Give me a heart for China

Whenever I sing of you in a foreign land, I cannot help by cry

給我一顆中國心，一顆中國心，
每當我在寄居地歌唱，想到你就哭了，
中國啊，中國啊，我心所愛，願你不再哭泣，
中國啊，中國啊，若我忘記你，情願右手忘記技巧，
中國啊，中國啊，若不紀念你，情願舌頭貼於上膛。

This is a Chinese song that was composed by a Taiwanese pastor (according to Baidu). The lyrics of the song are roughly translated to:

Give me a heart for China, a heart for China

Whenever I sing of you in a foreign land, I cannot help by cry

Oh China, my love, do not cry anymore

Oh China, if I forget you, may my right hand forget its skill

Oh China, if I do not remember you, may my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth.

Apparently, the pastor was inspired by Psalm 137:4-6.

My first exposure to China was when I was in Secondary 2. I attended Chung Cheng High School (Main), which is a school that provides special programs for students to excel in their mother tongue, Mandarin.

That year, I went for a student exchange program to Chongqing Verakin High School. It was my first encounter with the Chinese people, and although I was only there for 12 days, I cried buckets when I had to go. I did not expect the students to be so warm, inclusive and pure. They welcomed us and I had so much fun. I wanted to go back.

The next year, I applied for the student exchange program to Shanghai. This time, it was for 6 weeks. We went to Fudan High School. The students were pretty different from the students in Chongqing. Although they were not as warm, my worldview was expanded in that bustling city. That year was 2009.

Since then, I have made multiple trips to China for various reasons, be it other exchange programs or for mission trips with individuals or non-profit organisations. One trip that is deeply etched in my memory is the visit to the Left Behind Children (LBC) in December 2013.

A family friend, Joseph Lim, was compelled by his faith as a Christian to move to Hong Kong and live there, so that he could advocate for and love the LBC in China.

The LBC are a generation growing up in China, whose parents have gone to work in distant factories and cities. Typically caring for their elderly caregivers, living in rural poverty, and often going years without seeing their parents, they are underserved by their government and charitable organizations.

Uncle Joseph wrote a book about his journey and you can contact him via Whatsapp at +65 8204 5055 or via email at josephlimkw@yahoo.com to purchase a copy if you wish.

My three siblings and I took a trip with Uncle Joseph then. We visited families in the rural mountains and spent most of the time on the road, since it was so difficult to reach these people.

This photo was taken when we went to the mountains of XiChe County, LongShan Municipality in the XiangXi area of Hunan Province. In Uncle Joseph’s book, I wrote a chapter detailing my experience. I reproduce part of it here:

I remember the children and the extent of the poverty that I had never seen before. The schools were bare, and in the freezing winter the walls were too thin to protect the children. There was no heater, no heating system. The children did not bathe but boiled water to wash their hair. The children from villages far away also lived in the schools and shivered under their blankets throughout the night. There were no mattresses; they slept on wood. Yet, they still had to go to school.

During a visit to a school, we met the children and prayed for them. Uncle Joseph shared with them a message on God’s unconditional love and encouraged the children to pursue their education. Uncle Joseph also told the children not to worry about finances should they ever wish to pursue their studies. At another village we went to, there was a girl whose eyesight was 900 degrees. Her family could not afford glasses. She was effectively blind. Uncle Joseph told her that he would buy glasses for her.

Then, we visited the families. Up to three-hour hikes through forests or rocky roads to reach one house, then another, then another. Each house contained aged grandparents and young children. The parents had all gone to the cities to work, and the children would only see them once a year during Chinese New Year. In their extreme poverty, their families had not been spared tragedy; disabilities due to disease or work accidents; sicknesses that could not be treated due to lack of money; sudden deaths; children carrying younger children on their backs to cook or get groceries; children trekking two hours through forests or roads all alone just to go to school.

Uncle Joseph’s ministry touched families, one at a time. With all the distance between them, one could only reach three families a day, at most. Yet, Uncle Joseph would tell every family not to worry about money, to contact him if they ever needed help.

Actually, I have visited the underprivileged in places like Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand before. However, for various reasons, my heart beats for the Chinese people.

After a trip like that to the LBC, it is inevitable to feel helpless. There is only so much that one can do, and I only knew to pray.

Imagine my pleasant surprise then, when I discovered that Next Gen Investors Endowment, my current job, actually also has a scholarship program to reach the underprivileged in China! It was totally unexpected and I was so happy that there are now opportunities to go back to help the Chinese people.

This video encapsulates the recent trip to Gansu Province where Shinya, Tiffany, Billy (member of the Z Club) and Kayla (Z Club scholar) journeyed to one high school in the mountains to share about investing. You can read more details about the trip here.

Next Gen offers a scholarship to students in the rural parts of China to fund their university education. But more than the money, these students have to join the Z Club to learn about investing. Kayla’s world was completely changed when she joined the club. From someone with no knowledge about investing, she now dreams to make investing her career.

We don’t just give the man fish - we teach him how. That is the power and beauty of the Z Club.

China is vast and needs abound. It is not easy to reach and meet the needs of different people groups, especially when hindered by geographical obstacles. Nevertheless, I am grateful that in my job, we get to impact not only university students who have the means to access the best education for themselves, but also university students who need a helping hand.

* This article is published with the permission of Uncle Joseph.