Serving in evangelism and church planting in Hong Kong.
High over Hong Kong harbor stands new 40-story buildings covered with bamboo scaffolding. This can be done because even though bamboo is only a grass, it has learned to network. A stick of bamboo is made up of individual sticks all tied together and when several bamboo sticks are tied together, they can stand 40 stories tall. Steel canêt do that. In Hong Kong, Rich and Sally Johnson are learning to act as bamboo and network together with other groups to accomplish more for the Lord.
With a local ministry called Mission to New Arrivals, the Johnsons have been working to reach new mainland immigrants and South Asians. Sally has been teaching in a local school where about half the students are new immigrants or cross the border everyday to study. On average the Johnsons have seen one third of them accept the Lord. In connection with a local Nepalese pastor, Rich has been tutoring and training young people to be tutors in math and English as a means of outreach to the South Asian Community.
In connection with the local church association, the Johnsons have seen a new church plant grow in two years from a core of five families to 80 folks meeting every week. The Johnsons also do discipleship, counseling, mentoring, member care, etc.
Partnering with all the church associations in of East Asia, the Johnsons have been supportive in training and helping to send out Hong Kong young people as missionaries. A basic core of 30 young people is committed to being trained as missionaries. So far five have done short-term missions lasting from one month to nine months.
