He is risen!! =)

Today is Easter Sunday and it's a gorgeous day outside! It's extremely interesting because Friday and Saturday were both really muggy days. It's funny how the weather works huh? ;)

Good Friday in another country which doesn't celebrate this 'holiday'. Classes were canceled today though, so it was like a holiday in a way and I was sick anyway, so I was pretty much planning on staying home. I went to evening service at BICF, it was really good. Simple, but meaningful. Worship, scripture readings of the first Easter, communion and showing some clips of the Passion. It would have been awesome to see how the rest of the family in this country remembered this day. I guess that's something I'm going to have to save for when I come back here again (Daddy-willing of course). Some big things are happening this weekend here. BICF is running an Easter carnival. We are given permission to hand out tracts! You are never allowed to do that here! Please earnestly pray for those that we encounter tomorrow. This is like a HUGE door opening and it's amazing that we're even allowed to throw this. Pray for discernment on our parts and for eyes, ears, and hearts to be open.

It's probably service time back home. I really hope that on this day you can do some reflection of all that Ah-Gor has done for us. May He continue to be glorified, magnified, and exalted in our lives.

Thank You for the cross Lord
Thank You for the price You paid
Bearing all my sin and shame, In love You came
And gave amazing grace

Thank You for this love Lord
Thank You for Your nail pierced hands
Washed me in Your cleansing flow, Now all I know
Your forgiveness and embrace

Worthy is the Lamb, Seated on the throne
Crown You now with many crowns
You reign victorious
High and lifted up, Jesus Son of God
Darling of Heaven crucified
Worthy is the Lamb
Worthy is the Lamb

Amen.

Would you wake up early, leave home by 6:30 AM, walk for two hours straight just to get to church on time and even arrive early so you can calm down and prepare yourself for worship?

I, personally, want to say yes ... but I'll admit, it'd be super hard to do it with a completely willing heart. People in villages do it every Sunday. The raw passion that people have here is amazing.

Hello All =)

Since I'm at home, a bit sick, I figured I may as well update. I just looked at the boys' blogs and they've really been open about everything we're doing. LOL. They've even mentioned names and stuff. Sorry that my blog can't be like that. If you know me well enough, you know that I'm a very precautious person. But since I'm not even supposed to have access to my blog, I guess it's safer to release more information. LOL.

We did some site-seeing yesterday and I got reminded of how creative our Dad is. You know every time you go traveling, the environment can look completely different from your home. There will be different vegetation, animal life, rocks, etc. Probably because I've never been here before, I really appreciate these little details. It not only reminds me of how big our Dad is, but also how clever and creative He is. The rock formations, the way the tree branches wind around each other here ... it's amazing. I took LOTS of pictures, but pictures cannot do justice to the beauty of what I've seen. I guess it's something you have to see for yourself really! LOL. I'm like promoting this place. Actually if people did come here and experienced the things I've experienced, I'd be SO happy for you! Not only is it rich in culture here, but like I've said over and over again, Dad is doing something big here.

I'd love to visit smaller villages and towns and stuff to hear about what Dad is doing there, but I don't think I'll have the luxury on this trip. Maybe on another trip. But seriously, it is something else. The book I'm reading talks about how the church has grown phenomenally in the past 30 years. Just 30 years ago, doors were closed, churches were changed into factory buildings, apartments, etc. From just a few hundred thousand followers 30 years ago, to tens of millions of followers today. That's just amazing! It made me think of back home in North America. I remember reading a newspaper article last year or something about how churches in Montreal are being closed down and being turned into apartments and stuff because the congregations don't have enough money to sustain the building or not enough people go to those churches to begin with. I believe there's a church like that in downtown Toronto. It sold half of it's building, which got changed into an apartment. Are the churches in North America dying? I don't know if you'd agree with me or not, but I'd say they are. Where is the raw passion for Christ in North America? Where is our boldness to share Him with those around us? Especially those that we love? I am not accusing anyone or anything, I fall under this same North American Christianity category. Have we lost the deep passion for Christ? Have we become blinded by our individualistic society and kept to ourselves? Are we really pursuing Christ with all that we have? Are we being bold enough to share with others the love of Christ? Are we praying earnestly that Jesus will save North America? Kudos to those that have. I'll admit, I haven't. I haven't loved North America as Christ has. I'll admit, there have been times where I could have took the extra step to share Christ's love. Times where I chose not to do anything because I was too scared. Our Church is dying in North America. Are we Christians going to sit around and let it happen? Or are we going to do something about it? The argument will come up that Jesus doesn't need us to do His work. Although Jesus does not need any of us to fix anything, I do believe He enjoys using us as His disciples. To be honest, I don't know what this post is about. Am I trying to encourage those back home to see the dying of our Church? Am I reflecting on what I have seen, noticed and felt? Am I saying more than I really understand? I have no idea actually. But I know this is something that Dad has been opening my eyes more and more to. The raw passion and eagerness to learn has been of great encouragement to me. And it's not only among the local Church here, it's even in the foreign Church here. Dad is working crazily here. How the Church has transformed here in so short a time means that the North American Church and the European Church still have a chance. Dad can do the impossible after all.

The sermon series for the past while leading up to Easter has been about prayer. We've been praying a lot for things happening here leading up the Olympics. Doors are really opening here. It's been quite amazing. While also praying for the needs over here ... please remember to pray for the needs of North America.

North American Church:
- Pray that Dad gives us all the boldness to share His love with others.
- Pray that He opens our eyes to the needs of others so that we can really be Jesus' hands and feet.
- Pray against the attacks of the North American Church
- Pray that your passion for the North American Church and the Global Church grows because we are in this together

Asian Church:
- Pray against the attacks of the Asian Church
- Pray for the teachers and the lay people of this Church
- Pray for resources (in terms of people, materials, etc.)
- Pray for the doors that are being opened for the Olympics.
- Pray for discernment.

Personal:
- Pray for our studies
- Pray that we can develop deeper prayer lives
- Pray for our health (we all keep getting sick)

Thanks everyone! I'll see you in exactly 6 weeks!

To Him be the glory forever and ever! =D

I don't have much to say, but it is so beautiful when voices are lifted up to praise our Dad. Even if people don't know the words, or don't even know how to speak the language ... to just hear the passion in their voices ... the yearning and the eagerness to learn more about Him ... it's really encouraging ... and really warms my heart. =)

Please keep 'thinking' about these people. The ones that know Him and the ones that don't. Keep 'thinking' about workers that can shepherd these people. Like I've said time and time again ... a big movement is happening here and it really can be felt. 'Think' about the big event coming up this summer ... I know it will open up doors. Keep that in your thoughts too please.

I'll update more later.

Our Dad is an awesome Dad! =)

So I'm really bad at this blogging thing. *sigh*

Things seem to be getting better the longer we stay here. It's like a part of me really does love this place and if I dare say it, can call it home. It's almost been two months since we left. It's only been two months since we got off the plane, but it feels like it was so long ago. And I know these next two months are going to go by quickly. Before I know it, we're going to be on our plane heading back home. Oh man, I just read over what I wrote and it appears that my English is deteriorating ... which is funny because I speak mostly English here. I'm pretty shy when it comes to using new languages. No matter how much I may know, I'm too scared to try. A really big fault of mine. I am beginning to understand more and more ... only if the people speak slower though ... and if their accent isn't too heavy. LOL.

Yesterday (Sunday) we got an opportunity to go somewhere special. It was quite a special experience I must say. Reading about these things is one thing, but going to actually experience and meet people is another thing. We went to Dad's special home and the family there was really loving. It felt like I've been there for so long. Now I am torn though since I go to BICF on Sundays. We shall see what happens. Oh it's so hard to describe the experience, but it was special. All I will say is that the love in the family and the passion was so authentic. But for certain precautions, I cannot say anymore. I guess I'll have to tell stories when I get home. =)

Anyway, just some requests that you can please keep in mind ...
- for studies (especially language)
- the students we interact with
- the people we interact with
- the lessons we are learning
- and for boldness (to use our language and to really love these people)

Thanks everyone! I shall try to post again soon! Lots of love! =)

Hello! =)

So I know I'm really bad at this whole blogging thing. I'll admit, I don't like blogging too much anymore. But I have committed to updating everyone about what's going on and I think the boys have probably done a much better job about letting you know what's going on since they're so determined to do their blogs frequently. I, too, must commit to this as I know it will help you guys know what's going on and it can serve as a way for me to journal about my experiences. I guess my issue is how much I'm allowed to say. I think that's why I've been avoiding this. How much am I allowed to say on this? I know when I get excited, I tend to ramble on and on. I'd hate if my blog got blocked because of my enthusiasm.

Okay, I rambled on for a long time. I'll give you an update about what's been going on.

In HK, I got to see some pretty cool things. It was basically our time of rest. We went to stay at this organization in HK and helped out there for the next 2 1/2 weeks. Although we did a lot of practical things, and I'll say I got challenged doing things that I didn't think I would do, the experience was worth it. The people were the ones who made it worth it. You could see how JC shined through them, whether they knew it or not. And there goal is to serve the poor and the needy. They want to be JC's hands and feet and it's crazy hearing the stories of G's providence and sovereignty. He always came through when something was needed. This group receives donations from all over the HK area and sends them to charities and places around the world such as orphanages, schools, etc. They take one person's 'junk' and becomes others' treasures. This stuff is in no way junk. They get really good quality things and when they don't, of course they will remove those items. So it's like 'treasure' is being sent all over the world to people in need. G is providing for these people and both sides can attest to that! =)

Another thing that we got to experience while we were there was something called a slum experience. We only spent a few hours making paper bags trying to scrape by to live, but this is the reality of the lives of people in slums. We pushed ourselves to make as many bags as possible, as good quality as possible and then sold them to the store keepers. The store keepers completely took advantage of us .. there were no set prices. If the bags weren't good enough quality, they would just rip them up. They stole from us and even wanted us to do what could be interpreted as special favours (of course it was just like a hug, but we know in real life it wouldn't have just been a hug). So this is the reality of hundreds of thousands of people. The stats they gave us were 1 billion people live on less than $1 US dollar a day and 2 billion people live on less than $2 US dollars a day. They also gave us the stats of the real paper bag industry. An average person working for 10-12 hours a day can make about 200 sellable bags which they will on average receive 1.5 rupees for 22 bags. 1.5 rupees is about 25 cents US? Maybe a bit less. These people are working 10-12 hour days and of course, no breaks, no time to socialize, no time to really connect with their family ... they need to keep making to survive. Can you imagine working 10-12 hours a day making paper bags out of scrap paper and flour water as your glue, and out of your hard days work, only 200 are sellable which you would only get about 13.64 rupees ($2.27 US). My group found that we couldn't get by on just making paper bags. We had bags stolen from us, ripped up and we had to beg, literally beg, the store owners to give us a better price. There is no such thing as bargaining, you are at the mercy of these store owners. And our group was lucky, no one ever got sick, but we still had to do 'special favours' to get by. Of course they seem harmless in these situations because it's just a hug or a shoulder massage, but in real life, many go into it not knowing what they are getting into or worse, they have no choice because they need this money. They were telling us stories of how some store owners require a favour before they give you any money at all for the bags. That's disgusting! I learned a lot from that experience and my heart broke only so much more because I felt so helpless. How do we help these people? I'm not sure what this all means right now to me in my life at this time, but I do know I want to create awareness about it. If any of you are ever in HK area, I really suggest that you visit this organization. They also had stimulation games that can help you walk through the eyes of a refugee (which we didn't get to try) and aids (which we did). The aids experience was quite a scary experience. The life I happened to be walking down was one of choice whereas the other ones were of circumstance. It seemed so unfair because, although once you contract it .. it is a terrible disease, but this person contracted it through choice rather than circumstance. He could have prevented it, but he chose to live that life. And it wasn't like he did anything crazy, he just slept with his gf who previously had a lot of partners and she contracted aids. It's one of those stories that you just never know until something bag happens you know. And this is such a reality all over the world. We live as if nothing can ever harm us, but then sometimes we have to face the consequences of our mess ups. Really. If you're ever in HK, let me know and I can hook you up to that place. It is COMPLETELY worth it!

Okay, I rambled for a long time. I'm back now and we're just readjusting back to life. Please keep in your thoughts all three of us, especially Jon though because he has bronchitis. Mike and I are starting to get sick, but it's not so bad. Things also really start up next week, so please think about our interactions with people.

Thanks so much. I'll try to write more often! Take care everyone! =)