Greetings to the churches in Puli

March 24, 2001 Taichung Taiwan

Greetings to the churches in Puli. My name is Martyn Hartley of SEND International. I am a missionary with SEND and have beengiven a job of evangelizing the Chinese in Siberia and Far East Russia. I had hoped to visit you in Puli while in Taiwan this week but can’t change my flight schedule so this letter will have to do instead.

The word Missionary doesn’t appear in the bible, yet we all, as born again Christians, have the same “Mission”.Our mission from God is to “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit ”.Jesus has given the job to us all when He spoke in Matt 28 18-20 and gave us the Great Commission. . That is God’s only plan to evangelize the world. You and me and the Holy Spirit!

Missionaries are not special people. They are just ordinary everyday people. God uses us as He finds us. God used Gideon, a coward, to defeat the huge Midian army; and so God uses people like you and me for His purposes. God uses people, just as He finds them, who are committed and submitted to Him and His work. Little is much in the hands of the Lord! If God can use Gideon and me then He can use you, if you will let Him!

I understand that there is a great desire in the Puli area to reach out into your own community and into the far corners of the world with the gospel. My wife and I had been married only 2 years when she became a Christian. I came home and the man who had lead her to Christ was still there. That same evening he showed me passages in the bible. Romans 10:9 changed my life as I too knelt and prayed for forgiveness.

That man came to my house and introduced me to Christ. I determined right then that I had to tell others; it was my duty.

I amnot a Bible School student, nor a scholar. I was in business for 27 years until I knew that I wanted to serve my Lord as a career missionary. Ecclesiastes 1:2 “Meaningless, meaningless” spoke to me when I realized that all was meaningless without Christ; making money had no meaning, but people needed to know the truth about God and His salvation. My first steps were to tell people in my home town about God, then I took members of my church on a short term missions trip to the Caribbean. After several similar trips my pastor suggested I do this full time.

Do you care about those who have not heard about Christ’s sacrifice for them? Millions still need to hear that God is love. In Russia a few months ago I spoke to a Chinese woman whose husband was selling goods in the nearby market. When we explained about God and His love she said, “How come nobody has told me this before?” A Chinese in another town when told “God loves you!” said, “Is there a God? How do you know?” He’d been looking for the truth, had a bible but had nobody to explain it to him. The next day he repented and became our brother in Christ.

All across Far East Russia and Siberia there are Chinese merchants who come and sell goods on a 3 months visa. In Russia we can openly preach the gospel, which we cannot do in China or many Western countries any more! We take tracts into the market and share the Good News of salvation. Many people are hungry for this news and we invite them to see evangelical videos. God asks in Is 6:8 “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?”

Chinese in Russia are openly seeking the Lord; God is at work there and has started several small churches; they need teaching and leaders; there are still towns and cities that have a Chinese population that have not been evangelized! Is God calling you to go with us for 2 weeks to tell andto teach all the things that Jesus commanded us to do? This experience will change your life and God will show you if “Missions” is a ministry for you. Thank you and God bless you as you seek to serve Him.