Praise the Lord with us that the typhoon stayed out on the ocean and turned northward so that it did not affect our local weather and we were able to have our Sunday meeting.  It was even more special because it was the first time that there has been a baptism at our church.  KC declared his faith in Christ and was baptized on Sunday morning, August 23.  In addition to his family some of his good friends came to witness the event and celebrate with him.  It was exciting to have a total of 20 people attend (including us).  We need to continue to pray for KC as he seeks to put Jesus first in his daily life.

Having the Amazing Grace Alliance Church’s bright orange plastic baptismal tub at our house for a few days prior to our service sparked a number of conversations about belief in Jesus and explanations about the nature of baptism.  Today Lorne met someone who knows KC and there was another conversation about the difference believing in Jesus makes in a person’s life.  Please pray that we would have the right words to say as we interact with people about such matters.

We have submitted our response to each of the three schools stating that we will be available for this semester to teach English and tell Bible stories.  Although the stories are considered by some to be mythological, we believe such stories have special power because they are the Word of God.  Please pray that God will use the sharing of the stories to kindle faith in the hearers’ hearts.  We will begin in September.  If you would like to specifically pray for this, please remember to pray for our preparation time as well as the class schedule which is as follows:

• Thursday afternoons (September 10 – January 21) 1:30-4:00 PM at Fuhsing Elementary School – English teaching and Bible Storytelling
• Friday mornings (September 4 – January 22) 8:40-12:00 noon at Baozhong Primary School – Bible Storytelling
• Friday afternoons (September 4 – January 22) 3:05-4:00 PM at Chaocuo Elementary School – English teaching and Bible Storytelling

As I was driving the car this morning, I noticed that there are many trees in our town that are half green and half brown.  The recent storms have damaged the leaves and branches on the side that faced the wind.  The trees are recovering and continuing to grow.  New leaves are sprouting forth and the healthy areas are supporting the parts of the tree that need extra help at this time.  I wondered how Jesus might use those trees as an illustration.  I thought it is a good parable of how a healthy church functions.  But I also thought about the fact there are experiences we face that batter and bruise us.  They probably change us.  But God’s plan is for healing and growth to occur so that we can continue to produce fruit.  Our output may be affected in the short-term, but with God’s help we should be able to recover and have new strengths.  Maybe that is what Paul was talking about when he wrote:  “We are pressed on every side by troubles, but are not crushed.  We are perplexed, but not driven to despair.  We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God.  We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.  Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the lif of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies….That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day.” (2 Cor. 4:8-10,16)

The summer schedule has been busy with camps, church activities, and personal family events.  We will be taking some days this week to have some quiet time to reflect on what has been happening and to prayerfully think about our coming Fall activities.  Jesus told us to love God with all our hearts, souls and minds and to love our neighbour as our self. We are encouraged by the C&MA in Canada to take time to evaluate our relationship with God to make sure that we are remaining healthy in all areas of our life. We will take some time to do that and to quietly do some planning for the next few months.  Our prayer is that we will return refreshed and ready to serve God as He desires.

I am also supposed to mention on behalf of an excited A-Ma (grandma) that Philip and Bethany are expecting our fourth grandchild in January.  A-Ma (pronounced Ah-Mah) is the Taiwanese word for Grandmother.