Spread the love of Christ through action
[Ministry] 3 Asia Interview with Ms. Zhou Zhiyun, President of Chuanren Foundation
Interview/Zheng Qiongyu
Picture provided by Chuanren Foundation
In 2002, Ms. Zhou Zhiyun visited remote areas of Yunnan in mainland China and found that many children dropped out of school due to lack of tuition fees, including many Christian children. Some children couldn't help crying when they mentioned the reasons for missing school. Zhou Zhiyun was deeply touched and determined to do her best to help these children.
Back in North America, when she shared this need, a church in the Bay Area of Northern California was the first to respond and provide bursaries to 245 children in elementary and junior high schools. After the Chinese government promulgated the "two exemptions and one subsidy policy", a church in the eastern United States began to help poor high school and college students complete their studies. In order to provide long-term care and assistance to local needs, Zhou Zhiyun and her colleagues established the "Chuan Ren Foundation" (referred to as "Chuan Ren") in California in the same year. Over the past decade, the ministry has expanded to areas such as education, medical care, community development, and training.
Reflect on the definition of poverty
Before the reform and opening up, the number of extremely poor people in mainland China with an annual income of less than RMB 700 accounted for 250 million. Although the economy seems to have improved significantly in recent years, according to official data released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China in 2010, there are still 150 million people in China whose income is less than one dollar a day, accounting for more than 10% of the country's total population, and the gap between rich and poor is wide. Great disparity. Most poor people are concentrated in the resource-poor central and western regions.
When Chuanren was first established, Zhou Zhiyun often lamented the lack of resources in remote areas. But as her ministry progressed, she gradually gained a deeper understanding of "poverty."
Zhou Zhiyun said that "poverty" is very difficult to define. In addition to material poverty, it also includes moral poverty, spiritual poverty, etc., which involve differences in the values of different regions and residents. In some areas, materials are very scarce, but people are still content and grateful. In contrast, in modern countries, most people have enough food and clothing, but they are bound by endless material desires and constantly chase money. Wouldn't they fall into the predicament of spiritual poverty?
In order to improve the lives of people in poverty-stricken areas in mainland China, charities around the world and the Chinese government have poured in funds and donations, but they have been unable to eliminate the problem. How to effectively use resources to help poor areas get rid of poverty and become self-reliant without relying on foreign aid for a long time? Zhou Zhiyun often thinks about this issue.
▲There is a huge gap between the rich and the poor in mainland China, and people in many remote areas live very difficult lives.
It is better to teach someone how to fish than to accept someone as a fish.
Except for areas with extremely harsh natural conditions, Zhou Zhiyun discovered thatAs long as you dig carefully, you can actually find resources that can be used in many poor areas.Once when she visited a village, local officials repeatedly said that they were poor and needed help. After "Chuan Ren" learned more about it, he discovered that there are five kinds of bamboo produced locally. If the villagers can be guided to plan and process it properly, they can be made into bamboo handicrafts, daily necessities, building materials, etc., bringing income and job opportunities to the local area.
▲Visiting poor families of the Jinuo ethnic group in Xishuangbanna with colleagues from Canada.
▲With the help of "Chuan Ren", the beneficiary villagers worked together to build their homes instead of relying solely on external assistance.
An official once took Zhou Zhiyun to visit a school, hoping that "Chuan Ren" could help build toilets and canteens. But when she looked around, she saw that there were already three beautiful buildings on campus, each built with donations from different overseas charities. The school already has the resources for independent development, but is still accustomed to relying on external assistance.
Zhou Zhiyun said sincerely: "It is better to teach people how to fish than to give them a fish. Poverty alleviation can only meet temporary needs, teach and inspire people's potential, and support them to develop their own communities and achieve self-reliance, self-support, and self-sufficiency. Therefore, "Chuanren" takes "community development and whole-person health" as its concept. In addition to helping residents solve their immediate needs, it also invites them to work together for community development; not only to escape material poverty, but also to escape from those who cause poverty. living habits, values, etc.
Take the water cellar project currently underway as an example. In the past, in limestone areas with no groundwater, residents were accustomed to storing rainwater in simple open-air ponds as drinking water. Garbage, animal feces, etc. were often floating in the ponds, which was very harmful to human health. In order to solve the water problem of residents, "Chuanren" worked hand in hand with the local government to build water cellars for villagers.
The cost of the water cellar is jointly funded by Chuanren and the local government, but residents also need to contribute their own efforts to participate in the excavation and future cleaning and maintenance. Due to the huge scale of the project, neighbors must change the past concept of "sweeping the snow on their own" and help each other. As for the water cellars used for irrigation, farmers can use them to increase their income in the future. "Chuan Ren" plans to build them for farmers in the form of loans. After the farmers make profits from their harvests, they will repay the money in installments, allowing "Chuan Ren" to help more villagers.
With water cellars in place, if the residents' living habits remain the same, the water cellars may soon become dirty. Therefore, co-workers also actively teach villagers how to improve environmental sanitation. One beneficiary villager took the initiative to keep free-range animals in captivity to reduce diseases caused by animal feces; transformed pit toilets into environmentally friendly toilets; assisted neighbors to beautify the environment... etc., which impressed the colleagues of "Chuanren" Very pleased.
▲A couple sits next to the water cellar built for them by Chuanren. When the dry season comes, the family no longer has to worry about running out of water.
Fill the wounded heart with love
Compared with material poverty, the spiritual emptiness caused by being abandoned by relatives and friends is even more unbearable. Helping the despised people with leprosy (to avoid misunderstanding and discrimination, Taiwan now renames leprosy) to recover and feel that they are still valuable and worthy of love is the most important project of "Chuanren" medical ministry one.
▲Villagers worked together to dig a water cellar.
Hansen's disease is a disease caused by Hansen's bacterium destroying the patient's peripheral nerves. The patient's limbs will gradually become necrotic. Relatives and friends are often worried about being infected and are afraid of facing the patient's unusual appearance, leaving them to fend for themselves in the Han Seng Rehabilitation Village.
"Chuan Ren" colleagues have been assisting patients in treating and caring for their wounds in Han Sheng Village for a long time; making kitchen utensils from wood to reduce burns caused by loss of peripheral nerve sensation; making special insoles for patients to protect their feet; improving living equipment and Environmental sanitation...etc.
Many patients with Han disease were already desperate for life, but the care, acceptance and unrequited love of our colleagues at Chuanren enriched their empty hearts. There are often patients who hold on to the hands of co-workers and are so grateful that they burst into tears. Government officials were also touched and told Zhou Zhiyun that if she had not insisted on visiting the Hansheng Rehabilitation Village in person, they would never have had the courage to approach Hansei patients.
In addition, in view of the fact that good education can not only impart knowledge and skills, but also establish correct values and rebuild lives, in terms of education ministry, Chuanren not only distributes scholarships, but also promotes Montessori early childhood education, computer training, Summer English camp, academic tutoring, etc. Zhou Zhiyun said that she hopes that the children will not only acquire knowledge, but also enrich their lives and perspectives from the life testimonies and unconditional love of co-workers.
▲ Zhou Zhiyun (right in the picture) cares for the elderly who have deformed limbs, amputations, and have been forgotten by their relatives in Hansheng Rehabilitation Village.
Don’t compromise with corruption
"Chuanren" has been repeatedly asked for bribes by unscrupulous local officials, who threatened to obstruct the work if they did not cooperate. Zhou Zhiyun would rather put her local ministry on hold than compromise with corruption. A few years ago, a nearly completed house was brutally demolished, which made Zhou Zhiyun heartbroken.
▲Colleagues from "Chuan Ren" carefully examine patients with Han disease for ulcers.
At that time, "Chuan Ren" was asked by the Education Bureau of Xishuangbanna Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan Province and local cadres of the Jinuo ethnic group to build an activity center and stadium for them. "Chuan Ren" raised funds and assisted in the design, and local people participated in the construction. Zhou Zhiyun often cooked meals for the villagers at the construction site. When the project was nearly completed, a new local official asked for a bribe from "Chuan Ren". Zhou Zhiyun was unmoved. Unexpectedly, the official falsely accused Zhou Zhiyun of being an American spy specializing in cultural consciousness invasion. As a result, tens of thousands of dollars had been invested and the people's The buildings that were built brick by brick were demolished by the authorities.
Although Zhou Zhiyun was very heartbroken to see the efforts of the villagers and the trust of the donors go down the drain, she insisted that God’s workers must uphold integrity and not compromise with evil forces for the sake of convenience. Although the built building was demolished, God turned the setback into a blessing and led Zhou Zhiyun to get acquainted with a central agency through this incident and gain their recognition and support for the work of "Passing on Benevolence".
▲Study the Bible with patients suffering from tumors and those disabled from car accidents.
God provides what is needed in a timely manner
Since its establishment, God has always provided Chuanren with its financial and human needs in a timely manner, making Zhou Zhiyun and her co-workers deeply aware that as children of God, no matter what the external environment is, we will never be in need.
On March 2, 2009, a school under construction at the time was in urgent need of 500,000 yuan, but the savings of "Chuanren" were far from enough. Unexpectedly, two days later, Zhou Zhiyun received an email from an elder in Hong Kong, with the title: "500,000 school building funds to be collected." Zhou Zhiyun never mentioned the school building to the elder. However, a couple living in Macau wanted to donate 500,000 yuan to build a primary school in China, so they asked the elder to recommend an institution. The elder thought of "Chuanren" and sent an email. Ask Zhou Zhiyun if she has any plans to build a school. So, like a dream, the funds needed to build the school were all available in time.
Another time, after the accountant of Chuanren remitted the living expenses of his co-workers, he found that there was only US$230 left in the account. Zhou Zhiyun is not worried. She believes that God will be responsible for His work. The next day, the co-worker went to the post office to pick up the mail, and unexpectedly received donations of various sizes, totaling more than 13,000 US dollars.
In addition to money, God also gives talents. Although the ministry has expanded into several areas, the personnel of "Chuanren" are extremely streamlined. In addition to Zhou Zhiyun, the North American headquarters only has two full-time staff members and one part-time staff member. The development of the ministry relies on volunteers such as doctors, engineers, teachers, students, etc. to actively contribute their expertise.
▲In the English Character Summer Camp, children not only learn English through the interaction with volunteer teachers, but more importantly, shape their character.
▲"Chuanren" worked together with the Jinuo villagers in Yunnan to build the activity center brick by brick, but the internal facilities were completely demolished by officials who failed to obtain bribes.
Make good use of resources and imitate Christ
"It is more blessed to give than to receive."Money is a blessing from God, entrusted to us to manage and use it properly. In addition to tithing, Christians should also make good use of the other nine-tenths. As long as you don't waste money on unnecessary things, you will have the ability to help people and things in need in addition to tithing.
However, Zhou Zhiyun repeatedly reminded: Christians engaged in poverty alleviation work must be wise and cherish the resources given by God. In love, discern whether the donated money brings blessing or disaster to the local area; whether it encourages greed or helps real needs. If you adopt the mentality of "spreading money away" and do not care about the flow of donations and how they are used, you will not be fulfilling your stewardship responsibilities.
Although Chuanren was registered as a charity organization, Zhou Zhiyun said that evangelism and social care complement each other. When Jesus was on earth, he not only preached the gospel, but also healed all kinds of diseases and fed people. He is not only concerned about man's spiritual needs, He is also concerned about the needs of "the whole person." Social care should not be used as a means of evangelism, but when co-workers imitate Christ, invest money, time, and effort, and care for souls in need with selfless love, they are witnessing the gospel with their lives. Over the past decade or so, many beneficiaries and government officials have been touched by the lives of Zhou Zhiyun and his colleagues, and have taken the initiative to know Jesus, and even decided to believe in the Lord.
Colossians 1:28 says:“We preach Him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.”This verse is the motto of "Passing Benevolence" and the goal of promoting all work.
In addition to money, talents and time are also gifts given by God and need to be cherished and used properly. Zhou Zhiyun invites friends who are committed to the "Preaching Benevolence" ministry to join as volunteers to spread and witness the love of Christ. The website of Go and Love Foundation is: www.golovefoundation.org.
Excerpts from the response to the ministry of "Chuanren"
- ‧I understand the joy of receiving help and the huge impact this help has had on my life. Therefore, I must also try my best to let other people in need of help feel this joy, and think of doing more charitable deeds. I think this is also the expectation of each of our recipients from the "Chuanren" scholarship. ─Bursary recipient‧With the water cellar, we finally have water to use during the dry season...We didn't know about environmental sanitation before. President Zhou brought some tools and pictures. After we learned, we started to plant some flowers and plants in the village to beautify it. environment and improve toilet hygiene. ─Beneficiaries of water cellar project
‧I walked up to a middle-aged woman whose sole was ulcerated and pus-filled. I patted her back gently and touched her hand. She asked in surprise, "Aren't you afraid?" I told her, "I'm here." There is no fear in love." She immediately turned away and wiped her tears with her palmless wrist... She believed in the Lord that day. ─Volunteer at Han Sang Village
‧During the summer vacation, I worked with my 11-year-old son and 7-year-old daughter to serve at the Kunming English Character Summer Camp. My son and daughter became teachers for the first time. They completed the assigned teachings responsibly, and also participated in hand-making and demonstration of word games... We integrated the character of "gratitude" into the curriculum and used ourselves as examples as much as possible to remind students of the importance of gratitude. Source─God. ─Volunteer at English Character Summer Camp
受訪者小檔案 周芷芸於2002年底成立「傳仁基金會」，旨在展現基督的愛，以訓練及教導來激發當地人的潛能，扶持他們達到自立、自養、自足，建設全人健康的村莊，常受邀在各地作差傳年會或差傳專題講員，為傳仁基金會負責人。
記者小檔案 鄭瓊瑜，來自臺灣，與先生、兒子定居北加州，享受簡單、平凡的家居生活。平日喜愛閱讀、旅行、露營。