Loyal Servants of the Kingdom of God
Pastor Huang Jirong’s Gratitude and Emeritus Testimony
Interview/Tian Lifen
▲Pastor Huang Jirong is approachable, full of energy, and full of vision for the Kingdom of God, and he constantly spreads the light and heat of Christ to the people around him.
On November 20, 2010, the weekend before Thanksgiving, Xu Zhongyi, the current pastor of Xiaoshidun West China Church, and hundreds of members enthusiastically held a ceremony for the 71-year-old church founder Pastor Huang Jirong. A grateful retirement witness meeting with laughter, tears and poetry.
Everyone enthusiastically witnessed how over the past forty-five years, this pastor, who was not afraid of hardship, was approachable, full of energy, and full of vision for the kingdom of God, continued to spread the light and heat of Christ to the people around him, fed his disciples with the Bible, and used life to Impact lives. On the same day, Mrs. Huang Cao Jielian, who had yet to recover from a surgery on her hand, also attended. Amid the warm applause of the crowd, Zhang Yuan, chairman of the Board of Elders, presented a crystal trophy engraved with "Loyal Servant of the Kingdom of God" to Pastor Huang.
▲On November 20, 2010, hundreds of members enthusiastically held a thanksgiving emeritus testimonial with laughter, tears and poetry for the 71-year-old church founder Pastor Huang Jirong.
Model of faithful service
In 1993, young Pastor Xu Zhongyi had just graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary. The second week he went to work at the church, Pastor Huang told him: "Don't dress too well tomorrow, because we have to change the carpet." Pastor Xu thought he was changing the church's carpet, but he didn't expect that he was going to help an elder with a new one. Replacing carpets on old transit cars.
Pastor Xu, who had never changed a car carpet in his life, learned his first practical pastoral lesson from Pastor Huang. After that, I gradually learned more skills that were not taught in the seminary, such as catching and exterminating rats in the rented church kitchen. These scenes of rolling up their sleeves and using sweat and hands to solve problems for the church are exactly the portrayal of the seniors who set an example and served the Lord faithfully throughout their lives.
Xu Zhongyi, who was surprised to be recommended as the next senior pastor ten years ago, could not hide his excitement and even choked up when recalling this experience. "I was in charge of the youth and English departments at the time, and I felt that I was too busy. Huang However, the pastor often created opportunities for me and the brothers and sisters in the Chinese church to go out to receive different ministry equipment such as the three blessings and small groups, which gave me a lot of room for learning. Pastor Huang often mentioned the importance of "alternating ministries and supporting those who are behind." I didn’t understand it at the time. He emphasized that service is not a job, not an obligation, and not a piece of territory.”
▲Amidst the warm applause of the crowd, Chairman of the Board of Governors Zhang Yuan presented a crystal trophy engraved with "Loyal Servant of the Kingdom of God" to Pastor Huang.
Famous Sunday School Lecturer in Hong Kong
Pastor Huang was invited from Hong Kong in 1982 to serve as the pastor of Xiaoshiton Chinese Church near the medical center. Previously, he served full-time at the Hong Kong Evangelical Bearers Association for fifteen years. Chen Lianxiang, the director-general of the American Evangelical Evangelical Association, remembers that period of history very well: "In the 1970s, Pastor Huang was already a well-known speaker in Hong Kong. He was called Mr. Sunday School because he set off the Sunday school trend in Hong Kong."
Chen Lianxiang, who was in high school at the time, was once seen by Pastor Huang Jirong on the street, so he sent her to various churches to distribute Sunday school opening flyers. "Pastor Huang organizes a Sunday school seminar for thousands of people every year. There were not many co-workers at that time. Looking back now, how could he complete such an important task? In fact, he has a driving force and infectious power that attracts people. Naturally, I am willing to serve the Lord with him.”
Chen Lianxiang pointed out that in the past eight years, every time Pastor Huang came back from short-term missions in China, he could not wait to go to the church the next day to share the joy of his training. She said: "Pastor Huang has responded to the vision and mission God has placed before him for decades and vigorously promoted biblical education in domestic churches. His burden and vitality have not diminished." She hopes that at this thanksgiving testimony meeting, "God can raise up more fire seeds like Pastor Huang to bring greater blessings to the country."
Friend who loves the Lord intimately
The first time he preached at Xiaoshiton Chinese Church, he immediately attracted the attention of Brother Fang Linhao because "this Chinese pastor can actually speak Cantonese...". Fang Linhao, now an elder of the Blessed China Church, recalled the first time he met his fellow countrymen, which aroused laughter in the audience. It turns out that Pastor Huang speaks Mandarin with a Cantonese accent, which is his unique trademark. Over the years, he has even laughed at himself. Whether he speaks Cantonese or Mandarin, others sound "the same".
▲Photo taken after training co-workers in Wuhan.
Workers who opened up wasteland and planted churches
At the end of 1980, Yang Haofeng and about fifty other families followed Pastor Huang Jirong to plant a church in the Western District. Later, Yang Haofeng was not only ordained as a pastor, serving the Western District, but also assisted Katy in successfully completing the important task of church planting from 2006 to 2009.
Pastor Yang praised Pastor Huang Jirong for his comprehensive vision for church planting work. When the Western District was sent out from Xiaoshiton Chinese Church, Pastor Huang encouraged every brother and sister who came out to have a burden of service. Therefore, once the new church is established, it will be an all-round church with Chinese and English ministries, as well as children and youth ministries. The brothers and sisters were inspired by Pastor Huang and devoted themselves wholeheartedly, and the church grew rapidly and steadily.
"Pastor Huang said at that time that the church does not need to be big. When the number of people reaches 500, it should go out to plant churches and preach the gospel." Pastor Yang Haofeng was deeply impressed by Pastor Huang's church planting burden. "Pastor Huang proposed a model very early on: one church, different gathering points. At that time, he had several places in mind for future church planting, such as Kaidi and The Woodlands, etc."
▲Pastor Huang (right) with Yang Haofeng (left) and two old sisters at the entrance of Shanghai Huai En Church.
Chinese trained instructors
Pastor Huang has always cherished missionary work in China. As early as 1993, he led brothers Wu Yiming and Tao Hailin to China to conduct the first Bible training.
At that time, living conditions in the country were poor and it was difficult to take a shower or use the toilet. One time, Wu Yiming stepped on two boards placed on the latrine to take a bath, and accidentally slipped the shower gel that the owner had specially reserved for them for use into the latrine. After he came out, he asked in frustration what he should do to Pastor Huang who had not yet taken a shower. Wu Yiming recalled: "Pastor Huang immediately rolled up his sleeves and went to get it without saying anything. When I saw how embarrassing it was, of course I went by myself. From this point, it reflects Pastor Huang's pastoral heart."
Elder Wu kept in mind Pastor Huang’s advice to missionaries to be able to endure hardships and stand hard work: “A preacher must be able to eat, sleep and preach at any time.” He observed that Pastor Huang did what he said. As soon as he lay down every night, the snoring of Pastor Huang and other co-workers would intertwine into a magnificent symphony. After staying up all night many times, he naturally joined this wonderful lineup.
Pioneers who care about the overseas Chinese community
Fulfilling the Great Commission is Pastor Huang’s unswerving goal. Li Yaoqun, who is currently doing business in Fujian, came back to attend Pastor Huang’s gratitude and emeritus testimony. He detailed how God brought the newly established West District Church into the Chinese community and successfully held " "Heart Journey Sermon Series", the "Father's Day Carnival" that has received rave reviews for ten years, and the birth of "Light Salt Society" in the future.
Li Yaoqun said that Pastor Huang often said: "If you have a good gift to give to someone, it is better to send it to someone's home than to ask someone to come and pick it up." He also said: "To preach the gospel to unbelievers is to preach it in the world, not in the church. "Zhongchuan." Therefore, Pastor Huang added a social care department to the church's organizational structure, and also encouraged business Christians to form a Leye Fellowship to spread the gospel to non-believers.
▲Aunt Li Shan (middle) thanked Pastor Huang for his long-term care for the elders. On both sides were Tao Zhaozhuju (right) and Duan Hongshu.
A pastor who loves his people deeply
Pastor Huang is not only a gospel warrior with a vision for the Kingdom of God, but also a good shepherd who is delicate and sincere, always caring for the needs of others. Elder Li Wen, who moved to California, specially sent a video of his testimony of gratitude to Pastor Huang. In the video, he said that he followed Pastor Huang to visit the church members who lived in Xiaoshidun West District every Tuesday, and it took him half a year to complete the visit.
"Pastor Huang and his wife have dedicated their lives to God. He is my good shepherd, good friend, and good brother. May God bless you forever," Li Wen said.
Aunt Li Shan from the West District Church also expressed to Pastor Huang the gratitude and love of all the elders for him. Aunt Li remembers that one year Houston encountered a rare severe cold wave, and she thought that the evening prayer meeting must be cancelled. Unexpectedly, at seven o'clock sharp, Pastor Huang and Uncle Li Lijian showed up at her apartment for the elderly in Sharps Hall on time.
"Although it was windy and rainy outside the window that night, more than a dozen of us elders prayed together with Pastor Huang, which was particularly warm."
Pastor Huang weeps with those who weep and laughs with those who laugh. During the testimony meeting, brothers Zhou Zhengping and He Rongtai cried and thanked Pastor Huang for immediately rushing to accompany them when their loved ones died and they were in the most painful and helpless moments, bringing them comfort from God. Pastor Huang and his wife not only took good care of them through the trough of life, but also happily played the role of officiating on the happy day when God gave them their second life partner, making it unforgettable for them.
Missionaries who love China
After Pastor Huang Jirong resigned as the senior pastor of the West District Church in 2001, he immediately became a missionary of the American Evangelical Association. At the age of sixty, he is still working non-stop to train numerous Bible Sunday school teachers in remote mountainous villages in China. In the past eight years, Pastor Huang has visited almost all thirty-six provinces in China. His young students all respectfully call him "Uncle Rong." In the eyes of the students, this old preacher who gave up the comfortable life in the United States and went to the mainland to teach Sunday school ministry in the cold winter and summer without any regrets was just like their father, "affable, humorous, cute, serious, and knowledgeable."
Brother Yang, a member of a house church in China, was deeply impressed by Pastor Huang's fearlessness in completing training in two places in Northeast China during the SARS epidemic. He wrote in a letter, "The missionary's spirit of disregarding death was reflected in him, which moved me very much, and also made my conscience deeply guilty. As a missionary in China, my love for China, Far inferior to him."
Although the brothers and sisters in China were unable to attend Pastor Huang's retirement ceremony, a video of collective thanksgiving testimony was also produced and played on the big screen. The brothers and sisters thanked God for bringing “Uncle Rong” to China to provide them with solid Bible teaching, and sincerely wished Uncle Rong good health and full of God’s anointing.
▲At the dinner, Pastor Huang Jirong and Mrs. Huang Cao Jielian happily celebrated their birthday together.
May I be as strong as Moses and Caleb
The short two-hour Thanksgiving Emeritus Testimonial Meeting was not enough space for everyone to express their heartfelt gratitude to Pastor Huang Jirong. Under the arrangement of the host Meng Kan, Elder He Rongtai summarized everyone's sincere blessings for this old servant of God: "Although Pastor Huang officially retired from China ministry this year, I believe this is just a change in the workplace and nature of his service. That’s it. God has called Pastor Huang to shepherd God’s lambs, and he will be as loyal as Moses and Caleb; because there is no retirement in serving God and people.”
Give thanks to God
The highlights of Pastor Huang Jirong’s forty-five years as a servant of God have been recorded in the book of Heavenly Father. This party was just a glimpse that everyone was lucky enough to have. Pastor Shi Kejian led everyone in the closing prayer. Walking out of the auditorium, everyone's heart was filled with warmth. "God! Thank You for bringing Pastor Huang and his family among all of us. God! Thank You for letting us see how great Your own deeds are."
Journalist profile
Tian Lifen, from Taiwan, now lives in Houston, Texas, USA. He once served as a radio program producer, news reporter, insurance agent, and liaison person for the Southern American Heartfelt Literary Fellowship. I like reading, movies and dramas, traveling, singing and dancing, and tolerate the old and the new. In the past five years, I have benefited from the spiritual nourishment of various writing camps of the Kingdom of God. I found that the pen that had been abandoned for many years and dried up was picked up again by God, added with ink, and placed on the desk for me to use.