It's That Time of Year

It's that time of year when several folks in our household get another year older! January, February, and March are filled with reasons for our family to celebrate: Jack and Jessie's anniversary (#23), Valentine's Day, Jack's birthday (#48), Jessie's birthday (#45), and Esther's birthday (#16). Wow, how quickly time passes!

We wanted to use this blog entry to thank everyone for all the phone calls, cards, emails, packages, and gifts that we have received during the past few weeks. Your kind words, thoughts, and deeds REALLY keep us going on a daily basis. Esther received a very special gift from her granny and papa: all the necessary books, dvds, and supplies to learn basic cake decorating skills. She's gotten alot of chances to practice lately.Each event was also an opportunity to invite people to our home to experience American foods and celebrations. For Esther's "Sweet 16" event, she wanted to host a SCUM Party. Those of you in Montana know and love playing SCUM. For those of you unfamiliar with this activity, we'll be happy to teach you the next time we see you. (It basically involves some people playing the part of royalty and some the part of peasantry and alot of laughter.) Our national friends had a blast!

Our journey for Him continues, one moment at a time, one step at a time, one person at a time. Thank you for joining us on this journey. May He be glorified in all we say and do.

The Earth is Filled with His Glory

In December, our city's zoo received a very special gift, two pandas. In January, on the first day of our Asian New Year Holiday, over 100,000 folks lined up to see them. (Our city is hoping over a million people a year will come to visit them.) Since we had been privileged to see pandas before in Washington, DC, Atlanta, Beijing, and Hong Kong; we waited until a weekday morning in late February :)

We saw a variety of animals from all regions of the world, but we most enjoyed seeing the animals native to this island (especially the Formosan macaque or rock monkey).

Our favorite part of the day, however, was definitely the Butterfly House. We stayed for quite a while watching the butterflies eat, fly, and land.
Esther and Jack even had several butterflies land right on their bodies. We were all amazed at the many colors, shapes, and sizes. Our island has over 400 different species of butterflies.

A few days later, we also had opportunity to visit a local mountain and get a look at the beautiful plants, trees, and bushes Father has place on our island:

Star Fruit trees
Papaya treesApricot blossoms
Jasmine Tea Flowers

Of course, what's an outing without food! We were pleasantly surprised to find one of our favorite foods, steamed bar-b-q pork buns, available at a snack stand at the zoo.

But, if you're not into this kind of Asian treat, you can always go down the street for pizza.

Peking Duck Pizza....Elizabeth's favorite! Here's hoping it's available on the college dining hall menu next fall.

Esther's Entries

During the past two weeks, we were blessed to travel to another country to experience some great R & R & R & R & R (relaxation, refreshment, renewal, retooling, reunion). We even got to spend some time with five friends from Montana, volunteering in the children and youth programs!!
This year, a photo and essay contest was held. Esther entered ten photos and had two selected for the show: She also won first prize for her essay entry in her age division. We thought you might like to read it too. Thanks for all of your thoughts on behalf of us and the people we serve.
I have eight Asian Cinderellas. In Asian culture, eight is a lucky number. Although I do not believe in luck, I know that I am incredibly blessed to have met them. Outfitted in cuteness, they can instantly light up a room with their smiles. However, my Cinderellas do not live in a fancy palace or even a regular house. You see, these Asian beauties are orphans.

Having fended for themselves most of their lives, they long for attention. They have no parents or family members to love them the way they deserve, yet these girls are truly amazing. Each has a story behind her beaming smile. Some were found in garbage cans, some were dropped off on orphanage steps, and a few have physical deformities. All of their faces display the hardships they have undergone, but mixed with the sorrow is hope. They cling to the momentary joy of being loved and count down the days until the “foreign aunties” come and bring them toys. When we enter the room, pony tails swoosh and polka dotted dresses twirl as they came rushing towards us. Their bare feet dance next to ours, their tiny hands reach out to be held, and their little hearts beat with undeniable strength. They overflow with laughter and curiosity. As they chime in with the praise music we sing together, I can see their expressions of joy. They are so grateful for a few toys. They are so happy with the simple act of having their fingernails painted, and their joy in cuddling stuffed animals is contagious. They live simply, play hard, and love deeply.

The only tiaras they will ever wear are paper birthday hats, but they are all precious jewels in the eyes of God. My eight Asian Cinderellas may be fatherless in this world, but they have the Prince of Peace and King of Kings watching over them.

It's Beginning to Look Alot Like....

Lunar New Year (Asian Spring Festival), of course! The biggest holiday of the year (in our area) begins on Sunday, January 25, and everyone has been spending weeks preparing for it. Schools are on winter holiday; stores and streets are decorated; bus and train stations are packed; and workers are looking forward to a few days of vacation with their families. Every aisle in every store looks just like this where you live, doesn't it?

Most of the decorations have something to do with invoking good "luck" or fending off bad "luck" during the new year.

During the past few weeks, we helped host several parties for our university student groups with a different theme, Experiencing New Life and Blessings from Heavenly Father during the New Year.

The parties included songs, games, food, gifts, etc. The students were asked to guess the number of coins in this jar. According to tradition, the coins represent the desire for abundant wealth in the new year. Eating chocolate coins is supposed to bring a sweet new year.

The students were asked to draw an ox on a piece of paper placed on top of their heads. We all had a good laugh at the finished products. In our area, this is the Year of the Ox.

They were also asked to use chopsticks to drop peanuts into a container. Peanuts symbolize longevity.

We even had one Indian student join one of the parties. It was exciting to watch the American and the Indian feed each other a bowl of congee (soup) while blindfolded. Eating meals together with family and friends is definitely the MOST important part of the holiday. Fortune, happiness, longevity, prosperity, peace, wisdom, virtue, togetherness....people all around the world are searching for these things. We continue to daily share this message: Seek first His Kingdom and His Righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.

Trip to G-Bay Island

The day after Christmas, Esther and I (Elizabeth) went on a five day M-trip to G-Bay Island. In order to get to G-Bay, we had to fly from our big island to a nearby island, take a bus across that island, then travel by ferry to the little island of G-Bay. We were greeted by a picturesque harbor filled with small fishing boats. These boats are the only source of income for the approximate 500 year-round inhabitants.

Of course, when people spend all day out on the open sea, they need some sort of protection. The locals seek the aid of the various folk gods found in the dozens of temples dotting the small island.

Their need for protection and luck in finding good fishing spots drives many islanders to erect miniature temples in their own homes. Nearly every house on the island had a huge altar graced by several gods and covered with various offerings.

Upon our arrival, we explored the island and passed out invitations to the various activities we would be hosting during our five day trip. On such a small island there is little entertainment, so people were very interested in the 17 "foreigners" and 3 nationals wandering about passing out bright red invitations.

Each day, we taught English lessons to the elementary and middle school students. (The island has NO high school.) We were able to share the TRUE MEANING of the season with every student on the island. For every event, people lined up outside at least an hour before it was time to start.

For teaching materials, we used HIStory, from creation to resurrection. The children were very interested in the stories, but they especially loved the coloring books. Crayons are very hard to come by on G-Bay.

During the class time, we would tell stories, make crafts, sing songs, and play games. The crafts were all related to the stories so that the children would have something to take home to show their parents and to decorate their rooms. We also encouraged them to use the objects to tell their parents the stories they had learned that day.In the evenings, we invited the whole island to come to the local community center to watch a movie and enjoy some refreshments. The movies were also HIStory, and many people decided to believe what they saw and heard.

One woman in particular caught our eye. The people who raised their hands were each given a copy of THE BOOK and a copy of the HIStory dvd. After these were distributed, the drawings for various gifts, ranging from bicycles to tshirts to candies, began. Everyone was excited and leaning forward listening for their numbers to be called. But one lady who had received THE BOOK was not paying any attention to the hubbub around her. She was completely engrossed in THE BOOK that was laying open on her lap. You can see in the picture below that she was holding her ticket with her number on it while she read, but she never so much as glanced at the ticket. She was too interested in what she was reading.

On the last day of our trip, we held a dunking party. During the last night of movies, several students came forward and asked to be dunked. The local leader required two things: the students must get permission from their parents, and they must promise never to worship in the temples again. Many got permission quite easily, since some of the parents didn't pay much attention to what the students were doing anyway. But a couple of precious girls came to the service in tears because their parents or grandparents would not allow them to turn their backs on the idols of their ancestors and believe in something completely different. In the end, ten students were dunked.

The island of G-Bay is beautiful. The experience of working with so many wonderful, attention-starved students was incredible. But it also taught me a lesson. One reason some of the parents did not want their children to participate in the dunking was because they feared the decision would not last. Over the years, various groups have come to visit this island but with little or no follow up. The islanders are afraid to trust outsiders because they come and go so often. Our group has decided to counteract this problem by making bi-monthly return trips and by staying in close contact with the local leader.The world is full of places like G-Bay island, filled with hurting people hungering for the good news found in THE BOOK. We would be thrilled to take you to visit our little G-Bay island, but we hope you will carry the same message to those where you live and that you will become a permanent source of love and hope to people in your own neighborhood.

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.