Media Offers New Opportunities for People with Disabilities in China

People living with a disability in China often live one of two types of lives, neither of which feels empowering.

“In China, there are not as many services available for people with disabilities as there are in North America,” says Pastor Jerry An, who serves as ReFrame Ministries’s (BTGMI) Chinese ministry leader. “Most people end up housebound, with no way to get to church and very little interaction with others.”

It’s often either this life of seclusion or they end up having their disability exploited, An says.

Still, people like Huan (name changed) and the progress of media technology are helping others break out of that dichotomy.

Meeting Huan

As someone who is blind, Huan especially appreciates the voice command feature of her smartphone as it allows her to search, ask questions, and even share what she’s learning about God with others.

Huan subscribes to many of the programs that BTGMI’s Chinese ministry team produces and last year she reached out to An in order to learn more about sharing the Gospel through media.

Huan told An that she coordinates ministry for a network of Chinese pastors who are also blind. In fact, she’s made it her mission to minister to other people who are blind in China—currently, there are over 17 million.

“She couldn’t do this type of ministry before,” Pastor Jerry says. “But with new media, she has

access to all sorts of our resources. The easiest way to reach out and pastor the blind population is through new media.”

Creating a Place to Worship

Huan asked Jerry to lead a workshop for the pastors in her network about the opportunities that media brings to the ministry picture.

“Being blind and living in China is very difficult,” says An. “Media ministry opens up an easy way for them to connect to a whole new community.”

In turn, An learned how this network of pastors was already using media to create virtual church services.

“They offer a beautiful worship service,” says An. “Using a live streaming app, one person can play the keyboard in their living room while others sing along from their own home. And it all sounds amazing!”

It’s not a stretch to say that for many in this virtual congregation, this was probably the first worship service these men and women have ever been able to participate in. And thanks to the Christian Reformed Church’s support for BTGMI, leaders like Huan have resources to help keep them on the forefront of media ministry.