Shandong, China — It’s never too late to learn. In Jinan, Shandong province, 81-year-old granny Liu Meiyun has been copying the Bible for more than 17 years since she became a Christian in 2002.
When her youngest son got to know Jesus when he was in college, he shared the gospel with his parents. A short time later, the couple started going to church. Her thirst for God’s Word was the main reason why she started copying the Bible. Once she could not find the Scripture passage that the pastor read and she asked her husband for help. To her surprise, her husband replied: “Aren’t you able to read? Check it yourself.” Liu recalls, “I was very angry at that moment, so I am determined to familiarise myself with the Bible. From then on, whenever I encountered new or difficult words, I copied them several times after I got home. Besides copying Scripture, I also made notes of each sermon.”
Because of her thirst for God’s word, Liu began to copy the Bible, one chapter a day. For chapters with long verses, she pushes herself to finish within the same day. Each day she can spend up to three hours copying the Bible, even on New Year’s Day – she does not stop.
Granny Liu Loves the Bible
But why does Liu love the Bible so much? “The Bible is the Word of God, I need to understand His will. I need to get strength from His Word and live a victorious Christian life.”
She recites, “(For) It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matt 4:4, ESV)
She knows she has a bad temper, and she humbly admits that she is not yet fully changed, but relying on the Word of God, she has been able to lead a victorious life.
When she was young, Liu had a hard time raising four children. But God has blessed her with four sons who are not only successful but also dutiful. They come to visit their mother every week.
Due to her age, Granny Liu suffers from various ailments. At present, she cannot go to church because of severe pain in her knee. However, this does not stop her from copying the Bible. Time goes by quickly and Liu feels that there are never enough hours in the day so she hopes to copy even more Scripture.
Although Granny Liu lives by herself, she lives in the presence of the Lord. The Word of God accompanies her each day, so she knows she is never really alone!
Story: Lydia Zhang
Edit: Jenise Lee
Photos: Yeo Tan Tan
2020 © United Bible Societies China Partnership
MORE: Read more about the practice of hand copying the Bible here.
