MINISTRY / New challenges and new opportunities: Expatriate outreach

New challenges and new opportunities: Expatriate outreach

"Our God is greater" has been 316NOW's byword, a continuing reminder that our power to proclaim grace across China has nothing to do with us and everything to do with God's mercy and strength.

This blog post and the four posts that are paired with it examine the ministry plans 316NOW has prayed over and committed to during its 2023-24 fiscal year.

The challenges are beyond our abilities. But not beyond our Father's ability. Not beyond the resources that he has already given us, you, and the rest of his family who partners with 316NOW to bring his grace to the people of China.

Plans for the 2023-24 fiscal year

Fifty million (50,000,000!) Chinese live outside of China. About 5,000,000 of them are Christians.

Huge opportunities

"If those 50 million Chinese were their own country, they would rank as the 30th largest nation on the planet," says Executive Director Jim Aderman. "Now imagine training as many of the 5 million Christian Chinese expats as we can teach in our online Bible institute to reach the remaining 45 million expatriates. Ex-pat Chinese live outside the reach of China's restrictions on Christianity. The government barriers to sharing God's grace with them are removed." 

Huge challenges

316NOW will launch its program to reach expatriate Chinese with the gospel before the end of 2023. We will start small, focusing on Chinese living on the West Coast of the United States. The strategy is to invite Christian ex-pats to attend our online Bible institute. They will learn to apply solid Lutheran theology to forming solid Lutheran house churches. Those house churches will become affiliated with Confessional Lutheran denominations. 

The administrator for 316NOW's ex-pat outreach says, "There is much work to be done before that can happen. We are blessed to have a professional marketer and website designer to work with us. Social media figures prominently in our marketing plan. An interactive website specially designed for a Chinese audience will invite students to our in-person classes. 

"Our need for active volunteers to maintain outreach to expatriate Chinese is essential.  In addition to a number of Anglo Americans, we will need to recruit Chinese expat volunteers to help with the website and to connect with people that contact us." 

Huge God and Father

"Entrepreneurship is a core value at 316NOW," says our Executive Director. "It's in 316NOW's DNA to push beyond what seems possible. Our confidence is that our God is greater – greater than any obstacles in China, greater than any financial or human resource obstacles. We move ahead trusting the God who has adopted us will prosper the ministry we offer him as worship." 

What you can do

Pray that 316NOW's expatriate outreach program becomes operational before late fall. Direct any Chinese Christians you know to our Bible institute).