Day 1 - 6/28/19 - A New Beginning!

Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 3:13-14

Hi everyone! Jonathan here kicking off our blogs for a brand new year of Taiwan Missions! I can barely believe that we're already back in Taiwan, seeing/meeting the Taiwanese youth and ready to teach at VBS again. I'm feeling excited, nervous, and of course, tired, but before we jump into our 24-hour long journey, I wanted to recap everything we've done so far. The preparations leading up until now were filled with many challenges, but through it all, God has really shown us His grace and mercy.

This year, we experienced many changes from previous trips, starting with team selection. Due to miscommunication and poor judgment, this process ended up taking much longer and being more difficult. Looking back, while we had the drive to make sure the team the best it could be, we at times failed to reflect on trusting and loving our fellow brothers and sisters. At the end of it all however, we have faith in the Lord that each of us are on this team as a part of his perfect plan, no matter how broken we may be.

Our first meeting was with not only all six members but also a few past members who were there to support us. Throughout the entire process, their experience and spiritual maturity was truly a blessing for our team, constantly praying for us and answering our questions about planning, spiritual preparation, and more. Future meetings were often filled with discussions about logistics as this year we would teach an English bible story with a Taiwanese youth and also help the kids put on a play about them. We worked on English activities and lesson plans, but also took time to read the Bible together and talk about our concerns and worries. In Philippians 1, we talked about Paul's overflowing joy as he talks about sharing and showing his faith to not only his brothers and sisters, but also even the guards who are imprisoning him. Even during such a tough time in his life, he still is rejoicing in the glory of God, a powerful testament to what our attitudes should be in both the highs and the lows of our trip.

At our last meeting, we danced! Each year, we create and perform a dance to all of the youth, kids, and adults. Angela taught us some amazing dance moves. We also talked with Mrs. Song about the 9 rules for short term mission trips, all very good reminders that we're here in Taiwan not for ourselves, but for others and the glory of God.

Before we knew it, it was time to leave for Taiwan!

(Hi everyone! This is Matt picking up where Jon left off.)

Coming into this trip, I was hesitant and weary. I’ve been to many retreats before and I always suffer from the same thing every time: The Christian High. This gives you a temporary closeness with God during the duration of the retreat. But as soon as the retreat is over and a couple of days have passed, that closeness you thought you had with Him slowly fades into nothing. 

I had the whole day to contemplate this issue. The team met up at Nicole's house at around 6:30 am. From there, her dad drove about 1.5 hours to the Newark airport for our flight to Japan. The flight from Newark, New Jersey to Tokyo, Japan took about 12.5 hours. Then, the team had a 3-4 hour layover at the Japanese airport. At the airport, we were able to buy souvenirs, eat ramen, and enjoy ourselves. Then, we had a 3-hour flight to Taiwan and another 2-hour drive to get to our apartments. The total trip was about 22-23 hours long. 

During this very tiring and draining trip, I worried about “The Christian High” and feared that I would fall victim to it again. I’ve always felt tremendous guilt and it has slowly eaten away at my walk with God. 

Matthew 13:31-32

He presented another parable to them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; and this is smaller than all other seeds, but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that THE BIRDS OF THE AIR come and NEST IN ITS BRANCHES."

I ran into this verse when I was writing this blog and had a realization. I realized that all these retreats that God has been sending me to were the small mustard seeds that the man had sowed onto the field. The “seeds” may not seem significant at first, but they grow into plants larger than the garden plants and become a tree. 

So after reading that verse and reflecting, I realize how naive I was in believing that the retreats that God has sent me to were meaningless. I know realize that God has been trying to get me to look at the bigger picture. Now I come into this Taiwan STM filled with hope and confidence that the Lord will do good works through my team and I. 

Prayer Requests:

• Good health for the Taiwan Team
• For God to work in our hearts to be loving towards everyone around us
• Energy to get over jet lag