May Newsletter from Asia

GREETINGS FROM SOUTH KOREA! I am out of Southeast Asia for a few days to do what is known as a "border run."  I am required to reset my visa every 60 days by leaving the country.  Then I may return for another 60 days.  It's hard to believe that 60 days have passed already.   I always feel like Somebody's Watching Me... (You get extra points if you just sang that like the 80's hit song by Rockwell.) It's true, someone is always watching me.  No, I am not paranoid. In the top picture, that is not a light pole; it is a camera station. It is positioned at the entrance to an apartment complex, next to a guard shack.  The bottom photos are of the beautifully landscaped walkway inside of our apartment complex.  Razor wire tops the wall so that people are forced to only come in through the main entrance, where they can be monitored via cameras and through facial recognition. As with all complexes, everyone has to enter through the main entrance. There is one way in and one way out. China currently has 176 million surveillance cameras watching over their citizens.  That number is expected to grow to 626 million by 2020, in two years.  626 million cameras watching 1.3 billion people.  Confused with the math?  That equals one camera for every two people.  The cameras are everywhere imaginable...hanging from trees, businesses, building, light posts, traffic lights, guard shacks, bridges, police cars, and signposts. While walking down the street to the shops, I pass many of these camera poles.  In addition, the businesses have cameras focused on their front entrances.  So in the space of one block, I am monitored by nearly 50 cameras.  They know where I've come from, they track me to where I am headed, and they can identify everyone that I meet up with or talk to. A reporter for the BBC tested the system by trying to disappear and was tracked down in less than seven minutes. This video shows the experiment:  http://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-asia-china-42248056/in-your-face-china-s-all-seeing-state   Cameras are even used to dispense toilet paper in public bathrooms.  Seriously.  This is one of the articles about the toilet paper face scanning:        https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/03/21/china-uses-facial-recognition-software-to-crack-down-on-toilet-paper-theft/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.c17f72b75596   This is a bit weird and extreme.   There is much to debate on the evils and benefits of increased public surveillance.  For instance, I quite enjoy the safety that the cameras provide as I walk alone throughout the city.  I am not afraid of being attacked,  mugged or harassed.  On the other hand, this type of surveillance can very easily be misused.  It's a slippery slope.

THE MAIN STORY   The main story remains the same.  We are monitored constantly.  Locals are pressured, intimidated, and discouraged from practicing Christianity.  They face a backlash from the government officials and from their families.  In a shame-based culture, it is easy to control how people act.  In order to modify behavior, pressure is placed upon one's family due to the actions of another member of that family.  Public shaming is also used.  In some cities, photographs of people, with their ID numbers and address are posted throughout the city where everyone can see their 'crime". The crackdown on unregistered churches and religious activities is continuing. Underground churches are being limited to 12 people.  The law was just changed and we think this is the 'safe' number of people allowed in a room at a time.  The surveillance makes it easier to pursue and hinder believers from assembling together.   Registered churches are facing difficulties as the government pressures landlords not to rent to them.  Even though Christianity is allowed here, it sure seems as though it has a lot of obstacles to overcome in order to exist.     PRAYER REQUESTS Please continue to pray for the local believers.  Specifically, the needs of the local believers are that they need to have protection from the authorities and they need to be able to secure locations where they can gather and worship. Changes in the visa laws have also affected the foreign workers.  Pray that the foreign workers will have their visas renewed so they can continue to help the local believers raise up local leaders to reach the local people.     Although they are better, my knees are still a source of frustration.  Please continue to pray for more healing and less pain. 30 years ago Betty Sullins started Mission Nannys, which is the organization that I represent.  She retired earlier this year at age 91.  In the middle of May, Miss Betty fell and broke her hip.  Please lift her up in prayer--specifically for her rehabilitation, for healing, and for a quick recovery.   FRUITS OF THE MONTH This is a langan and a mangosteen.  The langan is related to the lychee.  It looks like a thorny pod.   When the shell is peeled back, a white, juicy flesh is exposed.  It is very sweet, sticky, and juicy.  There is a purple seed in the middle of the fruit that is inedible.  The mangosteen has a hard shell around it.  Once you cut through it with a knife, the fruit easily comes out of the shell.  The fruit is shaped like an almond and is sweet and mild, similar in taste to the langan.  I am still amazed that I cannot identify around 50% of the fruits and vegetables that I see in the markets.  I've established a relationship with the fruit vendor and the noodle lady who work side by side in front of our complex.  The fruit vendor allows me to taste the fruit before I buy it.  She always smiles when I ask, "What is this?"  The noodle lady (after giggling) corrects my pronunciation and helps me get it right.  When I buy noodles for lunch (a steal at 83 cents), the noodle lady makes me pronounce each of the ingredients as she assembles them.  I am grateful that she takes the time to help me learn the language.  In fact, everyone that I have encountered has been very friendly, helpful, and welcoming.    No embarrassing moments this month!! Check back next month.