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TAIPEI, Taiwan - After a year of joint-effort among 700 churches throughout Taiwan, Taipei Franklin Graham Festival officially began with its first event titled “Rocking Seed” on Oct. 26 at the Liberty Plaza.

The festival is presented as a carnival, featuring performances and extravagant make-ups that captured the attention of the participants. On the weekdays, Liberty Plaza is a political battle ground, but it is now filled with the smiles and laughter of children in this special occasion.

Over 30,000 people participated in this first event, making it the largest Children’s gathering throughout Taiwan’s history. The featured performances were brought by HSNU Wind Band, Taipei Municipal XI-MEN Elementary School Jump Rope Team, Chinese Yo-Yo Team, Ming-Chuan University Cheerleading Team, Overseas & Radio Television English Teachers dressed as clowns, and Heavenly Melody.

Following the APAC’s classical children’s song performances, the Broadway musical group “Rocking Seed” illustrated the gospel through the Parables of the Sower, where large birds, locusts, weeds, and other obstructions prevented the seed from sprouting; however, with the consistent outpouring of the rain of God’s love, the seed regained its vitality and sprouted.

Then, Rev. Zhu-Si Mei Fei, operation director of APAC Children & Youth Whole-person Educational Development Center, encouraged the children to meet Jesus, the eternal and only God, at an early age.

Furthermore, Rev. James Chung-Chien Shia, executive director of TFGF preparation committee, said in an interview with The Gospel Herald that he is very happy to see the number of children participating in the festival, because the will of Jesus is to have the children come to him.

TFGF chairman Rev. Shen-chu Chow said that the purpose of having the children’s festival is hoping that the next generation will be stronger than this generation. While he believes that God will bless Taiwan beginning from the next generation, he is also excited to see the joint efforts among the churches and hopes that this heart of unity can be planted inside the hearts of the children when they are young.

[Editor's note: reporter Ian Hwang in Taiwan contributed to this report.]