Last Saturday Pastor Joshua had the privilege of going and talking to the mother-in-law of a believer at a nearby Alliance church.  The mother-in-law was concerned because the believer had removed the idol worship table from her own home.  Pastor Joshua was asked to use Taiwanese to help explain about believing in Jesus.

The mother-in-law has prayed to the images of her gods her whole life.  She is finding it hard to think about talking to a God that is not seen with our physical eyes.  They explained and prayed with her.  The daughter-in-law has invited her to attend church with her to learn more about Jesus.

This story illustrates just one of the struggles that happens when we wish to share about Jesus with seniors.

The newspaper recently informed us that within 8 years the percentage of Taiwan’s people aged 65 and older will make up more than 20% total population.  That is the threshold for a society to become “hyper-aged”.  Taiwan will reach this milestone years before Japan, the USA, France and the UK.  Singapore and South Korea are projected to become hyper-aged societies about the same time as Taiwan does.

Currently, one out of every 7 people in Taiwan is 65 or older.  That makes it an “aged” society.  We have a few years before we join that group, but we are very aware of people in that age group.

This news is important as we plan how to share the gospel with people in Taiwan.  Senior citizens are a major component of the population throughout the country.  We must think and consider how to share effectively with the older generation.

Today in our town:

• 14.9%  are under 20 years of age
• 27.6%  are  20~39 years of age
• 37.6%  are 40~64 years of age
• 19.9%  are 65 years of age and older (including 2 over 100)