Out of Gas

Saturday evening, we suddenly found ourselves without power. A few minutes later, the lights came back on at our house and a few of the neighbours’ houses. But most of the subdivision continued to be in darkness. That did not last long as we once again joined those who were sitting in darkness.

When things like that happen, neighbours will frequently go out onto the lane and talk to each other. People made sure that the outage was reported to the power company. And there was visiting, in the dark, on the street. The only light was from a passing vehicle or a few mobile phone flashlights.

Pastor Lee contacted us and requested that a  weekend guest could come and stay in our guestroom. We welcomed her. We stood in front of our house laughing with the Lee family about the fact that we still had hot water at our house. That was because we still use a propane water heater, and have not upgraded to an electric unit (like they have at the church and at Pastor Lee’s house). Everyone said that they would be over in the morning for showers if the power was still not available..

Our guest came and showered, expressing thanks to us and to God for hot water. We all went to bed slightly earlier than usual because of the lack of electric lights. And, of course, had to get up a couple hours later to turn off the lights when the power was restored.

Sunday morning, Lorne was the last to shower. And the water turned cooler and cooler. The propane was used up. But, we were very thankful there was sufficient for our guest to use. And, we will easily have a replacement tank delivered to our house.

God’s provision is enough. In Philippians 4, Paul could be content with the provision of God in Christ Jesus even while in prison and while he was prevented from travelling to preach the gospel. He was confident that God would provide for all our needs, so that we too can be content through trust in and reliance on Christ. I think God wants us to be content even when we run out of propane gas.

Praise and Prayer

Camp News

Elementary Summer Day Camp is scheduled for July 1-5. Once again we will use the Fuhsing Elementary School facilities.

The theme for this year’s camp is “Who am I?” and will include the following stories”

• Monday: John 14:6 Jesus is the Way, the Truth, the Life
• Tuesday: John 6:35,51  Jesus is the Bread of Life
• Wednesday: John 10:11,14 Jesus is the Good Shepherd
• Thursday: John 10:7, 9 Jesus is the Door of the Sheep Pen
• Fri: Exod 3:24  God is the I AM

Praise the Lord we have found three additional English teachers to help that week. Please pray for Nathan, Laura, Jon, Kathy-Lu and Lorne as we plan English lessons that will be taught that week.

Pastor Joshua and our intern Kai will teach songs. Pastor Joshua will also tell the Bible Stories.
The pastor and some volunteers from Living Water Alliance Church in Greater Taipei will assist in leading other camp activities.

Please pray for the registration process and for the plans that are being made.

Praise and Prayer

Mother’s Day

We are thankful for this year’s Mother’s Day celebration at Baozhong Alliance. We had a number of parents attend with their children.

Before going to Sunday School, the students participated in the service by singing and doing the actions to a song about love originating with God. Lorne helped Kathy-Lu with Sunday School because there were 14 students.

While the students were in Sunday School, Pastor Ho shared with the adults from the Bible and her own experiences about a mother’s love.

It was a special day! We hope and pray that God will give more opportunities with today’s attendees, helping them learn more about Christ Jesus.

Praise and Prayer

Interactive Activities

The Baozhong Alliance Church is inviting members of the community to participate in activities sponsored by the church. The first of eight parent-child clay modelling classes happened last Saturday.

A class teaching how to use essential oils and massage techniques will be offered on the Saturday before Mother’s Day.

Please pray for God to help Pastor Joshua with the promotion of the interactive activities. We are hoping to establish and deepen relationships with people in the community. Our hope is that we can share and learn from each other. Attendees will be invited to participate in other church activities.

Praise and Prayer

Unshakable Truth

Isaiah 54:10 is a verse that Kathy-Lu memorized many years ago. It seems appropriate to share it with you in light of the April 3 Taiwan earthquake and the almost constant aftershocks that are being felt since.

We are still in Canada, so we have not personally felt the tremors. But we feel constant concern for the residents of the island that we call home. Canadian Alliance international workers have repeatedly posting to our private chat group, indicating that they are feeling the tremors and that all are safe.

Thank-you for continuing to pray for the Taiwanese. Please include prayers for Christ-followers to be able to testify to the peace that God provides.

Praise and Prayer

Praise the Lord!

Pastor Joshua Lee was officially ordained at a service on Saturday afternoon, March 16. (Online Video Link) Rev. Silas Yang, President of the Taiwan Alliance Church Union officiated at the service. After the laying on of hands and prayer, Rev. Yang affixed the clerical collar that Pastor Joshua is now entitled to wear.

The service was well attended with over 60 adults in attendance. Pastor Joshua’s family attended to witness the event. We are still praying that his parents and other family members will choose to follow Christ as their Saviour and Lord.

Praise the Lord with us!

• A flower-arranging instructor has been found and has agreed to teach a class at the church. Final details of when the class will begin will be worked out with Rev. Joshua Lee.
• A visitor at church yesterday is a believer who will be returning to Baozhong on some weekends to care for her parents. There seemed to be a good relational connection with the women at our church. Please pray that God will use our church to encourage her in her faith.

Praise and Prayer

Ordination

Pastor Joshua Lee will be officially ordained at a service on Saturday afternoon, March 16.

This is a moment of recognition by the denomination that God has both called him to  pastoral ministry and that God is enabling him to do the ministry. It is an expression of affirmation by the church that they accept him as a leader appointed by God to serve in the pastoral role.

Please pray for God’s blessing on him, his family, and the church.

About 60 people are expected to attend the service, including many Alliance pastors from around Taiwan. Even his family are coming to witness this event. Pastor Joshua will host the guests for a special feast after the service.

Because our facility has limitations, some people will participate by watching the service on a television monitor on the second floor.

The service will be at 3 PM Taiwan time (12 midnight on Mar 15, Pacific Daylight Time). The service will be broadcast on the church’s YouTube channel and will remain posted there for delayed viewing. (It is broadcast only in Chinese.) Lord willing, there will not be technical difficulties that day.

Praise and Prayer

Model Student

The elementary school, where we teach and tell stories, chose their model student this past Thursday. The candidates were two sixth-grade boys.

All the students and all the teachers voted. In typical Taiwanese fashion, the votes were publicly counted and the tally was kept for all to see.

The chosen student’s name is forwarded to the county government. The list of model students is published, bringing honour and prestige to the student, his family, and the school. It was a difficult choice as both students display exemplary behaviour.

In Hebrews chapters 11 and 12, we read God’s honour roll. There is a list of biblical characters who are held up as examples of how to live life.

Please pray that we and those who are a part of God’s church in Taiwan would follow the example of those godly people. May we in this way bring glory to God’s name.

Praise and Prayer

Navigation

In today’s world, many people rely on navigation devices. But they are not always reliable in a rural setting. If a person uses Google Maps to come to our house, they will be directed to a neighbor who lives almost half a block away.

The local township government issued new address plaques this past week. Residents are responsible to affix them to the outside of their home (or building). The one in the photo will be attached to the front of the church building. We were one of the first to adhere the new address indicator to the front of our house.

Having house numbers should correct a long-term problem. Most buildings have not had a number that is visible from the street.

In a conversation with a friend, he laughed stating that most people making deliveries already know where the addresses are located. The implied meaning was that the effort made by the township government was maybe unnecessary.

We live in a world where many people believe that they know the location of heaven and how to navigate to it. They have an existing concept of how to relate to the “god” they know.

We commonly interact with Taiwanese who have adopted a pluralistic philosophy. They believe that there are many ways to communicate with God and to get to heaven. Some react to the claim of exclusivity that Jesus made.

Jesus said: “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)

Please pray that curiosity will overcome the sense of being offended by Jesus’ words. Pray people will investigate the teachings of the Bible, discovering the truth about the location of heaven and how to navigate there.

Praise and Prayer

Lanterns

Lantern Festival occurs on Saturday, February 24 (because it is the 15th day of the lunar new year). Most people consider this to be the end of the lunar new year celebrations.

Many view it as a fun cultural activity, with children carrying lanterns (such as the one pictured above). But there are other religious activities associated with this festival:

• The Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival began in 1999. They continue the centuries-old tradition of releasing lanterns into the night sky. Lanterns are made from paper and bamboo, and are lit using a small candle or a paraffin-soaked paper. People use the lanterns to send off wishes (prayers) for well-being in the new year.
• Tainan has been chosen for this year’s national lantern festival. It is the Year of the Dragon. Among the large outdoor display of lanterns will be featured lanterns with a dragon theme.
• Baozhong Township also has a well-known tradition on Lantern Festival. The largest temple in our town organizes a celebration, “The Baozhong Feast Day,”  that will attract tens of thousands of people. People participate to obtain some of the cooked “oily rice” and through that transaction obtain blessing from the temple gods. This past week, the banners advertising the event were attached to roadside poles.

Such activities remind us that people are searching for hope, for peace, for light. Please pray that we can represent our Saviour well and introduce people to the True Light of the World.

Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.” (John 8:12)

 

Praise and Prayer