Pictures of Friends

Julia & Nate with 3-week-old Isaac Paul

Veronica

Our Wednesday community group - Melissa, Molly, Jared, Hector with Daniel, Bessie, Cheryl

Dahlas & Steve from Massachusetts

Mark organizing our finances for the past 6 weeks.

Visitors

One of the fun things about living here is the privilege to entertain guests. 

Recently a man named Paul from Romania had contacted Mark about coming to see the city. So last week, for about a day and a half, we had the opportunity to show Paul around the city and hear his story. He grew up in a believing family during the years of communist Romania. If I remember correctly, his father spent several years imprisoned during that time. While here he wanted to learn about the Xn climate and meet with some Xn lawyers. We had a great time with him not only talking and fellowshiping but also realizing the connection we have with the body of Chr around the world.

This past Sunday we met two young fellows, Hendri & ‘Wayne’, from Holland who recently graduated with their MBAs from university in Wales. They have been good friends for about 10 years, growing up together, going to university together, and now traveling China together. Before they settle into ‘real world’ work, they wanted to travel and see China. They planned a six-week trip around the country with about 5 days in Beijing. We met them at BBC. They felt it important to take a day to worship and rest so in the midst of their 5 days, they joined our body and stayed for an inside picnic lunch. We even got together later in the evening to walk Ghost Street and have Beijing Roast Duck at Hua’s Restaurant. Fun to hear their stories too. How encouraging that they value a Sabbath Day and the importance of connecting to a local body during their year in Wales and even on a trip. They related how they became involved in a local church while in Wales and attended the three services during the week – two on Sunday and one on Wednesday evening. They encouraged our hearts.

Since Friday we have had Pastor Steve & 19-year-old Dahlas from Massachusetts with us for 5 days. Mark went to Vladivostok, Russia, with Steve two years ago. Steve and Dahlas are on their way to Vladivostok, spending time here first then about three weeks there. This is Dahlas’ first trip ever out of the country – and a big one at that. Once he got over jetlag, he has done pretty well. Funny how traveling and being in new situations help us depend on the L much more than we might otherwise. I think this trip has opened Dahlas’ eyes to another culture. Yesterday when they went to the Summer Palace, he saw idol worshipers for the very first time. It’s one thing to hear about people bowing down to idols; it’s quite another to actually see it. It’s one thing to study Chinese in an American high school; it’s quite another to hear it on the streets and in the shops. It’s one thing to use chopsticks at an American-Chinese restaurant once in a while; it’s quite another to use them at every meal. I’m afraid Steve and Dahlas may lose weight here.

One thing that has surprised Steve is the amount of capitalism and western influence in this city. So many times we have impressions of places based on TV documentaries, textbooks, media, etc. Yet when we enter the culture, things are not always as we thought. Beijing is a modern, thriving metropolis. I remind them that Beijing is not China. The countryside, however, doesn’t necessarily have the same modernization and economic growth.  Although communism is still here and a part of the political structure, so is capitalism and economic success. In addition, we do find a certain amount of Xn freedom, yet not like what we are used to for sure. The challenge is that, as we all discussed yesterday, communism and Xn-ity cannot co-exist because the worldviews are so opposite. There is only one G and He is not the State or its leaders. He requires full allegiance, as the Word says to worship Him only. We hope that someday even the country’s leaders would recognize that transformation by the Word would make the country not only economically better, but socially better.

Making a soup

What is it like to make a favorite US soup here?

Last night I went to bed thinking how I could write a blog post about a day in our life. Living here takes so much more time and energy than at home. What is it like to have friends over for dinner? Daniel and his parents came for dinner last night so I had in mind to make Chicken Tortilla Soup, a favorite recipe. I looked over the ingredients to decide what I needed to buy.

·         Chicken breasts √, easily available

·         tortillas √,

·         cumin √,

·         cilantro √ easily available,

·         chili powder – brought with me,

·         chicken broth – I can use chicken essence seasoning granules to make broth.

·         garlic √ easily available, 
·         frozen corn – sometimes available 
·         sour cream - not available; maybe I can use plain yogurt instead 
·         cheddar cheese - not easily available; I could order online

·         can of diced tomatoes – hmmm…  I can cut up tomatoes or see what the store has. I buy a can and discover that it contains whole cherry tomatoes. Easy enough – I can cut those up.

·         Enchilada sauce – hmmm… Stores don’t carry canned sauce. The foreign import store across town sells packaged enchilada powder mix. Do I want to travel on the subway one hour then walk 10 minutes (one way) to buy a package? Maybe not. So I research online for a homemade recipe. They require tomato sauce. Hmmm…. My experience has been that Chinese equate tomato sauce with ketchup so the Chinese characters for tomato sauce are often the same as for ketchup. I have done this before and bought ketchup in error. So we went to the store and looked in the section of ketchup. Nearby are two other packages. One labeled tomato sauce; the other labeled tomato paste. The characters on these packages are different from each other and from ketchup. Do I dare hope they really are what they say they are? I gamble and buy the tomato paste. When I get home, I make the enchilada sauce to go into the soup. Indeed, it is tomato paste!

So all in all, we had a great dinner and time of fellowship together. Daniel said after dinner that I could make it for the guys; they would like it. I guess that’s a vote of success. 

Cooking here is not a simple as opening a can of this and adding a can of that.  I have found canned vegetables, spaghetti sauces, pastas, and the like but in the foreign food section of the store and they cost more than Chinese foods. I have found very few frozen vegetables – only corn but lots of frozen jaozi. So we learn to get creative. 

Boldness or Openness?

Mark & I had an unusual experience yesterday on the way to the grocery store. Big grocery stores tend to be in shopping malls so we pass all kinds of interesting stores on the way, including a foreign language bookstore. Near the entrance we often see books authored by classic English-language authors. They also have Spanish and French books lying on the shelf. However, it was a front-facing book prominently displayed book that caught our attention yesterday. An ESV Word propped up for display! Mark & I were so surprised. It was not a bilingual version so I’m sure it was marketed toward foreigners, but the fact that it was so prominent intrigued us. I wanted to discretely take a picture with my phone, but I haven’t learned how to take good pictures yet. I didn’t want to draw attention to what I was doing so I ended not getting the picture.  

People Stories - a teacher & a tutor

A teacher

Recently G blessed one of our families. In late spring a teaching opportunity came up for the wife. Believing that G had brought this opportunity into their lives, they followed in obedience to the L and pursued getting the appropriate visa to teach. That eventually required them to live outside this country all summer, enduring various trials and challenges. It became a very difficult summer for them but in the end, G allowed them to obtain their visas. Just last week her school informed her that beginning this November the government would require many teachers to have five years of teaching experience before they could teach in China. She had four years of experience. Because she now has her visa (and thus visas for the family), she was grandfathered into the law. By the end of this year, she will meet the required five years of experience. However, if they had waited to pursue this teaching opportunity, even one semester, she likely would never have gotten the job nor their visas. Sometimes we don’t know why G allows trials into our lives; sometimes He graciously gives us a glimpse of His purposes. It’s like the tapestry seen from below – a tangled mess of knots and threads.  But on the top side, Heaven’s side, it’s a beautiful, woven picture. Rejoice with them and with us.

A tutor

Since Mark is not attending formal language classes this year, we decided to hire a private tutor so he can keep up with his Chinese. Can you imagine that he wants to talk?? Anyway, we discovered that one of our favorite teachers from last year no longer taught classes but would tutor privately. She tutors some of our good friends, and we knew her and she knew us so we thought it might be a good fit. So we get together once a week for about three hours. We have a great time with her – talking, reviewing, laughing, joking, reminiscing, and sharing. It’s fun to not only see progress in language but also watch a friendship develop. We get to review and solidify words and concepts she taught us last year and use those things in many different combinations. We even get to use Chinese words, concepts, and traditions and connect them to the Truth. Our friends have also developed a friendship with her and her husband so they all have discussed the Truth at various times. Remember us on Thursdays that we would not only learn but also have wisdom on how best to live out the Truth.

People Stories - Pam & Frank, Leslie, Veronica

People Stories 

Pam & Frank

Amy’s parents, Pam & Frank, stayed with us four nights this past week. We had a great time with them, getting to know them, showing them around Beijing a little, talking about our kids, laughing about life. Their first day here Frank joked about the scene we must have been to onlookers. He said it looked like something out of a movie. They knew the language, but it was the foreigner showing them around town, guiding them through the subway, taking them to tourist sites. What’s wrong with this picture?

They spent several weeks in China to visit family and long-time friends, ending their trip with us in Beijing. While in the country, they took the opportunity to share the Truth with their family. According to Pam, four of their relatives came to believe in J. For example, she shared the Truth with a cousin, sowing seeds over many years, but earlier this year the cousin lost a close family member, thus opening the door to more discussion about eternity and the One who holds eternity in His hands. That cousin came to believe what Pam had told her and that J is real and can comfort in times of sorrow.

Over the course of several meals, we discussed so many topics, in addition to their growing up years. They were born just after the Great Famine in China but lived through the Cultural Revolution. For them, as for so many others, it was a very difficult time period. I encouraged them to write down their stories. Stories of hardship, but as we talked, we see how G worked through that, even though they didn’t know it then. G was working all the time. We have noticed, and they agreed, that many people their age display a blank or empty countenance. We see it on the subway, in the parks, around town. So many years gone, so much hope lost, so much faith in other people betrayed. Yet for Pam & Frank, G has given them a peace that passes all understanding. G has given them a hope beyond their experience. G has saved them and given them new life, not just outside their original country, but life in J. Pam, Frank & Amy are first-generation Xns, sharing the Truth with others whenever they can.

Yet at the same time, Frank carries a heavy burden. His parents in China are elderly and not well. He would like to find work where he can come visit them periodically to care for them and still provide for his immediate family. Remember him; he needs wisdom and opportunity.

Leslie

While Pam & Frank were here, they wanted to visit Tiananmen Square so we went one afternoon. We followed the crowd to where we thought we could reach the square. We learned later that the particular crowd we were in was actually the line to get through security to visit the Forbidden City. Since we didn’t have ID or time, we didn’t want that line. However, while there we met a young lady from Mexico, Leslie, who arrived here just three weeks ago. She will nanny six months for a Chinese family but has free time while the boy is away at school. She mentioned that language poses difficulty in the nanny job since the family doesn’t speak any English and she doesn’t speak any Chinese.  She reminded us of our own girls - young, enthusiastic, friendly. So we walked around the square with her, chatting, taking photos. We shared phone numbers and made contact. We hope we can see her again sometime.

Veronica

One day on the subway Mark met a man from the US named Dmitri. He was here looking for work, would soon return to the US, but hoped to come back to Beijing. His girlfriend was from Beijing. Through some personal contacts, Mark put him in touch with some business people and we also made contact with his girlfriend, Veronica. We ended having a delightful lunch with her and learned some of her story. She basically grew up in the US, played tennis, and attended a major university. While in college she came to know J and has since grown in her faith. She now attends a well-known body in NYC so we had a great time comparing notes and talking about the well-known leader/author. We hope to see Veronica again as she plans to relocate and work here. Remember her for wisdom and opportunity here.

We recognize G ordains every contact, every conversation. Remember us as we talk, chat, visit, contact, and share the Truth with seemingly perfect strangers yet people made in G's image.

Pictures of our new home & neighborhood

 

Walking out the apartment building

We discovered a produce seller inside our complex

A walk outside the complex to explore the neighborhood area

The school across the street. We learned not to take a walk about the time school lets out. Also, we hear the PA system every morning as they do outside activities.