THREADS OF LIFE

Life for all of us, hopefully, is filled with PEOPLE and these relationships are soooo very important. Thirty-two years ago we met a pastor and his family in Kaohsiung,, Taiwan. His church building was small and in need of repair, and there were few members. This pastor had previously been a medical doctor and God touched his life. led him to seminary and he then jumped into ministry with both feet. Pastor C was a very colorful pastor, and never took NO for an answer. He and his wife began a kindergarten, connecting with both Japanese and Chinese families, and he then found a way to build a large church building right in the heart of the city.
A few years later this church became the mother church for our church plant in another part of the city. Several of his children are in full time Christian ministry. Following his death his son (our age) assumed the role as senior pastor of the church. We have so many great memories with this pastor and his family. The current leader, Pastor C, is a gifted leader, teacher and musician and speaks multiple languages.

A few years ago a new church was started in the city, New LIfe Church, a bi-lingual ministry. The church is currently led by Pastor W. Recently they announced the need to find a different facility and Pastor C and his church have invited them to join them and share their facility. It seems there is also the desire to join hands and hearts to minister together in this area of Kaohsiung, Taiwan. There is a university down the street and the church building is also surrounded by housing and business communities – a great location to connect with people.

February 28th will be the last Sunday for the bi-lingual church to meet in their first facility. Then they will move to Pastor C’s building to continue ministry. Pray for Pastor C and his wife and Pastor W and family as they continue work in this community. These are two wonderful families and we pray God’s richest blessings on them. Pray for open eyes and ears to see and hear what God has in store for them as they reach out in this community. It is so exciting for us to see the threads of life and God’s time line and how he intertwines the lives of people to share HIS love.

MORE GOOD NEWS

Many people around the world struggle with LIFE and searching for a meaningful LIFE. Money, religion, drugs, alcohol, other addictive behaviors and relationships are just a few ways that we as people seek to fill the emptiness or FIX the holes in our lives. This is also true among the Hokkien. Some people are very fervent and dedicated to worship the gods of their ancestors, but often feel as though they come up “short” and somewhat cheated.

Struggles in life do remind me of the movie, Seven Days in Utopia. An older man in the story shares a lot of wisdom with this young golfer who is searching. One of the significant quotes that really grabbed me is:

Have respect for tradition and passion for the truth.

We are so excited to report that BL in SE Asia has chosen to follow Christ. BL and her family have struggled through the illness and death of her mother and in their passion for TRUTH she and her mother decided to follow Jesus. Jesus is the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE. This house was  full of Idols a few weeks  ago but now is a house of God. Jesus is Lord! So many prayers have “gone up” for this family. BL’s mother is now with the Lord. Please continue to pray for BL’s husband and two other grown children, her eldest sister’s  family as well as her younger brothers family to be saved. Hokkien partners in SE Asia are following up and loving on this family. Moving from idolatry and family tradition to follow Christ is not an easy decision, but one that is so very important. Pray for the family as they continue this journey. Pray for these other family members who have not yet made the decision to believe in Jesus. PRAYER is so very important. Once again thanks for partnering with us.

The Seven Days in Utopia movie ends with a prayer . . .

For:
…Food in a world where many walk in hunger,
…Faith in a world where many walk in fear,
…Friends in a world where many walk alone,
We give you thanks, Oh Lord.
Amen.

We give thanks for this miracle as this Hokkien family has decided to follow Jesus. We always love to share GOOD NEWS. Blessings!

SO WHAT’S NEXT?

When we look at people, some of us are PLANNERS, and well . . . some of us not so much. I’m definitely a planner and all my life have been looking to the next morning, day, month and year with plans running around in my head. However, these days we currently face present challenges for life and ministry.

2016 is a new year, but life really isn’t disconnected . . . it continues to move forward from day to day. Robert just completed his 6th chemo treatment, and that is the last scheduled treatment that the doctor has for him. On March 7 another PET scan will be done and on March 9 we will meet with the doctor to see where we go from here as far as Robert’s physical needs. This 6th round has been more challenging for him. I’m sure that the more treatments given would also have even more challenging effects.

So we have a number of things on our plate . . . Robert’s health, Hokkien ministry and beyond . . . AND future housing plans. We currently have a house in Virginia and plan to return there at the beginning of 2017. However, our long range plans will probably be to relocate in the Texas area near where Robert was “born and raised.” We also plan to continue to be active in Hokkien ministry wherever God leads. BUT you know, that’s all in God’s hands.

We continue to receive calls about Hokkien ministry connections, and God is one FANTASTIC networker. So with ups and downs and the unknowns, one thing we know for sure — God is still at work and is Lord of ALL.

This is the Message I’ve been set apart to proclaim as preacher, emissary, and teacher . . . I have no regrets. I couldn’t be more sure of my ground—the One I’ve trusted in can take care of what he’s trusted me to do right to the end. (II Timothy 1:12)

Join us in prayer as we strive to help make connections for teams overseas that are on mission. Pray also for us to have wisdom as we look to decisions in the future regarding Robert’s health and other life decisions. So as we often say, stay tuned for there’s definitely more to come.