Planting

Carl and I just returned from planting some seeds.

No. We were not starting a garden.

And we were not supplementing our income by becoming farmers.

Our seeds were not those that yield some form of vegetation.

We were planting seeds of faith.

It's that time of year again.... Ark Fellowship English Camp!

This camp was planned and then cancelled. God, however, made it apparent, it was to go on. And while we thought we knew who was coming, God had different ideas. Typically, participants of the Ark Fellowship English camps have been teenagers- some in high school, some in college. Not so this year. Ten of the students were in sixth grade and below. Lower level of English, higher amount of energy!

Besides great fellowship (as usual) and beautiful sceneries (also as usual), I was able to share the truth of God's love and  how His one and only Son took our sin upon himself so we might have a relationship with the one true God.

Our weekend began at the earthquake museum, located near the epicenter of the 1999 earthquake that claimed 2,400 lives. 

After unloading our luggage at the B and B rented for our weekend, we walked to a national forest.

Not sure why, but they sure were cute!

 We hiked.

A bamboo bridge- only ten people at a time!

While there, we played a fun running game, in hopes the younger ones would use up all their energy.

That evening, after a time of singing (in English, of course), I attempted to teach the children some American board games- Sequence and Sorry.

And for the curious, yes, we did sing Country Roads.

Not sure if they totally understood the game, but they had fun!

After a hot bath and great night's rest, our Sunday morning came quickly. The typical Taiwanese camp breakfast, rice porridge, called conchee, graced the table. Served with different condiments, I learned to love this dish some twenty-five years ago. I would walk a mile or two for a warm bowl! I like putting peanuts, pickled cucumber, and sweet dried tofu into my bowl. I passed on the shredded dried pork. 

I am not sure, but I don't think Carl was quite as enthusiastic about the breakfast as I was.

Stir fried cabbage and an egg dish similar to an omelet was also served.

Warm milk tea and rice porridge with chunks of sweet potato!

As mentioned before, the best part was the Sunday morning sharing. Carl took the older teens and adults and led a Bible study while Sharon, my translator, and I took the younger ones. Except for a few, these were unchurched children. Their parents most likely combined  buddhism and ancestor worship to form these children's faith frameworks. 

So where does one begin ?

As all good teachers do, I borrowed an illustration. 

 Our Spiritual Life speaker, Mary Porter, used this in a chapel a few weeks ago.

The round plate is the earth God created, the coin, its people. The green water that once was clear and pure became polluted with sin. It only took a small drop of food coloring. This was then poured into the plate, separating us from the coin. We could not get the coin without touching the water, just as we are separated from God by our sin. But Jesus came- a lighted candle and allowed death to overtake him. At this point the cup was put over the candle and its burning flame. As the light was extinguished, the air inside the cup was heated,  changing the air pressure. Just as the light flickered out, the green water is sucked back up into the cup. The coin is no longer apart from us! Jesus took our sin upon Him and now our sin no longer keeps us from having a relationship with God. 

This was a super visual to explain an often confusing truth to those who have no background knowledge of Jesus. After I finished, Sharon continued answering their questions for quite awhile. A small miracle considering the attention span of some of these kids!

I could tell that several understood and that small seed of faith was planted. God knows. And He is able to water it and nourish it into a strong faith. Please pray that the weeds of this world will not choke it out or Satan will not pluck it away!

My morning concluded with a morning stroll with my guy, while the Taiwanese speakers played another game. 

And yes, that is bamboo!

Naturally, the gift of magic always comes in handy!

I love Taiwan mountains!

Sunday morning mountain fishing!

Thank you for praying for our family! It is these prayers that guide and strengthen us for the task God has set before us. I am just so glad God has led us to a place and a people that I love and enjoy!