Pajama day!

Some times you just need a pajama day. (This was originally written 2 weeks ago)

 Every once and a while we plan a pajama day. This is a day where we stay in our pj,s all day long! Last Friday we had an unplanned pajama day. Thursday afternoon we got a package from Poppa and Granny. They sent the kids matching warm pj's. It is a Christmas tradition. Friday morning after the kids had dressed, they decided that they needed to try the pj's on "to make sure they fit". Once they got them on, they did not want to take them off!

In the package there were also some comics. The kids spent at least 5 quiet minutes looking at the comics. It was very peaceful!

I did make Hallie put on her regular clothes to go to Chinese class, but when she got home, she put her pj's back on. We had the kids put on long johns on ( some older matching pj's) under their pj's and we went out to eat. We had to walk to the restaurant.

The kids thought it was great fun. No one blinked an eye at what the kids were wearing. You see it is not uncommon to see people out in their pj's. We see it all times of the day. We once asked a Chinese friend about this. He never thought about it being weird at all. We see it most often on the weekend, but it can be at any time.

See?

When in Rome... The kids are looking forward to their next pajama day!

Abraham, Cecelia, Christmas

Even though, due to logistical concerns, the actual event is still probably a few days off, we thought we would tell everyone that Abraham desires to be baptized!
We really haven't said much (almost nothing) about the fact that our Sunday group was "asked" by the school and the public security bureau to stop meeting, but since that time we have followed their instructions and have not held any "open" meetings with our students. We have, however, continued to invite a very select group of seriously interested disciples-in-training to our house for reading, discussion, and prayer.
For Christmas Eve we invited those same students to come over, with any carefully chosen friend whom they thought might be interested, to hear the Christmas narrative, bake ginger bread cookies, and sing a few carols. Cecelia, with her usual enthusiasm, brought two guys from a neighboring college that, somehow, she and Abraham both knew. (I thought I might have heard them say those guys had attended the Sunday group, but I'm not sure. In its heyday that group was attracting a wide and ever-changing array of students, apparently more people than we, or the authorities, could really handle.) We only had a few carols prepared for us to sing, which were, in Cecelia's estimation, a few too few. She insisted that we sing more! "Let's sing the hallelujah songs!" she said, meaning that we should sing more or less all the hymns that she had fallen in love with during our group worship services. So, from memory and by finding karaoke versions online, we proceeded to basically have an impromptu church service.
Her and the others' enthusiasm encouraged us to go ahead and hold a small meeting in our home that next Sunday, which we did. We had just five of us (Phoebe, who would have made six, was already in bed) but it was a good little group. After nearly an hour of singing, followed by group prayers, we dismissed the group, but Abraham asked to stay behind for a minute to speak with us privately. He immediately announced his desire and intention to be baptized, and we then spent another half-hour or so discussing that and other spiritual topics.
He's a great guy, a good disciple, and an amazing example of someone whom God himself has set apart and called. Pray for him and us as we get closer to the actual baptism date.

Gan Mao le

Phoebe gan Mao le! She has got a cold, in other words. Actually, a throat infection. Yesterday she started crying a lot, not wanting to eat, in addition to the runny nose and watery eyes she had already had for a day or two.we decided to head into town for a trip to the pharmacy, but on the way there, she was so miserable, and crying, crying, crying. So we decided to go on to Greentown Hospital, where after much hustle, bustle, and fluster, we finally decided she should take a round of antibiotics by iv. they tried, for half an hour maybe, to put the needle into a vein in her forehead, but it was finally decided that she could have it in her foot, which immediately worked and was much easier for her to tolerate. After it was over for the night, Margaret graciously offered for her husband and she to drive us home. She is actually a shining example of the Spirit working in a person's life. On the way home, she wanted to hold Phoebe, and she sang some church songs to her. Thanks, God, for calling her, and for using Bonnie and Bobby to find her, and them and the rest of us to teach and train her.

I had to call off my girl's study for the evening, but they said they would pray for Phoebe. May they continue to search Him out, whether we are with them or not.

Thanks for praying

We appreciate your prayers for mei hong. Today we were able to spend the afternoon with her, and talk, relax and have fun. We were able to discuss her growing up days, school, college, and her current beliefs. She says she believes in God, but just isn't sure who He is. I think this winter, we will probably have more opportunities to spend time with her. I would love for us to be able to discuss scripture together. Could you please continue you prayers on our and her behalf? Pray we will have discernment and confidence. Pray she will have a hunger for righteousness, and curiosity about Him and the Book. Thanks so much.

Church Busted Blues Breakers

I have felt blue since our church was busted. Every Sunday we were sharing the Word together with people who had never heard before. Together we would raise our voices in praise and worship to our Creator. It was a good thing.

Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. (Acts 8:4)

Because you know the testing of your faith develops perseverance. (James 1:3)

Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season…(II Tim 4:2)

Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. (Matt 5:16)

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12)

I have heard these verses hundreds of times. When applied as blues breakers they become all the more real life.

Tea Museum

For GaoYan’s birthday we visited the Tea Museum. We were without our children so I was taking my time carefully reading each sign. Tea drinking originated in Yunnan province southwest China where people steeped the big leaves of tall wild trees. Later tea culture really developed in the Tang dynasty around 700 AD. Also some emperor visited Hangzhou to pick tea leaves from eighteen tea plants still growing today in the Dragon Well village.
GaoYan was pulling on my arm “Come on” when a nice museum lady walked up and offered for us to sample some tea. “Perfect, drinking tea in the tea museum, but how much is this going to cost?” We sat down to a well used tea set. There were ten or more canisters of different types of tea.
The museum lady asked, “What kind of tea do you want to try first?”
Hangzhou is Dragon Well green tea country, so we tried that first. I took a sip and remembered I drink green tea because people are forever setting it down in front of me. What else you got? “Do you have the big leaf tea from the tall wild Yunnan trees?” I doubted.
“This tea hits bitter at first with a sweet after taste,” said the museum lady.
“Oh wow! That is interesting.” GaoYan and I smiled at one another.
“Try this oolong with ginseng. It has a sweet taste deep in the throat when breathing through the mouth.”
The museum lady would also drink the tea with GaoYan and me. She didn’t pressure us to buy anything. Sip after sip and cup after cup she would look confidently in our eyes. The museum lady smiled a tiny smile that said, “You guys had no idea tea could taste this good.”
We felt refreshed after drinking tea and the sweet taste lingered deep in our throats.

Thanksgiving blessings

We had planned to have our big Thanksgiving celebration the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is not a Chinese holiday and most people had to work.

It was a BIG celebration.  There were 15 people here!

 

We got a turkey.

 

We had so much food! Heather brought black-eyed peas! BLACK-EYED PEAS!!! We were very excited. They were so yummy. Everything was so good.

We all ate as much as we could. Some of us were miserable. It was a nice time to be with Americans and eat some good Western food. After everyone left and took some food away, we packed the rest up and put it away. Our refrigerator was stuffed.

For supper that night, Jon made some sandwiches with left-over turkey and rolls. I had a little taste but was really still too full to eat.

We ate left-overs for at least 3 full meals. There are a few things still lurking in the fridge, but finally our fridge is back to normal.

(I meant to take more pictures.  I think I saw some other camera flashes through the day.  Maybe they will want to post some pictures of people.)

We are truly blessed!

prayers work!!

I received an e-mail from some guy that I don't know. He was friends with a Chinese guy that was at Ole Miss. That guy was from Hangzhou and returned home last week. While in the US, the Chinese guy (Bob) studied THE Book. He said that he wanted to continue studying. So we got hooked up.

Bob and his family were going to come over to our house last Monday evening. However, they had a friend that was getting married, or at least having their wedding dinner that night. So Bob invited us to go with his family to the wedding. It was really a nice night. I will have to tell you about the wedding another time.

Bob has a 10 year old son. His son went to school in the US for a year, so he can speak and understand English. His name is Michael. Liam and he get along very well. They had a good time just being little boys.

Bob and his family came to our meeting on Sunday. We are really excited about this family! Bob brought his Bible and shared it with his wife. Her English is good, but not quite as good as his. He helped her find the places in the readings. They even made their son sit with them during part of the Bible study. I think I heard Bob repeating some important points in the story to his family.

Before they left, Bob confirmed what we would be studying next week so he could read before hand.

It is very encouraging to see this family come to worship and study together!

I think that the family also reached out and welcomed this family. I heard them talking to several people.

Liam is going to go to their house next week to play with Michael. This is an answer to a very specific prayer! We have asked that Liam can find a friend that is a boy. Thanks for praying!

Bob is a member of the Party. We think that he already believes but has not yet taken the plunge. I am not sure what the wife believes, but she is open and does seem to be searching.

We ask that you pray for this family. Pray that they will continue to seek out His will in their life. Pray that they will feel a part of the family here.

It is not all roses.

First of all, let me say that I am happy living in China. I feel this is where I am supposed to be right now. I feel very strongly that we were called here and God worked things out to us get here. I feel a sense of purpose and I do love it here. But it is not always easy living in China. Some days are harder than others. but then again, I could say the same of living in the US. When I have a bad day here, I can always blame it on living in China. But really it could just be a bad day.


When we moved to China, someone told us that there seems to be a bigger culture shock that happens the third year. Many people go home after their third year. Guess what, this is our third year. We went into this year aware of this theory. But we felt energized by our visit home. We were ready to get back to work and get our routine going. We were really excited about the year.
We are not as excited anymore. Sometimes I feel a little guilty about that. Good things are happening with the WORK. We are engaging new people, we have started some new studies, and old friends are branching out. Things are happening the way they are supposed to. But I am still having a hard time shaking the blahs.

This semester has been really hard on Jon. His work load has increased and work stress is bad. That always spills over a little into to home. So we all feel his stress.

I have had a hard time with dental work this semester too. It has been painful and frustrating.

Jon's grandmother passed away a few weeks ago. That was really hard. It was hard because we know we are going to miss her. Grieving is weird when you are away. You grieve for the deceased but also that you can't be with the rest of the family. You feel a little left out. My grandmother died in January. I grieved some then, but had another period of grieving when I went home and visited family.
This time of the year is hard on us too. I sometimes think that Halloween and Thanksgiving are as hard or harder than Christmas.

So the question is, is this that terrible "culture shock period" that we have heard about? Or is this just life?

Teachers have bad semesters, and bad years. I could have dental problems in the USA. Maw Maw would have died if were were living in Henderson or in Hangzhou.
So what do I do? I just have to keep looking at the positives, and our blessings. And there are a lot of those!

I also enjoy baking and being domestic. If things start getting to me, I can straighten up the living room, or bake some cookies. That makes me feel a little better and maybe slightly more peaceful. If that doesn't work, chocolate usually helps.

So keep us in your prayers, and send us some chocolate!


**I actually wrote this back at the beginning of November. I didn't post it because I did not want to post things that are not positive.  But I also want to keep everyone informed.  You can pray for us better , if you know what is really going on in our lives. 
We are still somewhat stressed. This is just a bad semester. With the holidays coming up, we have fresh bouts of homesickness. I also feel a little guilty that my mood is so terrible. But, the semester is almost over. Hopefully we can have a good break and have a better semester next year. In the mean time, please keep those prayers coming!

Busy month

One of these days I will tell you all about how crazy and busy the last month has been, but it will take a lot more than a blog post to fill you all in on that. For now, I will just fill you in on mei hong, which I have been meaning to do. She says she has been praying lately, since the divorce, and more since moving out here, and that she feels as if someone is listening. She is well-read and has travelled widely, though, so we find within her some typical post-modern concerns about the Bible and Christianity. Pray we can be given the words to say. We plan to visit her soon with a loaf of pumpkin bread. Pray we can all find time for a meaningful conversation, and that the Spirit will move.

Focusing in

We have been blessed lately with the opportunity to focus in on those who are really serious about learning more about Him. We have six, three guys, three girls, from among the students we have been working with, who seem to be curious and dedicated. That is a blessing. Please join us in prayer for these six people. We are amazed at their hunger for learning and their persistence in searching Him out. He is truly not far from each one of them. Pray that circumstances in their lives will encourage their spiritual growth. Pray for their courage and conviction. I won't name them now, but remember the special six in your quiet time before the Father.

Mei Hong

I have been meaning to blog about a friend of ours, mei hong. I want you to be reminded of her and pray for her. We have talked about her before, when we first met her she was with her husband and some friends of theirs in a restaurant, and one of the friends was a smart little girl who was singing in English and caught our attention. We got to know them better in the weeks following that meeting, and found out we had some things in common: love of language, music, travel, yoga,etc. Sometimes the friendship between us would feel comfortable and warm for a while, but sometimes we would sense a lot of tension coming from mei hong or her husband when we would meet up with them outside. Then one day, mei hong came over to help us negotiate with our landlady, and she told us: she and he were divorced now, it had already gone through, and she was looking to purchase a new place. Shocked we were, to say the least. But we noticed that night, a new openness that had not been there before. She had always changed the subject when spiritual topics came up in the past, but now she was ready to talk. We talked for a long time that night, about how God has always been the anchor for our marriage and for each of us individually. She was receptive. We were amazed.

Then later, when she told us she had purchased a house, we told her that we were planning a move as well, and then it was time for all of us to be shocked when she said that the place she had purchased was in Xiao He Shan, and we said, that is where we were moving also!!!

This will be installment one, as phoebe is crying. More to come about mei hong soon.

Happy Halloween

The Chinese do not really celebrate Halloween. But we do! This year we went to the international school to a Halloween party/ Fall festival. It was fun. It was strange to hear so much English in one place. Hallie hung out with her friend Bliss and met another friend. Liam played guns with a couple of boys. Eryn ran after them some.

Hallie dressed as Hannah Montana.




Eryn was a cow girl. She would tell me that she was not wearing a cowboy hat, it was a cowgirl hat!


Liam was batman.



Jon dressed up too!

I did not really mean to be a party pooper, but I did not know that Jon was going to dress up and I did not have a chance to get a costume together. Maybe next year.

On Halloween night we ate at Pizza Hut. Pizza Hut usually decorates for Halloween and the servers wear "costumes". It has become our tradition to eat there. When we got home and the kids were getting into their pj's, there was a knock at the door. We actually had Trick or treaters! Most were wearing costumes. Margaret's daughter, Elaine's son and some of their friends came. They invited Hallie to go out with them. She threw on most of her costume and Jon went out with them. She actually got some candy! I think I will be better prepared next year. I gave out little spider and bat rings that we had left-over. The kids really, really liked them. Maybe next year, I can prepare goodie bags. Everyone had a good time, and that is what counts!

Pumpkin

Pumpkin or nan gua is easy to find. But what the Chinese call pumpkin we might call squash. The big one in this picture is a nan gua. It is not really carvable. We did find a small regular pumpkin. A lady was selling them for decorations. Most of the ones she had had Chinese characters on them. Unfortunately this one grew too many gross black moldy spots before we could carve it for a jack-o-lantern.

We did however cut up the big "pumpkin" and made a bunch of pumpkin puree.

We baked the pieces in the oven for about an hour (until soft) then we took the peel off and ran it through the blender. This pumpkin yielded at least 6 cups of puree. I have already made 3 batches of pumpkin muffins and one batch of pumpkin cookies. I will need to get another one before Thanksgiving. We love pumpkin!



Since we could not carve a pumpkin this Halloween, what did we do?

We carved orange candles that I brought this year! We "carved" them with tooth picks and then colored the carved spots with black marker (Jon did not color his).



These won't rot!

They really ate it!

Jake and Shelly came to Hangzhou! Rob and Amber Jill came too. While we were out we found a street food stall that was selling some fried scorpions on a stick. What luck, there were three bugs on the stick. One for each of them! Yep, they really ate them. I have pictures as proof. How did it taste? Ask them!

See it's little legs!

trip to Xi'an

At the beginning of the month, Jon had a whole week off from classes for National Day. We thought we would take a short trip to Xi'an. The kids have been studying ancient China in school, so this would be a great field trip. The trip was not a bad trip, it just did not exactly turn out how we had originally planned.

The main problem is that most of the Chinese people also have 8 days of vacation at the same time. The train system is over loaded and it is very hard to get tickets. We did manage to get tickets to go to Xi'an and only one day later than we had originally planned. We could not buy return tickets while we were in Hangzhou. We packed up and went any way. We knew there was a chance that we would get stuck in Xi'an.

We took a hard sleeper train. This was our car. We had 4 top bunks. All in all it was not bad. Our car was not too noisy or smokey. The train trip was 23 hours long.

The country side on the way to Xi'an was beautiful!

Jon and I spent a lot of time just gazing out the window. We also read books on our Kindles. The kids played cards and video games.

We saw several sites while we were in Xi'an. But the most notable one was the famous Terracotta Warriors.

They really are amazing. These Terracotta Warriors were unearthed in the late 70's when a farmer accidentally found them while drilling a well. They had been buried for nearly 2000 years and no one knew they were there.

Xi'an and the Terracotta warriors are some of the "must sees" in China. I could go see them again! The kids really liked them too. (You can't tell from the picture, though).

Once we got to Xi'an we did get tickets to return home to Hangzhou. The only problem was that the tickets were not until Oct. 11. That was about 4 days longer than we had wanted to stay. We had plenty of time to poke around the city. We walked along the city wall, rang the bell at the bell tower, climbed the drum tower, saw a shadow puppet show, ate some great food at the Muslim quarter, bought some souvenirs. We didn't have to rush at all. When Oct. 11th finally came we were very glad to be on the train and headed for Hangzhou!

We had soft sleeper tickets. This meant that we were all in one room and we could close the door. The train ride home was about 22 hours.

We arrived at our apartment in time for Jon to change clothes, grab his books and take a taxi out to school. He arrived just on time for his class!

We spent the next few days recovering from our vacation!

While we were in Xi'an, Hallie helped us order food at a restaurant. She wrote the dishes we wanted in Chinese characters! The waitress could read them too! She is really improving.

What did we learn? We probably won't try to travel during National Day Holiday next year.

Reno

I had a conversation with Reno after class which truly made my long day. Reno wanted to check about his speech topic “What are you thankful for?”
Reno asked, “Can I talk about being thankful for Jesus?”
“Yes, please. That would be wonderful.”
“I don’t think my classmates are interested, but I want to say it anyway. I know you are a Christian from the stories you tell in class. Thank you for teaching us those stories from Bible.”
At the beginning of each semester I teach my name from Joshua fought the battle of Jericho. When I face fear and doubt in my life I pray to God.
Also we have studied the Prodigal Son. I show Rembrandt’s painting of the Prodigal Son and the students list three details they see in the painting. “One man’s shoe is falling off. One man holds the other and looks sad. One man bends on the ground.” Then we read the parable. From looking sad the father’s emotional face changes to deep down joy, relief, and compassion. Jesus told us this story to show God will run to us and welcome us home no matter what we have done.

Strep Throat

If you had strep throat in America, I suppose you would go to the doctor and get an antibiotic. When Caleb got strep here in China we called a car to the hospital (45 min), stood in line for a number (10 min), waited to see a doctor (30 min), blood test ordered (30 min), antibiotic IV prescribed (2.5 hours), returned home (45 min). Day 2 returned to the hospital for second dose of antibiotic IV (4 plus hours). Day 3 returned again to the hospital, stood in line for a number (10 min), waited to see a doctor (30 min), blood test ordered (30 min), antibiotic pill prescribed.

Actually my purpose is not to complain about China’s medical methods, but to praise our friends, the family of Chong Chong. It just so happened that Chong Chong was on a seven day stretch of IVs at the hospital for a “spot on the lung?” On day one, when GaoYan carried Caleb into the hospital with a 103 fever, Chong Chong MaMa was there for reassurance. She ran out and bought Caleb apple juice, potato chips, and chocolate. When the IV was finished Chong Chong BaBa drove us back home (in the BMW yahoo). On day two they picked us up (in the BMW). Caleb and Chong Chong played together during the 2.5 hours of IV time. On day three they picked us up again. Chong Chong MaMa helped me communicate with the doctor and led me through all the steps of getting a blood test and buying medicine.

God’s provision is so evident in times of need.

For Abraham, May He Steep in Peace (by Jason)

Sometimes the soil of men's hearts must first be cultivated if the seed is to take root in their lives.
In a culture where the scriptures are for the most part unknown (I'm refering to China, but according to recent studies, the same could increasingly be said about America) such cultivation can be a slow and painstaking process. You often need to come at it the long way around, and you sometimes have to make an opportunity where seemingly none exists.
Toward this end, I have cultivated the habit of turning nearly each and every school lesson, somehow or another, into a covert Bible lesson.
Take, for example, my literature class: In the study of early English texts, Beowulf becomes a lesson on the biblical origin of the nephilim, the story of Cain and Abel, and the sovereignty of God in battle; Robin Hood functions as a criticism of both paganism and Catholicism, illustrates the folly of the Crusades (in contrast to the grace of God and the love of Christ), and highlights the corruption inherent in state-controlled religion; and this week, Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales" allows us the opportunity to review (or introduce) the basic history of the three major monotheistic faiths--Judaism, Christianity, and Islam--including a detailed retelling of God's calling and promise to Abraham, also, to tell the story of Christ's triumphal enrty into to Jerusalem, and to explain why the so-called Holy Lands are... well, so called.
Usually very few, if any, of the students are even remotely familiar with any of these concepts nor do they have any idea where all this information comes from. But today was somewhat different.
There is a boy named--get this!--Abraham who thoroughly surprised me today by providing a number of correct answers during my lecture about the Middle East. He seemed to know everything, from the meaning of the word "pilgrim" to the muslim presence in Palestine to the history of the formation of modern Israel. It was very impressive, and I made a point to tell him so immediately after class. I sent a text message actually, and this was his reply: "I have long been interested in world history, especially the European culture. Last year I finished A Global History, and recently, A Survey of European Culture. Furthermore, I wanna embrace Christianity which enables me to steep in peace." (And yes, I think he really means to say "steep," like tea.)
As you might guess, I was amazed. I mean, for someone to come out and say "I wanna embrace Christianity" is pretty amazing in any culture, and certainly all the more so in China. And he's a guy. We've been praying specifically that more guys would show an interest in spiritual matters, so what an amazing answer to our prayer!
Hopefully, you'll be hearing more good news about Abraham in the near future. For now, join me in prayer that he may be steeped in Jesus' love and truth, and yes, His peace.

Personalized Spiritual Preferences (by Jason)

I ran across this quote in the news today:
"Actually, before the arrival of 'Avatar', the Chinese had already started to advocate personalized spiritual preferences. Some people queued for the new Harry Potter movies and books, some queued for Transformers toys, and some queued for precious stamps and souvenir coins," said Ding Chun, a professor with the School of Economics of Fudan University.
The phrase I would like us to focus on is that which I've used as the post title: personalized spiritual preferences.
What jumps out at me most is the very Chinese use of the word "spiritual" in this case meaning what we in the West would call "entertainment" or "hobbies" or "interests". We've run across this somewhat peculiar use of the word several times while living in China. For instance, I remember a news report in Hubei that lauded one city's efforts at "building up the spiritual life of it's citizens" by building more public parks. This was the first time, as I recall, that I'd ever heard the word "spiritual" used in this context and it struck me as quite odd, and frankly quite hollow and even a little sad. I wanted then, as I occasionally still do today, to jump up and shout "That isn't spiritual life! Spiritual life is found in Jesus! How could you guys be so..."
So... What exactly? Blinded? Yes; blinded by atheistic humanism promoted in public as the only rational way of living. Confused? Yes, that too; confused by a long, long history of religious influences of all sorts, which may in part account for some people's non-commitment and relativism concerning and discerning truth. Materialistic, also; in the sense that, ultimately what seems to matter most is one's personal fulfillment in this lifetime, to be achieved through whatever various means, including Harry Potter, Transformers, and IMAX films.
But truthfully, this way of thinking and speaking that equates the spiritual with the temporal, that would substitute mere and fleeting entertainment for substantial and everlasting salvation is rife in not only China but America too. Although we rarely, if ever, would talk about waiting in line for the new iWhatever as "spiritual" per se, we do nevertheless confuse the spiritual with the merely meaningful or memorable all the time. (If you need proof of this, watch Oprah for one week and notice the way she and her guests talk about "spiritual" issues.)
I guess it's part of human nature -- to search for meaning in our daily lives, all the while missing or intentionally ignoring the deeper issues and truths as revealed to us by God. Like the guy in James who looks at himself in the mirror, but then... Wait, is that my telephone?
Anyway... This (this essay, I guess) is at least one expression of at least one of the reasons that I am here: namely, to show others, while constantly reminding myself, that there is a bigger Truth and a greater Spirit and a better Way than that which we see with our eyes or touch with our hands. There is more. There is so much more.

Too Many Holidays?

When a holiday rolls around in China they give you three days off in the middle of the week. But then you have to work on Saturday and Sunday. So if we have a Bible study set up with a friend on Wednesday, they are gone on vacation. Then Sunday worship rolls around and everyone is back at work again. It’s a scheduling nightmare and certainly not a holiday. Last year the Moon Festival occurred during the October National Day week. This year the planets have not been aligned in our favor. The Moon Festival fell a week and a half before October holiday. We will have almost a month of working weekends or holidays.
Actually the attendance at the Sunday worship has been pretty good for a working day. On the Moon Festival our family rode a boat on West Lake to an island. We enjoyed a picnic in a small pagoda during light rain showers. Caleb fed bread to the goldfish and ducks. Guess it was a holiday after all.

Good Neighbor Moving Out

Climbing the incline to our apartment complex the first thing one would see is Good Neighbor corner store, a family run business with a 3 ½ legged kitty cat. Many in our complex shop here for a pound of flour or half a dozen eggs. A bench sits out front for those who want to shoot the breeze and comment on so and so climbing up the hill. There are two rides for the kids. One works and one is for piling bags or umbrellas. A large red basin of water holds three or four fish floundering away their last precious hours of life before they become dinner.
We chose Good Neighbor over the other corner store because they are so helpful and friendly. If we need a fish for dinner they jump right up and scale it for you. The wife knows how to pick a fish with eggs inside (Caleb loves to eat fish egg soup). The husband is happy to deliver a 25 pound bag of rice to our door on the sixth floor. Many times we have made it out of the house without any money, and Good Neighbor always says, “No problem. No problem. Pay us tomorrow.” Invariably someone will step on the 3 ½ legged kitty cat while they are digging for change in their pockets. The cat will let out a great yell, but Good Neighbor doesn’t ever wrinkle their smile.
The bad news is Good Neighbor is moving out. They are headed back to the hometown. It’s the best for their family. The husband’s mother is getting old and their children can spend more time at home instead of running around the corner store.
The new management, a mother and daughter team, is currently under trial. When we went to buy a fish for dinner, the mother says to her daughter, “I don’t know how to scale a fish. You will have to be the fish cleaner.” But the sign still says Good Neighbor with the 3 ½ legged kitty cat still hobbling about.

Prayer and discipleship

Last night, Cecelia and Arily came to study, and Cecelia had yet another new person with her, Sissi. We had a good study out of Mark 4. We discussed the types of soil, and how that represents people's hearts; they could identify that on their own, and I was glad to see it. They knew also that the seed represents Jesus' teachings. We also discussed later in the chapter how light can represent truth, and again they could identify that on their own, and we mentioned how silly it would be to have a light and keep it under the table or bed. We said that if you know something is true, you should share it. We had some good discussion time together, and as we sat around together on the living room rug I marvelled at the differences in the 3 personalities: Cecelia is so extroverted and emotional and talkative, Arily is so thoughtful and deep, and this new girl seems a bit flighty but very friendly and warm. Let's pray they that these three different people will all be drawn to Him in His timing and that they will see what it means to be a disciple. We concluded our time together the other night in a chain prayer. Two of us prayed in Chinese, the other two in English, again their choice. Then, I suggested that after National Day holiday we get together and cook a Chinese meal together. They like the idea, so we will all be looking forward to it. This little group has good potential. Please pray for momentum.

Bin Jiang Report

Please pray for Allen, a guy Heather is studying with that she met at her local Starbucks. She asked us to bring him a Bible last Sunday when we visited over there for worship. We were able to give him one in an easy to read Chinese translation. Pray he will read it, be given understanding, and act on what he learns. Pray also, that the church in Bin Jiang, and here in Xiao He Shan, will grow in Spirit and in number.

Drawn in

Last Monday, we had Cecelia and Arily coming over for a study. They did, and we had been to the Bible bookstore here in town and had picked up some Bibles to share with them, which we had all out in the floor,and were just transitioning to study together when there was a knock at the door! I thought it was a worker coming to look at the leak in our bedroom ceiling, but instead it was a new Russian student here at our school, Tim.
Tim is from a smallish town in central Russia, and he is here to study Chinese for a year and then return to Russia to do some translation work for his father's company. He doesn't yet speak any Chinese, and we think it just might take more than a year to get that good, but anyway...we had met Tim the day before, and told him to visit any time, but now here he was already...during our study. We invited him to come on in, and we introduced him to the girls, we made some small talk about Russia and China...found all our hometowns on Google maps...then, we just went ahead and transitioned back into our study. We weren't sure what Tim would make of that or how he would receive it, but we knew that the study is what the girls came for. At first he sat back and remained rather distant. Then, as we got deeper and deeper into the story, he seemed to relax and focus on understanding the language of the story, since he enjoys practicing his English. then, there was a point in the study when I looked over at him and realized he was interested in the story itself. He began to inch closer and closer to the open Bible, then at the next pause in the action, he asked a question, like, "well, why did Jesus do that?" . It was really fascinating to see this progression. To watch his interest build. Please keep him in your thoughts. I guess, we never know what could happen.

Rose

On Jon's first day of class about two weeks ago, I ran out of some key ingredients for our supper. The kids and I made a quick trip to the convenient store inside the apartment complex. I saw this lady hanging around looking at the kids. Then she asked if they were mine, and all that. She spoke some English. Hallie and I spoke a little Chinese and we could communicate some. She asked if she could come over to our apartment. I said yes, and she followed us home. I continued to cook supper and she watched a little. She said that my potatoes were bad, because I left on the peel. She was very impressed that I made bread (rolls). She played with the kids some. Jon came home, and we invited her to eat with us. She stayed. She admitted that my potatoes were good. And she really liked the rolls. We prayed before our dinner, and she was pretty curious about that.


Later in the evening, she went home. I knew that we had made a new friend. I was pretty sure that she would show up again.

She did. Sunday morning. This Sunday is a make-up day for the up coming holiday (another story). Most people had to work and could not come to worship. It was just Margaret and our family. Then Rose shows up. Margaret jumped right in and helped explain what we were doing. We sang a few songs. I think Rose even sang some. Jon led a prayer and Rose said she wanted to pray too. Jon said a few words, M. translated, and then Rose repeated the words. However, she lost interest before the prayer was finished.

We took the Lord's supper, and explained what it means. She was interested in what the bread tasted like.
Jon had to leave to go to class (make-up day). Right before he left, Rose asked for M's phone number. M. said she would give it, if Rose committed to studying the Bible. Rose said that she did not have time and Margaret told her that if she wanted to study English, it was a good way to begin.

We thought that M. was doing great!



Pretty much as soon as Jon left (maybe a little before) things started getting weird. Rose told that she was looking for work. She told that she was divorced and her son is with his father. She divorced for another man, but that relationship is over. It had been over for several years now. Margaret told her to forget him and start her life anew now, and gestured to the Bible. While she was talking to us she kept taking out a large mirror from her bag and looking into it. She was sometimes talking with M. while looking into the mirror. I thought that was pretty strange. Eventually, M. had to leave. I fed the kids lunch and Rose played with the girls some. We tried to talk some more. Her in English, and I in Chinese. I guess we understood about 1/2 of what each other said.

Rose finally left at 2:00. I was pretty worn out! There were a few times that it was harder to be polite, gracious, and loving (like when she said I was fat!). Hopefully, we have thrown some seed out there. It feels like it is on rocky soil, but you never know what God will do!

Please pray for Rose and the choices she makes in her life. Pray for us as we try to minister to her. We are very thankful to see M. in action for the Lord!

Dental work

Well, how was your week? Mine was not so great. Why? because I am now recovering from oral surgery. Yuck! But let me back up and tell the whole story....

When I was 12 we had a freak ice storm in Virginia Beach (where I lived at the time). I was walking to school, and fell on the ice. On my face! I knocked out one of my front teeth. The dentist just put it back in the socket and then bonded the teeth together and we hoped for the best... I ended up having a root canal on that tooth, and then later a crown.

Now fast forward to about a year and a half ago. I noticed that my other front tooth was turning pink. I went to the dentist (in China). He said that probably it was from the original injury. I had absorption (or reabsorption). That was damaging the pulp and kind of spreading out inside my tooth, thus the pink color. I had a root canal on that tooth. Then I had crown put on and my old crown was replaced at the same time. I was thrilled. I thought it looked great. But then it became infected. We struggled with the infection for a while and finally determined that the "absorption was still going on". It was showing up on x-rays. Dr. Zhou, said that sometimes this cannot be stopped.


I did talk to a Canadian dentist that was living here in town. He explained that the cells inside the tooth were attacking other cells, first the inside of the tooth, and then my bone.



Finally in May it was decided that the tooth would have to come out. It was a dental appointment I was seriously dreading! It was really over pretty quickly. I was numbed, but the numbing did not really last long. It lasted for the pulling, but only that. I am not sure if the medicine is much different here, or what. When ever I have had dental work in the States, the numbing seems to last hours after the work is completed!

I was fitted with and went home with a removable denture (or partial). Kind of like your grandma wears but it is for just one tooth. Yes, I put it in a glass of water by the bed at night.



I hate it and feel pretty self-conscious about it, but I have discovered that most people don't even notice it.



I got the partial while I heal and all but the long term goal is for me to have a dental implant. When it is all done, it will be just like a natural tooth.



The dentist told me that the bone is thin and that increases the chance of implant failure.



I had the surgery Monday to place the implant. Basically it is a metal "tooth root" that is implanted into my jaw. Eventually there will be another piece connected to it, and then a crown put on it.



I did not exactly know what to expect. I knew that I would have some pain afterwards, but surely it would not be as bad as having a tooth pulled. Ha!

Dr. Zhou explained that I would have the numbing shots in the regular dental room and then we would go upstairs to the operating room. I didn't even know that there was another upstairs! He also had me take two different kinds of antibiotic and he gave me a box of medicine that was for pain. He had me take the antibiotics right then. He numbed my mouth, and then had me rinse three times with a special mouth rinse. Then we went upstairs.



The nurse gave me a hat to wear. Then some covers for my shoes. Then they helped me get into a sterile gown. After that, I was not allowed to touch anything. She said she would take care of my bag. I asked if I would be able to listen to my music, and they said no. I was disappointed. When I go to the dentist, I like to listen to music so I don't pay attention to the sounds of drills and stuff. It is even stranger here, because I do not understand what the doctor and nurses are talking about.



Then I walked into the operating room. They got me situated in the chair, and Dr. Zhou started swabbing my face with betadine. He really wiped down my nose. Then they placed something that reminded me of cloth diapers on the sides and top of my face. Something was also on my chest and over my hands that were on my middle. I felt like I was under a quilt. I am sure they were sterile drapes. As they were covering my eyes and all, Dr. Zhou says, " tell me if you can't breathe". Uh, ok. I was glad that the AC was on.



Then the surgery started. At a couple of different times, a guy came in and took some pictures. I could see the camera flash. They take the pictures for records. I guess they cut open my gums, but I was numb and didn't really feel much at all. Then he started drilling.... remember how I said that the numbness wears off quickly here?



I developed something that felt like a hot spot. It felt like one tiny spot, that I could feel. I told them and I think they numbed me some more, but it did not really work. Finally Dr. Zhou said that he was almost finished with the drilling and asked if I could bear it. I said I would try. I tried to just concentrate on breathing (like while in labor). I made it through.

Then he screwed the metal implant into the hole he just drilled. Then I started hollering. Oh man! It hurt. Dr. Zhou said that he had to screw it in and make sure it is in well. It was very important. I sobbed, but it did not take that long. Once he stopped turning it, the pain was much less. Then he did some other things, but they did not really hurt. They spent a while stitching me up. Later he told me that I have 9 stitches.

When it was all over, they took an x-ray to make sure that everything was in place. So far, everything looks very good.



By then all, I wanted to do, was take some pain medicine and go to bed.

As I was paying for the surgery (which is expensive but MUCH cheaper than in the US), Dr. Zhou reviewed how to take the medicines. I looked at the box of pain medicine and realized that it is ibuprofen. But to be honest, it really has helped some. I know that first day, I would have liked to have had something much stronger.


I have been very sore, but each day seems a little better. I can tell that the swelling has gone down a lot!


I go back Monday morning to have the stitches taken out. Hopefully everything will still be in place. The first two weeks are critical. If the implant fails, there is a plan B (a bridge). It is not as good as plan A, but I can live with it. But more than anything, I don't want to go through that pain again, and I don't want it to be for nothing!



Pleas pray that this implant will be successful! It will still be several months before the entire process is complete, but hopefully by the beginning of 2011, I will be able to say that it was worth it.



Update: I am feeling much better. I had the stitches taken out today. The dentist says that I am healing well and the implant is stable. Yay! There is still a little problem with my gums, but we are just going to wait and let me heal. It is possible that I will have another gum surgery. If it doesn't involve drilling or screwing, I can handle it! Please continue to pray for my healing.

It's working!

Where do I begin? As most of you know, Bonnie, Hannah, and Bonnie's friend Catherine came to visit China last week. Bonnie spent a lot of time with "the ladies". We spent time with them too.

Jon and I had been feeling a little discouraged because our group had not met on Sunday while we were in the US this summer. I think they planned to meet. They took song books and talked about it, but it never happened. I am not exactly sure why. Margaret was out of town a lot this summer as was Elaine. I guess that was part of the reason.

Finally, it seems as if everyone is back in town and most everyone was at worship last Sunday. It was great! Elaine has come up with some ideas of ways our group can serve others. We are pretty excited about it.

Margaret said some really nice things about our family and she told how she shared the Bible with her friend Jane (a.k.a. Chong Chong's momma). Now Jane and her family all go to worship in town every Sunday and she is talking about being baptized. Margaret and her husband often go out with Jane and her husband and they talk about life and spiritual matters.

Elaine told us how she was able to share her faith with a friend of hers. We are super excited because these ladies ARE sharing and teaching others!

Sunday night Margaret arranged for us to have a meal together at a tea house. The ladies and their husbands (and kids) and Jane, and Bonnie were all there. Margaret made sure we prayed before the meal, even though the husbands were there. It was really a good time to strengthen relationships.

One specific prayer we have had lately is for the ladies' husbands. We all want them to come to know Christ as their wives have. After dinner, Elaine's husband had a debate with Bonnie. Jon was helping Bonnie and Elaine was translating. No one was convinced that evening, but Li did tell Jon that he would talk with him more. We hope to really continue and develop that relationship.

Last weekend was great and very encouraging to us. Please join us in continuing to pray for these ladies and especially their husbands.

BBQ: The Early Report (by Jason)

It seems that I'm the first to get on here since the Back-to-School BBQ ended a couple of hours ago, so I'll go first...
Several of our friends/students came:
(Not sure how the layout will look on your computer, but...)
There's Ashley holding Phoebe:

Then, here's Cecelia holding Phoebe:

And finally is Ice holding Phoebe (again), with Jerry, Jenn, and I in the background:

And then... well, there are more pictures of more people holding Phoebe, but I guess you've got the idea...

PRC is pretty popular in the PRC!

The best thing, though, in addition to all the free baby-sitting, was that I got to lead us in a few songs and more-or-less preach the gospel mostly in Chinese to all 20 or 30 people who had come out this afternoon.
May God bring the increase!

Cecely: It's Another School Teahouse, Of Course!

Our school invited the foreign, and some Chinese, English teachers to one of the school's teahouses and then to a dinner afterward to celebrate Teacher's Day. We actually had always seen this cute little building on an island on the school's small lake, and had always wondered what it was. Well, it's the school's other teahouse, of course! Silly us. It has a more formal style, with dark polished wood; the teahouse we had always visited before on campus, which is behind the school's teafields, has a more rustic bamboo style. Anyway, it was an enjoyable Teacher's Day celebration with fruit, sunflower seeds, and of course plenty of tea. We enjoyed talking with the other teachers, catching up on what they did over the summer, and they enjoyed seeing how much Pheebs has grown. Afterward we had a good school dinner with soy-cooked pork, fish from the sea, and other delicacies. Then, as China's Mid-Autumn Festival is soon approaching, we were given our annual gift of mooncakes from the school. More about mooncakes and the festival later.

Our apartment is on the corner of two pretty busy streets. We hear all sorts of comings and goings. Many times I hear people yelling but when I look out, I can't tell if anything unusual is going on. Yesterday was a little different. I heard some yelling and looked out. there were a few guys around and a cart on the far side of the street. One guy was on the ground (maybe sitting) and another it looked like, was under a cart. Another guy was yelling at him. He was dragged out from under the cart and they had his hands behind his back. The guy that was sitting was handcuffed too. I mean really handcuffed. I guess I missed seeing the actual arrest. Three or four guys put the two handcuffed ones into the back of a silver minivan. Then they took the less cooperative guy out of the van (the one that was under the cart). They brought him over to the sidewalk. They were not gentle with with at all. He was not fighting them, but they were mad at him. They slapped him some and I even saw a few kicks thrown in. We watched it some and then decided to video it. I am not sure why. We did manage to get a few still pictures but you can't really tell what is going on.

The guys dong the slapping and arresting were wearing plain clothes but we think that they were police because they had real handcuffs. Normal citizens do not have handcuffs in China. Eventually some uniformed police came in a police car and van. They took one "criminal" away. They also videoed and took pictures of whatever was inside his cart.

It was really weird. As an American it was disturbing to see the guy getting hit and kicked, but he was caught doing something bad. The criminal justice system here is very different than in the States. There are no Bill of Rights, Miranda Rights, or innocent until proven guilty. But we do really feel safe here. I don't fear for the kids like I sometimes do in the US. There are few repeat bad guys here. Bad criminals (murders, rapists, drug dealers, and corrupt government officials) don't get second or third or fourth chances.

We enjoy many rights and privileges as Americans. Sometimes we forget that other countries do not share our views about what rights people should have. Yesterday was reminder that this is NOT America and this country can be VERY different than home.


This is the cart that was involved some how. There is a box in the back that they opened and took pictures of.

passing it on

We were very encouraged to see that this past Sunday Cecelia brought someone new with her, a girl who has named herself "Arily". We were even more thankful when we saw that Arily was holding the Bible that Cecely loaned to Cecelia last semester! And Arily spoke up during our discussion. She was able to give examples from the Bible about things she had learned in her reading these past few weeks. She mentioned some things about Joseph, and we asked her how much she had read, and it turned out she has already read most of Genesis and Exodus! So glad that Cecelia passed that Bible on and let someone new read it this past summer. Praise God.

"It's that squash blossom special..."

Phoebe's latest trick: eating squash! [There's supposed to be a picture here, but maybe we'll have to try again later.]
We just got our internet connection going here at the new place.
We're 80% or better on unpacking and setting-up house.
It's been extremely tiring. Besides the "normal" issues of moving into a new apartment overseas [dealing with jetlag, cleaning, going through what the last folks left behind, going through your own stuff, deciding where to put everything, reminding yourself to stop and eat before your faint, napping from 4pm to 4am...] there's the baby, which certainly has complicated things from what we're used to.
Anyway, it's going okay.
School starts Monday.

Clarks returning

Well, this is our last night in America for a long time. We are overnighting in Chicago tonight, and leave for shanghai tomorrow morning. We have really enjoyed the summer home with Phoebe and all her grandparents and our friends, but now it is time to go back and get settled back in and get to work. It is a little sad to leave, but also exciting,and comforting and familiar all at the same time. No wonder I feel so strange about going back, there are so many mixed feelings. My parents are so dear to me and it was hard to leave home, but china is very dear, too, in it's own way, and as we have said before, it is also home. We feel prepared to go back. We have bathed it in prayer, every step of the way. We have read some interesting stuff this summer, too, and had some time to think it over and discuss it slowly. Thanks for this time. It was very refreshing. It will be good, though to be at our post again, and it feels good to be back on the blog. We would appreciate your prayers for our travel, phoebe's health, settling in, and of course, the work. Pray that we will find those He is calling. We care deeply about this work, and really want to please Him. We are humbled by this task, and we need your prayers lifting us up. Thank you, clear creek, for sending us, and fellow team members, we will see you soon! We have missed you.

Snacks

One of the things I love about living in China is all the different foods we get to try. I miss many snacks and foods from the US but there are some wonderful snacks here.

We ate all of our Chinese snacks before we left for the US so we needed to replenish our pantry. I saw these cracker/ cookies things and thought I would give them a try. There were a couple of different varieties. I chose these because I thought they were grape flavor from the picture.




I tried one. They are a little sweet, but those are not grapes on the package; They are green peas! Yuck! The kids won't even eat these. I admit they are pretty gross. I won't buy this again! Oh well, it is a learning experience.

Public Bathing

Man, it is HOT! It is strange though, no one really knows how hot it is. You see, in China when it gets above a certain temperature (I think it is 40 degrees C, or 104 F) then people don't have to work because of the heat. But it NEVER gets above 40 degrees. It is amazing how hot that 40 degrees can feel! We are VERY glad that we have air conditioners. However, to go anywhere you have to get out in the heat. It is not the same as in America. In the US, you have to walk in the heat to your overheated car and then blast the AC until you feel better, then when you get out, you have to walk a minute or two and enter an air conditioned building. Here, we have to walk to the bus stop or at least the gate of the apartment complex to get a taxi. Then the air on the bus or taxi may or may not work. Then we get out in the heat again and walk some more to the store or where ever you are going. The AC here is not as cold as in the US. Also it does not really cool down that much at night here. I think it is because we live in a big city. All the buildings and stuff just hang on to the heat.



Our apartment complex has two swimming pools. We heard that they did not open until 4 in the afternoon, but when Jon and I were out the other morning we saw that the gate was open and there were people swimming. So we decided that we would go swimming after lunch. The kids were really excited.



I smeared them all with sunscreen, we grabbed towels and floaties and were off. When we got the pool, the gate was closed and locked, but there were people swimming. So a little locked gated didn't slow us down much. (it was only two feet high)



The people swimming were really just three little boys, and when we got closer, we realized that the boys were naked as jaybirds!



Their clothes and house keys were strewn on the steps of the kiddie pool. They were also using the lifesaving rings as their personal floaties. They were having a great time.



After we were there for a little while a couple of guys showed up and then 3 teenage girls. Then this one boy about 9 or so yelled something at Jon and he answered. Jon thought he asked us if we paid and then when Jon told him, "no". The kid jumped the gate and started to strip out of his clothes. Jenn wondered if he really asked if Jon was wearing clothes or not.....



That kid jumped in naked and started having a conversation with us. He wasn't shy at all, on any level. We only stayed about an hour. The water was really very warm. Then we came home, took showers, and had a long nap! We will go swimming again soon, but probably in the morning when the pool is really open. Maybe everyone will have their clothes on then.

P.S. Just for the record, all of the Hardins were wearing bathing suits.

Dragon Boat Festival

Dragon Boat Festival is held in June. It is a strange holiday. It can be fun because there are usually boat races and they are fun to watch. Like most holidays, there is a special food. Zongzi is a sticky rice that is wrapped in bamboo leaves. The rice is often mixed with different things like meat or sometimes fruit or nuts. Zongzi has a triangular shape. Jon really likes this food, but it is not my favorite. You can find zongsi all year round, but it is even more popular near Dragon Boat Festival.

Dragon Boat Festival, also called Duan Wu remembers a great poet and scholar called Qu Yuan. When he was 37, he drowned himself in a river. The local people searched and searched for him in their boats (that's where the boats come in). Then (according to some legends) the people were afraid that the fish would eat Qu Yuan's body so they threw zongsi in the river to feed the fish so they would not eat his body. I told you it was a strange holiday.

There is a river that runs right in front of our apartment complex, so we went out to watch some of the boats.



See the dragon on the front of the boat?










After the "race" this guy was hot so he decided to take a dip to cool off. I don't think I would have jumped in that water!




They let this little guy have a try. Look at that grin!!

Jane and Eryn

This is Jane. She used to live very near us. We only met her a couple of weeks before we traveled to the US. While we were in the US, she continued to search and has really plugged into the downtown group. We are very happy with that. She worshiped with us the first Sunday we were back in China. We think she is super sweet.



While she was visiting our home in June, Eryn got out her Bible Story Book and started telling her the stories that go with the pictures. She was sharing the Bible with her! It was so cute, so I snapped a few pictures.


Please continue to pray for Jane as she continues to Search for the Truth.

Biscuit Night

Way back in May, Jon had his "English Corner group" over to the apartment. He had been promising them all year that he would show them how to cook biscuits.

Shirley really wanted to learn how to make biscuits.

Everyone enjoyed eating the biscuits. The double batch was gone in about three minutes.

Eve is looking at a Bible.

I just love, love, love this picture! This is what it is ALL ABOUT!

I am sitting in the Cafe at Clear Creek during Summer JAM typing this. We are enjoying being here, but are super excited about returning to China in just two weeks!

We love you guys so much! You always make us feel so welcome and comfortable! Thank you so much.