13. Unexpected Persecution

After the gold was returned, my mother went back to the House of God in Beijing. I had to stay until Uncle Chang came out of the jail. Then I could leave Hangzhou. Six months later, he was released and temporarily lived in the house of an old sister in Christ. I met him secretly so as to take down what God revealed to him during the affliction. When he was in jail, he prayed earnestly, and God revealed to him the ministry pattern on the mountain in more detail. He told us that he had to sit straight on a narrow long bench all day long in the jail to examine his 'crimes.' He then unceasingly prayed for the gospel to be preached all over the world, for the churches, and for the ministry on the mountain entrusted to him by the Lord. He prayed earnestly in silence. Many times when his back ached so much that he could no longer stand it, he would all of a sudden feel God's almighty hand supporting his back. He was also instructed by the Holy Spirit about three locations of the city of refuge overseas. (Six cities of refuge are as the desert of Arabia, a place for the workers to retreat quietly and be trained by the Lord. Forty-two towns for the Levites are served as the Antioch in the New Testament, the departing location for the workers who are sent out by the Holy Spirit to work for the Lord. Please refer to the appendix A for details.) As the Scriptures said in the book of Numbers 35:6-8:

"Six of the towns you give the Levites will be cities of refuge, to which a person who has killed someone may flee. In addition, give them 42 other towns. In all give the Levites 42 towns, together with their pasturing land. The towns you give the Levites from the land the Israelites posses are to be given in proportion to the inheritance of each tribe: Take many towns from a tribe that has many people, but few from one that has few."

This would divide the whole world into 42 regions according to population. In each region there should set up an Antioch which will be responsible to spread the gospel all over this region. Besides, there will be itinerant Antioch, which are not included in the 42 fixed locations of Antioch. It is to be grouped according to the needs of the time, and it is to be guided by the Holy Spirit so that those who are blessed to dedicate themselves can be trained for a short-term Bible study by the itinerant Antioch to preach to the local people. As a result, it can speed up the preaching of the gospel to reach greater effects. The more the Lord's servant prayed, the more he felt that God's heart was so zealous for the souls of the whole world, for the Lord's coming is near.

At that time, the Lord's servant asked me to draw a map of the world with the name and population of every country. I was to do this without any mistake. As soon as he asked, I refused to do it. How could I undertake such a troublesome and complicated task? Besides, I had never known how to draw. Brother Pan who graduated from college of Art was the only one who could do this. When I knelt down before the Lord, He let me realize that it was grace to ask me to draw this map, and it was a rare opportunity. I told the Lord: "I do not know how to draw!" "God will give you wisdom and talent!" the Holy Spirit instructed me. All of a sudden, I had faith. The Lord also provided an old sister, Aunt Chien, who loved the Lord. She cordially asked me to go to her house in the morning so that I could draw at her place and return to the chapel, where I lived, at dusk. (Since my mother had left for Beijing, the Lord guided me to return to the chapel to live with the family of Ms. Ge. It was so hot in summer, and there were too many people coming and going, that I could not work over there.)

How amazing the Lord's grace is! I had been a person who knew nothing of drawing; however, when I obeyed, the Lord truly gave me grace and wisdom so that I could draw one continent each day without a mistake. In five days I finished drawing, and I wrote down the names of the nations and their populations. However, it needed to be enlarged so that it would be clearer to see. Who could help me to do it? During lunch, Aunt Chien mentioned her youngest son whose drawing was the best at school, and he could quickly enlarge my map without distortion. What? A naughty boy, who was only 11 or 12 years old, who jumped up and down everyday, and who was mischievous enough to play pranks on his sister was able to help me to accomplish this task? After I prayed, I surrendered all to the Lord; and I gave it to the boy to be enlarged. It turned out that he did it so fast and so good that it was beyond what I could think or ask. I asked someone to pass it on to the Lord's servant. I heard that as soon as he got it in this hand, his heart was quickened by the Holy Spirit to write down specifically the names and demarcation of the regions of the 42 Levitical towns according to what was revealed to him in the prison. In order to demarcate the regions of Antioch, he decided that he would meet me next day at the house of a believer to calculate the population of the whole world. The devil attacked both of us that night vigorously even though we were at different places. Uncle Chang fought against the devil so fiercely in prayer that he had a fever and was sick. I dreamed that in the darkness the idol in the niche stretched out its hand to catch me. After I woke up I could still feel vividly the power of the darkness which made me absolutely terrified. Next morning I suddenly heard Ms. Ge yelling to me from downstairs: "Miss Xu, a comrade wants to see you!" A policeman who was in charge of the household registry rushed directly to my room from downstairs. He looked here and there to investigate. Then he asked me rudely: "Where do you hide your pistol? Someone reported that you secretly hide a pistol!" I answered: “I do not have a pistol." He questioned me for a while and asked me to submit a report of self-examination. Then he left. I was so frightened at this sudden frame-up that my heart melted, and I did not know what to do. Just at that time, I suddenly received a note passed on by someone sent by Uncle Chang that asked me to meet him at the house of a sister in Christ. After I arrived at that place, I told the Lord's servant about this unexpected disaster, and I heartily hoped that he could give me some help and comfort. He told me not to worry about it and pointed out that it was an attack from the evil one. He was also sick that day; yet he came. It was because we were undertaking an important job for the Lord -- the 42 houses for the workers are related to the salvation of the whole world and the whole plan of God. Therefore, the evil one made every effort to attack us to stop us from doing it. Uncle Chang asked me to sit down immediately and read the figures of the population regarding every nation. He used an abacus to calculate the figures. Then he followed the guidance of the Holy Spirit to demarcate the regions of Antioch according to the population in order to decide the locations and the names of Antioch. Though I was on tenterhooks, and my face was overcast with worry, I took notes and helped him to get organized. Finally, it was accomplished.

The false charge lodged against me was settled by leaving it unsettled after I submitted a report of "self-examination" according to the truth. This was the grace from the Lord to cover me from the danger of another political struggle. As I looked back, it was all His grace. The more hardships we have experienced, the more God's honor is amplified. This persecution enabled me to be a part in the Lord's sufferings. It kept the suffering Lord's company as well as the old servant who suffered for the Lord.