September 2004 Archives

What I can see from where I am sitting…

Here in Ji Ji it’s almost comical the way the pecking order works. Everyone has kind of picked the chair in which they sit the most often. Like you can usually find Holly perched on the end of the coffee table working away on a computer doing e-mail or whatever it is she does. You might find Sarah and Lydia sharing the chair next to the computer desk. They seem to enjoy that kind of thing. Anthony always has the chair directly opposite of Holly at the other end of the coffee table.

Me on the other hand, I kind of have a Wild Bill Hickok mentality. I hate to sit with my back to a room. So my chair is in the corner next to the CAT switch. This is very important as I spend quite a bit of time on my computer. (some would say to much time but that’s all in the eye of the bee keeper if you ask me). From my seat I get to watch the whole living room/kitchen in action.

In the morning I usually see blurry eyed people come stumbling down the stairs and make a bee-line for the fridge. Of course, it’s morning and they want breakfast or orange juice. Someone will usually plunk down at the computer with a mumbled “good morning” and check their e-mail. I don’t often get to watch everyone leave because I go to my schools earlier most of the time. But the mornings around here are always interesting. You never know what is going to happen. Like for instance, Anthony and I have not had hot water in our bathroom for the last 3 days. This morning it was fixed but it sure made life fun for a while. You can take a really quick shower when you have to, take my word for that.

The afternoons from my seat are not as slow as the mornings. People tend to be doing much more. I get home early on several days so I get to see the looks on peoples faces when they come in the door after school. Sometimes they look really tired and are just glad to be home. This is understandable, because some of the schools are pretty hard on you. Lots off classes and not much rest time. Other times they will come in with a smile and you know they had a pretty good day. Those happen pretty often to. The schools do their best to make sure we have a good day. All of my teachers are really nice and they’ve gone out of their way to make me feel welcome. This week I had one of my teachers invite me out for shaved ice with him next week. He just wants to be friends and that’s really cool.

As the day goes on people start to cook supper and work on their computers checking e-mail and such. Sometimes a CD is playing and I can hear the music. Other times a lively discussion starts up on some topic. Other times the room is very quiet as people go out for the evening. My favorite times though, is when I can see 2 or 3 of the local kids in our living room playing Uno with us. Or maybe they are wrestling with Anthony. You never know what you might see from my seat.

At night I don’t see much from my seat. Mostly because I’m in bed. :- ) But if we have visitors that stay late than I can see friends having a good time. Sometimes I can see people who should be in bed staring with blank eyes at nothing. Sigh…young people, sometimes we are just weird.

Anyway, this update is kind of lame but I didn’t want to write a “this is what I did today update”. Those get old after a while. So sorry if you had to read this and try to understand the way my brain works :- ) But until later this is Daniel from Ji Ji.

Is there any place in America where children show up on your doorstep to play UNO, or stand outside your door, screaming, “LU-CA-SZ! LU-CA-SZ!” until you finally come out? If there is, please let me know… Maybe I’ll move there if I ever leave Taiwan.

You can’t really experience Taiwan, unless you meet the hunched over old man selling his (dou wai!) soup in the street, the 7-11 cashiers, or the elderly women collecting oysters on the beach. For me, I never experienced the urgency of eternity until I saw “Peter”, a student here in Kinmen; or “Jonson”, one of my 6th graders from last year. There are so many precious people of Taiwan who seem to have been forgotten by the Gospel. Living here has challenged me to live life with an eternal perspective. Playing basketball outside with some Jr. High friends isn’t mere “exercise” anymore, but an opportunity to be salt and light. Teaching school, making friends, (and yes, playing Uno), is done not for pleasure, but for the hope that somehow our influence makes a difference.

Allen is one of my fourth grade students from last year. During one of the lessons, he and his classmates got in trouble for smoking (during class). (Okay…I’m sure I’m not THAT boring…) His mother is deaf, and his father doesn’t seem to be around. He lives in an old home in Jincheng with his Mom and Grandpa. I visited his house several times, and the scene is only what you’d think you would see on National Geographic. I know this is not the only “Allen”. There are “Allens” all over Kinmen and Taiwan (and America). Their pain and sadness is real. Each day is a struggle though the pain of life with the very real absence of hope. Since Allen doesn’t speak any English, it is hard to communicate with him. Somehow, though, I know that playing a card game, riding bicycles, or just “hanging out” may help him in the smallest way.

There are so many faces of people here in Kinmen that I will never forget…the children, the Jr. High students, our dorm students, the church…The need in our small island of Kinmen is great…and beyond this island as well. We often walk to our beach and look across the ocean at the coasts of China, and just imagine the millions upon millions of souls there. God wants to show Himself strong to the ends of the earth, and His salvation to the uttermost parts of the world. Maybe it can start here in Kinmen.

Lucas Stewart,
Kinmen Island

Well let’s meet the team…

First off we have Benjamin Jacob all the way from Virginia he comes from a family of seven children. The first thing about Ben is that he is well read. Ben is like a walking dictionary he studies hard and is always working on learning something new. Ben is the team leader here in Hualien and also the teams stationed here in Taiwan. From the moment Ben wakes up till the time he goes to bed he is going full steam ahead whether on the phone or taking care of issues that come up he rarely stops to breath. I really appreciate that Ben is working hard to build a team spirit and family. Ben is striving to really unite us all together and keep our focus on reaching the lost here in Taiwan. If I could use a word to describe Ben it would be endurance and a visionary.

We then have Gracia Engle coming from Indiana. Gracia over the last few years has been involved in serving people food day in and day out at a center in Flint Michigan. From the few chances that I’ve had to talk with Gracia I’ve been encouraged in the way she continues to serve others even when she’s given a tough task. Gracia is very quick to take care of the jobs the rest of us don’t really want to do. I would have to say that Gracia is definitely someone who serves. Gracia its great having you here!

Coming from Spokane Washington we have Christian Furrow. Christina has been a joy to have around over these past two weeks. Christina is definitely one that gives energy. I don’t think there has ever been a time that I have seen her without a smile. Christina has quickly taken to Taiwan and is doing a great job at school teaching the children. If I could use one word to describe Christina it would be Enthusiasm.

We then move to Canada where we have Katrina Nisly. Katrina is someone that I’ve been with from almost day one since coming to Taiwan. As I’ve had the chance to work with her at most of the camps and also here in Hualien I’ve noticed the encouragement that she brings to everyone she meets. Katrina has a way with the Taiwanese people that amazes me. Katrina is quick to make friends but is also one the shows compassion to those she meets. She is one to pray for them and help them along. I know she also has a ministry even for the girls that are here and is always seeking ways to encourage them. If I could describe Katrina it would be Discernment. Katrina it is great having you here and I’m especially grateful for having the chance to work with you for the year.

Last but not least we have Jo. Josephine comes all the way from British Columbia from a family of many brothers. Jo has been working with troubled youth for the past 2 years in Indianapolis. During the summer I’ve seen Jo grow in many ways in her walk with God. Jo has taken on the responsibility of keeping us fed and out of the hospital. She has shown great creativity in working with the different meals as finding ordinary items are impossible to find. Jo is also working at a school of over 1000 children, by far the biggest out of the rest of us teachers in Hualien. If I could describe Jo it would be one who is Flexible.

Thank you all for praying for those of us here in Taiwan. It’s been a great blessing to hear from you and we are encouraged that we are not alone.

This first month has been great. Not that it’s been flawless; however, I know that through difficult situations God is still here and he will never leave me nor forsake me Hebrew 13:5.

God really answered a huge prayer request right in the first week. I was worried that once we got to the island; we would immediately have to start teaching in the schools before we could get a chance to settle down and to get to know each other as a team. That wasn’t the case. We had almost a whole week by ourselves. We spent that time resting, preparing for school, and getting to know each other.

The 2nd week was my first week in school. I was very happy to see them, and they seemed just as happy to see me (well, some of them). Though I kept the same schools, I now work with more new Chinese English teachers than old ones. Only 5 of the 9 are back from last year, and I teach with 6 new teachers for a grand total of 11. So far, it’s working out great.

As of right now, I have been teaching for three weeks and enjoying it more than last year. I still struggle with coming up with creative games that the kids would enjoy and also learn something at the same time. My control over the classroom varies from class to class, but teaching students whom I already knew from last year is an advantage.

One day God convicted me about my love towards others. I had been thinking about how much I cared for some of my students when it struck me that I probably wouldn’t feel the same way if they weren’t so nice to me. God so loved the world, not just the nice kids who smile, answer questions, and give you gifts between classes; but the other ones who swear, steal, and talk loudly when your trying to teach. As a Christian, God provides me the grace to practice this love towards all people. It is by love that the world knows that I am a Christian. God can use me, and all other Christians, to impact the world for His glory, but we can’t do anything unless we apply this basic principal to our lives. Please pray for us.

Praises:

How do you get 50 cute little Chinese kids to stop pulling out your arm hair? This is the question that I have been asking myself over the past two weeks.

On Thursday, I discovered the answer. The minute they reach out to grab a fistful of armhair, I grab a fistful of head hair, needless to
say I think I have cured them of their bad habit.

The past two weeks have been awesome, I have taught english before in different places, but none so different as this. Each one of my schools has it's own special uniqueness, and that is why I like each one of them.

My Monday school is way, way up in the mountains, and the scenery is absolutely beautiful up there. Because it is so far up in the mountains, most of the students are aboriginal and so they do not even speak Chinese let alone English, but that's okay I like the challenge.

Every day when I go out, and see all the people and realize that most of them probably don't know the Lord,and At times it hurts me so much to see them so decieved by Buddhism and all the other false religions that they acknowledge here.

Right down the street from our house there is a Buddhist temple. Whenever we go out of the house, we are greeted by the pungent smell of incense, which is always a reminder of the darkness that surrounds us.

Sorry that this is short, but I think this is all for now.

Later
Anthony, in Jiji

I am now teaching at the school that I will be working at all year. It is a very large school for Hualien with over a thousand students attending every day. Due to the large number of children we also have a fairly large number of teachers staffed here. I was very surprised to learn that there are over sixty teachers here. Just this August the school hired a new principal and so there has been a lot of changes and for some reason there is a lot of stress at this school. Everyone wants to make the new principal happy, but on the other hand they really don't care what he wants they just want to do their job and go home. So everyone and their neighbors walk around stress beyond help (well it seems like that is the case).

The first week was easy; I just didn't let their stress get to me. Besides that I was not really teaching so there was no way they could get upset with my teaching skills. I kind of just slid by enjoying the week and the children, life was great. But the next week well that was a totally different story I had to start teaching. To top that of I also not only taught English, but I also had to teach Drama. Honestly, I was in over my head. I was trying to teach English after only two months of experience and also teach Drama when the fact is I cannot even act myself. I began to allow the cares of this world to take my focus off of Christ and instead I began to allow myself to be worried about what the kids were going to learn, if the kids would understand me, what the principal might think of my teaching skills and so on and so forth my worries got bigger and bigger every minute. As my worries grow so did my stress level until the truth is I was useless. I could not think right and respond to situations correctly.

Through all this the Lord taught me that His love is the only thing that should truly matter to me. Rom 8:35-38 talks about God's love: it's importance and that there is nothing that can separate us from the love of Christ. No trials, no bad classes, no horrible curriculum, and not even a principal that does not speak English can stop God's love from poring down on me. When I came to realize that and start to live the fact that only God's love matters to me then I was able really start ministering to the Chinese at my school.

His Servant,
Josephine Papp

The children listened quietly as I explained some simple grammer rules. I was passing out papers for the game I'd planned when the bell rang. Class dismissed, and I was glad it was done. It had been an unusually hard class- despite it's rough beginning, the class was unusually quiet. This was probably one of the roughest classes I've had yet. Despite that, I walked out of the class room with a slight feeling of having made more of a connection with the kids. That made the whole class worth it.

My sister refers to Wednesday "hump" day. Around here, at least in Kinmen, it seems to be one of the harder days. For me, it's the day I go to one of my favorite schools. I look forward to it because I get the entire class time (forty minutes) to teach what's in and out of the books. It's a great challenge- especially getting "out of the books"- a concept which I've yet to master. So fourth graders have to learn about "f?" Like they don't know that already. Alright- time for an out-of-the-book a creativity call. "Ok, repeat after me: Fifty-five fire fighters fight five fires." Good job. Ok, so that took about ten minutes for them to be able to say, but they eventually got it, and got a good laugh out of it as well.

Score.

So the goal for next week? Teach "out-of-the-book." You know, I've never found a book that had everything a person needed to learn in it- except One. The best Book ever written- with a story of love that continues in my own life, and never ends. Yes, I mean the Bible.

From the island,
Ginger Jernigan

Well, today was my day to go to my favorite school. I really like teaching at my Tuesday school. I have 3 sixth grade classes, a first grade and a second grade. In my sixth grade classes I don’t really have any books that I have to follow. They have a basic subject that they talk about during the week and I can just pull vocabulary words and conversation out of that. It really makes my job easier if I don’t get put in a box. My teaching style is so unlike anyone else’s that I have a hard time with curriculum sometimes. People just can’t write a book for someone like me.

So, today in sixth grade we were talking about the Moon Festival. Why you might ask? Because it’s coming up next Tuesday and they need to learn some English for it. We talked about barbeques and fireworks, beef and chicken, pomelas and Moon Cakes. It was a blast. I also got to learn all about what the Moon Festival is all about. I will now take the time to tell you the story. So, little children, pull up a chair and sit really close. You don’t want to miss any of this. It’s really good!

Long, long ago in a land far, far away there were 10 suns who ruled the day. Normally these suns were good and brought much happiness to the earth down below, however one day a great king made the suns angry. He sinned against their greatness and made them appear in the eyes of men to be weak and lame. So, to teach the evil king a lesson the ten suns began to burn upon the earth . They made it so hot that neither plants nor animals could survive. Everything began to die and wither away. Nothing was left untouched. The king would cry out day and night seeking the suns forgiveness but it never would come. He had infuriated them for the last time and they would make him pay.

In desperation the king called for anyone, anyone at all who could help end the drought. From out of his army came a mighty man who said he would do battle with the suns and save the earth from death. So he went out and fought a might battle to the death! For days and nights the battle went on with no one knowing who would win. Sometimes the suns would win, sometimes the man. At long last the man shot an arrow through 9 of the ten suns and brought them down in death. The last sun, seeing that he was all alone gave himself up in service to the earth and troubled her no longer.

In reward for this great deed, the king gave the warrior magic pills that would make him live forever. The only problem was that the warrior was a jerk and no one liked him. He got himself married to the prettiest woman in the world and then preceded to misuse all the people in his country and also his wife. So, one night his wife got up and stole all his pills and killed her husband. Feeling like living forever would be a good thing she then went on to eat all the pills at once. Everyone knows that if you take to many drugs you will get high. This is what happened to her and she began to float, float and float away, all the way to the moon. She got to the moon and she realized that she was not where she should be. She figured that the gods would make fun of her for getting herself up there and so she made a palace for herself on the backside of the moon. The palace was called “The Cold Place” but because she was so beautiful it shown with light.

Now, ever so often I’m told, the moon will turn all the way around and everyone can see her full beauty. This only happens once a year. The same time as the moon festival. On this one night you can see her beauty in it’s fullest glory. The moon will not shine any brighter on any other night. So, they have a festival in her honor. People will sit under the moonlight thinking that her beauty will soak into their souls and make their love for each other that much stronger. Husbands and wives, boyfriend and girlfriend, mothers and daughters, fathers and sons. Everyone.

And that is the story of the Moon Festival. Right now we are planning on having a team Barbeque on that day. We don’t have school so I think the team from Nantou will be coming down. But we’ll see what happens.

Until next time this is Daniel in Ji JI

I can hardly believe that I’ve been in Taiwan for almost three months already! When I originally thought of coming I only wanted to commit for six months. If I would have done that I would almost have reached the half way mark of my stay in Taiwan. Right now I’m asking myself how I’ll be able to leave at the end of the school year! I’ve definitely come to love this country and its people.

With two weeks of this semester “under my belt” I’m beginning to feel like I have a better knowledge of what I’m expected to do at “my” four schools, although there are many times when I feel like I’m not sure how to actually do it. I have really good teachers to work with and although the language barrier creates some interesting challenges I’ve been able to have a lot of great times with them already. Please pray that as we begin to build relationships we can introduce our friends to Jesus – the most important person we can ever have a relationship with!

The kids are so much fun! They love to here me practice my Chinese and are quite willing to teach me new words. I point to something and tell them what it is in English and get them to repeat it several times. Then I point to the same object and say, “Chinese?” They tell me and I repeat it several times. It’s amazing how quickly breaks and lunch time goes by when you start doing that!

In many ways I feel like my “race” here is only beginning. I have a long way to go and so very much to learn. But I’ve found the Lord is faithful and has provided the grace and the strength for each step of the way. May you find His grace and strength to be real in your lives as well!

Thank you for your prayers!

Katrina Nisly ~ Hualien

I am currently teaching at 4 different schools a week, Monday through Thursday. I share my Monday and Wednesday school with Isaac. Kong Shou and Ping Her are both large elementary campuses. They remind me more of a huge High School rather then just an elementary teacher.

I 'm loving all my schools, but I think if I had to pick favorites it would be my two smaller schools. There is more of a chance for me to create relationships with my students there.

The children are very warm hearted and full of curiosity! I'm smiling right now just thinking about the precious moments they bring. Like when they are on their ten minute breaks in between classes and come find me where ever I am, just to have me come play with them or to teach me Chinese. *smile* or the way they just all have to run up and say hi and then run away quickly. I think they run away so I won't have time to respond in English to them “personally”!

I've noticed the children's starvation for affection and the wondered look in their eyes. It breaks my heart to see some of these children almost cower with the fear of being unable to live up to the expectations that are set before them. Education is (if I may call it this) a form of an idol that they worship with out realizing it. They must succeed or else fail and lose face and shame their family. I wish you all could see the system in which they use here. Everything is neat, in order, and in discipline. It's a very interesting to watch the marches in the morning to the formal traditional introduction before every class.

Nevertheless I enjoy teaching the students; so far it has brought me much joy.

Christina and I went and got our hair shampooed and style!! Now that was an interesting experience! Being a cosmetologist myself I was very much intrigued by it all! *smile* Needless to say it was a wonderful experience and I am very much looking forward to my next visit back to the salon. Maybe I will know more Chinese then......

Please continue to pray for us as we set up a new routine here. Tuesday afternoons and evenings we are hoping to set as our night to devote ourselves as a team, to minister to our fellow teachers. Inviting them for an American dinner or games. We would like to see it as a time of building friendships and ministry. The Lord has graciously given us many people to wittiness to, but now it's time to schedule them all in you might say! *smile* Please also remember to pray for our families at home. Satan likes to attack in many ways and often times it is with our loved ones as a target. The seasons here are rapidly changing so it is said that now is the time people in Taiwan start to get sick, please remember to pray for our health.

Thank you so much to those of you that have sent notes of encouragement to us. It has brightened my day and encouraged my heart to continue on with the work that has begun here.

”For I know that whatever God does, it shall be forever. Nothing can be added to it, and nothing taken from it. God does it, that men should fear before Him." ~ Ecclesiastes 3:14

From Nantou with love,
Mai Lewis

Greetings from the tiny island of Kinmen! It’s been awesome living here. Building relationships, seeing God work, and eating fish are just some of the great things this island holds. Those who DON’T know this island exists probably outnumber those who do, yet I like to think of it as one of the world’s best kept secrets. Kinmen, although a part of Taiwan, is situated just off the coast of China. And I’m talking, if you stood at the closest point to China (on little Kinmen), you would be one mile from it. About 50,000 people call Kinmen home.

The island is famous for peanut candy, wine and knives. It’s really cool, actually- a percentage of the knives are made out of shells left over from the war forty years ago. One of the things that make Kinmen different is the frequent signs you see that say “DANGER MINES!” also left over from the war. But never fear-they’re slowly but surely cleaning them out. The people of Kinmen are some of the friendliest you’ll meet. It’s not uncommon to be walking down the street and hear “HELLO! HOW ARE YOU?” It took us a while to decipher that the translation is “welcome to my country and look, I know a little English!”

Kinmen is the home of a military base so we frequently see soldiers sprinkled among the assortment of young and old. As far as the island itself? We live on an Oasis! The ocean is never too far away and between the beach and… well the beach is rather pretty. I love living here. I’m convinced God has His hand on this island in response to the prayers of His saints. There are less than one percent Christians here on the island but those that are here, pray. It’s sweet to be here and see God at work.

Thank you, every one of you for your prayers, I wish I could give every one of you a hug. Like one of my team members wisely said, “prayer is the work”. Whether it’s seeing God bring a person one step closer to Him or just being encouraged and refreshed, we are ever aware that it is you standing in the gap making the difference. Thank you.

Megan Jeffries, Kinmen team

Question of the day: How do YOU like ‘stinky tofu’?

Thought of the day: ‘Faithful is He who has called YOU who also will do it.’

Two years ago I went to Excel 19 and at Excel you have to draw your state map and know about the state you live in. At the time I thought that this was another part of useless knowledge that I need to know in order to pass the test. I never in my wildest dreams would have thought that two years later I would be standing in a classroom on the other side of the world teaching 3rd and 4th graders how to speak English and having to draw my state map on a chalkboard in Jiji Taiwan.

I find it so amazing how everything we do, and everything we learn, and the people we meet are all a part of God's sovereign plan for our lives. It is by his grace that he allows us to go through struggles and hard things. It is by his mercy that we are not consumed daily. It is God who puts you in and through every experience to test you and to humble you to know what is in your heart (Det 8:2). It is God who sees the areas that we need to grow in, and then places us in them.

I am so happy here in Jiji I know that this is where I am to be right now. Some times I think that I signed up for something that is to big for me to do. How in the world am I ever going to learn enough Chinese to speak to these kids. But that is not all up to me, it is God who equips me to do the thing that he has called me to. It is God who will put the words in my mouth. I believe that every experience that we go through is for his glory. Even if it is the hardest things in life, or dying to dreams that you don't want to die to. It is in the death that we can in some way share in his death and sufferings.

I am so grateful that God put our team together. It is the right team for me, everyone is so different, but yet we each have strengths, and so that makes us a great team.

Sarah Deluca
Jiji

“When I think of how others have suffered for the faith, a little [discomfort] or unkindness seems a mere trifle, not worthy of mention.” C.H. Spurgeon

A Chinese proverb comes to mind as I write this update. “The snake should not try and swallow an Elephant.” I feel very much like a poor snake trying to cram an elephant down his throat. In a report such as this one has such little space to mention the myriad of impressions which burn themselves into your memory on an hourly basis. There is too much to tell so I will not try. I simply wish to tell you of the goodness of our God!

First, He has given us an incredible team. I wish you could meet each one. Daily I am challenged by their passion, humbled by their selflessness, and amazed by their love. Second, He has given us incredible children and Chinese Friends. I wish you could have seen them all sing “Father I adore you”, hear them laugh, or hug them goodbye at the end of each day. Finally, God has given us Himself.

My goal in coming on this trip was to “know Christ in the power of His resurrection the fellowship of his suffering, being conformed unto his death.” God has answered many prayers, and even in this short week I have known him in a new and deeper way. I have felt the power of his resurrection coursing through me, as I actively participate in putting death my flesh, as my will is conformed unto his. There is no feeling like it in the world, for the first time I can understand what Paul meant when he said “though outwardly we are wasting away, inwardly we are being renewed day by day!”

Ben Jacob

Good evening, why don’t you come in and have a seat? Let me tell you about my experiences the last few days.
My normal routine for a weekday is as follows:
6:30 am – rise and prepare for the day.
7:30 am – leave Ying Pan for the school I will be teaching at for the day.
7:50 or 8:40 am – teach first class, followed by 3 or 4 more, depending on the day. Usually with 10 or 15 minute breaks in between.
12:00 pm – Lunch at the school with my teachers.
1:30 pm – Teach afternoon classes (Mondays); head back to Ying Pan for study or preparation for the next day.
4:00 pm – School ends.

I spend my evenings with my team, cooking dinner, playing the piano, writing letters, and preparing lessons for the next day(s). My schedule is kind of unique, I only have 1 day (Monday) where I have afternoon classes. This is possible because I teach 5 morning classes on Tuesday (starting at 7:50 am), and 4 on Wednesdays and Thursdays. It is kind of tiring sometimes having all those classes in the morning, but I am grateful that I have the afternoons as open as I do.

The school I teach at on Wednesdays is named Tsao Tun. I teach 4 of the 6th grade classes. Christina also teaches at Tsao Tun, she has 5 5th grade classes. Tsao Tun is a large school; it has over 1000 students, and is the oldest school in its area (Tsao Tun city).

I like it though, the teachers are friendly, the students are (generally) well behaved, and I am able to get to know a lot of the kids, even though the school is so large. Today, I was able to play ball with some of the 5th graders. I like these opportunities because I am able to actually get to know some of the kids on a personal basis, not just as the teacher in English class.
The rest of my team (Christina Moody, Mai Lewis, Joel Feig, and Isaac Mazur) follow similar routines with their schools. I enjoy coming home in the afternoon and hearing funny stories about things that happened at their school that day. A good laugh is encouraging after a long day of teaching.

We walk in the strength of the Lord, and go forth by His might. Pray that we will continue to draw on the Lord’s strength as we carry out our responsibilities here.

Chase Hiebsch
Ying Pan

Well, quite some time has passed since I have had a chance to write the team update! I have been so many places, done so many things, and had so many new experiences that it is hard to know where start!

I guess I’ll start by telling what’s happened since I came to here to the island of Jingmen. Ginger and I arrived here two weeks and two days ago on a Sunday. It was an incredible sight as our plane flew in and we could see the coast of Mainland China in the distance! We were so glad to be here! It is impossible to describe how it feels to finally unpack and settle in somewhere after living out of a suitcase for close to eight weeks! Ginger and I enjoyed settling in and learning our way around Jingmen. We struck out on our own for the first couple days here because the rest of our team, Drew, Lucas, B.J. and Megan had not arrived yet. It has been fun getting to know each other, and learning to work together and live together as a team. God has blessed us and given us a unity that has greatly enhanced our first two weeks together. It’s gonna’ be a good year!

How can I put into a few words the many and varied experiences that have made up my first weeks of teaching English in Jingmen classrooms?! This is a bigger challenge than I’ve undertaken in a while! To encompass my thoughts in one sentence, I guess I could say that I’ve seen my weakness, and God’s never failing strength during this past week as never before. There is just no way that I would have had the courage, the creativity, the enthusiasm, and physical energy to walk into my classrooms for the first time without Him! Amid the whirlwind of kids, teachers, curriculum, meetings, names, etc. one thing stands sure, and that is the confidence I have that my Savior’s presence is constantly by my side! I am so grateful for that assurance, and the peace that it brings!

I am teaching at five schools, and four of them are very small, so I am enjoying getting to know some of the kids. They are so welcoming and friendly! It is a great way to start a teaching day to get out of the car and be surrounded by sweet little faces all cheering my arrival, and wanting to help me carry my things. Don’t get me wrong…not every student is this way, but it’s nice to have some who are! There have been some classes that have challenged me more than others, but I’m still alive to tell the story! I still can’t believe I’m actually here, and teaching in Taiwan! I thank God every day for bringing me here and giving me the awesome opportunity to have an impact on the lives of these children!

Please continue to pray for our teams in Taiwan, and especially for our team here in Jingmen. There is a great spiritual darkness here, and the people are in such bondage to their fear of the supernatural world. They know that there are powers bigger then they are, but they need to see the light and truth of God’s Word to know that HE is bigger and more powerful than all of their superstitious traditions. We have a burden to spread that light, and proclaim His truth, and we covet your prayers as we seek to do this. What joy it brings to know that Christ has already won the victory, and He will see His will carried out! It is exciting to serve Him and see what He is going to do here in the lives of the people of Jingmen!

For the Jingmen team,
Rebekah Gilley
Phil. 1:20

I arrived in Jiji Taiwan at 2:00 am on Tuesday morning after leaving home at 9:45 am Sunday morning. I have not figured out exactly how much time I spent en route, but when I arrived I was exhausted.

There is much to adjust to. Life in Taiwan is very different from life at home, however I am settling in alright. Today was my first day of classes. I was nervous at the beginning of the first class, but by the time I taught my final class for the day I was completely at ease. I still miss home a little bit, but I have a great team. I think that we will grow a lot together. All in all, I think that this is going to be a growing time in Taiwan. These past seven days in Taiwan have been life changing.

Lydia DeLuca,
Jiji Taiwan

Sunday, September 12, 2004

I had the privilege of joining the team here in Taiwan on Monday coming directly from Taipei to where I’m stationed here in Hualien. It has been a very busy week with a lot of adjustments and 1st’s as you can imagine, but all in all it has been a good week.

We were able to attend a local church last night instead of this morning, which seemed a little different at first, but it was well worth adjusting to a different time to be able to be there. When I flew here on Saturday/Monday, what with crossing the timeline and all, I completely missed out on Sunday and I hadn’t realized just how much I missed it until we got to the church. It was so awesome to know that even though I couldn’t speak enough Chinese to communicate with the people; these are my brothers and sisters in Christ. One neat thing that happened at church was that one of the members offered to interpret the sermon for us and then visited with us at a ‘Bing Shaw’ (Drink Stand) afterwards. In the course of the conversation, we found out that he had just gotten back from taking a TESOL course in Flint Michigan…the same one led by Karen Chen and Doug Saddler that a lot of us took before coming to Taiwan.

Today has been very relaxing with heavy clouds and rain (although it stopped long enough for us to go for a bike ride and get some fresh air,) spending time as a team and resting up for a busy week ahead. In reflecting back on the week it is so reassuring to be able to see God’s provision exactly when I needed it and to know that He will continue to be faithful in the week to come. Please pray for us this week as we continue to meet new kids and learn to work with the different teachers. I was asked this week, “Why did I come to Taiwan? How was I able to come here not knowing the language or anything?” Pray that God will always provide the right answer to share with each person He brings into our lives.

Christina Furrow
~Hualien

This week had been the most interesting week of my entire stay in Taiwan so far. I started teaching at four different schools this week, and three of them have never had an American English teacher before. I teach 18 classes a week, Monday through Thursday, to grades 1-6. It is so much fun to work with these children. Most of my students have never met a foreigner before, so this week I spent most of my class time explaining who I am, where I am from, and why I have blond hair and hazel eyes (which is hard because I don’t know. Something to do with chromosomes, I think). I have the privilege of teaching some of the cutest children in the world. I might have to take some home with me when I go back.

My schools range from 150 to 700+ students. I teach at the school I live at once a week, and my other schools are from 10 min. to an hour away. The teachers I work with are great. They are very friendly and appreciative of Americans coming to teach. A lot of the teachers I work with speak very good English, which is very good to work with. Most of the time we have a lot of freedom in what we are teaching so lesson planning will be very interesting on account of the different grade levels, and the different English levels between the classes in each school. I know that I will need extra grace to keep with the new struggles.

Today the team from Jiji came here for a visit. They will stay overnight and go to church with us tomorrow. It is great to see American friends again, even if they are strange (Americans in general, not just the team in Jiji). The people who arrived in Taiwan last week will start teaching this week. It should be a lot of fun. Pray that they will continue to adjust well to Taiwan.

Pray that our team in Taiwan will have good success teaching English, and that we would be confident in what we are doing. Also pray that we would have good relationships with the teachers and school officials we work with, and that the influence we have on our students would be one in which Christ is glorified. Pray that we will have the wisdom to trust in the strength of the Lord and not our own. This is such a great experience for all of us, and I hope that I will be a willing and useful tool in the hand of the Master, Jesus Christ.

May God richly bless you as you seek Him.
From Yingpan in Nantou,
Joel

Hey, Everybody!

For those of you who don't know me -- that's almost everyone :-D -- my name is BonnieJean Bavido. I go by "BJ" here in Taiwan, and I'm 22 years old. I served on the island of Kinmen last semester, and am very happy to be stationed here again for this year. The team here is fondly called both the "Retirement Team" and the "Sporty Team." (Yes, we know those two titles contradict.) :-D

Since most of the Kinmen team members are "old," I think I'll introduce each of them to you.

(Andrew) Drew Stewart is our team leader. I'm so grateful to have him as my leader again this year. He avoids either breathing down everyone's necks or being a non-existent leader, but is instead a great balance. He takes his responsibilities seriously, and I appreciate how he applies himself to being our spiritual leader. He loves the kids and loves teaching on the smaller island of Kinmen (that he boats over to two days a week). He's a great example of being the servant of all, and is also close with his brother (which is always a great sign! *grin*). And he does quite well in his role as leader of the "sporty team," organizing bike rides, etc.. :-D

Lucas Stewart is Drew's younger brother and was recently named Director of Domestic Affairs. He jumped right on the job and organized a card-playing/cookie-baking bash last night, with kids from our dorm and from the church's youth group. He's great with both younger and older kids, and has made a ton of friends here at the Jr. High (where we live). I think he knows every single basketball term in Chinese now, as he plays frequently with the kids on the court by our dorm. He also takes the initiative to do all sorts of things around the dorm which keep things running smoothly.

Megan Jefferies was my roommate last semester and is again this year, which is a tremendous blessing. She's such an encouragement as she continually strives to be closer to the Lord. This will be her second year in Taiwan, and she loves Kinmen. She's yet another great servant on our team, often "fighting" with Drew over who will get to do the dishes. :-) She isn't naturally animated or outgoing, but does a great job of throwing herself into people and stepping outside her comfort zone to make them feel welcome and loved. I've learned a lot from her, and she's a great help whenever anyone needs help with lesson-planning ideas.

I'm afraid I have no time to say anything about Ginger or Rebekah, but you all know how great they are! :-D We're all so thankful that God has brought them here to Kinmen, and are enjoying getting to know them.

BJ

Check out an extended entry from Sep 5th.

Please make note that there are now two separate posts on this day.

Team Update 52
I volunteered for today's update. I am not sure why, but I did, so here it goes.

This week has been really good for me. I have been able to move back
into the same place that I lived last semester. I was also able to start teaching this week.

I know two of my schools pretty well, and the other two I have visited both and know at least one person at the school. The teachers that I am working with are all very good. At one of my schools, the Principal and his wife are Christians and are always very kind to us.

The teacher that I worked with today is one of my friends here in Taiwan. He is very creative and is allowing me to be creative in what we are teaching. We only have written curriculum for one of our five classes. That means that we will probably either find curriculum or will write our own.

The highlight of the day was going to McDonald's for dinner. Well, maybe it was not the highlight but it was nice to enjoy something close to an American meal. We had (Chinese) Italian last night and that was pretty good, but what we go through to get McDonald's is always interesting to see.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we adjust to life in Taiwan. Three of our team members here in JiJi have not started teaching this week, so please pray for them as they start next week. Please pray for us as we build friendships with our teachers and with students. Pray that the Lord would give us a chance to share the Gospel with them.

God Bless,
Holly Polson
JiJi team

My first day in Hualien was very long. Actually, I’m not sure which was longer, the flight over, or the day that we spent in Hualien. I arrived safely in Taipei at about 5:30 AM on the 6th . Christina arrived about 6:00 AM, and then we took a three-hour train trip to reach Hualien. We managed to stay awake by talking for almost the entire trip there, much to the chagrin of the person sitting in front of us that wanted to sleep. We were trying to stay awake, and he was trying to go to sleep. Somehow, it didn’t work very well!

After we met up with the rest of the team, we spent the rest of the day “shopping.” Christina and I were just trying to stay awake, we weren’t looking for anything to buy at all! We were doing really well, until it started raining. Being the typhoon season, it didn’t just rain lightly. It poured down by the buckets! We were pretty thoroughly wet by the time that we reached Carrefour, even though we did stop to buy some umbrellas.

We all finally arrived back home around 9:30. By that time, we were totally soaked and very tired. I would strongly doubt that any of us had problems falling asleep that night! I know that I was asleep almost as soon as my head finally hit my pillow.

I am excited to be here and to see what God is going to do here this year. Now that I am finally here, I see more of the challenges that God is going to work out in my life this year. Lord willing, I will be a vessel that he can use to work in and through.

May God bless you as you serve Him.
Gracia Engle

Today was a day for firsts here in Ji Ji and the surrounding areas. I had my first day of school and all together it was pretty cool.

First off I just want to say something to the parents out there who are reading this. If you homeschooled your children than you did a good thing and I think you are wiser for it. If a school will allow some crazy maniac like me in to teach English than they must really be messed up. :- ) Although the children may not have thought so at times, we had the coolest most fun class the world has ever seen me teach. Seeing as this is the first one I’ve ever done that’s not saying much. But hey, it’s all about attitude right? So there I am standing before 17 sixth graders wondering what in the world I am doing in this country. They all look at me with those slanty little eyes that they have. Little grins on their faces. I can’t help but feel bad about what I am going to do next. I mean, who likes being embarrassed? But then I remember that these are Jr. High kids. It’s my job to embarrass them… just like it was when I was a youth sponsor back home :- ) (I didn't say humiliate, I said embarrassed. It's not the same)

So we begin. “Hello, good morning class” I say. “Good morning, teacher!” comes the reply. That went well, I thought it was going to be the hard part. “My name is Daniel, I am your new English teacher” (this goes along with some gibberish Chinese that I’m sure meant something when I thought it up) Then I ask their names. “Fjloenmeitnnsith”, comes the answer. Huh? Oh yeah!!! They said it all at the same time. Duh…

So then I ask them to make a circle. They stare at me with blank looks…sigh…ok…I draw a circle on the chalk board. I point and say “circle”. They say “circle” I say “circle”. They say “circle”. I say “circle”. They say “circle”. I say “circle”. They say “circle”. I say “circle”. They say “circle”. I say “circle”. They say “circle”.

Good…got that word out of the way

Five minutes later I point at the circle again…nothing…sigh this is going to be a long year :- )

But at last we all get into a circle and go around saying our names. This in and of itself is interesting because I have a hard time understanding what they are saying and when they don’t remember how to pronounce their names right anyway, it gets funny. I have a Wizard in one class, a Bibi (whatever that is) in another class, a Lyan in one class (I’m pretty sure this is supposed to be Ryan), and most of the kids in the younger classes didn’t even have English names. So I felt like the Pope at a coronation naming about 20 or so kids. Once again I decided to stick with my system of naming them after people back home. So we have a Mark, Beth, Susan, Stephen, John, Toni/Tony, Jason, Jeff, Brian, Kevin, and I can’t remember the rest. After I get my digital camera I’ll take pictures of your alter ego and post them.

After saying our names we got to the part that I like. I have them all make name cards for their desks. I can’t remember all the names of the children I am teaching. I have 4 schools with 5 classes each. The classes can be anywhere from 17 kids to 90 at one school. So they make name cards and stick them to their desk. But before we stuck our names to our desk we decided to play a game. I gathered all the cards up and put them face down on a table. The I picked a kid at random and blindfolded him or her. After trying to walk across the room with only the voices of their classmates as guides, I they would then pick one of the names without looking. Once a name is picked they could take off the blindfold and read it. The whole class then had to say together “...who is fill in the blank...?” That person had to then raise their hand and say “I am ..fill in the blank...”. The you would give them back their name card and it was their turn to walk around without being able to see. Now, the reason this was embarrassing to the kids is that I would play little tricks on them some times. Like I would show them where the cards were, blindfold them, and then move the cards to another place. Then they had no idea where they were going. Also I would take all the cards and stand right in front of them holding them out. They would just keep walking until they ran into me and the whole class would burst our in laughter. The kids loved it and had a lot of fun. I did to. All in all I thought the class time went really well.

I feel like my time teaching here is going to be a ton of fun. I’m a little worried that I will get tired. The first several weeks are going to be tough as I get to know the system and set up one of my own. Also the kids take a lot of energy and I’ve never been with a group of kids this much for this long of time. Even doing Character First! wasn’t like that. So we’ll see how I like it.

Meanwhile I would ask that you would all pray for us and keep us in mind as we head out on this adventure of the rest of the year. The camps were hard at times but it was nothing compared to this. Most of the time you are working alone and you are expected to act like a teacher and not a young person. So there is a lot of responsibility involved with this job. I pray that we would all show ourselves to be ready and true to the task at hand, and that we would completely lean on Jesus at this time.

So as I sit at another school (I finished this on Tuesday) taking my lunch break and getting ready for two classes 90 1st and 2nd graders I covet your prayers and wish the Lord’s blessings on you all. Thanks so much for reading my little writings and peace be with you.

Daniel

Ji Ji

Once again I find my fingers hovering over the keys, writing you all an update. It is Tuesday, September 07, 2004, the second day of my first week of teaching. So far I have been impressed with how well the teaching is going (give me a week and ask me again :)).

Yesterday I taught at a small school about 20 minutes from Ying Pan. There are only about 120 students at the school. I taught 5 classes, 2nd through 6th grades. The school only has one class of each grade; this makes it much easier to get to know some of the kids. Joel however, has been teaching at larger schools with 600 – 700 students; it is much harder for him to interact with his students on a personal level.

My school today was a little larger, about 270 students, but it was still small enough for me to be able to meet many of the students. I taught 4 classes today, but starting next week I will have 5 classes at this school also. I had 2 5th grade classes, 2 6th grade classes, and the 5th class will be a mixture of beginning level 5th and 6th graders.

Tomorrow I go to the 3rd of 4 schools I will be teaching at all year. I will be teaching 4 classes, and Christina will teach 4 classes as well.

Fridays for the Nantou county teams (Jiji and Ying Pan) will be different than originally thought. There is a new director of education for Nantou County, and he has designated Fridays as Character English days. I’m not sure what all we will be doing, but I think it will involve traveling to different schools around the area and teaching English with more of a character emphasis.

I was really glad to see the way that God blessed our teaching efforts the last two days. For me, Monday morning didn’t get off to a good start, but as soon as I got to the school I was filled with peace. I could sense God’s presence, and I watched with gladness as he orchestrated the whole day. Monday evening I came home feeling blessed, and grateful for God’s provision. It was wonderful to know that my Creator was taking care of me.

Keep praying for us, and all the other teams. God is at work here, and we appreciate and covet all of your prayers encouraging us on in His work.

Pressing on,
Chase Hiebsch

First day of school… how hard can it be? Well to be honest it wasn’t my first day. I spent the morning in Jo’s school accessing the internet. The first in almost two weeks! Around 11 this afternoon Katrina and I headed to the Hualien train station to pick up Christina and Gracia the newest members of our team.

We went out for lunch and then met with Ben later to rummage around the city in hopes of keeping them awake.

Well you think we would’ve learned our lesson or had it dawn on us that we were getting the affects of a Typhoon. With are next goal in getting home and getting to the train station to get home we set out. I quickly broke up with the rest of the group as I figured they were going the wrong way. I ended up getting to the station a good 15 minutes before them plus the fact that I had to back track a ton. After arriving soaked from almost head to toe we tried to figure out the busses.

It wasn’t enough for us to go home but we decided to make a stop at Carrefour (a small Wal-Mart) to buy some much needed items.

We understood that the busses ran every half hour but in the end after waiting an hour in the rain we got the girls in to a Taxi only to have the bus show up 5 minutes later to get back home.

Although we are presently trying to dry off and dry out our shoes… the day was really good. I don’t think the schools are necessarily what we were expecting but it will take a bit of adjustment and then trying to understand what exactly the schools would like us to teach.

Well from Hualien we wish you a good night!

Thank you for your prayers without them we are nothing and can do nothing. “Prayer is the work…”

Joshua Smith
Sincheng ~ Hualien City

Your not so average school day in Kinmen..

Beep! Beep! Beep!

I leaned over and slammed my alarm off. It's my first official day of teaching. For a minute I laid in bed, excited about my day and somewhat suprised of the overwhelming peace I felt, instead of the anticipated nervousness. God is so faithful in replacing our fears with His sustaining grace. It's only by the Prince of Peace that I woke up with such a peace, instead of being a nervous wreck!

Ok, so I did get a slight bit nervous as I walked around my first school of the week. The first class was a little rough..it was sixth grade (does that say enough to you?), and I ended up having twice as much time as I'd thought I would (yes, mom- I hear you..ALWAYS go in with more than you have time for!). After that, my self introduction went much more smoothly, and the students got more invovled.

Today's agenda was simple- I basically introduced myself in each class. I told the kids where I was from, about my family, then added a few fun facts about Florida. And yes, at least two of my classes could say "Florida" very well by the time I walked out (now whether they'll remember the word or not..we might have to work on that one).

Today, even with it's occasional quirks, went better than I'd dared to imagine. For being the first day teaching English in a foreign school, things went smoothly. I'm glad it's over, but glad it happened. That's a good kind of today, don't you think?

From an ordinary person with a not-so-ordinary life,

Ginger Jernigan

Check out the extended Entry for a look at things from Ying Pan!

This morning I awoke to the wonderful sounds of alarm clocks going off. Yes, the day had come.....today was " the day" ! Monday. The beginning of the newest adventure in our lives. Today was the day we would all start to lay our eyes upon the schools that we each have been assigned for the year.

Chase was the first to leave our humble abode this morning. He was head to Ping-Ting Elementary School, which turned out to be a very pleasant school with approximately 120 students. He then began his introduce himself to his new students. From what he mentioned I gathered that it was a wonderful experience that he seemed to have enjoyed. Reading in betweeen the lines I think that the children took well to their new English teacher. A very tall English teacher with blue eyes, that could shoot really cool basketball hoops! Chase was also able to share the gospel with one of the teachers, but I'll let him tell you about that.

Jo'el was next on the list that make is exit from here, and entrance into the unknown. Little did he know what he was in for!!! *smile* Upon his arrival at Hisn-Chuang Elementary School he was met by a very large welcoming committee, which approximately included 700 students and faculty. I guess they were lined up waiting his arrival. Jo'el's name in Chinese means "prince" and I take it from his report today, that he had the " royal treatment" shall we say.( Flowers and everything.........I think that they forgot the red carpet though?!)

Christina left shortly after 8:00.a.m. To go to her small school of 140 students. She was overwhelmed by their sweetness. The students would come to her and point to different things and tell her what they were in Chinese and then ask what they were in English. She also mentioned that she had an adorable little 4th grader that followed her around when time was alloted to him. Christina was also given the chance to share about her faith as well today.

Isaac and I were the last to depart. I was very nervous this morning for who knows why. I personally didn't get to much sleep. I woke up when a small cockroach crawled across my face. It was quite disturbing. Isaac was as calm as only Isaac can be, which turned out to be a great comfort. Between Isaac and myself we taught a total of 8, 40 minute periods to the 4th,5th, and 6th grade classes. Isaac had a wonderful time watching as they all gasped when they realized that he had 11 brothers and sisters. It was actually quite a sight to see all of their little faces get these shocked expressions of unbelief.

I had a inter sting time telling my students why I looked Asian and was still and American. Each class learned the meaning of adoption for the first time as well as Meo-tsu( Not sure if that is spelled right?) or as I know it Hmong. *lol* They must have thought that Isaac looked like my brother,because they were sure that he was my brother. Telling them that we were friend and from two different states seemed to help straighten their small minds of confusion.

Over all it was a very blessed day anointed by God's hand in many ways. Tomorrow and the rest of this week will be spent making new impressions on our schools that have been assigned to us each day. Next week we will be digging more into the text, but that will be another story!! *smile*

Thank you once again for all your prayer support and the encouraging emails we have received. They truly do brighten our day and encourage all of our hearts to fight the the good fight that the Lord has set before us!!!

From Nantou with love,

Mai Lewis

Good evening, although for you it may be morning depending on where you are. The team here at Ying Pan is getting settled in quite well. We have been able to make a few changes to the setup here, mainly in the way rooms are arranged, and it feels much more like home now.
Today Joel, Isaac, and I cleaned our room, and rearranged the furniture in our room. It took us a couple hours to get everything in its place, but it sure looks good now.

I was able to meet with the English teacher from the school I will be teaching at on Monday. He gave me the lesson plans for this week and told me a little about the school. There are only 6 classes in the school, 1 for each grade 1st through 6th, with approximately 18 students in each class. I will be teaching 5 classes there each Monday, the 2nd through 6th graders. This Monday will be an introduction and get to know you day. I am looking forward to meeting the kids, and getting to know the Principal and teachers at the school. The principal doesn’t speak any English, so it will be a challenge to communicate with him if there is not a translator around.

Tomorrow morning the team has a meeting with the Principal Liang, our principal here at Ying Pan. Principal Liang is going to begin teaching us Chinese. I’m hoping to learn a lot, but it will take quite a bit of study on my part.

Please continue to pray for us as we begin teaching next week, and for our preparation this week. Also pray for the Jiji team, they will be starting teaching on Monday. We have a few more teachers coming on Tuesday, please lift them up as they fly over here and try to get settled in.

We can really feel your prayers and encouragement over here, and it is much appreciated. Please continue to lift us up, and send words of encouragement when the opportunity arises.

From Ying Pan,
Chase

It came to pass that the esteemed privilege of composing the update fell upon a certain member of the Ying Pan team. His name starts with Jo’el, ends with Feig, but will remain otherwise anonymous until the end of said update (so please don’t spoil the suspense by scrolling down). Ying Pan team members have been doing a lot of the recent updates, mainly because the internet in the other locations seams to be sparse. The team in Hualien does not have very good internet access as of yet. Please pray for their sanity.

The English camps being over, many of the English teachers are finding it difficult to know what to do with their extra time. Today, those at Ying Pan cleaned and rearranged their living quarters. Several times. As in over and over again. Well, maybe not but I still think the piano could have been moved one less time (please excuse the use of the first person). Anyway, the desired effect of all participants involved was finally realized. The living area is clean, and looks somewhat like a home. The two members of the Jiji team who are living in Ying Pan for the time being, Daniel and Holly, went with Chase to clean and prepare the house in Jiji.

Those in Ying Pan will begin teaching on Monday, and each teacher will be working at four different schools Monday through Thursday. On Friday, the principle has said that the teachers will be working at different schools teaching “Character English”. It seams that this is a new opportunity for English teachers this semester, so please pray that the Lord will be exemplified in this opening. The teams in Jiji and Jinmen will begin teaching Monday as well. The rest of the team members will arrive in Taiwan next Thursday and will start teaching the following week. But that is just the guess of the updater (new word, learned how to make them in TESOL), they never tell him anything for sure (not sure who they are, yet).

Please continue to pray for the health of the team in Taiwan. Remember those arriving from the US that they will adjust well to the heat, food, environment, people, strange team members, etc… Pray for all those that we come in contact with that they will see the Light of Christ shining out from us and feel the Love of Jesus in us. There are so many people in search of the Truth. Pray that God will use us to help them find it. Also, ask the Lord to help us to keep our focus on Him and the tasks that He has called us to do.

Thank you so much for your support and for the encouragement that you are to each of us. For the team, continue to be a light. I hope to hear from you or see you soon.
In Christ,

Jo’el
Ps. 100:2.

Nantou County, here we come!

Praise the Lord that Christina and Holly arrived in Ying Pan today. Pray for the other teachers who will be coming next week. Also, I ask for prayer that the Lord would prepare all of us teachers as we get ready for the coming school year.

Here we are, Chase, Mai, Joel, Christina, Holly, Daniel, and I at Ying Pan Elementary School. I am so relieved to have all the summer camps over with. Starting next week, we will be teaching English in the public schools. Until then, I'm not sure what is going on.

Today, I went for a nice long walk, and I met some new Chinese friends. Holly and Christina got here, which made Mai feel a lot better. Oh, and we went shopping for groceries. Right now, I am going to settle down and take some time to learn.

That is the number 1 thing that I am presently interested in. We need to know the Chinese people in order to minister to them, right? That means learning the language, customs, the way of life for the Taiwanese people.

As I sit here and write this, I am thinking about all the opportunities that I have had to witness to the kids, TAs, and others. And what about all the opportunities in the future? I, as well as the other teachers, covet your prayers.

This is not a one- sided team in Taiwan. No, we could not be here without the prayers of so many Christian brothers and sisters out across the world. You all are part of the Taiwan team. Thank you so much for the prayers, support, and encouragement that you have been.

"I shall not die, but live and declare the works of the Lord." -
Psalm 118:17

Isaac Mazur