January 2001

Dear Friends,

Today the sun is shining, which is a lovely change from the past week of snow and clouds. This has been the coldest winter in Changchun for many years, with over a foot of snow and ice on the ground and with temperatures ranging from a low of minus 31 degrees C. to a high of minus 20 degrees C. Jay and I are so covered in layers of clothes when we go outside that we are barely recognizable. The apartment where we live stays nice and warm, but the classrooms in Susan’s older building are quite chilly; Jay is in a new building with a better heating system, so the classroom is warm. Hopefully, all of this snow and ice will help the drought when the spring melt begins. Although spring comes late here in the northeast, we know that spring will eventually make it even to Changchun.

This has been a busy semester. Altogether we have over 300 students, and we’ve both been involved in activities with many of them. Both Susan and Jay have had full teaching schedules and we’ve tried to spend time outside of class with as many students as possible. There have been several groups of graduate students who have come to share a meal and try their first Western food other than McDonald’s. They are always surprised that American food is something besides the fast food that is now in so many cities of China. In addition, we’ve been royally entertained by all of our respective departments as well as the foreign affairs office. In just the last week alone, we’ve attended five banquets and several end-of-the-year activities, including the first snow and ice festival of Changchun.

The highlight of our Christmas celebration was the Christmas Eve service at our small neighborhood church. Six graduate students had asked us to take them to church, and we went to a small local church we’ve been attending rather than the large downtown church. It proved to be a wise decision, as the service was entirely for students. This small church is in the middle of eight universities and feels the need to try and minister to the students. The church is limited in what it may do; they may not go on campus, but on Christmas Eve many students attend church looking for the "romance" of Christmas. At this church what they hear is the gospel. It was an evening of testimonies and questions and answers. The speakers were young people and related well to the students. One of the testimonies was given by a former soldier who had found life to be empty until he met the Lord Jesus. This meeting changed his life, and he now attends the seminary in Shenyang. The church, although small, was packed with students who listened earnestly. I’m not sure that they encountered the "romance" they desired, but they did hear the gospel and we can only pray that some of that seed fell on good soil.

We are also planning our interpretation time in the U.S., which will begin in September 2001 and last through July 2002. We will be in Dothan, Alabama, from September until mid-November. During that time, we are planning one trip to the east coast, including New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington D. C. We’ve been delighted to hear from several of you about when we could come and speak. We will also make a trip to the Wisconsin and Illinois area in late October. Then we will be headquartered in the San Francisco Bay area at the Berkeley Presbyterian Mission Homes and will hope to be able to see many of the churches who support us on the West Coast. We will be there through January and then return to Alabama. We will plan to leave for the West Coast in May before returning to China at the end of the summer. We hope to be able to come and see as many of you as possible, and we will be happy to speak at whatever type of function is best for you. We are both able to give sermons, do Bible studies, or talk about China at conferences; Susan has also spoken at retreats for women while she lived in Asia and would be happy to do so again. Feel free to contact us at our e-mail address, which is good until the end of June 2001. We will be informing you of U.S. addresses and e-mail later.

In this land of "always winter and never Christmas," what a joy it is to carry Christmas around in our hearts. People here are seeking for happiness from many of the new things that are in evidence in China. There is a great desire to educate the younger generation; there is a great desire for wealth; there is a great desire to be the most powerful group of people in the world. Pray with us that people throughout China begin to have the desire to know the Lord in this new millennium. We thank you for your prayers and support and are looking forward to being with many of you in the near future.

Blessings,

Susan and Jay Boone

The 2001 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 179