Foreigners 

Our main focus is to make Jesus famous among the Minnan Taiwanese. We shared about that last week.

However, there are many foreigners living in Taiwan.  Some of the Vietnamese and Indonesian workers in the chart above live in our town.  In addition to the above, there are 549,000 foreigners married to Taiwanese, and many more foreigners attending universities and colleges.

1. Taiwan Immigrant Brides and Their Families 2022 Fact Sheet
2. Taiwan World Day of Prayer Movie

Praise and Prayer

• Praise the Lord that one student from the recent camp is regularly attending Sunday School.  Another contacted Pastor Joshua to say her father changed his mind and she cannot attend.  Please pray for God to create ways for children with open hearts to hear about His love.
• Please continue to pray for God to add people to the Baozhong Alliance Church.
• Please pray that a university student or a willing volunteer can be found to help supervise the Homework Club.  The person can also assist the students when they are struggling with homework.

Prayer Reminder

When praying (earlier this month) for people groups with whom The Alliance in Canada is working, we prayed for the Minnan people. That is another name for the people to whom we are ministering.

Worldwide there is a population of 58,258,000 Minnan, with Taiwan being home to 13,497,000. The religion of the majority of Minnan is a mix of Taoism, Buddhism, folk religion, and ancestor worship.

Although it is reported that globally up to 3.7% of the population of Minnan people are Christian believers, the percentage in the community where we work is much lower. In fact, it likely is less than 1%.

The county in which we live has more than 100 temples listed, and our own town website lists 17 notable temples in our small town. These numbers do not include the many unregistered temples which will cause the above statistics to more than double.

Isaiah 42:8 was the verse chosen for the day that we prayed for the Minnan people. I wrote it on a card and carried it in my pocket last week. The card is now well crumpled, but it succeeded in reminding me to keep praying for the Minnan people among whom we live.

Could you create a reminder that will help you to pray for the Minnan people multiple times this week?

Praise and Prayer

• February 28 is Peace Memorial Day in Taiwan. It is a time to remember injustices of the past and commit ourselves to promoting peaceful existence. Please pray that there will be opportunities to talk with people about the peace offered by Christ.
• We have been praying that people will believe in Christ and that some will come to our church to worship. Yesterday, one of the students from camp came to Sunday School. Another student who has not attended for a long time requested her mother to bring her. May God prompt more children to desire to learn about Jesus, and bring their families to attend with them.
• Please pray spiritual protection over the ladies from our church who are praying and doing visitation in Baozhong.

Gestures

You may have noticed in last week’s photo of the campers that some of the students used their fingers to gesture a V.  Although this may have originated as a victory symbol, or may mean peace to others, it has become a common gesture by those being photographed in East Asia.

That gesture is gradually being replaced by the one being demonstrated by Kathy-Lu.  It is a symbol for a heart.  (Read here about the origin of this gesture.)

The heart is often associated with love.  In some stories the size of one’s heart relates to generosity and compassion toward others.  It is also a symbol of trust.

The Bible has lots to say about our hearts.
One verse is:

• Praise the Lord that we are able to join together and pray with others, both those in Taiwan and also with you!
• Praise the Lord that the women of the church are arranging times for prayer and visitation.  Please pray for them as they minister in this way.
• February 28 is Peace Memorial Day in Taiwan.  It is a time to remember injustices of the past and commit ourselves to promoting peaceful existence. Please pray that there will be opportunities to talk with people about the peace

Camp

The last week has been very busy.  Kathy-Lu and Lorne participated in the camp each day, Monday through Friday.

We thank God for visible and invisible results, including:

• Two students are excited about coming to Sunday School.  We are trusting God that they will do that.
• Students who trusted leaders enough to share about their life situations.
• The creative preparation of the short-term team.  There were games, crafts, and English learning that all related to the camp theme.
• Good weather.  Monday we were indoors, but the rest of the week we were able to play games outdoors.
• Positive interactions with the school principal and teachers that will lead to additional opportunities for cooperation in the future.

Thank-you for praying!

Praise and Prayer

• Praise the Lord that Pastor Ruth Yang was released from hospital and is continuing her recovery at an extended health facility.
• Praise the Lord for the 36 students that attended the Winter Camp.  Pray that they will remember the truths they heard and trust in Christ.
• Please pray for God to bless the camp leaders who used their own vacation time and personal finances to come and minister to the students.
• Please pray for follow-up with families with whom we have contact, for planning for youth ministries, and for planning for summer camp.
• Please pray for Lin BaBa’s family as they grieve.  The funeral will be February 18.

Day to Day

Winter Camp

• Safety:  The team is travelling to Baozhong this week.
• Health:  The forecast is 13-24 degrees with no indoor heat.
• Attendance:  That the 34 campers will be able to attend each day.
• Response:  The campers will trust the teachers and believe the gospel.
• Harmony:  Helpers from our church will be working with the team.

• Ruth Yang is the pastor of the Chungli Alliance Church.  On Saturday, she experienced a ruptured aneurism.  The subsequent surgery  was deemed successful and she is being monitored carefully in the hospital.  Please pray for healing and protection from other complications.
• Praise the Lord for relaxation and encouragement as we vacationed and attended meetings in Bali, Indonesia.

Year of the Rabbit

The Year of the Rabbit officially started yesterday, January 22, 2023.  In the Chinese Zodiac, rabbits symbolize mercy, elegance, and beauty. (ref)  People expect blessing and prosperity to happen during this year of the 12 year cycle.

The Bible does not have much to say about rabbits and hares.  The Israelites, according to the Old Testament law, were forbidden to eat them.  (Lev. 11:6; Deut. 14:17) That is not very helpful in thinking of how to verbally bless people.

However, the traditional blessings, such as Psalm 121:8 continue to work well.

Prayer Support

We gathered around and prayed for Jason at the prayer meeting.  He is a senior in high school (grade 12).

He is a young man who who asked to be baptized when he was 13 years old.  He is a committed follower of Christ since.

He will be writing the three-day college entrance exam this week (January 13-15).   If he scores well, he will proceed to interviews at prospective universities.  If his score is less than desired, he can choose to write the exam again in July.

When facing high-pressure moments like this, many high school students will cut out other activities and focus on studying for months before the exam.  But last week Jason testified that he is choosing to continue attending church, even during this time of intense study.  It is evidence that following Christ continues to be a priority in his life.

Join us in praying:

• That God will help him this week to review topics that will be useful to him while writing the exam.
• That God will protect him from worry, and help him to express himself well on the exams.
• That God will continue to fill Jason with faith as he trusts his Saviour to direct his future studies.

Praise and Prayer

• Preparations for the lunar new year have begun.  We, like neighbours, have begun our Spring cleaning.  There will be a church building clean-up on Saturday (Jan. 14).  Pray that people will be as conscious of the need for cleaning of their inner lives as well.
• International workers from the region are gathering Jan. 17-20.  Please pray for safety in travel and encouragement as we share “God-at-work” sightings.”

Happy New Year!

Entering a new year we have anticipations and hopes. We also know that we will face some unexpected things.  Knowing that, we are thankful for a God Who never changes. His character and His Word are eternally the same. He is willing to be our anchor, providing stability when we discover that things are not as they used to be.

Entering a new year, people eagerly anticipate some planned events and realize they will at some point face some unexpected things.  As we await those happenings, we are thankful for a God Who never changes.  His character and His Word are eternally the same.  He is willing to be our anchor, providing stability when we discover formerly reliable things are not as they used to be.

We are also grateful for you! Thank-you for choosing to continue to partner with us in 2023.  We look forward to what God will do in us and around us as we walk with Him in the year to come.  Knowing that He is always good, always loving, always patient, always true,  helps us to feel safe.

May God richly bless you as you choose to reflect upon His Word and prioritize His values as you live your life.

Praise and Prayer

• We have heard from two families that are on home assignment in Ontario this year.  We are thankful that God is watching over them and helping them as they share about ministry in Taiwan.  It is also good to get news that some adult missionary kids are thriving since their departure from Taiwan.
• Thank-you for praying for our friend who had the fire.  She is staying with relatives and looking for another home to rent.
• Please pray for a young man recovering from surgery due to a detached retina.

Thank-you

As we finish another year, we want to let you see some of the people we have helped over the past year.  Together we have helped these people to hear about Jesus and expand their relationship with Him.

Thank-you so very much for helping Taiwanese people hear the good news about Jesus.
(Photo is the Baozhong Alliance Church Christmas Day Pizza Party.)

Praise and Prayer

• Thank-you for praying for Lorne as he told the Christmas story many times last week.
• A friend experienced a fire at her house and lost all her personal belongings and papers.  Please pray for us to have wisdom to know the best way to come alongside and help.
• Praise the Lord for the students and adults who attended the Christmas Day worship service and meal.
• Please pray for students to register for the Winter Camp – Feb 6-10. Victoria Chinese Alliance Church is sending workers to lead the camp activities.

We want to express our sincere thanks to those who have prayed and those who have donated over this past year.  Thank-you for partnering with God and with us to help Taiwanese people hear about God’s love for them.