Lorne and Kathy-Lu walking down the Wisteria Walk at SunLinkSea

Thanks for praying for us as we took some time for refreshment.  We enjoyed our time of forest walks and absorbing the beauty of nature.  We are thankful that the recent larger earthquakes did not affect our retreat time.

Lorne’s health is much improved but the cough is persistent.  We are thankful that other family members did not get this bug.

We are approaching the last two weeks of classes in the elementary schools.  We appreciate those who have prayed for us and the students.  Please ask the Lord to help us finish well.  We plan to give invitations to the sixth graders, welcoming them to register and attend the August youth camp.

Please continue to pray that Albert and Elaine’s visa application will be approved.  They will continue the process of providing supporting documentation this week.

Praise the Lord for a good visit from Pastor and Mrs. Chi.  They will have a busy summer ministering to children in their own church context.  Please pray God’s blessing on them in their ministry.  Pray for God’s wisdom as Pastor Chi proposes the plan for how Deep Grace Alliance Church will be involved in the Baozhong Alliance Church work.

Kathy-Lu is still recovering from jet-lag.  Lorne is recovering from laryngitis and a cough.  Please pray strength and healing for us both.  Pray for refreshment as we take some time this coming week to seek renewal of our body, soul and minds.

Albert and Elaine are at pre-field orientation.  The visa office has requested additional documentation.  This will be submitted after the orientation meetings are done.  Please pray that the visa process will proceed smoothly, permitting them to travel to Taiwan at the beginning of August.

Sherry seems to be doing well.  She is making friendships with her other coworkers.  Please pray for God to give her wisdom to know how to be salt and light in her daily life.

Praise the Lord that Kathy-Lu made it home safely after her trip to care for our three granddaughters.  She has lots of stories.  It was fun seeing the television cameras waiting at the Taipei airport.  As important as she is, they were not there because of her.  An eight-person investigative team from the Philippines was on her flight.  They will be trying to find the truth regarding the shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman by the Philippine Coast Guard on May 9 and diffuse tensions between the two countries.

We are encouraged as we see small glimpses of what God is doing in the lives of people around us.

• Sherry invited L to go to a young adults retreat.  We are waiting to hear whether her parents will approve.
• Some people who have recently asked questions about something that is happening.
• A conversation with an acquaintance about strained family relationships that allowed Lorne to talk about the difference Christ makes in relationships.

Pastor and Mrs. Chi from the Deep Grace Alliance Church will be visiting later this week to better understand the community and meet some of the residents.  Please pray that they will take special note of places and people that are on God’s heart at this time.

The first publicity for the August Youth Event must be ready for distribution to students by mid-June.  Please pray for Lorne as he works on the planning of that event.

Please pray that the resident visas for Albert and Elaine Lu, newly appointed international workers will be granted with minimal delay.  The final documentation (we hope so) will be submitted later this week.  Albert and Elaine will attend pre-field orientation beginning next weekend.  Please pray for them to have learning stamina and for their children who will miss being with Dad and Mom during that time.

It has been an exciting week!

On Friday (May 17), we received word that Albert and Elaine Lu are officially newly-appointed international workers with the C&MA in Canada.  They plan to arrive in Taiwan with their three children about August 1st.  Please pray for them as in the next 10 weeks they will be busy with a moving sale to sell unneeded household items, attending an orientation seminar, speaking in churches, etc.  They also must apply for a resident visa–requiring filling out lots of forms, providing notarized documents, having detailed medical checkups, etc.  Please pray that God will help them with this busy “patience-building process.”

On Saturday (May 18), Sherry arrived in Baozhong Township.  Hurray!  She will have two weeks of orientation at work, and then will begin formally teaching on June 1.  Please pray for God to help her with the transition from large Canadian city living to life in a small rural Taiwanese town.  As she will be the volunteer leader of our newly starting youth ministry, please pray that she will connect well with the youth of the community.

Thank-you to all who have been praying that God will send more workers into the harvest fields (Luke 10:2).  If you would like to join those that are praying in this way, try setting the alarm on your mobile phone for 10:02 AM.  When it rings, pray as God has directed in that verse.  A variety of workers are needed to reach different segments of society.  If you are with others when your alarm rings, you can mention that your phone reminder is for an appointment to pray to God at that time every day.  You can even ask them if there is anything you can pray about for them!  That way, you gain an extra opportunity to share about your faith.  Why not consider doing this?

This week, Kathy-Lu is visiting our grandchildren.  Lorne will have lunch with Fuhsing Elementary School teachers on Wednesday, tell Bible stories on Tuesday and Friday, teach English classes on Thursday and Friday afternoons, and will be working on planning details for the summer youth camp during some of the in-between times.  It looks like a busy week, and now that the weather has turned hot we are very thankful for the air conditioners.

God bless you all!  Thanks for praying!

Happy Mother’s Day!

Kathy-Lu is thankful to have completed the sharing in the Mother’s Day service at the church in Taipei.  The theme of her message was that God’s grace is sufficient and practically useful in all situations.  The feedback from the church people was positive, and many reminded us that they are praying for the work in Baozhong.

Our daughter Elyssa arrived safely on Thursday, and we have been enjoying hearing her stories from the past year.

We are looking forward to our new coworker Sherry arriving in Baozhong on Friday.  Please pray for a good transition to rural living and to her new teaching position.  Please also ask God to help her to connect with the youth for whom she has a burden.

Lorne had an interesting conversation on the street in Baozhong a couple days ago.  A local resident mentioned that he is reading the Bible.  A few questions revealed that he is getting some help from Pastor Huang at the Village Gospel Mission Gospel Center.  But it was this individual’s initial impression of Christianity that sticks in Lorne’s mind.  He said that Christians are different than most other people because they are more willing to admit their mistakes.  He is right!  We are all sinners that need to confess our shortcomings and accept God’s grace.  Lorne is looking forward to more conversations in the future.

Thank-you for praying this past week.  We were very thankful for the positive contacts that the Deep Grace Alliance Church members made while in our town.  Those who came said they want to return, and there are others in the church who are also wanting to come.  But most important, because they came and visited, Jesus Christ was honoured.  There were opportunities to speak Taiwanese when sharing about Jesus.  Please pray that as seeds of truth are scattered, some will fall on fertile soil and there will be those who believe in Jesus.

Thank-you for praying for JR (mentioned in Update #14).  He is reading through Matthew’s gospel.  He and Lorne will talk about what he is reading on Wednesday evenings.  Please pray for JR to grow in his faith and that God will help him to be able to tell others around him how his faith in Jesus makes a difference in his life.

Thank-you for praying about our daughter-in-law’s May 8 gall stone surgery, and the need for help to care for the children as she recovers.  After lots of prayer and deliberation, we decided that Kathy-Lu should go be with them for part of the recovery time.  As much as Kathy-Lu would like to be able to be in contact with many of you who live nearby, she will be very busy on this short trip—caring for our three young granddaughters.  That is the focus for this trip.  Thanks for understanding and continuing to pray.

Elyssa arrives back in Taiwan this week.  We are looking forward to seeing her.  We are thankful to ORTV (Overseas Radio and Television) for providing her with a two-month student internship.

Kathy-Lu prefers to be behind the scenes ministering in supportive roles.  Thank-you for praying for her as she is miles out of her “comfort zone” preparing to share in the morning service at one of the larger C&MA churches in Taipei City.  Please pray she will have a God-given ability to express in Chinese the thoughts God is giving her, and that she will know God’s peace in the midst of it all.

This past week, Lorne joined thousands of people from around the globe watching via the internet the main sessions from Exponential 2013.  It is known as the world’s largest annual church planting conference.  Lorne was both blessed and challenged as he listened to the teaching and discussions about discipleship.  Please pray that God will lead us to use the most appropriate discipleship strategies for the working class Taiwanese in their relationship with us.

Our daughter-in-law, Bethany, is scheduled to have gall bladder surgery on May 8.  Please pray for adequate help to care for the family during and after the procedure.

We are thankful for those special moments when we can talk about our relationship with Jesus with our friend.  Please pray that we will be alert to recognize opportunities that God gives us, and be courageous as well as wise to know how to mention Jesus at those moments.

Thank-you for praying for us this past weekend as we traveled to Taipei to share with the  Deep Grace Alliance Church and discuss partnering together in planting a church in Baozhong Township.  They were wonderful hosts, and we felt well cared for.  There is a continuing desire to partner, and the two couples at the top of the photo (Mr. and Mrs. Yeh, Pastor and Mrs. Chi) will visit us April 29-May 1 to better understand what is being done.  They will then return to the church and help various members understand some of the
ways that the partnering together will happen.  We are excited that God is answering our prayer to send more workers into the harvest fields.  Please pray that God will give us wisdom and guidance as we continue to work out some of the practical aspects of working together.

Praise the Lord that Ethan arrived in Abbotsford, and did not need to drive in the snowstorm that hit after he drove through the mountains.  We are also thankful that Elyssa’s airline travel is all arranged, and to the C&MA for providing her this opportunity to return to the place where she grew up.  We are counting down the moments until we get to see her and give her hugs.

Sherry Huang arrives in less than one month to begin working as an English Teacher.  We have already been thinking, praying, and beginning to discuss some ways to begin a youth ministry.  We are thankful that Gary and Sue are committed to come from Nanaimo Alliance Church to help with a Youth Camp August 12-16.  Please pray for the planning for this event.  We are also praying that God will create a desire in the hearts of the youth to not only attend the youth events but to know Him in a personal way.

Lastly, please pray for Kathy-Lu as she prepares to share on Mothers’ Day at the SongShan Alliance Church in Taipei.  Please pray for Holy Spirit’s anointing, a clear sense of what to say, and an ability to express it well in Mandarin Chinese.

Thank-you for praying for the items mentioned last week!  We are happy to report that God heard and answered the prayers for summer employment for our college-aged children in the following ways:

• Our son Ethan will be returning to work for the Best Western Hotel and Conference Centre in Abbotsford.  
• Elyssa will be returning to Taiwan for the summer and will spend a couple months of her time in Taiwan doing a summer internship with Overseas Radio and Television.

This week’s activities will include:

• Tuesday:  Kathy-Lu travelling to Taipei to attend the C&MA international worker prayer time.  Lorne will stay close to home so that he can tell a Bible story to a 6th grade class in the afternoon.
• Thursday:  teaching English at Fuhsing elementary.
• Friday:  Lorne will tell the Bible story to some more 6th graders.  We will teach English at Chaurtsuo Elementary in the afternoon.
• Saturday:  Attend a wedding feast and then travel to Taipei to meet with church leaders from the Deep Grace Alliance Church.
• Sunday:  Share about working among rural working class people in the morning service. Return home.

Last Friday, Lorne took the puppets to the school and let the students play with them.  One student went into the refrigerator box puppet theatre and with very little prompting retold the Easter story that she had heard two weeks previous.  Our prayer is that the content of the stories will be something the students remember for a long time.

Thank-you for praying for us and the ministry here in rural Taiwan.  As we pray this week, the following items are things that are on our hearts:

• Praising God for another slight improvement in Lorne’s foot.  Praying for continued healing.
• Praying that JR (a Baozhong resident who believed in Jesus while in university) will be encouraged in his faith.  Asking God to give him a thirst for God’s Word and an increased desire to communicate with God through prayer.  May God also give Lorne wisdom as he visits and encourages him.  We are grateful that he has some interest in helping Lorne to use Bible-story telling to share about Jesus with other Baozhong residents.
• Praying about summer ministry planning.
  •  At this moment, there have not been enough short-term team volunteers from Canada to be able  to make the decision to proceed with the hoped-for children/family ministry events.  If God does not supply workers in the next couple of weeks, those plans will need to be set aside for this year.
  •  There have been Canadian volunteers for the week of youth ministry.  We will begin in the next few weeks to recruit some Taiwanese volunteers who are needed to help in this event.
• Praying that God will help us to be the aroma of Christ as we teach and tell Bible stories in the elementary schools this week.

Praying for provision for our children, Ethan and Elyssa.  They need employment and places to live this summer.  We praise God for how well Philip, Bethany and our three granddaughters are doing.