The True Meaning of the Season

No matter where we have lived, our family has always had the tradition of decorating our Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. Thus, our month of events began. Yvonne was our first guest to see and hear the story of our decorations. (She was also our first friend in our new city. We actually met her on a bus in HK before we ever moved here.)Every day in December was filled with activities. We had MANY guests over to our house to make Christmas cookies thanks to our good friends in Kentucky and Montana sending us much needed supplies. (Most of you remember Annie from a previous post. She is Libby's foster daughter. We are happy to announce that she became a sibling during the recent F G Festival held in our city.)
Next came the round of Holiday presentations in the local schools. Libby did an excellent job discussing the TRUE meaning of the season complete with props, games, songs, and gifts. Thousands of teens received a candy cane with THE message and a HIStory dvd to watch at home with their friends and families.

We were extremely blessed to spend time with three university girls from South Carolina during the weeks leading up to Christmas. They chose to give up some of their vacation time (and money) to come to our island to help us share the TRUE meaning of the season.

They were very active in the Holiday presentations in the classrooms, distributing Christmas cds on college campuses, hosting Christmas parties, and just hanging out with others their age. What a blessing for my family to have this opportunity to be with them. (EVERY person should take advantage of any opportunity to spend a short or long time abroad sharing HIStory with others around the world.)

Of course, one of the highlights of the month was hosting various Christmas activities at the orphange. Making gingerbread houses at any age is always a treat.

But, I must say one of the things we least expected was being asked to take part in a Living Nativity outside of a local mall. It was the first time for several clubhouses to join together and stage a mini-Bethlehem marketplace. They learned alot in the process and hope to make it an annual event. We all "donned" costumes and spent several evenings as shepherds, angels, and wise men.

It was definitely a VERY full month, but we are honored to have had so many opportunities to share HIStory with the millions of people that live on our island. We look forward to what the new year may hold for our family and our lives here. Happy New Year to all of you! May you spend it serving Him wherever you are in every way possible.

Island View

This week, our family finally had an opportunity to get out of our new city, and YES, we really do live on an island. We can actually be at the ocean in about one hour's drive time (on a weekday).

We wound our way up a mountain to a small "touristy" old town, and then wound our way back down the mountain to the oceanside.

The water was cold (in December) and the wind was brisk, but it was an incredible site to behold.

We saw lots of folks out on the rocks fishing, and we even stuck our feet in for a few minutes and gathered a few sea shells.
On top of the mountain, we of course, found several "famous" temples. I recently read a statement that I feel most adequately describes the people in our new city: "The folks here stop for a coffee at a well known chain, then go home to drink tea. They go to a cultural museum, then go to a temple to worship, then head home to surf the internet." Such a land of contrasts between the old and the new.

I've been doing alot of studying about the meanings of the various temple decorations. These three "gods" represent the three main wishes of all of the people here: prosperity, posterity, and longevity.

The phoenix encourages the "good times to continue to roll" and only appears in times of prosperity and peace in this country's history.

The dragon symbolizes goodness, strength, fertility, wisdom, and change.
It appears on temple pillars to drive off negative forces. Its presence is also supposed to protect the temple from the fire god (since most temples are made of wood).A pair of lions is often placed on guard at the entrance to a temple to scare off evil beings.
Puppet shows are often held in front of temples to explain the various stories behind the various gods. They are also sold for children to take home and use in playacting.
As we walked the crowded winding streets of the old town, we were reminded that our purpose in living here is to become fishers of men.
It is our desire that He be known as the only true God of this island and the world. May you join us in this task. "Follow Him, and He will make you fishers of men" wherever you are.

The First Thanksgiving

During October, November, and December, Jessie, Elizabeth, and Esther are helping to host holiday parties in four local elementary and junior high schools. This past month, of course, we have focused on the history of the first Thanksgiving in the colonies. We have shared ALOT about why the pilgrims decided to leave England and make the perilous journey to the New World. We have also shared about the difficulties they faced that first winter and the help given them by Father through the Native Americans.
At the beginning of each party, we introduce new vocabulary words. Then, we tell a story or do a skit about the first Thanksgiving.

For most of these students, it is their first time to celebrate Thanksgiving, and they are very eager and excited to listen and participate.

We always give the students time to ask questions and to review what they have learned.
We explain to them how we use the Thanksgiving season to thank Father for all the things He has done for us throughout the year. Then, using a web of gratitude, we let the students tell us how they are thankful. They have given some interesting responses: baseball, parents, teachers, us, pizza, butterflies, money, vacations, etc. When we tell them that students in America get out of school for Thanksgiving, they DEFINITELY think their country should start celebrating this holiday too.
We end the party by letting the students participate in a game of Pictionary, reviewing the new vocabulary words. We are very happy to have the opportunity to host these parties in the public schools here. We really look forward to sharing the TRUE meaning of Christmas during next month's parties.

Harvest Time

During the past week, we have had the opportunity of a lifetime. We all four were involved in the F. G. Festival held in our city. Each day started around 4 pm and ended around 4 am. During the actual services, it was amazing to see HIStory freely proclaimed and nationals invited to publically come forward to accept the invitation to New Life. We could only do counseling in English, but we had opportunity to share with folks from the Philippines and Swaziland. Thousands of national siblings counseled in the native language.

Each evening after the services, we all four helped with follow-up. All decision cards had to be tallied, entered into a data base, sorted, assembled, labeled, and mailed. Several hundred nationals worked into the "wee hours" of the morning every night. Again, we could only help with the jobs that required no reading of the native language. So, mostly we helped with data entry for the English-speaking decisions, assembling, labeling, and mailing. All of that experience working on state convention newspapers really paid off.

Now, it is up to the local clubs to contact every person that made a decision, and get them invovled in obedience-based discipleship. This is a VERY CRUICAL part. Please remember the local clubs as they seek to take care of more than 13,000 new babes in Him. It was definitely Harvest Time on our little island. Please, ask for more workers to assist in the Follow-up Time.

Autumn at the Equator

While most of you are probably enjoying fall colors, hayrides, and pumpkin pie by now, we have just returned from two weeks of training on another island country near the equator. Brisk autumn temperatures, raking leaves, and frost are no longer a part of our family's vocabulary.

Although we were all four busy with class-type work each day, we spent the evenings and weekends exploring the area and finding out about the various cultures and religions. Most folks in S-pore are from Chinese, Malay, and Indian descent and follow Buddhist, Muslim, and Hindu beliefs. The city was literally filled-to-the-brim with temples and mosques. Please use the following photos to think of this area and these people on a daily basis.

A Hindu Temple

One billion people around the world

follow the Hindu religion.

A man bowing to one of the thousands of

gods in the Hindu religion. A statue of another Hindu god

Burning incense at the Hindu temple The elephant-headed deity

A Buddhist Temple
500 million people around the

world follow the Buddhist religion.

Burning incense at the Buddhist temple People rubbing the Buddha's belly for good luck
A Moslem Mosque

(1.5 billion people around the world

follow the Moslem religion.)

We returned home yesterday more determined than ever to share HIStory with the people in our New City. "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest field."

Children of the World

Happy Double Ten Day to all of you! Today is the National Holiday for our current city (similar to our July 4th). So, the streets are lined with flags and parades, and the night sky will be filled with fireworks.

We, however, wanted to use this week's blog to introduce you to some of our newest friends. Each Saturday afternoon, we attend a children's program at a local store-front clubhouse. The program is completely conducted in the local language, but we are beginning to understand some of what is being said. (They use really simple words to tell the stories from the BOOK, simple songs, and simple phrases to talk to Father.) We enjoy being with the children and joining them as they memorize various passages, play games, and make crafts.
Several national women from this clubhouse go to the local elementary school every Friday to teach basic "Character" lessons. These women invite the children to come to the clubhouse on Saturdays to hear stories from the BOOK. In the summers, they have lots of other activities for these children...English camps, Vacation BOOK School, etc. NONE of the parents of these children attend the clubhouse on Sundays...yet. But, these children are learning the TRUTH about Father's plan.
On Sunday afternoons, we are visiting a local orphanage. All of the children in this orphanage are HIV positive. At least one of their parents had AIDS. Some of the parents are in prison, some are in Drug Facilities, and some are unknown.
Most of the 25+ children are preschoolers. A few are elementary school age, and a few are teenagers. The facility is very small, but clean and well supplied. Like most places, people prefer to donate "stuff" instead of time. Not many people want to get involved (hands-on) with these types of children.
But, you know us and our love for children. Last week, all four of us went, and Jack "rolled around" on the floor giving pony rides to all who dared to climb up on the back of the GREAT BIG foreigner :) Elizabeth and Esther spent most of their time holding and feeding the least of these...a one month old little boy and a three month old little girl. Jessie became permanently attached to the one child that cries when any stranger enters the room. They have nicknamed her "Koala" since she definitely clings to whomever she chooses to attach herself. She and Jessie have become fast friends.
Yes, these children are definitely precious in His sight (and ours). But, there are literally thousands more like them that we see on a daily basis. With only 2% of this island's population trusting in Him, there are still many that need to hear HIStory. Please join us in remembering all of these children on a daily basis. And, consider coming over to help us in this monumental task.He so loves the little children, ALL the children of the world, Every color...every race, they are covered by His grace, He so loves the little children of the world.

A Weekend Adventure

Last weekend, a co-laborer, "Libby" (name changed for privacy), who has lived in our city for more than twenty years invited us to spend the weekend with her and two 12-year-old national girls. The girls wanted to give us a tour of the city, and Libby wanted to show us ways we could be involved in the work going on here.

First stop, the science museum!

Libby is a mentor to these two young girls. (One of the girls is actually living in her house because of some family issues.) The girls really don't enjoy their science classes. So, Libby took all of us to a hands-on exhibit at a local museum hoping our enthusiasm for science would spark the girls' interest. I think it worked.

Next stop, the changing of the guards at the Military Martyrs' Shrine.Everything in this country is strongly influenced by the local religions. The Martyrs' Shrine is no exception. People come here to worship those who have sacrificed their lives during revolutions and wars. We learned a lot about local religions that day from Libby and the two girls.

On to the Aborigines Museum.
In this country, there are 14 recognized minority groups, each with different languages and customs. The museum features miniature and life-sized models of aboriginal dwellings and a village meeting hall. Also on display are pottery, baskets, hunting weapons, musical instruments, aboriginal costumes and ornaments, while the basement area describes aboriginal belief systems. It was amazing to learn about all the differences of religion in each tribe. (On a different outing, we got to meet some of Libby's friends that work with one of these ethnic tribes.)

Another interesting picture from the Aborigines Museum:

The silver "hat" has two openings for the eyes. Esther and I decided that we wouldn't mind visiting this tribe. They are the only ones that never participated in head-hunting.

After the Aborigines Museum, we headed to a famous night market!
The night market was literally shoulder-to-shoulder full of people. The girls, Esther, and I pushed and shoved our way like everyone else. We tasted some interesting national foods and soaked in the local flavor. There are soooo many people in this city, and only about 2% claim to have a personal relationship with Father.

In the night market, we saw something new to us:

Each of these banners marked the doorway to a little room where a person sat at a little table waiting to read your fortune. Many of these rooms were filled with couples seeking auspicious days for upcoming weddings, singles looking for that perfect mate, and people searching for answers to life's biggest questions. There were even special rooms for English and Japanese patrons. It was sad to see so many people searching for help in these kinds of places.

After the night market, we returned to Libby's house and fell exhausted into bed. The next afternoon, Libby led a house group meeting with some national folks and some Filipino factory workers. (There is a huge Filipino population in our city; most of them workers who have come here alone in search of jobs to support their families back in their home country.) After church, Libby treated all of us to a special meal: Pizza from Pizza Hut! And yes, in the foreground, those are buckets of chicken. Don't you always order buckets of chicken from Pizza Hut? Well, it was all delicious!

Our weekend adventure was really a great way to get to know the city's culture through the eyes of natives and "almost-natives" like Libby. Esther and I now have a much better understanding of how to talk to people in a culturally appropriate way about those most important topics. Hopefully, this experience will help us as we begin our own work with the people in this city.