Online Learning

Even though parents are telling us that learning done using online classes is not as good as in-person classes, it is the current available option.

On Thursday (5/27), we have been invited to use the Fuhsing Elementary School computer to tell the Bible story and to teach class.  It will be class as usual–or maybe not quite as usual.  Our classes are interactive.  It will be both a challenge and a learning experience as we attempt to do this using technology.  The school administration is pleased that we are willing to try to continue classes in this way.

We are uncertain whether this will be a one-time occurrence or will continue into June.  The announcement will be made later this week.

Thank-you for praying for the students and for us as we adapt to pandemic-related protocols.

Praise and Prayer

• Water remaining in some of the reservoirs is below 10% of capacity and hydroelectric power is decreased.  Please pray for God’s mercy to send sufficient rain to relieve the drought.
• The camera for the first part of the online worship service caused the broadcast to flip sideways.  The church sound system lost power and needs repair.  There are many challenges as we grasp the opportunity to worship God together.  Please pray for us as we find ways to solve these challenges.
• Please pray for wisdom as Kathy-Lu seeks to safely continue Bible study and care for women in the community.

Living Life with Gusto

Near our hotel last month, we discovered Gusto Pizza.  They make authentic Napoli-style pizza.  It was delicious.  It might be the best pizza we have eaten in Taiwan.  The chef uses genuine ingredients imported from Italy so that he can provide customers a distinctive taste experience.

As Christ-followers, we worship a God who is unique.  Yesterday we looked at Acts 17:22-31. In 1½ minutes, Paul shares 10 truths about the God we worship. The reflection challenged us to be thankful for who God is, and gave us ideas that we can share with others.

This month, we are praying for God to create opportunities for our church members (including us) to share the gospel with individuals whose hearts are prepared to decide to believe in Christ.

Will you join us in praying that God will create such opportunities?
(Perhaps, you could pray a similar prayer for yourself.)

10 Truths about our God

1. Creator of the universe and everything in it (v 24)
2. Self-sufficient, not needing anyone or anything (v 24-25)
3. Provider and sustainer of life (v 25)
4. Creator of nations (v 26)
5. Sovereign over time and history (v 26)
6. Establishes where people should live (v26)
7. Desires relationship with people (v 27-28)
8. Unlike the gods depicted by human artistic creations (v 29)
9. Full of mercy and grace, giving opportunity for repentance (v 30)
10. At the end of time will resurrect people to face judgement (v 31)

Praise and Prayer

• Praise the Lord that some rain has fallen this past week, but it is a small percentage of what is needed.
• Pray for our friends whose well is not deep enough.  Their farmhouse has no water.
• Praise the Lord, the leadership of the Alliance in Taiwan has approved Pastor Joshua being promoted to be our church’s lead pastor.  An installation service will be scheduled to formalize the appointment and to pray God’s blessing on him.
• Pray for comfort and for decision-making-wisdom for Lin Mama’s family as she continues to be in a coma in ICU.
• Pray with us for opportunities to share the good news about Christ Jesus and encourage people to profess belief in Him as Saviour.

The Watchers

We try to be observers of the culture around us, and are still learning more about life in Taiwan and the things local people value.

Travelling around in the city during our vacation, we discovered that more of life has been digitalized.  Many people pay for purchases and local travel with a phone app or a value-stored card.  And the options available are numerous!

However, there was a feeling of being watched when we returned to our car, lifted the parking fee slip off the windshield, and drove away.  This was the new style parking stub, and it said that the scan codes could not be used at the convenience store like the previous parking system.  The codes on the stub could be scanned using an app on Lorne’s phone to show the amount owing.  How surprised we were to discover that they knew the very minute that we drove away from the parking spot.

It was a reminder that we are not only watching, we are being watched!

• God is determining whether our lives are reward-worthy or not.
• The people around us are observing how we live, what we say, and how we react.  They will see if being a Christ-follower makes any difference.
• We are increasingly being tracked by “technological eyes” that show how we live our lives.

Please pray for us, as you pray for yourself, to live lives that continuously bring glory to God.

Praise and Prayer

• Please pray for God to send rain to Taiwan to relieve the drought.  Pray that He will do it in a way that will show the rain is from Him, not because of someone praying to one of the local gods.
• This will be a busy week!  There are important meetings and happenings each day.  Please pray for endurance as we run the “after vacation” race.
• The leadership team of the Taiwan C&MA will meet on Tuesday.  One of the topics on the agenda is whether Pastor Joshua can be promoted to be the lead pastor of the church.  Please pray for wisdom as they discuss this and many other matters.

It Was Found!

The Taiwanese man thought it was lost forever.  He dropped his iPhone into the lake while paddle boarding.  A year later, because of the current drought, the phone has  been found.  And, after charging, it works! (Story and photo credit)

We all like to read stories like that.  We like to hear of people finding blessing and lost things being found.  It encourages us to have hope.

This news report has made me wonder which stories Jesus would tell if He came and lived with us in this day and age.  Would He still tell the story of the discovery of the perfect pearl?  Would he tell people about the workman discovering the treasure in the field?  Would he tell the stories of the lost sheep and the lost coin?  Or, would He choose another object that present-day people value?

Jesus told those stories to help people see the importance that God places on saving the individual.  He used the stories to communicate people’s need to pursue eternal life.  Please pray with us that as people hear Jesus’s stories, they will understand the value of the life Jesus offers.  Please pray that the Taiwanese working class people will come to experience the life that Jesus offers.

Praise and Prayer

• Please pray for God to send rain to Taiwan to relieve the drought.  Pray that He will do it in a way that will show the rain is from Him, not because of someone praying to one of the local gods.
• Praise the Lord that our new bookkeeper is doing well during the training.  Pray for her as she will attempt to do this month’s books on her own, without being told what to do each step of the way.  We are confident that God will help her to succeed.
• Praise the Lord that we were able to give an Indonesian Bible to Annie.  Pray that her limited Chinese, and limited English, will not stop her from discovering her need for faith in Christ.

A Sign from Heaven

This past week we told the Bible story of the religious leaders asking for a sign from heaven.  They wanted a miracle.  And Jesus responded by telling them to think about the story of Jonah.

It was another opportunity to remind the students about the importance of Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Please pray that the students will understand and remember the Bible stories they are hearing.

Praise and Prayer

• Please pray for comfort for Gavin’s family.  He went to be with his Saviour last Monday.  The Memorial Service is on Saturday (Apr 17).  Lorne has been asked to say some words of condolence.
• Please pray for God’s provision and guidance as plans are made for a one-year home assignment beginning July 2021.
• Please pray that next week’s (Apr 18-25) vacation will be refreshing.
• Please pray for Lin Mama who fell in her home last Tuesday.  She is currently in a coma in the intensive care ward.  Please pray for her family, many of whom do not believe in Christ as she does.  Pray that God will extend mercy and reduce her suffering.

Multiple Celebrations

As many of you are celebrating Resurrection Day Weekend, the people around us are also enjoying national holidays.  But most are enjoying the Children’s Day celebrations and participating in family activities related to the Clear and Bright Festival (Tomb-Sweeping Day).

This made celebrating Easter feel different this year.  With all the special days happening at the same time, no matter where we went there was an atmosphere of something special happening.  But so little of the emphasis in the community was focussed on Christ.  Few people seemed to be thinking of how He provided salvation for everyone.  Once again the need for them to hear about Jesus was very evident.

The local government sponsored Children’s Day activities on Saturday (4/3).  There was a carnival atmosphere (photo collage) as the young children posed for photos, touched animals that they seldom see, or played games.  And of course there was food to sample and food to buy.  There was a special program in the evening.

Because Sunday was both the the day for remembering family ancestors and also the day for celebrating Christ’s resurrection, our service included time for both.  We began with time for personal reflections about family ancestors, and a pastor led in prayer.  He prayed for families to receive comfort, and for us not to forget the positive example of those who have gone before us.  That was followed by a much longer focus on the celebration of resurrection life, as we remembered Christ being raised from the dead.

The Amazing Grace Alliance Church building was full with members from all three churches.  Pastors from each of the churches participated.  Lorne prayed for the children and officiated at one of the Communion stations.

Thinking back to when we first arrived in Yunlin County, we see that God has been working and His church is being established.  It is yet another proof that Jesus is alive!

Praise and Prayer

• Thank-you for praying as we taught about Easter last Thursday.  We could see the students were thinking about what they were hearing and seeing.  Please pray the Holy Spirit will lead them forward toward belief in Christ.
• Praise the Lord that Jenny’s family permitted her to attend Sunday School for the first time in a long time.  Please pray that other children in our community will learn about Christ at an early age, laying a foundation for belief.

Authority

This semester, at Baozhong Primary School, we are telling the story of Jesus healing the centurion’s servant.  The story talks about authority.  The centurion has authority to command soldiers and servants.  Jesus demonstrates his authority by speaking and the servant who is in another location is healed.

In the story we catch a glimpse of Jesus’ power, of his greatness.  And yet, this week we also remember that Jesus set aside that authority and power.  He died on the cross.  He left the perfection of heaven to come rescue created human beings.  He humbled himself and was obedient, even to the point of death.

What Jesus did to rescue us from our sins is beyond imagination.  Take some time to reflect on Jesus and what he did.  We will be doing that on this side of the ocean too.

Praise and Prayer

• We will tell the story of Easter and have related activities in Thursday’s classes (April 1) at Fuhsing Elementary School.  Please pray that the Holy Spirit will use this class to touch students’ and teachers’ lives in a special way.
• Praise the Lord that our three Yunlin Alliance Churches will have Joint Good Friday and Easter services.
• On April 4, Taiwan observes the Clear and Bright Festival (also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day).  The traditional religions promote worship of ancestors.  People are taught to ask the spirits of the deceased for blessing and protection.  Pray that Christians will remain strong in their faith in Christ, trusting in God alone.  Pray for their testimony to family members this weekend.

Happy or Not?

A recent study by the United Nations claimed that Taiwan is the 24th happiest nation on earth, and the happiest nation in East Asia.

Canada in comparison, ranked 15th this year.  Do you feel happy?  Did you ever think about  the fact that you may be happier than some others on planet earth?

But back to reporting on Taiwan and its reaction to the news.  Being the happiest nation in East Asia sounds like something to be proud of.

However, the subtitle of the linked newspaper article indicates that Taiwan is NOT so happy about being labelled as a province of Mainland China.  The “mislabelling” has resulted in a sense that the effort and work of the Taiwanese people was not recognized.  The happiness that the report generated appears to have somewhat evaporated.

We all like recognition for what we do.  God does too!  He says He does not want to share his “glory” with others.  He desires to be worshipped for what He does, giving credit where credit is due.

This is one reason that we must be careful to not take credit for something that we have only contributed towards.  We are making the effort to share about Christ with people around us, but ONLY God can save them from their sins. (Isa. 43:11; Ps. 62:1; Acts 4:12)

We are doing many things to help establish a church in Baozhong Township, but ONLY God causes His church to grow. (1 Cor.3:6-7; Col. 2:19; Eph. 4:16)

Will you please join us in praying for Taiwanese working class people to hear the gospel, believe in Christ, and be added to God’s church?

Praise and Prayer

• Please pray for God to comfort Chen Mama on the passing of her husband.  She is a senior who regularly attends services at our church.
• Please pray for Pastor Joshua to be refreshed as he takes some vacation days with his family this week.
• Please pray for Easter celebration preparations.  We will tell the story of Easter at the April 1 classes in the elementary school.  The three Yunlin Alliance churches will hold Joint Good Friday (April 2) and Easter Worship (April 4) services this year.

Position Filled

We are happy to announce that the volunteer field bookkeeper position has been filled.  It is not the individual in the photo, but we can report that there is a clear sense that God has directed us in the selection of the individual.

Please pray for us as Lorne works via technology to help her learn the bookkeeping system that is used.

Praise and Prayer

• Praise the Lord that Lorne’s computer is back and working well.
• Praise the Lord for some new faces in church on Sunday.  Please pray that God will add new people to the Baozhong Alliance Church.
• Students must take comprehensive exams after High School. The grade obtained determines which colleges the student is eligible to apply to attend.  Please pray for a student from our church who is currently selecting a university for next year.
• Please pray for God’s leading as the church board makes some important decisions at the meeting next Sunday.

Backups

Taking Lorne’s computer in for repairs this last week, we became dependent on backups.  His old computer was still present (yes, it is time to declutter), so it has been pressed into temporary service. After hours of updates (including some frustrating moments when one failed), the computer is being used temporarily.  The external hard drive with more current files is needed.  And, when more up-to-date software was needed, Kathy-Lu’s computer was pressed into service.  Definitely looking forward to the phone call saying the computer is ready for pick up.

We all need backups in our lives.  Sometimes it is technology.  At other times it might be a person.  Occasionally we need a whole team of people. And sometimes it is just a backup plan.  But the most reliable support happens when the technology and the relationships are up-to-date.

We are thinking of backups in another way.  We are planning to return to Canada in July for a one-year home assignment.  While we are away from Taiwan, what roles and what responsibilities need to be covered by someone else?  Please pray for us as we step-by-step plan for those we are working with to have adequate support, enabling them to continue their service to God and to the church.

Praise and Prayer

• Praise the Lord for the comfort that God is providing to those grieving the passing of loved ones. Another local friend is grieving the recent death of her mother.
• Our church members have been asked to write short testimonies of how they are experiencing God in their lives.  These will be shared in a denomination quarterly newsletter.  The desire is to strengthen relationships and prayer support within the Taiwan C&MA.  The next issue will, Lord willing, have stories and prayer requests shared by our church.
• We were made aware yesterday of a couple struggling with employment and relationship issues.  Please pray for wisdom to know how to minister to them.