China s Qreat Winner of cKCen for Christian Service Price 3c; 30c per doz. WOMAN'S BOARD OF FOREIGN MISSIONS OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH ROOM 818. No. 156 FIFTH AVENUE NEW YORK DING LI MEI China's Great Winner of Men for Christian Service DING LI MEI was born forty-three years ago, in one of the innumer- able villages of Shantung, near the City of Kiaochow. It was in the early years of our mission work that the missionary with his message reach- ed the village of the Dings, and in the course of time, Li Mei's parents and grandparents believed and were bap- tized. The band of Christians in that clan-village were a virile group, and soon built their own church and called their own native pastor — an achieve- ment that challenged the attention of many another company of believers throughout the Province to go and do likewise. Like Timothy, Ding, from child- hood, fed upon the Scriptures, which were able to make him wise unto sal- 3 vation. He is the product of the small, seemingly insignificant village day school, whose annual maintenance de- mands such a small sum, and yet whose ultimate influence in the development of the future church is so large. There might have been a Farmer Ding in Shantung today, toiling over an acre or two of ground, with no vision be- yond the horizon of his village. I am sure he'd have been a good farmer — very likely a local elder — but that lit- tle school set his footsteps into a path- way of world vision and nation-wide service. The day-school was followed by the middle-school, and finally his studies brought him to Tengchou, where our present Shantung Christian University was then located. There he came under the influence of that great friend of boys and mother of men — Julia Mateer.* To a large number of men who graduated from that Shan- tung college, Mrs. Mateer, through her ♦Leaflet, "Mrs. Calvin Mateer," 3c. 4 big heart, sympathy, and understand- ing of the problems of the students, be- came the greatest influence in those formative years of college life. Ding Li Mei spoke of her to me as his "spiritual mother." Though dead, her life is being continued in the life and services of Ding and many others of those Tengchou College lads. After graduation from college, he entered the theological class, the pre- cursor of what is now the splendid Union Theological Seminary at Tsing- chou-fu. When that fearful Boxer up- rising broke out we find Ding a pastor of one of our Shantung churches. Having incurred the enmity of the local official, he was seized and carried off to the magistrate's yamen. The men of the yamen are skilled in the use of the bamboo rod, bribes oppor- tunely and adequately offered, will lend such finesse to their arms that 500 blows will scarcely leave a mark or excite a pain. But that day hatred of the Christian was the motive behind 5 those blows, and the 500 stripes trans- formed his back into raw beaten flesh. Suffering unspeakable pain, he was carried back into the dark, damp pris- on, reeking with filth. It seemed to him that his would be the privilege to follow in the martyr's train — "Who climbed the steep ascent of heaven through peril, toil and pain." But God had other plans. Many prayers were being offered for Ding. One of our missionaries was enabled to reach the Governor of Shantung, now China's ruler — Yuan Shihkai — and as soon as Governor Yuan was made ac- quainted with the case, Ding was re- leased — prayers answered. While continuing the duties of the pastorate, he became burdened over the fact that business and government institutions were making such tempting calls upon the services of Christian young men that but few were found willing to consecrate their services to the Christian ministry. He counselled with some of his friends as to the ad- 6 visability of a visit on his part to his Alma Mater, to present the claims of the Christian ministry to the men of the university. As Ding is neither a man super-normally gifted with scholarship or eloquence, his friends were not very enthusiastic over the proposal. Never- theless, Ding found no peace of heart until he went to the University at Weihsien, where, in February, 1910, for four days, in group gatherings, in interviews and prayer with individual students, he so pressed home the claims and call of Christian service, that 1 1 6 of the 320 students of the university turned their backs upon big salaries in secular pursuits to give their time and talents to preach Christ Crucified to their country men. One of this number was Liu Gwan-djao, a widely-recog- nized young educator, now at work in Aukin.* The result of those four days put the divine seal upon his commission to work among the student classes. In *Leaflet, "A Long Step Ahead," 2c. 7 the summer of 1910, the Chinese Stu- dent Volunteer Movement for the Min- istry was formed, and Mr. Ding was invited to become its first traveling sec- retary. He has since then traveled from Manchuria to Canton and from the coast to the borders of Tibet, pre- senting to the students in the high schools and colleges the call to Chris- tian service, and striving to deepen the Christian life of the student body. To quote Dr. John Mott, who should know: "In recent years he has influenced the largest number of students to de- vote their lives to the Christian minis- try ever secured by one man during the history of the Church in Asia." From one student center 150-200 men were led to Christ at meetings con- ducted by him. Another missionary writes: "Mr. Ding's stay with us has completely changed the atmosphere of the school." Not only does he give his time to the students, but everywhere in his 8 travels he gives at least half his time to the quickening of the spiritual life of the Christians, emphasizing the im- portance of personal religion, and striving to make of them intercessors and individual personal workers. Recently, with the increased oppor- tunities of reaching the masses through large evangelistic campaigns, Mr. Ding has been largely used by the Holy Spirit in influencing thousands of non- Christians, of all classes and position in society, to an earnest and prayerful study of the teachings of Jesus Christ, and as they find them true, to apply these teachings to their own lives. In February, 1915, he conducted such a campaign in my city — Siangtan, Hunan — where, at the end of eight days, over 1200 signed declarations to the above intent. Ten days of close intimacy with him, taught me much; the memory of those days is an abiding influence. What is the secret of his influence and power? It is neither scholarship nor 9 • rhetoric, but prayer. Hours every day does he spend in prayer. He has a book he ever carries with him, in which he has the names and addresses of over 2000 persons, with whom he has cov- enanted to pray each for the other by name every day. While sitting on the platform during a service, walking on the street, riding in a rickshaw, boat or car, he uses these otherwise unoccupied minutes to intercede by name daily for these 2000 people. Some are world- famed British divines and American Christian leaders; some, perhaps, are lowly, unheard-of workers in remote Chinese villages, with whom Ding has covenanted, and for whom he daily pours out his soul to God. While in my home, I had occasion to pass his bedroom; it was long past midnight, and I found the light from his lamp still streaming through the transom. When, the next morning, I playfully chided him for keeping such late hours, he replied: "When we sep- arated last night, I still had 500 friends IO for whom I had not prayed yesterday, and I could not go to sleep without first carrying them, by name, to the throne of God in prayer." Is it any wonder that this man is an unquenchable flame moving over the great land of China, lighting up thousands of hearts with a holy glow and warming countless hearts with a Christ-like enthusiasm for service! Yet he has nothing which we can- not all have, if we are willing to take the time and pay the price. A. R. KEPLER. November, 1915. ii