Urgent: NW China Earthquake
Christians in Jishishan Thankful to Be Alive
Jishishan County in China’s Gansu Province is a place where I have many memories, most of them good, despite the fact it is one of the most Gospel-deprived regions on earth. From 2004-2018 I criss-crossed the county’s curvy mountain roads countless times, by motorcycle, bus, car, boat (the Yellow River forms the northern boundary), and on foot (in 2016 we climbed the highest peak, 14k+ ft., on the western border).
Located in the foothills of the northeastern Tibetan Plateau, Jishishan roughly translates to “Rockpile Mountain”, referring to the steep, stony slopes that flow down and east off the rugged western ridges and peaks. Not the kind of place you’d want to experience an earthquake, especially with the relatively high population density combined with the subpar construction methods still common in rural China.
But on December 18, just one minute to midnight, that’s exactly what happened. Officially a 6.2 quake, videos show intense shaking, destroyed homes, and rockslides. When I saw the location of the epicenter, I immediately thought of one particular Christian family who live in a small village perched precariously on a hilltop just a few ridges to the north. We had a small team visit them just a month ago (for the first time since 2019), and they were doing ok, although the elderly wife has since passed away.
I didn’t have much hope of getting an update from them in the aftermath of the earthquake (a combination of poor technology and China’s Great Firewall), but I knew that they must have suffered severe damage and injuries (the relatively low death-toll gave me hope that they had survived). But I received word yesterday that one of our teammates had gotten through to them. The short message confirmed my predicitons:
My house is completely destroyed.
Three people injured.
Thank the Lord no one died.
This is obviously both good and bad news. The frustrating part is that there is almost no way we can help them practically, although we could potentially get funds to them at a later date. In the meantime, we can and should pray.
But our prayers shouldn’t just be for the earthquake recovery, but for the Gospel to penetrate this unreached region. Our Christian friends are not only homeless (I assume), but also lack a Christian community, a church of any kind, within hours of their home. Pray that they would be comforted by the Spirit, strengthened in Christ, and that God would be build His church in that region.
Here is a prayer profile for Jishishan County that I first wrote about five years ago. Please read it, pray, and pass it on:
Jishishan County
Pronounced: Jee-Shur-Shan (Translation: Rockpile Mountain)
Official name: Jishishan Bonan, Dongxiang and Salar Autonomous County
Population: 220,000+ / Area: 350 mi² (910 km²) / Elevation: 5500-14100 ft. (1600-4100 ms.)
Number of Christians: >10 (possibly less than 5)
This small, rural county is located just south of the Yellow River, nestled up against the northeastern flank of a large mountain range that forms the border between Gansu and Qinghai provinces. The western border of the county follows the top of the highest mountain ridges, where Qinghai Province begins. From there, the mountain ridges flow down in an easterly direction like the folds of a large skirt for 20-30 miles until they end in the Yellow River, or its tributary the Summer River. The people of Jishishan have lived directly on those flowing mountain ridges for millenia, utilizing countless terraces to farm every possible piece of land from about 8,000 ft (2500 ms) and below. The higher mountain ridges are used for grazing.
The population of Jishishan is about 50% Muslim (from the Bonan, Salar, Dongxiang, and Hui ethnic groups) and about 50% Han Chinese (mostly Daoist and Buddhist). The Muslims generally farm and graze their animals on the higher mountain ridges in the western half of the county, while the Han Chinese are found more in the lower foothills. However, in many areas they are mixed together so that neighboring villages often differ greatly in their ethnic makeup.
One of the staggering realities in this region is the fact that the Han Chinese are nearly as unreached as their Muslim neighbors. We only know of four or five professing Christians in the whole county (all Han Chinese). The handful of believers in Jishishan include an older man who lives in a small mountain-side village, one middle-aged lady who runs a clothing store in town, one middle-aged man, and one grandmother with a family that persecutes her for attempting to travel to church in a city hours away. There are zero churches in Jishishan. If these believers want to attend church, they must travel hours by bus to one of the larger cities in the province.
Although the need seems overwhelming, since 2013 tens of thousands of Bible portions and tracts have been secretly distributed door to door in every district of the county. This effort continues (albeit slowly) wiith the goal being to give as many people as possible the opportunity to read and know God's Word for the first time, especially the young people who are growing up knowing nothing but what they are taught in the Communist schools.
Here is a list of all the districts to pray for…
Chuimatan (吹麻滩镇; the county seat), Dahejia (大河家镇), Biezang (癿藏镇), Juji (居集镇), Liuji (刘集乡), Shiyuan (石源乡), Liugou (柳沟乡), Guanjiachuan (关家川乡), Hulinjia (胡林家乡), Anji (安集乡), Zhaizigou (寨子沟乡), Guogan (郭干乡), Xuhujia (徐扈家乡), Zhongjuling (中咀岭乡), Xiaoguan (小关乡), Puchuan (铺川乡), and Yinchuan (银川乡).
Prayer Points-
1) Pray for the believers to heal and rebuild from the 2023 earthquake, and for God to send more (Chinese) Christian laborers to minister in this oft-overlooked region
2) Pray for the few isolated believers who call Jishishan home, that they will be strengthened (and their numbers grow!)
3) Pray for the Gospel seeds that have been planted throughout Jishishan to bear fruit and for a harvest to come in God's perfect time
4) Pray for God to open doors in miraculous ways for the Church to be established in Jishishan for the first time