An Unforgettable Conference!!

from To a Different Drum

This is a story about a missionary lady to Asia who had just started working with the young people in a certain church, this story takes place in Taiwan.

....The young people's ministry was a rather new venture headed up by a lovely Chinese lady. As she and I began to plan and work together, we got the idea of holding a young people's conference. Sure that it was the right thing to do after we had prayed much about it, we began to make plans and to advertise our intentions. Instantly we met opposition. Some older people in the church could see no value in such a conference, suspecting out idea was to get the young people together in some sort of matrimonial scheme! One old gentleman in particular opposed us so strongly that he stopped attending services when we would not give in to his opinion. All we could do was pray for him as we went ahead with preparations, feeling sure the the Lord did want us to hold the conference.

Before long everything was in readiness, or so we thought! We had speakers, the meeting place, and transportation promised for our final outing to Sun Moon Lake. But suddenly, just a few days before the conference was to open, we got the bad news that out main speaker couldn't come. Shaken by this setback, we were cast on the Lord more than ever, and even began to have qualms about going ahead. But as we prayed for God's clear direction, He moved us to believe that it was because He had rich blessing in store for us that we were getting such opposition. The devil wanted to stop these meetings. Now we made a firm decision that the conference would go ahead as planned, even if we had to take all of the meetings ourselves. But our problems were still there, and now we ran into difficulties about the location. It was just one thing after another!

A solution to our speaker problem came when we unexpectedly heard about two Americans wanting to hold meetings; they had just arrived in Taiwan after speaking in Japan. Though knowing next to nothing about them, the committee took a chance and invited them to come. When they accepted immediately, we felt they must indeed be God's choice. Perhaps we were too hasty.

The conference started on schedule, and opposition was apparent at once. The congregation just did not respond to the messages. The speakers, knowing no Chinese, had to be interpreted and, worse still, used illustrations that were not all relevant to life in Taiwan! We felt sick; though some of us were always in the prayer room during the meetings asking the Lord to break down barriers and send His blessing on us, nothing happened. No blessing came. Instead we heard more and more grumbling. “We told you so. God doesn't want this kind of thing.' Oh, it was a rugged time! And, unfortunately, I had to admit to myself that apart from the Bible studies and discussion groups there didn't seem to be very much worthwhile taking place.

The last day of conference came, the day we had planned our outing to sun Moon Lake. This famous holiday resort up in the mountains was a four-hour bus ride away, and we needed to leave at six in the morning. Up there we would have a boat trip across the lake to visit an aboriginal village, and then finish off by playing games before returning for the testimony meeting in Taichung that night. Needless to say, this trip would be the highlight of the conference for most of the young people! We had especially included it as a reward for those attending the entire conference, to keep out those who just wanted the nice outing. Even the plans for this activity had been full of problems. Our transportation arrangements had fallen through, and the pastor was just about to announce that the trip was called off when, in answer to our very earnest prayers, someone had come offering three army trucks for the trip!

A happier, jollier group of young people could scarcely have been found than finally started out that morning. The weather was perfect. Somehow, however, we who were leaders and speakers were peculiarly burdened in spirit, feeling a heaviness like a dark cloud hanging over us. But we had had a special time of prayer before leaving, committing the whole party to the lord's keeping, and now we were off.

As we bounced along in the trucks, steadily ascending the winding road, we all exclaimed over the ever-green mountains. Most of us had never taken this trip before, and the mountains, shimmering in the hot August sun, were much higher than I had imagined. Just imagine the chattering and fun on these trucks! The sound of singing echoing through the hills brought curious folk out to the roadside as we passed through villages on our way. The young people were especially enjoying a new chorus they had learned at conference:

“With Christ in my vessel I can smile at the storm,

Smile at the storm, smile at the storm,

With Christ in my vessel I can smile at the storm

Until the day is done.

Sailing, sailing home; sailing, sailing home,

With Christ in my vessel I can smile at the storm,

Until He leads me home.

Little did anyone realize how prophetic these words were.

We were nearly two-thirds along our way now, the narrow road steeper, unpaved and often badly rutted. There was no guard rail and beyond the shoulder the road fell away, a sheer drop of nearly a hundred feet down to the rocky river bed below. Just now the river was dry, bare rocks and boulders jutting up all over the river bed. Suddenly, out of nowhere, an old man started to make his way across the road right in front of the first truck! Frantically the driver yanked his steering wheel, swerving the truck out of the man's way. But the old fellow, becoming panicky, began to totter now forward, now back, like a chicken in the road. Miraculously the driver would be about to miss him, only to have him step again right into the truck's path. Back and forth, back and forth he stumbled, zigzagging across the road, so dazed he didn't know what to do.

Eventually the driver lost control of the truck, and it headed for the edge of the road. From our place in the second truck we watched aghast as it veered towards the cliff edge. Thirty-six girls, the wife of a Chinese diplomat, and the driver were headed for certain death. As the cab of the truck pierced nothingness out over the precipice, and the rear wheels began to rise to plunge the vehicle and passengers onto the rocks below, suddenly there was a sharp screeching noise and, with a terrific lurch backward, the truck stopped! We stared at it with horror, so terrified we couldn't even scream, expecting any minute to hear the deafening crash as it hit those rocks, demolishing it and crushing the passengers. But no! As though a mighty hand had reached out and held it, the truck just stood still, perched precariously on the edge of the cliff.

Urgently we warned the girls on the truck to move very carefully to the back, so as to balance the vehicle while one of the other trucks was being hitched up to pull it back to safety. The next few moments were strained and tense, but at last the danger was past. The girls were permitted to get off, many of them weeping uncontrollably, all shaking like the leaves of an aspen. Some now stood with bowed head, thanking God for their deliverance.

Suddenly we noticed what had kept the truck from plunging over the precipice. There growing out of a crag in the rocky cliff was a small tree, no bigger than a balled fist, but just big enough to stay the truck's plunge to destruction. It was the only tree along that part of the cliff. At first we all felt numb as we reflected on the miracle which had saved our young people, and then we spontaneously joined together to thank God for that tree and for his mercy. It made us think of another tree, the bridge between life and death for those who are perishing, the cross where God's Son bore our sins in His body so that we, being dead to sin, might live to righteousness. We finished with a wonderful time of praising God right there on the road.

It was a very different, more sober group of travelers which climbed back into the trucks. As on our way home we phoned the church to tell them of the close call we had had, we were met by quite a sizable crowd of parents and church folk. Among them were some who were saying, now with even more scorn, “Didn't we tell you no good would come of your conference? Didn't we warn you”
We replied with much feeling, “The devil wanted to work destruction today, but God has used this near tragedy to break through the callousness and coldness of many hearts. He has been glorified in it all. Just about everyone who was on this trip now knows in a new way the reality of God and how very much He cares for them.”

That night at the testimony meeting, all of the girls who were not yet Christians put their trust in Jesus as a result of that experience; some of the boys whose hearts had been very hard turned to the Lord; and many young people offered their lives to him for service. The with much gratitude we once again joined in our special chorus.

As I prepared for bed that night, I read the day's portion for Daily Light. It was about praise: “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall be joyful in my god. I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make her boast in the Lord; the humble shall hear thereof and be glad. O magnify the lord with me, and let us exalt His name together. “I was terribly weary-it had been an exhausting day—bit I went to sleep rejoicing. Many young people had become the Lord's own. God had won the victory, and He was worthy of all praise.

This event marked the real beginning of the young people's work at Grace Church. They now decided to call themselves Grace Youth Group, not because they were part of Grace Church, but because of what had nearly happened on the mountain road and God's gracious deliverance. The revival among the young people caused quite a stir in the church, and the one who had opposed most strongly soon back back, confessing publicly that he had been an obstacle to God's working. This youth group has gone on for 27 years now, and God has continued to bless it, with many young people going on to serve the Lord.