Friday, July 21, 2006

Yankee Doodle went to town...

oops. I didn't realize how long it's been since I've written on this. These past few weeks have been crazy busy. Seriously, my roommate and I keep talking about how at the end of each week we feel like we've gone through this time warp and still can't figure out where we are. This past week flew by especially quickly. It's really like this - we finish one thing, then have to begin preparing for something the next day. Our Christmas program is on Monday. Tuesday is our government presentation - where my class will sing "Yankee Doodle Dandy". We were chosen because of the animated students. Our class clown will be Yankee Doodle. He'll ride in on a broom wearing a larger than life yellow hat. Really...I'm convinced I have the best class. Last night I tried to journal, and it's hard. So much is going on here - but I'm not sure what to say about it. I think I've given up on trying to express this experience verbally. Some pretty important people came to visit this past Thursday and at lunch asked us each to use one word that sums up our experience so far. That was tough. My word was "real". I'll try to explain that here as much as I can, but I'm a little hesitant because I know that I can talk all I want (even when I get back home) but until you've been here to see all of this, you'll have no clue what I'm talking about. So... "real". Before I say anything, I'll say that yes, back at home there is realness. But man...back there, people are fighting to stay out of that "bubble" (hopefully you know what that means). Here, there is no bubble to protect yourself and hide in. Saying "yes" to Him means you have to trust Him - not just when it's convenient or easy, but everyday. I don't know if this makes sense. Back home there are too many people who are comfortable where they are. Too many people say "whew...I'm safe..." and sit back and relax in a big comfy chair, getting fat with the food they have such free access to. The reason why we don't keel over after accepting Him is because the person next to us is not safe. If it was so we could have a nice quiet life (even getting to know Him more personally), why wouldn't He just usher us up to be right there with Him? We saw something amazing last weekend. Almost two hundred people stood in line to go into the water. Then I found out something that just almost knocked me over - all of them, in order to go into the water, had to be a family member for a year. They were required to show their faithfulness and sincerity by showing that a year of trials would not pull them from His feet. You know what one of my first thoughts was? At home, we barely see five people a month go to the water. How much less if they were required to show their faithfulness for a year? So for now, I'll step off of the soapbox. Yesterday we visited a Children's home. One place we went to was named "House of Love". I wanted to stay there forever. All the children there have some disability. One little girl I held (about two years old) had a cleft lip. She was the cutest thing - I would tickle her and she just went nuts. She enjoyed playing peek-a-boo with my sunglasses. One little boy (about a year and a half old) was missing half of his arm. He was showing me his little picture book. Where most of the book had been torn off, he only had two pages left, but he just kept flipping from the picture of the bicycle to the crayons over and over again. He would gently bang on the pictures and when I banged on them he'd just stop and look up and me, smiling from ear to ear. Two of my teammates have a son and daughter in law who are in the process of adopting a little boy from the shelter. When we left, the man walked up beside me and we just smiled at each other. I'm not sure they were smiles of joy. He said, "it really leaves a lasting impression, doesn't it?" I just said "yeah". "How great is the love the Father has lavished upon us...that we should be called sons and daughters of God! And that is what we are!"

Thursday, July 06, 2006

First day of class!!!!

Hope you had a great 4th of July!!! Guess what I spent doing? Practicing the "Macarena". Yep. Last night, (the 5th for us), I stood in the middle of a circle of almost 200 Chinese teachers and led them in dancing the Macarena. Yay. So today was the first day of class!!!! It was so amazing! I have 16 students - all of whom I adore completely!!! 12 girls, 4 guys. They range between 25 and 43 years of age. One of the absolute coolest experiences in life is to name someone - I had the honor of giving English names to 13 of my students. My mother now has a namesake in China (I named one student May). It was such a busy day, but so amazing I can hardly wait for tomorrow (although I'm looking forward to sweet rest tonight). Just so you know, here's a little bit of what our day is like: 7:00 a.m. is breakfast (not really important in the scheme of things, but it's when the day starts). 8:00 a.m. is officially when class starts, but I have learned from today that I should arrive about 45 minutes to an hour early to get there before any of the students (they got there early this morning to clean the classroom and wash the chalkboard). We teach until 11:15 (with a 15 minute break in the middle). We break for lunch and rest and meet for class again at 3:00 pm. This class time goes anywhere from and hour and a half to two hours. Then, on some days we have evening events, and some days we have time to schedule meeting times with students. So I realized I have a couple class clowns. One of our class rules is that they must speak English only. So a few times today I would look over at these two men in my class and see one whispering to the other in Chinese, watching me to see if I saw. As soon as they saw me watching, they'd smile and jump back to being quiet. My class is so lively and they honestly want to be there. It's so different here. Every single one of them have so much respect for me as their teacher. Seriously, if I start to do anything (like yesterday I went to tape a class roster on the door), they jump up and insist on doing it for me. As soon as class got out today, several students began to sweep, clean desks, and wash the chalkboard. We had a great discussion this afternoon on the differences between American families and Chinese families. It was so great - it was great bonding time. After class, several students stayed behind to talk to me. We talked about the differences between English and Chinese - the languages and the writing. They speak very well, I think they just need to adjust to hearing my voice because they have a harder time on listening comprehension than on speaking. It's been an amazing day. I think though I need to wrap it up because I could seriously go on forever just about today. In other words, I'm warning you - if you are family or a close friend, be prepared. I already have 61 pictures from the past 6 days. Start practicing pretending to listen. ;) *Fun random fact of the day - Our washing machine sings the melody of "Jingle Bells" whenever you press the start button.* Please be remembering a few things with me: my throat is killing me. I have begun to feel so much better as far as my sinuses and congestion, but I am losing my voice more and more. Bummer thing: I can't sing. I had to lead "B-I-N-G-O" and "Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" this morning in class and I think that was the rest my voice could take. Also, please please ask that I would be able to remember why I am here and not get too wrapped up in the curriculum. I am absolutely loving the teaching - but I want to do more and connect with my students outside of the classroom. Last, but most importantly, for my quiet time. It's hard to make that priority (not just in thought...thought's nice, but my actions are an outpouring of what's really important to me) in the midst of everything here. Here's a quote/thought to end with: "It takes the storm to prove the real shelter." (Today's Daily Bread)

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

wow

WOW. Can I just say, if you ever feel Him tugging on you to do something, do it. So I know I haven't written anything on this since getting here, but that's okay because the less I'm on here means the more I'm out there. :D So I was sitting in my room, and suddenly heard that I should go walk on the track. So I got up and walked down there, where a lot of Chinese Teachers were sitting and talking and playing basketball and stuff. There were three particular girls sitting and talking, and as I passed by they smiled, and giggled. I walked once around the track, speaking to Him, asking for opportunities. When I walked back around, the same three girls kept smiling and giggling, so I walked over to them and found out they were Chinese Teachers (our students). When I told them I was one of the English teachers, they got really excited and told me to sit down. We talked for a long time about some great things. One girl spoke a lot, with very good English. She told me that one of her biggest goals was to speak with a foreigner. When I told her "well, you did it!!! and you'll do it some more!" she smiled and just kind of looked down, marveling that idea. Then the mosquitoes came and so we got up and walked towards the dorms. I can't tell you now (really) how amazing this opportunity was, and everything that was spoken, but I can say that I am so so excited about these next few weeks. It's going to be fruitful. My Father's already moving mightily. Please remember a few things: I have been a bit under the weather lately. That's about all I have to say about that. Obviously, that's a burden to the work we're doing here. Also, reflect on those three girls and more opportunities with them and other students. So if I sent you the last email, I accidentally put John 15:9 and it's John 5:19. Sorry about that. John 15:9 is great too!!! Happy Independence Day!!!! (It's just starting for yall!! - have a great one and please really take the time to reflect on this freedom we have. If you have the daily bread, read todays. It'll say more of what I'd like to.) "How great is the love the Father has lavished upon us, that we should be called sons and daughters of God; and that is what we are!"

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Tomorrow is only a day away...

This time tomorrow we will be flying over the Pacific... Time at training has been amazing - you wouldn't believe the group that's been called here. PReport: I told my mom I wanted to meet more people who are real for Him (not that I don't already know some ;D), and these are they. I can't tell you enough how, just in this short time of knowing them, I feel like I'm at home with my family everytime we talk. That's so rare and such a refreshing thing. I didn't quite make a list of everyone who may have said they want to be updated with emails...so if you are one of those people, (I don't quite have the time to email everyone again to ask but I assume if you are reading this then you might be a tad bit interested :D), please email me at the new address I gave with your email address, and I'll add you to the currently very short list (so far the list includes biological family...and that's about it :D). So remember us tomorrow: there's been a ton of info for the curriculum, and a lot of us "nubes" (as my brother would call us in the video game world: "nubes" - someone new to the game, having little to no skills or experience) have been fighting the feeling of being overwhelmed. Also, for unity - "...by our love" - I've heard that they'll ask how long we've known each other. How amazing to tell them only a week when they see us act like sisters and brothers by our love! Then they'll want to know why we are so close... Also, ask for open doors, open hearts, and open minds. I love yall a lot, and I miss some of you too. ;) P.S: A team member gave me a verse out of this chapter last night...It wouldn't take long for me to just type the one verse here - but maybe you should crack it open and see for yourself what He has for those who trust Him. (Isaiah 26)

Saturday, June 24, 2006

almost there...

I arrived for training yesterday and everything has been extremely exciting. It's crazy to think in very less than a week I will be stepping on China ground. The people here are amazingly diverse, and I am loving how great our Maker is in bringing all these people from around the world - one lady has come from Great Britain! My team consists of 11 people - for one woman on our team, this is her 18th time going to teach!!! The place where we are staying is gorgeous. I can see apart of the mountains from my room, and there are trees everywhere, which is particularly thrilling for me. :) This morning I was reading Philippians 3:13 - "...forgetting what is behind, and straining toward what is ahead...", and that is what I strive to do. Here's a little of what I learned about what it means to strain for what is ahead: 1) you, of course, have to follow the beginning of the verse, and forget what is behind. 2) you have to believe that something good lies ahead!! (Romans 8:28) 3) you have to not allow anything to distract you (Hebrews 12:1-2) 4) you have to know where you're supposed to step (Isaiah 30:21) 5) you have step!!! Just so you know, I will officially be in China on Thursday of next week. You all are constantly in my thoughts. Please be lifting up my team members and I - for unity and the ability to adapt to the vastly changing environments. All I can say for now really is how much I anticipate and absolutely cannot (but for now, will have to) wait to meet my students and see this amazing country. I've been told by several people that I will be a completely different person upon returning in August. I am excited and desperately desire and anticipate for Him to mold me tremendously through this experience. "For the Lord is the Spirit. And where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into His likeness with an ever-increasing glory which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:17-18)

Thursday, June 22, 2006

are You sure I'm ready?...

So I leave tomorrow morning at 6:00 a.m.. Actually, I leave to go to the airport at 3:30 a.m., which is kind of exciting. I just wanted to throw something out there before I leave. Have you ever felt like you are just about to be led up to the frontlines, completely unready? See you can be fully armed and equipped, but we all know when it all begins even if you have the best armor in the world, if you're not ready to boldly step forward and use it then you might as well throw it off and run. I've been struggling with that for quite sometime now - not insecure in my armor but insecure in my ability to use it when the time comes. As kind of a defense mechanism to dealing with this insecurity, I'd chosen to just forget the whole idea of the frontlines. BIG mistake. The frontlines don't wait for you to feel ready. And if the frontlines don't wait for you to feel ready, then that must mean the enemy doesn't wait for you to feel ready! So where did this struggle leave me? Right in the middle of a thick and awesome cloud of power from Him. The cloud swirled around me and I saw in it the times that I've fallen, and He's lifted me. There were the times when I'd been beaten, and He'd healed me - scared, and He comforted me. You know when you look at a picture of you and a few friends? What's the first thing you look at? Somewhere a speaker once said it's most likely yourself. So my choice in looking at these pictures, this reel of my short lifetime swirling all around me was this: to a) look at myself (weak and wounded, inconsistent, faulty, crippled...) or to b) look at Him - mighty...strong...endlessly wise...constant... So, in one of those rare moments in life, I chose the wise decision, and took my focus from myself and put it on the One who has sustained me. You know a garden spade becomes a mighty tool when it is placed in the hands of a strong gardener. How ridiculous would it be for that spade to fear that it isn't strong enough to cut the dirt? See, the strength needed to cut the dirt comes directly from the push of the Gardener's arm. The spade's job is simply to surrender itself to the Gardener's hand, sit back, and find joy in the flowers being planted. "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for [He] will be with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1:9)

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

17 days and counting...

Our Father is truly in control of all things!!! So something amazing that I have to share: I was calling around to get my passport thing settled, and I spoke to this guy who told me that he'd make a call so that I should receive it the day before I needed to turn it in to apply for a visa. So when that day came and I still didn't receive a passport, I called the passport information hotline for probably the 87th time. I spoke to a woman this time who told me that I would probably never receive my original passport - that when the passport agency gets a passport sent back to them, they shred it - so really, I needed to fill out paperwork to let them know I didn't receive it and fill out more paperwork to apply to have one reissued. So when I hung up with her, I was discouraged and began to think I'd never make it to Asia - that I had heard wrong and I didn't belong across the world this summer. But then when I realized how far He'd brought me through this process I spoke to the Father saying "You have not brought me this far, provided this much, to lead me nowhere." The next day I received a phone call from the Houston Passport Agency themselves. They wanted to inform me that they had sent out my passport, overnighted, and I should receive it the next day (and I did). So all this to say that He is faithful. Over and over again, He is faithful. Too often we forget how powerful and serious He is. He is an unchanging rock, the Author who has known the way from the beginning. I was at the store several nights ago and was struggling with all these uncertainties. As I walked out of the store, the Author told me to look for the moon. I looked, but I couldn't find it. Looking down again, I imagined that I was crazy and had not heard right. But then I looked up again, and there it was in the exact place that I had just searched. It was just a sliver of the moon, but it shone as bright as ever. And He began to speak to me saying, "sometimes you won't see the picture, and sometimes you'll see just a part of the picture, - but realize, I see the whole picture, because I'm the one that created it." After I climbed into my car, I looked back up at the sky and the moon was gone, and I smiled. "Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand..." (Isaiah 14:24,26-27)

Thursday, May 25, 2006

I'm ready, I'm ready, I'm ready!

Okay, so this is just for the purpose of: 1) testing this blog thing out, and 2) explaining it's purpose. This particular "blog" is going to be used for my experiences serving the people of Asia. :D I'm extremely new to this (I mean the blog scene) so hopefully I'll do everything right. I'm also extremely new to going overseas; in fact, the only time I've been out of the States has been to Juarez, Mexico (right across the border). In other words, this is going to be another incredibly exciting experience, and I thank my Father for how perfectly He plans each and every step. I'm looking forward to seeing Him move mightily in Asia, just as He has been moving to prepare things here in the U.S. Really, it's been crazy amazing to see my family here at home come together to fund this trip - I am thankful for their hearts for His service. I won't be leaving until the end of June, but before then if you'll keep a few things in your thoughts: *my heart and spirit in preparation for this trip - sometimes fear of the unknown creeps in and I am guilty of trying to deal with that by either not thinking about any of it or dwelling on the creepy unknowns... :) *passport complications - somehow the postal service lost my passport so we're trying to find that/have them send another one in the meantime *my family - for peace and comfort, that He would give them hearts and minds for the people of Asia at this time and not hearts and minds that would worry about the distance between us this summer I am thankful for everyone reading this and I am keeping all of you in my thoughts for all of your own experiences this summer! ~resting embraced in Him~