Hope for the Living

When you are alive, there is hope! The 921 Earthquake was a 7.3 earthquake which occurred at 1:47 AM on Tuesday, September 21, 1999, on our little island. 2,145 people were killed, 11,305 injured and US$10 billion worth of damamge was done. In the central part of our island, one Junior High School lay directly on the fault line and was severely damaged by the quake. Today, the remains of the Junior High School are the site of a museum.

921 Earthquake

Classroom on 9/20/1999

Track at the Junior High School

Classroom Buildings

Classroom Buildings

Classroom Buildings

This past Tuesday, Jack, Esther, and I went to visit the museum. We used the day to learn about earthquakes and to "yarp" for those affected by such disasters, especially recently in the BIG country and in Japan. As usual, on our drive, we also saw many "god" statues, reminding us of how many people in our area do not yet know the truth.

A typical "god" statue

Another typical "god" statue

Please join us in remembering all of the survivors of these disasters and all of those serving in relief and reconstruction projects in our area. May many come to know HIM as the ONE TRUE GOD through these efforts.

Take Up the Baton

Recenly, our big national clubhouse hosted a conference reminding all of us of the need to "yarp", give, and go. The event included booths from a variety of sending organizations, seminars led by specialists (including Jack), a choir (including Esther), a parade of flags, reports from past outings, food, an incredible drama about the life of Hudson Taylor, special "yarp" times, messages, and a call of commitment to full time and short term service. It was incredible to see so many of our national friends step forward to take up the baton and carry the GOOD NEWS throughout every part of the world.

Our national flag

The parade of flags

Representing India

A recent participant in an outing

Other recent participants in short term outings

Remembering past service

A recent in country trip participant

The Event Choir

"Yarping" for specific places

Young Hudson Taylor

Taking the baton to the ends of the earth

Older Hudson Taylor

Making Commitments

Malaysia: Round 2

Last year, I had the privilege of visiting Malaysia for 3 days and 2 nights. I got off the airplane, got on a bus, went to a hotel, sat in continuous meetings, slept, got back on a bus, went back to the airport, and flew home. And, although the meeting was very uplifting, I did not see any of Malaysia.
But, this time, I was in Malaysia for 17 days. It was very hard to be away from Jack and Esther. You all know we are a very tight family. In fact, we thought about it alot. I have not been away alone (except for the three day trip to Malaysia last year) for 16 years. If I've gone anywhere, it was always with Jack or one/both of the girls. (I guess it was time.) So, a friend and I spent one day before the training touring the significant sights of Kuala Lumpur. They have a great deal with a tour bus that you can hop-on-hop-off all day and see LOTS of the city!

Then, we left the city and drove west to the ocean to a local camp. The camp was semi-rustic with bunk beds, community showers, lots of rice/curry, and intermittent internet service. But, it did have air-conditioning, hot water, and was located right next to the ocean. BEAUTIFUL! During the intensive seminar, I was trained "how" to learn a language and "how" to help others learn a language. Most people learn a language from a textbook in a classroom, with many students and one teacher. Because of this method, they focus alot on grammar rules, pronunciation rules, writing, repeating, etc., and most do not have much time to practice spontaneous conversations. (Remember your Spanish classes in high school?) The approach I learned in Malaysia focuses mostly on listening ALOT and quickly starting to speak, even though your grammar and pronunciation might be awful at first. And, it focuses on remaining a life-long learner of the language and the host culture. Jack and I are currently using this new approach, and we feel it has reduced our stress-level about language learning tremendously. Now, I will be able to "coach" others in this new approach.

The group did take one Saturday off to tour a little more of Malaysia. We attended a cultural dance performance. The dancers, the music, and the costumes were so beautiful.

We also visited a nearby "historical" and "tourist" town. It was fun to be outdoors enjoying the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes of a competely different country. I learned alot from the training, I had LOTS of time to reflect on our past few years in East Asia, I enjoyed a new culture, and I made some dear friends from all over the world. (But, I must say, it is great to be back home on our little island with Jack and Esther doing what we love the most, sharing HIStory with all we meet!)

Celebrating the LIVING ONE

Today is Qing Ming Jie (Tomb Sweeping Holiday) in my part of the world. I woke up to an interesting newspaper article this morning, and I'd like to share parts of it with you. Qing Ming Jie is celebrated by our people group as a way to remember their dead ancestors by visiting their graves and burial grounds. It is tradition for the living to clean the grave of their ancestors as well as to offer worldly gifts to the dead in the form of paper "replicas" that are sent to the other side by way of burning. The latest and hottest paper "replicas" come in the shape of IPhones and IPads. For about $1 USD, family members can purchase a paper "replica" of an IPad 2 with an 888 gigabyte capacity. (888 is a lucky number in our area.) The paper IPhones and IPads come complete with USB cables, so the dead can sync their data with their paper "replica" computers. Unfortunately, most stores have sold out of the paper IPad 2 "replicas" and can only offer their customers the IPad 1 models. Some customers, however, will not be giving their dead relatives technological gadgets because they are afraid the older generation of dead relatives will not know how to use them. So, they will only be giving other paper "replicas" of necessities like shirt and shoes. Because Qing Ming Jie is a national holiday, all banks, schools, offices, etc. were closed on April 4 and 5. So, we decided to celebrate the LIVING ONE.

We invited 45 national brothers and sisters to our home for Mexican food and an Egg-dying party.We also spent some time teaching them how to use the upcoming Easter holiday to share the GOOD NEWS of the LIVING ONE with the living: distributing dvds, tracts, BOOKS; inviting friends, relatives, and co-workers to their homes for Egg-dying parties; sharing in offices, schools, clubhouses the true meaning of Easter; using emails, facebook, instant messages to share the GOOD NEWS, etc.It is our desire that no one will enter eternity without a personal relationship with the LIVING ONE. Please remember the 1.6 billion in our people group!

Awesome Opportunity

We wanted to inform you of an awesome opportunity in our area. Several times a year, co-workers of ours come together for trainings, retreats, etc. Most of the co-workers have children (preschoolers, elementary, and youth aged). Each time, we are in desperate need of childcare workers. These meetings are usually held on our little island, in the BIG country, in Hong Kong or in Thailand. Would you think about coming over to help? You would be working with American children. You would be speaking English. And, you would be giving these children the VBS-type experiences that they usually miss out on because they live on this side of the water.

If you would be interested in take advantage of this awesome opportunity, please email us. The trainings, retreats, etc. happen at various times of the year and usually last for one or two weeks.
Wouldn't it be fun to hold these cuties and teach them all the fun songs, verses, crafts, and stories that you already use in TeamKids, Awanas, VBS, Children's Choirs, Mission Friends, etc.?

Experience culture, provide opportunities for parents to update their skills, share HIS love with these kids, see the world, love, and be loved. Think about it. We will be glad to let you know about places, dates, and times throughout the year to partipate in this awesome opportunity.

Celebrations Continue

Yes, the celebrations continue!

Jack and Esther made Jessie apple pie for her 47th!

Then, the parties, gifts, phone calls, messages,

and desserts began for Esther's 18th.

She had chocolate cake with her Saturday Night Youth/College Group!

And homemade pecan pie from her mom and dad!

And breakfast out with a cute dessert with another friend!

And, another cake and party with our
Friday night Youth Group at Da Cun BC.
So, thanks to everyone that helped all three of us celebrate!

Happy 50th

Today is Jack's 50th birthday!! Where has all the time gone? In honor of this auspicious day, Esther (with Elizabeth's help) prepared some photos to help us remember how this incredible journey first got started! Do any of you remember these folks?
And, of course, the day would not be complete without Jack having his favorite cake, German Chocolate. We were afraid 50 candles might set off some sort of smoke detectors!

Jack has just returned from a 7 day trip to Thailand. While there, he purchased two nativity sets for us. The wooden one below is handmade by folks in a Leper Colony.

Each set is uniquely crafted by an individual, so no two sets are identical. I really like the view of the first Christmas through Asian eyes and hands.

He purchased three of the smaller Celadon sets, one for Jessie, Elizabeth, and Esther. These nativity sets are good mementos from visits to Thailand, and they will be useful in our telling HIStory here.

We've really had lots of celebrating recently with Christmas, New Year's, our 25th Anniversary, Lunar New Year, Valentine's, and Jack's birthday. And, we still have more to come with Jessie's 47th and Esther's 18th.