Delivering on expectations is a good summary of what every business owner does. We make promises and then deliver on them. This happens with all parties and transactions. Customers, employees, financiers, vendors. Business owners deliver on expectations. If you want to deliver on customer expectations reliably and consistently, you must take the responsibility to set and manage them. You must manage customer expectations.

Welcome to China Compass on the Fight Laugh Feast Network! I'm your China travel guide, Missionary Ben. You can follow me on X (@chinaadventures) where I post daily reminders to pray for China (PrayforChina.us). You can also email me with any questions or comments @ bfwesten at gmail dot com. 

You can also find easy links to everything we are involved in @ PrayGiveGo.us!

Summary

Today I begin by discussing the recent US-China Trade War (2:13), followed by the latest rule changes for tourist visits to China (12:39). Then I talk all about Guangxi (21:21), my first and only visit to the karst mountains of Guilin (28:48), and share fascinating stories from the missionaries and martyrs who served in Guangxi, including my friend’s grandfather (30:43).

Recommended Resources (in the order they were mentioned): 

Operation China: Introducing All the Peoples of China

https://www.asiaharvest.org/operation-profiles

His Life For Mine: A Missionary’s Story (The Life and Legacy of Joy Bausum)

https://a.co/d/gY0Huyp

The Memoirs of William Milne (Foreword by Dan Bausum):

https://a.co/d/bALLtAf

In the News: 

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/chinas-slowdown-has-changed-trade-war (Paywall)

https://www.china-briefing.com/news/china-upgrades-144-hour-visa-free-transit-to-10-day-stay-adds-21-ports/

Pray for China Province of the Week: Guangxi (Zhuang Autonomous Region)

Guangxi in south central China is matched up with Alabama and Mississippi for prayer.

See which Chinese province your state is praying for @ PrayforChina.us!

Asia Harvest overview: https://www.asiaharvest.org/china-resources/guangxi

Wikipedia profile: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guangxi

“I Don’t Want Your Jesus”: Evangelism in the Mysterious Mountains of Guilin

https://chinacall.substack.com/p/i-dont-want-your-jesus

Guangxi Missionaries & Martyrs:

https://www.asiaharvest.org/china-resources/guangxi/1924-j-r-cunningham

https://www.asiaharvest.org/china-resources/guangxi/1926-tang-pan

https://www.asiaharvest.org/china-resources/guangxi/1928-preacher-zhong

https://www.asiaharvest.org/china-resources/guangxi/1951-bill-wallace

Today David examines Tennessee’s attorney general's defense before the U.S. Supreme Court of the state’s law prohibiting medical treatments for a minor’s gender dysphoria. It’s important to understand because it’s the same argument Christian legal and policy advocates are using around the country. Are the arguments based on a nihilistic or biblical cosmology? Listen to find out.

Jon Wright and Calvin Robinson, Anglican Priest and broadcaster, discuss dispensationalism, modern day Israel, the Post War Consensus, and other topics

In an age of reason and rationality are we blinded from seeing the mystical? Rod Dreher author of Living in Wonder: Finding Mystery and Meaning in a Secular Age joins Joseph Backholm for a conversation about how awe and wonder caused him to search for God. He shares personal experiences of mystical encounters, cautions against the occult, and calls on the church to address spiritual warfare and God’s presence. Dreher emphasizes wisdom over emotion, advocating for a grounded faith where spiritual experiences point back to God, not away from him.

Resources

Maybe one of the worst shows I've ever done! How will I ever recover?!
I'll tell you...

Chapters

00:00 The Christmas Episode and Promises Made
05:58 Audience Dynamics and Energy Levels
12:04 The Importance of Good Introductions
18:01 Reflections on Comedy and Audience Engagement
24:54 The Art of Crowd Work
35:54 Overcoming Difficult Audiences
41:37 The Reality of Comedy Shows
46:45 The Importance of Audience Awareness
56:40 Looking Ahead: Future Topics

Tune into this week's episode as Dr. Aaron Rock covers the topic of 'justice' from a Kuyperian perspective. What leads to the downfall of a nation's justice system, what can we learn from God about justice, and what even is justice in the first place? All of that and more on this episode of Leadership Now with Dr. Aaron Rock.

More Resources:

More resources at beachheadmedia.ca

Beachhead Media YouTube

In this episode of the Podcast for Cultural Reformation, Dr. Joe Boot and Pastor Nate Wright talk about the turbulence of the incarnation of Jesus Christ. Baby Jesus, the meek and mild babe in a manager, shook the entire fabric of the world, troubling many, filling others with wrath and fear, but causing many to come from afar to prostrate themselves before him in worshipful service. What's your response to the lowborn King of Kings? May it be the way of wisdom: worship and adoration.

Think Christianly about politics with the help of Dr. Boot’s latest book  “Ruler of Kings:” https://ezrapress.ca/products/ruler-of-kings-toward-a-christian-vision-of-government;

The WAIT is OVER!!! Pre-order your copy of the NEW updated and expanded version of Dr. Boot’s Mission of God with a brand-new study guide! Get it here: https://ezrapress.ca/products/mission-of-god-10th-anniversary-edition;

CHAPTERS:
00:00 Mission of God AD
00:25 Opening
00:36 Intro
01:05 Welcome
02:29 Christmas Gift - Mission of God: 10th Anniversary Edition
03:23 Conference ADs
05:18 Scripture Reading | Matthew 2:1-16
07:23 Sanitizing the Christmas Story
08:51 Trouble in Jerusalem: The Menacing Arrival of the Magi
12:23 Herod, the Great: The Tyrannical Imposter King of the Jews
19:05 Signs in the Skies
26:46 The Magi & the Messiah
32:35 The True King of the Jews, the Ruler of the Kings of the Earth
35:45 Herod's Relevant Response to Jesus and Ours
43:20 Christmas: A Disturbance in the Force
44:26 Conclusion
45:50 Outro

UPCOMING CONFERENCES:
Christ is King World Missions Conference - "Gospel Culture" | January 19-22, 2025 |  San Antonio, TX: https://christisking.church/lyw;
The Mission of God Conferences:
U.S. – Denver | Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025 @ 8:00 - 16:00 MST@ Faith Church | Arvada, Colorado: https://www.ezrainstitute.com/mission-of-god-denver/;
Faith & Medicine Conference | January 19-22, 2025 |  Atlanta, GA: https://faithandmedicine.org/;

REFORMCON '25 | "Out of the Ashes" | April 24-26, 2025 @ Tucson, AZ: https://reformcon.org/

Got Questions? Would you like to hear Dr. Boot answer your questions? Let us know in the comments or reach out to us at https://www.ezrainstitute.com/connect/contact/;

For Ezra’s many print resources and to join our newsletter, visit: https://ezrapress.com.

Stay up-to-date with all things Ezra Institute: https://www.ezrainstitute.com;
Subscribe to Ezra’s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPVvQDHHrOOjziyqUaN9VoA?sub_confirmation=1;
Fight Laugh Feast Network: https://pubtv.flfnetwork.com/tabs/audio/podcasts/8297;
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/ezra-institute-podcast-for-cultural-reformation/id1336078503;
Spotify Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/0dW1gDarpzdrDMLPjKYZW2?si=bee3e91ed9a54885.

Wherever you find our content, please like, subscribe, rate, or review it; it truly does help.

Welcome to this bonus episode of China Compass, the 9th in a weekly series called “The Prison Pulpit”. I'm your China travel guide, Missionary Ben. Follow me on X (@chinaadventures) where I share new Chinese cities to pray for daily. You can learn more about that at PrayforChina.us. 

You can also check out my Substack (ChinaCall.substack.com) where I write mostly about China and missions. I have already posted the updates that I shared on this podcast, including this one: https://chinacall.substack.com/p/testimonies-from-a-chinese-jail

This month is the 6th anniversary of the attack and forcible closure of Early Rain Church in Chengdu, Sichuan, China, and the arrest of Pastor Wang Yi, who is the primary contributor to this podcast series, The Prison Pulpit. (Find all the episodes on PubTV, Spotify, or Podbean)

Two weeks ago I read the Wang Yi family newsletter that was published just 12 days before his arrest on Dec 9, 2018. Last week I shared a handful of updates that were put out by unnamed Early Rain Church members in the immediate aftermath of the attack and arrest of the pastor and most of the leadership. 

As one of last week's updates reminded us, there was no guarantee that the next update would ever come. Arrests were ongoing. So it was an exciting answer to prayer when the following testimonies were released on December 15th, 2018:

Early Rain Urgent Prayer Update (12/15/18)

According to some testimonies of brothers and sisters that have emerged, they have been sharing the gospel while under guard. They have been using their suffering as a beautiful testimony for the Lord… (listen to the podcast for the full update and my comments)

Resource of the Week: The Memoirs of William Milne (PrayGiveGo.us)