Day 2 - 7/1/2017 - Reunion and Revival

"And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work."
                             2 Corinthians 9:8

        Hey, Jeremy here. Before I launch into this post, let's take a moment to thank the LORD for granting us safe passage here and for always surrounding his followers with wise and faithful siblings in Christ. And thank you, reader, for keeping us in your prayers.

         It really is incredible how quickly time flows away in our lives. As I sit here typing this blog post, I'm also reading through our 2016 posts and finding that the details written in them remain as fresh and vivid as if they had happened mere days ago, but no; it has been a year, and as much as things stay the same, they must also change.

          Besides the addition of a new group member in Katherine, our missions team has grown a lot both as a group and a set of individuals. With two of our original members graduating and maturing, I've found that both Josh and Emily have really grown as followers of Christ, and that this growth will greatly benefit our goal to spread the gospel. Josh has become someone of significant spiritual wisdom and someone that I greatly admire, and Emily has grown to be even more responsible and has taken well to the leadership mantle.

           Of course, Edward is still Edward, with his constant pursuit of perfection in Christ and responsible, big-brother approach to our time together. And whether I have changed I will leave up to you, the reader, to decide, but as a whole, I feel we are a much improved team.

           After we arrived in the airport and passed through immigrations, we found Hwachi and Albert's dad waiting for us. Albert's dad was sending us home by car, and we got our first reminder of Taiwan's sweltering tropical climate as we stepped out of the airport into the parking lot. The 2 hour-long ride ground itself out uneventfully as we all looked anxiously forward to our return to Taichung.

          At last, we finally arrived, and we dropped off Emily and Katherine at their host's home before heading to Hwachi's to clean up and get ready for breakfast. Since we were relatively close together, we walked together to breakfast and rediscovered the magic of filling, substantial morning food.

          We then continued on to Ito's famous opera house, where wall melds smoothly with both wall and ceiling, and almost nothing is a boring flat surface. Unfortunately, the opera house was closed when we arrived, so we decided to head to a local department store to spend some time and find lunch.

           It was here, however, that we found that not all was perfect about our fantastic breakfast, as Josh had a severe allergic reaction to something in the food. Although he has since recovered very well, please pray for him so that he may avoid such experiences in the future and so be able to serve the children with all of his time and effort.

           After we had explored the department store briefly, we enjoyed a lunch together at a Hunan restaurant with a slew of varied options, including a shrimp kebab that you can see below.

             Here, we also held a lengthy discussion on the nature of the Christian image, as Edward argued reasonably that we should work to be perfect examples of Christianity to the world around us. While no one would argue with his intent or the truth of this statements, we did disagree some of the minutiae of how we should go about maintaining that image. Thankfully, wiser minds intervened to share their wisdom; specifically, Hwachi, who brought up the example of Jesus himself, who was regarded by many as a sinner and blasphemer. Thus, others' perceptions of us as Christians are inevitably tinted by their innermost intentions, and we should devote our efforts to the greater works God has left to us rather than worrying about every single detail of our lives. Thank you for your wisdom, Hwachi.

             We then returned to the opera house, which, thankfully, was neither full nor closed, and enjoyed a series of art exhibitions set in a magnificent piece of architecture. 

As we left the opera house, it felt as if the opening chapter of this year's mission trip was drawing to a close. We had had our time to relax and enjoy, and now it was time to adapt and prepare for the true goal: to spread the good news among children who have never really heard about Jesus before.

             And so we returned to the church, where we were reunited with our friends in the Taichung Christian Assembly youth. After they finished working on their posters and materials, we headed down to the sanctuary to simulate the VBS. 

             Again I was astonished by the enthusiasm the youth here display, as they approached worship with genuinely grateful hearts, loudly singing voices, and frantically moving bodies. As they practiced, we pretended to be children learning the songs and dances.

            Thus, today we have had our fun and games, and we have been gathered together with our old friends again. Now begins the time of overcoming jet lag, finalizing our lessons to the best of our abilities, and, most importantly, immersing ourselves in God's love and wisdom.

Please pray for all of us here at the Taichung Christian Assembly, that we may devote ourselves entirely to serving the children. Also, please thank the LORD for taking care of Josh and ask that he continue to do so in the future, so as to help us better meet our goals on this missions trip. Please also keep the kids in prayer and ask that they may come with open hearts. 

Thanks to the LORD for this opportunity!