CHAPTER 19
OPEN THE DOOR, KEITH!
Psalm 24:1
“The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.”
While in China, I have been able to travel throughout Asia and around the world.
In 2015, we returned to the UK for the first time. We took a five-day trip around the country, starting in London and travelling up to the Scottish Highlands. We ended in Cambridge, where we met my cousin Elaine, her husband Clifford, and their children Claire and John. They warmly welcomed us and took us to Ely to see the beautiful cathedral.
We had booked two nights at a Holiday Inn in Bradford to see my niece Victoria and her mother Carol, along with my nephew James.
They agreed to meet us at the hotel and arrived on time. They all came up to our room, and then there was another knock at the door. Standing there, grinning like a Cheshire cat, was my brother Peter, who had travelled over especially to surprise me.
That day we visited our birthplace and drove to Haworth, famous for the Brontë sisters. We also rode on the steam train made famous by The Railway Children. What an amazing day.
It was Chinese New Year’s Eve, so Helen cooked authentic Chinese food for my family. The sceptics were completely won over by Helen.
We then travelled to my hometown of Morecambe to stay with Brian and Sandra, who had helped me complete my visa application for China. They took us back to my home church, where we shared what was happening in China.
We were also able to share the gospel on the streets of Lancaster, even meeting a university student who came from Nanjing.
Over the next few years, we visited Helen’s relatives in Indonesia, where we saw Lake Toba, the second-largest lake in the world. We also travelled to the Philippines, where Helen and Ming swam with whale sharks and enjoyed delicious seafood, especially crabs.
In 2017, we travelled to the USA and Canada. We visited iconic places such as Horseshoe Bend, Antelope Canyon, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Grand Canyon, and even the more chaotic side of life in Las Vegas.
We then went to Canada, where we experienced the majesty of the Rocky Mountains, especially in Jasper and Banff.
However, 2017 was also a painful year, as my beloved brother Peter died after a very short illness. It was a great blow to me, as we had shared many phone calls and Skype conversations.
I know he died peacefully, knowing his younger brother was settled.
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT
Having my brother come and visit me was a great joy.
Losing him to cancer in 2017 was deeply painful. He passed away after a very short illness of two months, caused by a rare cancer that usually affects children.
When he died, many people said they missed him and that a part of their lives was gone. For me, it was more than that.
It felt like losing my right arm. We had the same blood running through our veins and came from the same parents. Although we were very different in many ways—especially in matters of faith, with me as an evangelical Christian and Peter as an atheist/humanist—we were still brothers.
Some of the things we did together still make me smile. For example, when we were returning from Tadoussac, I put a CD into the car player. He said, “Let me do that,” and promptly inserted it into the wrong slot above the CD player, breaking it completely.
Small things like that stay in the memory. He was a character. When his wife visited her parents in the UK, he once took his two children straight to the sweet aisle at the supermarket and then fed them baked beans on toast for seven days in a row!
I miss him deeply. I used to tell him I loved him, and he would reply, “Yeah, me too.”
Now I cannot say that to him anymore.
The things that truly matter are love, hope, and faith—especially love.
What would it have been like if God had concealed His love from us?
But He did not. He revealed His love through the Cross.
God did not remain silent; He expressed His love in Christ.
Romans 5:7–8
“7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.
8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
Thank God, we are loved.
The most important thing we must never stop doing is telling people we love them—because one day, we may not be able to.
CHAPTER 20
JUST TESTING
Ecclesiastes 3:1–2
“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted.”
Life was idyllic as we entered the third decade of the century, but danger was always lurking. In early 2020, we began hearing about a virus called COVID-19.
We were used to seasonal flu-like illnesses in winter, but this was different. Before January ended, Helen was home all the time, and we had to be tested everywhere we went.
Some mornings, as I ran errands and did chores, I was tested up to five times. I tested negative each time—there is a first time for everything!
I remember going out one evening at 8 p.m. Normally the streets would be busy, but now there was an eerie silence—no cars, no people, no activity. Everything was closed. It felt surreal.
Everywhere we went, we were tested. We were unable to travel freely for two to three years. Our entire complex was even placed under isolation for two weeks. We could not go in or out, although we were thankfully provided with food parcels every two days. We were grateful for that small mercy.
Other places had even stricter regulations, so we were blessed in comparison. Still, tensions sometimes rose, as I witnessed at the gate of our complex. It was a difficult time for everyone.
We did eventually contract COVID, though my case was mild. I remember walking near our flat when I suddenly felt hot and began to sneeze.
Everyone wore masks, and some still do, but I never did. We also chose not to take the vaccine, trusting the Lord for protection.
Everything moved online—school, teaching, church, and meetings all shifted to Zoom. It feels like a distant memory now. When restrictions finally lifted, it was a great relief to return to normal life.
The previous year, in 2019, we also lost Helen’s beloved father, Baba. He had his stomach removed due to cancer and gradually became weaker until he passed away in August after a brave fight.
One of my favourite memories of him was just before Christmas 2016. We went to eat beef dumplings in town. On the bus home, Bing Crosby’s Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas came on. We quietly sang together. That is how I remember him.
He was one of the finest men I have ever met. One day, I will see him again, as he came to trust Christ as his Saviour and Lord later in life. It is never too late to trust Christ.
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT
Everything seemed to be going well before 2020. We were even planning to return to the UK.
But those plans were suddenly disrupted when COVID-19 arrived. It caught the whole world by surprise.
It reminded us that life is fragile and uncertain. We make plans, but God remains in control.
As James writes:
James 4:13–15
“13 Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:
14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
15 For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.”
Life is short. We are only here for a brief time, and we have one life to live.
What are you doing with yours?
Helen and I are committed to loving and serving our Saviour. That is the best use of life.
As Solomon concludes:
Ecclesiastes 12:13
“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.”
The offer of salvation is still open—but it will not remain open forever.
Hebrews 2:3
“How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?”
One day we will all stand before God.
Hebrews 9:27
“It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:”
Death is not the end.
Christ has defeated death through His resurrection so that believers can say:
1 Corinthians 15:55–57
“55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Can you say these words?
I know I can.