The village was neglected. Dirty. Desolate. Dried corn stalks and discarded farm tools littered the manure-covered ground. After school, children wandered the streets unsupervised, without rules or responsibility, while elderly men and women huddled together beneath the warm afternoon sun.

This was a village on the brink of despair. A place forgotten, lonely, and isolated. When local missionaries learned of it—of the people who felt they had no purpose—they knew they had to go.

The First Step Toward Change

The missionaries organized a meeting with the children in which they asked the elementary students in attendance to draw a picture of their everyday life at home. “Most drawings were somber,” the ministry leader said. “They depicted absent parents and a sense of loneliness.”

Next, the missionaries asked the children, “What kind of relationship do you hope to have with heaven? And what do you think heaven hopes we can do for Grandpa and Grandma?” Without hesitation, the children responded that they could provide their elders with a loving, clean home.

As a result, the “Super Squad” was born.

The Mission Begins

The missionaries distributed brooms and rags to the children—now known as the Super Squad—and gave them a mission: care for 10 elderly villagers living alone. The children had been given a purpose, and they enthusiastically agreed to complete it. “They swept courtyards, washed pots and dishes, and gathered and disposed of recyclables,” the ministry leader said. “Through their small acts of service, the elders felt loved and deeply grateful, lifting their thanks to heaven.”

The village began to change because of these missionaries. Because they reached out to children who felt they’d been forgotten, reminding them that they mattered, they were loved, and they could serve their neighbors in meaningful ways. “In this way, ‘reconciliation with people’ became the first step toward ‘reconciliation with God,’” the ministry leader said. “We planted seeds of lasting transformation in the hearts of the children and their community.”

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Pray for these Chinese missionaries in their quest to transform China in the name of Jesus. And please consider a donation today. Your support assists them each day, providing them the sustenance they need to continue with their gospel work.