Just a few years ago, there wasn't a single known believer among China's Dongxiang people. Today 13 Dongxiang follow Christ.

And together with a group of Han Chinese Christians, several of those Dongxiang believers are working to reach their people group with the gospel.

Recently, one of the new Dongxiang Christians walked along the banks of China's Yellow River with his friend, a Southern Baptist who has made China his home. They knew it would be their last meeting for months; in a few days the Southern Baptist would travel with his family to visit the United States.

They discussed truths they had studied during recent months. They spoke of the young believer's wife, who still doesn't know Christ. In a culture where spouses often live in different cities and frequently engage in extramarital affairs, this new Christian is learning how really to love his bride - and trusting his love will draw her to Christ.

As they walked along the river, they talked about baptism. The Southern Baptist explained once again the scriptural command for a new believer to identify publicly with Christ and the body of believers. Though the young man wasn't baptized that day, God's Spirit soon convicted Him and he obeyed.

"Had I pressured him, he probably would have gone into the river then. But he needed to be obedient to his Master, not to me," said the Southern Baptist.

They discussed the young man's dream of translating the Bible into the Dongxiang language. He hopes it will be his gift to his people - something to live on long after him.

Eight hundred years ago, this young man's people group embraced Islam. From that time until 2001, not a single Dongxiang individual was a known believer.

And though there are 13 Christians today, "That's not enough," says the Southern Baptist. Nearly half a million Dongxiang still don't know Christ.

The Dongxiang are among the poorest and least educated of China's minority people groups; less than 12 percent are functionally literate. They follow external guidelines of Islam, like refraining from eating pork and veiling women's faces. But most understand very little about their religion, however, and 95 percent have never read the Koran.

Their language has no word for Christian, and few Dongxiang have heard the gospel. But when they do hear of Jesus, they are very attracted to His teachings.

Still, in a people group that has long followed Islam, embracing Christ is difficult. As the Southern Baptist says, the hospitable Dongxiang will open their doors, but they're slow to open their hearts.

Christians are hoping, though, that development projects in western China will open the doors for Christian teachers and community workers to enter Dongxiang areas. Asian church planters - including families who can minister to women and children - are especially needed, they say.

Though the small group of Dongxiang believers is strong, they long for fellowship.

"Pray that new Dongxiang believers will share in their families and communities and move toward rapidly - multiplying, indigenous churches," says the Southern Baptist who knows them. He asks, too, that Southern Baptists pray that Christian resources - like the gospel of Luke and JESUS film - will be translated into Dongxiang.