Published on Operation World (http://www.operationworld.org)
Apr 11: China, People’s Republic, Hubei Province, Hunan Province
China
People's Republic of China
Asia
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Geography
Area: 9,573,000 sq kmThe third-largest state in the world, also containing the highest mountains and plateaus in the world. The climate and geography are extremely diverse, ranging from tropical in the south to sub-arctic in the north, from a highly industrialized and modern eastern seaboard to sparsely populated western deserts and mountain ranges. Hong Kong and Macau are integral parts of China, though their statistics are not included here; Taiwan’s status is debated. These three are handled separately.
Population: 1,330,584,783 Annual Growth: 0.63%
Capital: Beijing
Urbanites: 44.9%
HDI Rank: 92 of 182 (UN Human Development Reports 2009)
Peoples
Peoples: 516 (83% unreached) All peoplesUnreached Peoples Prayer Card
Official language: Putonghua (Mandarin Chinese); local languages in the five Autonomous Regions. 15 regional mega-languages. There are an estimated 600 different spoken Han dialects, but one written language common to all Languages: 296 All languages
Religion
Largest Religion: Non-religious| Religion | Pop % | Ann Gr | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christians | 105,382,315 | 7.92 | 2.7 |
| Evangelicals | 75,399,270 | 5.7 | 2.9 |
| Non-religious | 590,247,410 | 44.36 |
Answer to Prayer
Welcome changes in government and society in the last decade include another peaceful transition of power (this time to Hu Jintao), a series of fruitful economic reforms, pursuit of a socio-economically ideal “harmonious society”, intensified opposition to corruption and graft in politics and a shift toward more transparency – as evidenced in the proactive handling of H1N1 after the ill-advised response to SARS. Perhaps most significantly, China’s civil sector is being allowed to flourish and may usher in a new social conscience that rises from the people rather than being imposed upon them.For an additional 8 Answers to Prayer see Operation World book, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM.
More Information
The Operation World book, CD-ROM, and DVD-ROM provide far more information and fuel for prayer for the people of China.Hubei Province
China
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Challenge for Prayer
House churches have grown significantly in many parts of the province – much of this the result of compassionate ministry to flood victims. But growth has come at a cost; persecution is often high, and many (if not most) leaders have been arrested and imprisoned. A disproportionate number of church members are women. Pray for the churches to continue to grow, to disciple well their rapidly increasing numbers and to see more men come into faith.For an additional 2 Challenges for Prayer see Operation World book, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM.
More Information
The Operation World book, CD-ROM, and DVD-ROM provide far more information and fuel for prayer for the people of Hubei Province.Hunan Province
China
See Prayer Information
Challenge for Prayer
The Church was traditionally very small but has started to grow rapidly in the last generation. This is apparent in the fact that almost all believers are younger people and first-generation Christians. Almost all churches in the area are growing, but so are cults and Confucianism. The True Jesus Church is strong here. There is a great need for trained leaders; in 2009, TSPM had only 65 ordained leaders for 1,200 congregations. There are also around 40,000 house churches; these have leadership and discipleship needs of their own. In rural areas, congregations are overwhelmingly made up of women. Pray for further growth among all generations, both genders and all areas – peoples in the more remote western mountains are hardly touched by the gospel. Pray also for the establishment of effective training structures.For an additional 2 Challenges for Prayer see Operation World book, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM.
