Preface
My very first idea about writing a book as an ordinary Christian was very simple. Every day there are millions of people all over the world, who are using Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, and other public internet forums to communicate and to discuss various topics on social, political, art, religion and endless world issues. The simple reason for such popularity is that no one needs to be an expert to put something down in writing. We are all simple, ordinary people. As long as we can communicate to each other, we are excited to learn what others have to say, especially what is done on a peer-to-peer level. It is my sincere hope that my fellow ordinary Christians may respond positively to my book and start a trend to share our Christian experiences with each other openly. In researching material for my book, I have been most pleasantly surprised that currently ordinary has been a popular theme, as Tim Challies, blogger, author, and book reviewer, says recently that a number of new books are published under this title, and a host of others carrying similar ones as well. Although ordinary may imply Boring, Mundane, or Normal, I prefer to use ordinary in the sense of Normal. In an ordinary life of an ordinary person, he or she does not need to be extraordinary to be a Christian. In his article, On Being an Ordinary Christian, Challies says: “I live an ordinary life, pastor an ordinary church full of ordinary people, and head home each night to my ordinary little home in an oh-so-ordinary suburb. I preach very ordinary sermons. . . .” But when God is involved, an ordinary Christian can indeed be used by Him to do extraordinary things. Based on my own personal experiences, there are extraordinary things that make my life a great missionary journey. I hope that this is the message I present in my book. Certainly, I am not alone in this thinking. In the website ‘www.theordinarychistian.com’, the Founder, Jay Moore, said: “Just because I’m ordinary doesn’t mean I’m secondary. Ordinary Christians are God’s primary choice for accomplishing His extraordinary work”. Particularly in the field of mission outreach, Moore has written a book entitled “ THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE: A Journey Into Missional Living ”, that is “a great book to help teach the Ordinary Christian how to live a powerful missional life that brightly shines the light of Christ in their part of this spiritually dark world.” Doctrinally, the well-known theologian, John Stott, says in his book “Christian Mission in the Modern World: Updated and Expanded” that mission includes “everything the church is sent into the world to do.” In my book, whenever “mission” or “missionary” is used, I do have this general definition in mind. However, the more traditional view is that “mission” is only including activities carried out by missionaries and that activities carried out in a church is “church work”. In my case, I have found that my interest on missionary activities has encouraged me to be even more involved in church work, and the experience I gained from doing church work has helped me to meet a lot of the demands in missionary activities. Based on a traditional view, I am a lay Christian with no formal theological training. The only official qualification I had ever obtained is a Lay Church Worker Certificate issued by the Archbishop of the Sydney Anglican Church. Therefore, I am writing this book based solely on my own life experiences rather than on my doctrinal beliefs. This is not a denial that my thinking is not influenced by what I believe in certain doctrines and church practices. I am sure that a lot in what I have written is coloured by my Chinese heritage, both culturally and theologically. Some others may consider that I am representing an era that is no longer relevant, but I hope that these are irrelevant distractions. The everlasting principle is always true – that our mighty God can help an ordinary Christian to do extraordinary things, in my case, in mission. As I was born overseas, starting my early schooling in China and continued the bulk of my education here in Sydney after my late teens, I lack the proficient language skill both in Chinese and in English. For this book I am indebted to my daughter, Ruth, for painstakingly removing all the grammatical errors and rewriting sentences into better English. In additional, she has been my special ‘proof’ reader, pointing out areas that need clarification and further explanation. Professor Guo-Yuan Wang, a long- time colleague of mine in the Mechanical Engineering School at University of NSW, has undertaken to rewrite my primitive Chinese drafts into versions meeting the standard of good Chinese. He is also an ordinary Christian who loves writing and often contributes articles to Chinese newspapers in Sydney. I am most grateful to Mrs. Joyce Tang for her role as the editor. She is in charge of publication in Chinese Christian Mission Australia (CCMA). Being my first book, I rely heavily on her wise advice. She is responsible for organising all the publication logistics including art work and design. She has also spent her valuable time to go through the Chinese texts in order to make changes for further improvement. Over my life time I give thanks to the Lord for Winnie, my wife and constant companion. Despite the fact that many in the world are trying to redefine the meaning and the practice of marriage, I strongly believe that God has designed His world to His perfect plan since creation. A husband needs his wife to help and support him. Every success can only be achieved by mutual cooperation. We are living in a world where the main income provider may not necessarily be the husband. Nevertheless, working together as a team is a ‘must’. There is no reason that sisters in a church could not assume a leading role in missions. In our younger days, Winnie was gifted with an excellent memory and was such a valuable assistant to me to keep in touch with our friends. Without her I would not be able to engage in many of the activities described in my book. Readers may find that the English text is close to the simple English written by ordinary Christians. The Chinese texts are different: I am fortunate to be aided by helpers who can write Chinese in the most elegant style. I hope that ordinary Chinese Christians would not be deterred if they write only within their own capacity. As this is my first book, I must confess that many times I had been overcome by a fear of failure that I seriously considered giving up. It had been those simple encouragements from friends such as “Peter, how is writing your book getting on?” that spurred me onward. Through this book I sincerely hope that we can encourage each other to live a life even more pleasing to the Lord so that we together can bring glory to God, our Creator. May I use a verse from Hebrews to make a request for prayer – Pray for us. We are sure that we have a clear conscience and desire to live honourably in every way. (Hebrews 13:18) 
