At the end of September we started to get involved at The Rock Baptist Church.  This is a small church where SEND missionaries have been serving with a local minister for several years.  However, the minister left the church in February.  They are now without a pastor.  After praying for another church where we can minister while Gary is still learning the language, God opened the door for us.  We really did not know how we can serve at this church.  Therefore, we have asked many of you to pray.  We are thankful that the Lord allows us to see the different needs at this church.  Because of our commitment and our gift in teaching the Word of God, the Lord is using us in this area. 

It is our pleasure to work with another seasoned SEND missionary couple at the Rock Church.  We valued their wisdom and past experiences.  We are now doing a weekly bible study before the prayer meeting, involved in weekly visitation, Mabel is leading a women’s group every Saturday, and we share the pulpit on a regular basis.  Although we have only been at this church for a couple of months, the Lord is using us to minister to different people.  We are not always giving; we have been blessed and learned from the brothers and sisters there.  Some of them have encouraged us to care for others more; some are challenging Gary to use his Mandarin while conversing with them; some have touched us by demonstrating their faithfulness and love for the Lord.

Recently we again witnessed how the Lord answered prayers.  Shortly after our arrival at the church, one of the brothers asked prayer for seeking an appropriate housing.  Little by little we then learned that the ones who really have to move were his parents.  His father (Mr. Lin) was deceived by somebody in a scheme and ended up basically losing everything including his house.  You can imagine how the son felt about this.  We can ask many questions “why.”  Why was he so stupid, why did he even sign any paper that he did not understand?  The whole situation was very chaotic with many uncertainties including whether they can even sell the house to cover the “debt”.  In the midst of seeking a new place to live, and dealing with this mess, the brother learned to commit all to the Lord.  God does have a better plan. 

The Lord answered prayers.  Not only did they pay off the debt; they were able to find a house where two families (his and his parents) can live together.  One of the major concerns this brother had was allowing his parents to move their idols and ancestor altar to the new dwelling.  The son knew he could not win his father by arguing or by forcing him to forfeit these idols.  He brought the matter to our prayer meeting and many have been praying.  In the meantime, the Lord is working at Mr. Lin’s heart.  Mr. Lin seemed to be more responsive to the gospel.  At one prayer meeting the brother came to tell us that his father was willing to forfeit the idols but still struggling with letting go of the ancestor altar.  We continued to pray for this matter.  This brother then found a pastor who is more experienced in this matter to assist his father.  We praised God that Mr. Lin finally agreed to tear down the idols and ancestor altar.  The pastor helped them to organize their family genealogy and make a nice display for remembrance.  It was important to Mr. Lin that the family record is carried on.

On November 26, some of us went to participate in the process of tearing down the idols at Mr. Lin’s house.  As we were reading Scriptures and sing hymns aloud, we attracted quite a bit of the attention from the neighbors.  We do not know if they knew what was going on, since everything was carried out in big black trash bags.  Anyhow, the Lord’s name was lifted high in this whole process.  We praised God for Jesus is victorious!!

Tunghai University

Gary started studying Mandarin at Tunghai University this summer.  Originally it was a trial to see if he can manage a language course at a university.  We are grateful that the Lord gave him a good start.  Therefore he continues with the study there this semester.  The intensity of the course sometimes seems to be more than he can handle.  But God is gracious and he is still hanging in there.  One of Gary’s joys of learning Mandarin at the university is that he has numerous opportunities to witness about Christ.  Many students and teachers now know that he is a missionary. 

There are a few other missionaries studying Chinese at the university.  From time to time they along with Gary have tried to share the gospel with the teachers and students.  Gary has been praying for one of his teachers, Teacher Bai.  Mr. Bai is actually a Ph.D. student at the university studying Chinese literature.  He appears to be a committed Buddhist.  Gary often uses his homework and making sentences of Christian nature to communicate his view.  Mr. Bai has never met a foreigner who speaks Mandarin with Cantonese accent and expressions.  Naturally, Gary caught his attention.  We pray that one day Jesus will get his attention too!

Christmas Season

In this busy season, may the Lord be the focus.  In this busy season, may we not neglect our time with God.  In this busy season, may we take time to give the Gift of Love to others.  In this busy season, may we find joy and peace in sharing this Gift.  In this busy season, may we be blessed by seeing how many people have been blessed by the Precious Gift.

We wish you and your family a

 Blessed Christmas!!