If we long to see the Lord work wonders among the Dong people and establish his Church among them, how do we go about such a huge task? We would do well to look to examples in the past. One of the most successful movements of Christ among the minority peoples in China was undoubtedly among the Lisu people in the early 1900s.

J.O. Fraser served the Lord among the Lisu people of Yunnan Province and, in letters back home, wrote some incredible insights into how the work of God progresses among the unreached:

We have talked before about different ways to help Dong communities improve their standard of living. Several methods of doing this are already in action among the Dong people: building schools, providing textbooks, health education classes, flood disaster relief, and much more.

Probably the most devastating and prevalent problem for Dong communities is fire. It destroys entire villages, cultural monuments, keeps children from returning to school, and even worse. The DongTeam Journal has breeched the fire topic before, and this is only a continuation of the same thought.

At the top of every DongTeam.org page sits a pleasant photograph of a Dong drum tower from Dudong in Sanjiang County. That very drum tower is now ashes. More than 100 homes were lost in that fire, taking a beautiful example of Dong ingenuity with it, only four years after being built.

That emtpy spot in the middle of this photograph, in the middle of all the new houses...that is the former Dudong Drum Tower. Sure, drum towers are not more important than people's lives or homes, but this is just a very clear reminder of the prevalent problem of fires in Dong villages. The Chinese government is already quite active in several different fire prevention campaigns, and one in particular is a simple and effective way to try to keep these fires from spreading.

It is easy to keep talking about what is happening among the Dong people at this very moment, current and up-to-date prayer requests. That is great, of course, but we need to make sure and remember those prayer needs that are so consistent that we have long since forgotten to pray.

In one area, the Dong people have been hearing stories from the Bible very consistently over the past couple years or more. The Christians in this situation are able to proclaim the good news in a very natural and culturally appropriate way. Basically, the Dong are hearing the gospel in a way they can easily understand.

Some of these have become believers. Some are just interested. And more than likely, some are not interested at all. Let's pray for the Dong people hearing this message and for the Christians as they tell the greatest story on Earth.

This week is one of the biggest holiday and travel weeks of the year in China. And out in the Dong areas, tourism is definitely booming for these few days. There are some foreigners, but the clear bulk of travellers is from within China.

Why would we bother talking about national holidays in China? Some of the most tourist-visited areas of the "Dong world" also have Christians, and those Christians survive off the tourism industry. A lot of money will be changing hands, business will be booming, and the potential for money-related temptation will be stronger than normal.

Actually, we already mentioned these particular believers in the past, stealing business from others...intentionally keeping business for themselves and away from a Christian brother or sister. And we have also talked about how the influence of money, not only on the Dong people, but on all of us.

Dr. Lloyd-Jones once commented that more is accomplished in one hour of revival than in a lifetime of ministry. When the power of God comes, the kingdom expands and grows in ways unimaginable in human plans and hopes.

How wonderful it would be to see that happen among the Dong people. And we would not pray for such a thing just because it would be easy, that is, not obliging us to spend that lifetime of ministry. Rather, it is a shift of focus in how we minister till the revival does come.

Revival does not come because we put it on a schedule. Revival does not follow the lines of our Bible distribution points. Revival is not an act of man.

It is an act of God. It is the power of God at work. And if we want to see incredible works of God among the Dong people, there is only one to whom we can plead: the Bringer himself.

If so many Dong villages are completely wiped out from fires, floods, and other disasters, what are we as Christians supposed to do? This is not a commercial to plead for money, but a petition for prayer for an issue with no easy solution.

As Christians, we have a call to compassion. Jesus did not place requirements on the people he healed; he just healed. Peter and John gave what they could, though not money. The vast majority of us reading this, however, do have the money to do something. Money does not fix everything, but it will pay for blankets, rice, school fees, and help those living in makeshift shelters begin to build a home again.

Beyond money, what can we do? That is a very difficult question that could be answered in numerous different ways depending on the particular situation. We should be careful about Gospel presentation in such times, for the average Dong person would gladly profess a new faith in thanks for a new house, but certainly we should not work devoid of the name of Christ. There will be a time, especially if a relationship is built with those who receive aid.

Do we need programs to prepare for such times? Should we start funds to bring quick assistance? For those of us already involved in the work among the Dong through prayer, these are issues we need to lift up in prayer. Let's all spend some time in prayer for the hurting of so many Dong, the reoccuring circumstances, and the opportunity for Christians to clearly profess the one true God through action and deed.

The Dong know disaster. It is much more common than most think. The most common destroyer of Dong villages is fire. Floods, mudslides, hail, and the rare tornado sometimes strike, but most villages are full of government propoganda to warn against the main threat to most villages: fire.

How does this happen? In most villages, the houses are made of wood and are built close together as each house receive add-ons over the years. One small accident with the nightly mean, cooked over open fires inside the house, can wipe out a village in one fail swoop: house, livestock, working tools, and food supplies.

The government does what it can, often providing blankets and some rice, but with the number of fires in each county per year, the small office in charge of such distasters simply does not have the budget to care for tens of thousands of dollars worth of loss.

Foreign Christians often step in to help, and we all have a calling of compassion toward the less fortunate. What can Christians do? What are the proper motives? Are we to give money only, or does Christ want us to minister in different ways as well?

The Gospels are packed full of incidents of Jesus's healing miracles. He did not put requirements on those who were to be healed. He did not have an application form. He had hands that could heal and the extension of those healing hands restored many to health.

The Dong people are in much of the same position as the people who needed healing in Jesus's day. If they fall ill, they do not have the money to travel in to the hospital or to buy medication. They live with their ailments and hope for the best.

A program ailmed at linking up foreign medical professionals with Dong villages was established a couple years ago. These village medical clinics averaged hundreds of patients per day. These acts of love are an excellent match of foreign professionals who are willing to help others for no personal gain and a great physical need among the Dong people.

However, the provincial level of the Chinese government over the Dong areas is highly suspicious of foreigners. This suspicion drove the government to revoke the permission for the village clinics in late 2005. Let us pray for the officials in the government who have the authority over this project. Ask for an open view toward the well intentioned and very warmly welcomed (by those who receive medical help) foreign medical professionals.

In the past week or so, several medical professionals visited a few Dong district to provide free health clinics for the locals. The purpose of these clinics was to provide health care to those who could not otherwise afford or receive such care.

Most of the provincial officials are very enthusiastic, but a few (a few that are necessary to continue such projects) are very antagonistic. None of the officials wants to take responsibility if anything goes wrong, and as a result try to shut off all foreign involvement in these areas, including these completely beneficial clinics.

The clinics barely received permission this time, and we need to pray that the healing these medical professionals provided will soften the sensitivity against foreigners in these areas. Lets pray that the Dong and others in these areas can continue to recieve the health aide and that this project with continue to shine as an example of the love and care of God for these people.

Here is an excerpt from a 28 July article in the Shenzhen Daily:

For a note on the significance of such a loss, refer to the comments on architecture in the Society section of the DongTeam General Information page. This particular bridge had all the normal frescos of blessing, along with cross nationality focused scenes of local Miao festivals, and even a very modern reference to automatic guns in a war scene (obvious evidence that the bridge has already had some work done in those 121 years). Maybe the local folks will raise this bridge even further off the river basin than it aready was in the light of the tragic floods this year.