The Cross

     Jesus in China

                July 2005

 

We're back from China! The highlight of our trip was hearing the Canaan Hymns that God gave to His Chinese followers through a faithful peasant girl whom we met.  I wish you could have seen the joyful faces of the singers:

Those glorious songs -- accompanied by an orchestra and chorus of Chinese Christians  -- are part of a DVD series called "The Cross - Jesus in China."  You can hear some of them here:

Part 1: www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dMpFofjzq8

Part 2: www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnFEd0Tvyvo&NR=1

Part 3: www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOhihCJ3-MI&feature=related

Part 4: www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_0vReZpPfM&feature=related

The Canaan Hymns of China (link broken): "Anyone who wants to understand the Chinese Home-church assemblies will want to reflect on the hymns sung by its members. These hymns express the faith, testimonies, and experiences of the faithful and show the world the pure innocence of all those who tread a rocky path.

"In remote villages and prosperous cities, wherever there are Christians you will hear joyful voices of the faithful expressing their devotion through their hymns. Without instruments or the ability to read words or musical scores, these peasants who are Christians are able to sing dozens of hymns without ever taking a rest. ... They are sung not only in the Home-church assemblies, but are also sung in the Chinese Three-self Churches. Some are sung in Chinese congregations all around the world.

"It’s hard to believe that all the melodies and lyrics of the Canaan Hymns were written by a peasant girl named Xiao Min, A girl who can’t even read music....

"Canaan Hymns are becoming the holy songs of the Chinese nation. They are the pulse of seventy million Chinese Christians. They reflect the path where so many missionaries walked in the past century."

The Canaan Hymns (link broken): "These prayers soar over the highest mountains and melt the ice off the coldest hearts. There is no more bondage. There are no more wars. Hearts receive blessings from above, and destinies are changed. It is going to be an excellent year for the harvest."