HAPPY DAYS!

Many of us remember the old TV show, HAPPY DAYS, that was on TV from 1974-84. Those were fun times to watch and see how these families and young people changed as they grew up and moved out into the world. Well, for us, we also have that same opportunity to see the changes occur among our Chinese friends as they have married, given birth to children AND NOW . . . those children are adults and are starting their families as well.

When we arrived in Taiwan, one of our teachers, Melody, and her husband, Ray, had 2 small children. Now these 2 have married. Their daughter, Julie, has 2 girls. And this week their son, Jason, and his wife have given birth to a son.

When we returned to Taiwan, our dentist Hana was originally one of the young girls in our first church start. And one of the young boys in our church is now married with two young boys of his own. Actually, I could name a lot of families that are just like this. We consider this a very special blessing for God to allow us to be part of their lives.

What a reminder to pray for these families. Most are second generation Christians. Now that’s a REAL blessing. God’s Word has been shared throughout these families. Pray that HIS WORD will continue to draw these families to HIMSELF. We ourselves are grandparents, but as we have aged among these families NOW they also call us AKONG and AMA, the Taiwanese Hokkien words for grandfather and grandmother. These are certainly HAPPY DAYS for us as we continue to see these families grow and mature in the Lord. Pray for these young families as they NOW are leaders in ministry. Pray for God to use them in their families, communities and churches as they continue to mature in Christ.

HAPPY DAYS!

GOD IS GOOD?!?

The phrase, God is good all the time! All the time God is good!, is pretty common now. Actually, if we asked 10 different people, we would probably get 10 different answers on what that phrase means, and how it applies to them. However, I would like to share about those times in our lives when tragedy hits — health, death, loss — you name it. Eventually, all of us have to deal with that.

For me, the first time I dealt with this was in my childhood when a man attempted to break into our house. Scary! Then there was the time that an adult made inappropriate advances toward me as a child. Life changing! And I also remember when my Uncle Urban died . . . it scared me. And for sure, when the roommate of our son, Jonathan, drowned in Taiwan was also very difficult. Then adding to that, the death of our 2 month old granddaughter, Amelia, was also life changing for me. The death of parents also has to be factored in. Two years ago, our good friend and a pastor’s wife died from brain cancer leaving a young child in elementary school. MAN, IT WAS TOUGH! Then the day when Robert received word that he had lymphoma cancer was also another big challenge for us. I also have to admit that currently quite a few of our friends also are going through cancer treatment or have just completed that.

THIS IS REAL LIFE! This week I was watching a video from Saddleback Church and just wanted to share that with you. It was very meaningful for me to hear from two guys who have both had big losses, Steven Curtis Chapman and Rick Warren. So WHAT do we do when our lives are filled with such things? This presentation was very touching for me, and I just wanted to share it.

Blessings . . .

GO H T & E

Of course, we all know the GREAT COMMISSION. Jesus commanded is to GO HERE AND THERE and EVERYWHERE. Sometimes we can get a little near sighted or far sighted and our focus gets a bit distorted. The TRUTH is that God cares about HERE (whatever that means for us) and THERE, all those other places! For years, Robert and I changed our HERE from the US to overseas in Asia. Now, our home is in the United States. So, our HERE has changed again. BUT the message is still the same.

As we moved into the Saginaw area, we hoped to find a nearby church. The extended area around our community is exploding in growth. New homes, businesses, schools, etc. everywhere. So the challenge for us was to find a new church home. We visited a few churches; however, on one particular Sunday we visited with the North Richland Hills Baptist Church and the pastor was giving an overview of their pilgrimage since he came to the church (the last 5 years). PERFECT TIMING. He shared the vision of the church and that really caught our attention. We had to drive a good distance to attend this church, but the pastor shared that they currently have a new church start which is not far from our house. Our ears REALLY perked up.

SO long story short, we are currently involved with this new church start here in Texas. So that is our HERE. We are currently renting space in a local elementary school for our on site small groups and worship on Sunday mornings. The GOOD NEWS is that we have already purchased and PAID FOR land, and in AUGUST we will begin building and plan to complete that structure and move in next SPRING.

It is not easy to start a new church and keep it going. It is a lot of work and there are so many needs, but currently we feel that is our calling here. Please pray with us as we desire to see THIS CHURCH grow and reach out in the surrounding communities.

Click HERE to check out the ministry of this body of believers, THE CROSS CHURCH.

Pray for our Campus Pastor, Jeremy Winters and his family as they minister. Jeremy grew up in a pastor’s home and later his family also served overseas as missionaries. So you see, God has prepared Jeremy for this ministry.

So your HERE (the place where you live) and our HERE the place where we live) are not the same, but we all work together to share God’s love around the world. These are exciting days. You already know our THERE is with Hokkien people worldwide. Blessings on your HERE, THERE and EVERYWHERE.

Please pray for us as we seek ministry avenues in our church and community.

WEEKLY MUSINGS

This week has been one BUSY CRAZY week. We have been assisting Lisa and Rhett move into their new house. Now, that’s something that happens ALL the time with people, right? However, there were lots of things to notice and learn this week.

First of all, they have bought a house that has TREMENDOUS potential, and as some have said the BONES of this house are GOOD. I totally agree, but to get to where they want to be. takes a lot of work. However, it is totally worth it. So this week has been filled with tearing our carpets, cleaning, painting rooms, preparing cabinets for a new paint job, getting things ready to put down a hard wood floor, etc. AND MOVE from the old house to the new!

Lisa and Rhett had already contacted a local truck rental company some time ago. They checked again and all was confirmed. However, on Thursday, Lisa had a “gut feeling” to check and reconfirm the reservation. An agent had sent a voice mail guaranteeing them the 26 foot truck they requested. Well, to make a very long story much shorter, there were no 26 foot trucks to be seen anywhere. They were to move FRIDAY morning. When the office checked around, they were only able to find one 15 foot truck not far away. It was that or NOTHING.

 

We quickly drove over to the next rental place to secure the truck. As we walked in to finalize everything, the owner of that store said something to us. He said that most of the people who have encountered a really bad day like we had, would be so angry and they would curse and say all kinds of things. However, he said, you guys are different. WHAT A REMINDER IN THE MIDST OF LIFE,  TO DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO ACT GODLY. Is that easy? Of course not, but you know, that’s exactly what we are called to be . . . like HIM, JESUS. I hope we don’t just talk about the difference, but that we will BE THE DIFFERENCE! 

So with a rental truck, Rhett’s pick-up, their van and our car we made many trips back and forth to get them moved.

We were also so grateful to have 2 of Greyson’s friends help as well. We picked up the last load and headed out just as a rain storm rolled in on us. What timing! We “hit the sack” about 2:15, but everyone else got in bed about 3:30. Absolutely exhausting!!! However, anything worth doing in life is worth doing right and working hard right! That is exactly what being on mission is all about . . .

not the going to another place, country, etc. but instead BEING THE PRESENCE OF CHRIST TO OTHERS WHEREVER WE ARE IN LIFE.

Lisa, Rhett, Greyson and Rhylen are in their new house with lots of adventures ahead. We are so grateful for their perseverance, their character and desire to make right decisions and treat others with love and respect.

Was it a tough and challenging week? Sure,  but WE ARE FAMILY,  proud of our kids and grandchildren and grateful that God holds us together through our daily lives.

We hope for all Americans a safe and wonderful 4th of July celebration