Many young people in Taiwan are coming to know Jesus thanks to your support.

Will China Invade Taiwan?

Todd’s 1st trip blog from Vietnam and Taiwan

Dear Family,

Will China invade Taiwan? I get this question frequently from those who know my history of living and working in China for nearly 30 years. In fact, I was asked if I was concerned that China might invade during my recent visit to Taiwan.

As we approached the Taipei airport, it struck me that recently, for a few days, commercial flights to the island were halted because the Chinese navy was surrounding Taiwan due to the visit by Nancy Pelosi, then U.S. Speaker of the House.

A seemingly imminent invasion by a nation that claims territorial sovereignty over your homeland can be enormously troublesome. The concern over China was palpable among our hosts. As soon as I arrived, I was asked for my opinion about the possibility of an invasion. I stated that I thought it was still some time off, if it ever happens at all.

Regardless of the uncertain future, we were there to encourage the saints, preach the gospel, and train people to make disciples. Our partners there are very eager to preach the gospel. They are also translating effective evangelism and discipleship materials into Vietnamese languages.

On this trip, we worked with partners who are reaching Vietnamese migrant workers living in Taiwan. The gospel was preached to dozens of people in Taiwan. One young lady, a Buddhist, spoke with me at length as I shared about the two kingdoms with her. She repeated what I said, confirming her understanding that the only way to be transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of God is through faith in Jesus and his death and resurrection. Moreover, as I wrote on a whiteboard, the people we were training and encouraging had an opportunity to observe this method of sharing the gospel firsthand.

Later, two young men from Vietnam who had heard my gospel presentation gave their hearts to Jesus. Our partners on the ground tilled the soil of these two young men’s hearts until it was ready for harvest. Thankfully, they are in good hands with our local partners, who are planting Vietnamese-speaking churches across Taiwan and in Vietnam as well. Many of the Vietnamese who are discipled in Taiwan go back to Vietnam and share their newfound faith with their communities. Some are from Vietnam’s unreached people groups and have gone back to reach their tribes by preaching the gospel, making disciples and planting house churches. It is remarkable how many young people are coming to know Jesus through this work in both Taiwan and Vietnam.

After we completed the training, my son Caleb and one other team member from the U.S. went to play volleyball. Some might think that that is no big deal and not very spiritual, but our partners are using volleyball for relationship building, evangelism, and discipleship. They organize teams and tournaments among Vietnamese migrants in Taiwan to gather people and communicate the gospel to them. They are now putting into practice the evangelism and discipleship methods we taught.

That’s why our next stop is Vietnam. We are traveling there to encourage leaders from this movement. Thus far, 32 churches have been planted in Taiwan and Vietnam as a result of this work. While in Vietnam, we will encourage pastors with training and leader care. This will be their first visit since before COVID-19.

Because of your prayers and support, Heaven’s Family’s Unreached People Groups Ministry can reach deeply into communities around the world. We equip believers to make meaningful contact with people groups who have no or very limited access to the gospel. Thank you for your prayers and support. I’m personally grateful to you and all the faithful people who send me to serve these hard-to-reach places.

Below are a few of my favorite photos from our time in Taiwan. Please be sure to read my upcoming blog post about our next stop, Vietnam.

Todd Matthews
Director, Unreached People Groups Ministry