpa often sends her with sweet treats to share & bless us – blueberries, grapes, or a pea dessert.

One day, Jenny helped Hannah and I find flowy traditional fans to dance with, and we finally found some in a Buddhist market. There were fortune tellers lining the stalls, and we asked Jenny if she believed in fortune telling. She said no, and we agreed, saying that the Lord alone has a plan for us and guides our steps (Proverbs 16:9 & Jeremiah 29:11). From there, the doors were opened to a conversation about faith and hope. Most people in China solely have faith in themselves, and, as for all humans, that eventually fails; these people are searching for something bigger and greater than themselves to put their faith in. Jenny expressed that she wanted to learn more about our faith and asked about the Bible. We brought a Chinese Bible with us and gifted it to her so she can continue to explore her curiosity, and we are holding her tightly in prayer and intercession.

Jenny started coming over every night, asking us about Jesus Christ Superstar (her only context thus far), the accused woman who was sentenced to get stoned, or Peter walking on water. Hannah fearlessly stepped into the role of teacher, and I filled the role of interceding during teaching, eliciting lots of laughs, and telling personal stories. Jenny prayed for the first time and felt peace come over her being. To be able to plant a seed in her heart has been the greatest blessing, to see a new sister in Christ as the Heavens are roaring in celebration has only strengthened my own faith for the lost and unreached.

21:00 – pillow talk!

Kidding, we have two extra beds in our room, so we’ve had friends come in and out during our two weeks in Xi’an. Sometimes we have dance parties in the room, a sing-along with my uke, story time with our new roomies, walk around the city at night, or we plan out the next day. Either way, we end the day celebrating the endless love of our Father who has been blessing us abundantly and preparing our hearts for what is to come. 

Well, peace out, Xi’an! We are off to Xining for a couple days, then to Tibet, one of the most unreached places in the world. 

Join me in prayer: Lord, thank you for Your provision, protection, and peace. Thank you for Your presence here, we see You so clearly, and pray that we stay obedient to You and Your calling on our lives. Open doors that only You can open, give us eyes to see what You see, ears to hear what You hear, and let our hearts break for what breaks Yours. Let us stand in the gap for our brothers and sisters here in China. Amen.