Well here I am, two days late for my update. I’ve been thinking for the past two days about what I should write in my update. Well, okay, so I haven’t been thinking the whole time about that but it might have crossed my mind once or possibly twice. Anyway there was something I was thinking about today. Actually I was thinking about a lot of things today, but I’ll spare you all the ones relating to food, wardrobe, and other items of lesser significance. Although I must say that dinner was really good… Right- my point.
You know, being here in Taiwan, one of the major things we learn over here (other than how to pick up two peanuts side by side with chopsticks) is the Chinese language. Something I’ve noticed recently is the wide range of “understandability” among Chinese people. There are the ones that I can understand most of what they’re saying, and then there are the times when I wonder if I know any Chinese at all. Take today, for example. We were in the Principal’s office of Fu Guei Elementary School waiting for classes to begin. The Principal had made some remark and I answered him without waiting for our translator to tell us what he said. That got an odd look from the English teacher, so I said something like “He said he’ll take us sightseeing after class if we want to, or he can drive us straight home, right?” The principal and English teacher looked at each other, rather shocked I think. I just sat there feeling rather pleased with myself. Well, remember that verse that says “pride comes before a fall”? Yeah.
Later this afternoon, Mai and I caught the 4:15 bus into Nantou and had been talking for a few minutes when the bus driver started talking to us. I had to ask him twice what he said, and then I answered him. He laughed and said “No, no, that’s not what I was asking. I said, where are you FROM, not where are you GOING!” I slunched down in my seat, wishing I could disappear. After a few minutes of sitting there with my eyes scrunched shut, chanting “go away go away”, I realized that I was not going anywhere that the bus was not, and sheepishly told the bus driver that we were both from America. Visions were dancing through my head of my various friends laughing at Tina, who didn’t catch the simple question “where are you from?” That wasn’t even the worst. The entire ride to Nantou went on in the same horrifying pattern. I told him we taught at elementary schools and he thought I said we wanted to get off. Talk about embarrassing.
Do you ever feel like that in your walk with God? I know I do. One minute I can’t believe how much I’ve learned and how much God is working and how wonderful everything is, and the next minute I wonder if God is even around. If you know me very well, you know I love music and I have certain songs that mean a lot to me at certain times. Well, one of “my” songs this year is a song called “Bow the Knee”. I sang it in my church’s octet before I came to Taiwan and I’ve loved it ever since. The words have a lot to do with what God’s been showing me today, so I’d like to share some of them with you.
“There are moments on our journey following the Lord,
When God illumines every step we take.
There are times when circumstances make perfect sense to us,
As we try to understand each move He makes.
But when the path grows dim, and our questions have no answers turn to Him.
Bow the knee, trust the heart of your Father
When the answer goes beyond what you can see
Bow the knee, lift your eyes toward heaven
And believe the One who holds eternity.
And when you don’t understand the purpose of His plan,
In the presence of your King,
Bow the Knee
There are days when clouds surround us, and the rain begins to fall
The cold and lonely winds won’t cease to blow.
And there seems to be no reason for the suffering we feel
We are tempted to believe God does not know
When the storms arise, don’t forget we live by faith and not by sight.”
Don’t forget we live by faith, and not by sight. I don’t know about you, but this is something I forget on a regular basis. The minute those cold and lonely winds start picking up, I forget. I forget how God is always there. I forget how He knows what He’s doing- ALL the time! I forget that I don’t NEED to know why He’s doing what He’s doing- all He asks of me is that I trust Him, that I bow the knee to my King and believe the One who holds eternity.
So whether I’m excited after having a great conversation with one of my teachers, or if I’m discouraged because nothing seems to be “happening” that I can see, God is always working. Even if I can’t see it. God chose to drive this home today, too. Mai and I made it into town and after I left my pride on the bus, we went shopping. We were turning a corner to head for Working House when I heard excited little squeals behind me. I turned around and there, standing behind a little guava stand with her mother, was my precious little Mandy. Mandy is one of the deaf kindergarten students at one of the schools I teach at. Mai and I went over, bought some guava, and after standing there dancing around and telling her mother over and over that I was “her” teacher (which I’m really not), Mandy went into the shop and pulled out her uncle to introduce him to me. It was totally the cutest thing. We waved goodbye and I was just in awe of what God has done as I thought of what those kids were like two years ago. Mandy used to be quiet, shy, and kind of sullen, especially around me. It took me a month or so of playing with the kids every week to break through to the little boys in that class, but Mandy took even longer. Just when I thought I was finally her friend, she would have a bad day and wouldn’t want anything to do with me. Now, I try to sneak by their window so I don’t disturb their class, but it rarely works. Usually I’m greeted with every kid in there yelling for me- some of them can even say my name now. If I go inside their classroom, I’m mobbed- even by Mandy. It’s the greatest thing in the world. Kids who could barely say basic phrases in Chinese two years ago are now saying “goodbye” to me in English! It’s a great reminder to stand back and see how much God has done- all the little things do add up and I know He is working in my friends hearts as well, in ways I will never know.
This update is getting really long and I’m still not sure I’ve pinpointed what God has been showing me. Well, I just hope this update has encouraged you in some small way. Always remember that God is working and He knows exactly what He’s doing- even if you don’t. Trust Him- He is so worthy of our trust. Keep us in your prayers and drop us a line if you get a chance!
For the Ying Pan team,
Tina Moody
