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.

25th, but Who's Counting?

Jack and Jessie just celebrated their 25th anniversary, but who's counting? What did they give each other for an anniversay present....a trip to Paris, diamonds, furs....NOPE!
Here's to a healthy next 25 and beyond!! They hope to be together sharing HIStory for many more years to come.

Christmas 24/7 for 30 Days

Our family of four has just celebrated Christmas, 24/7 for 30 days. And it was a blast! We were all four back together again as a team, sharing HIStory and enjoying each other.

Presenting the true story of Christmas in the public schools.

Making Christmas cookies with the Saturday night youth group.

Singing lots of familiar Christmas songs in a new language.

Making snow at the orphanage.

Watching the youth at Da Cun BC present the Christmas story.

Listening to the children at Da Cun BC sing Christmas songs.

Hosting lots of Christmas parties in our home.

Helping GBC hand out thousands of candy canes.

Eating traditional Christmas foods.

Playing with Christmas toys from Granny and Papa.

Enjoying games with friends and family.

Eating snack foods in between games of Horse.

Eating non-traditional foods for New Year's Eve.

Watching one of the greatest fireworks displays on earth.

Now, we're back to just the three of us. Elizabeth has headed back to college for a new semester. And, we three are all back to a regular routine of work and school. Please remember the hundreds that heard the True Meaning of HIStory this season.

A Living Legacy

Every Saturday afternoon, we teach children at our little national clubhouse. Today was a "holy" moment. Today's story was about HIM making us "fishers of men". I had chosen to teach the children the song: "I will make you fishers of men, fishers of men, fishers of men. I will make you fishers of men, if you follow me." I learned this song as a little girl at Mt. Zion BC in Mississippi, and I have taught it to children in MS, KY, MI, FL, TN, WV, and MT.

Little did I know that today, Grandma Wang (age 80) was also going to teach the children the same song in our national language. She had learned it as a little girl, growing up in Gansu Province in the BIG country. Grandma Wang came with her husband to our little island in 1949 when she was 19 years old. She had become a believer in the BIG country. When she arrived on our little island (60 years ago), she began teaching children. She has been teaching this song to children on our little island ever since.

So, she taught the children "Fishers of Men" in Chinese, and I taught it to them in English. It was a "holy" moment. Grandma Wang is a living legacy, politically and spiritually. I am honored to serve beside her.