Why Do We Go Back to the States Most Summers?

We will leave on Thursday for our Stateside visit for the summer. Thus begins the same yearly migration that many, many overseas workers, especially teachers, do. It is part of the rhythm of life for us. When I was in countries where there were many things that we did not have I always knew a furlough was coming when I started to dream about Walmart and KFC. (Not proud of what my subconscious was telling me, but it was pretty persistent.) Such is not the case in China. I can go to a very nice Walmart anytime about 4 subway stops away from my apartment. I can bike to KFC within about 5 minutes. I always have McDonalds, Burger King, Dairy Queen, and Subway within striking distance. Pizza is also available. (No Taco Bell. I think someone should open a Taco Bell franchise here in China. I assume it would be quite lucrative. And although Chik-Fil-A might be quite marketable, I am not sure the philosophical stance would fit into things allowed into China.) There were certainly times I ...

frustration, resentment, anger, loss Book excerpt: BLESSED: Eight Steps to Emotional, Relational, Spiritual Wholeness: The Healing Power of the Beatitudes

BLESSED:  Eight Steps to Emotional, Relational, Spiritual Wholeness:  The Healing Power of the Beatitudes  Chapter 2 “Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted. ” Matthew 5:4 Frustration, resentment, anger, loss In order to deal with mourning issues, each of us must face our frustration, resentment, anger, loss. It is issues such as these that form the blockage that keeps us from getting ahead, from working through to some healthy form of completion. You must ask yourself do you want to get ahead or do you want the blockage that keeps you from finding rescue and healing emotionally, relationally, and spiritually? To find wholeness you must admit the frustration, the resentment, anger, loss. Embrace it. In the embracing of it, release it. Forget making the perfect decision here, make the wise decision. Making the wise decision is not only better for your health, it is also biblical. The word translated “perfect” in the Bible is a sociolo...

Local Congregtions Update

Just had a nice long visit with the gentleman who helps us find a place to hold our Friday night meetings.   He explained some of the pressures on his organization. He said there are about 1,000 people at the main meetings, which happen Saturday night, and 4 services the next day and then youth group. However, there are about 9 groups that meet in houses that also owe allegiance to the main body.   He said beside their group, there are about 20 groups of 500+ meeting in Beijing, and countless small groups. He said things are getting tighter for them. The government is calling individual members and telling them not to attend any longer. He said the government often talks to him. The landlord for the building they use for their large meetings is refusing to renew the contract. The pastor has told them that they are standing on the banks of the Red Sea and are waiting for our father to intervene. He said they were not in physical danger, but people were losing their jobs, and ...

World Cup: Happening in Russia, Watching in China, Routing for Senegal and Panama

World Cup!!! Maybe you are from a country that does not avidly follow soccer…..futbol , sorry.  But MOST  of the rest of the world thinks this is one of the premier events in the, well,  world…thus “World Cup”.  We have lived in these countries and have come to enjoy the hype and nationalism involved. Particularly this year because both Panama and Senegal are participating, for the first and second times ever!!! I probably feel more affinity for the futbol in these countries than if the US team had been involved, just a matter of fanatical following.  I had very little interest in sports on any level as a child. Marrying Rick, I was committed to break him of this wasteful activity. Within a year I was watching American football with him. However, not until our children were wholeheartedly involved in athletic events did I truly succumb. One year during our time in Maryland I counted up 125 games that I went to in order to support our children. Probably the ...

Dragon Boat Festival

I was thinking how melancholy my posts have been lately. I understand why, but it is certainly not really what I am feeling nor the theme of my days. We are very content and happy here. There are trials and yes, they may be different than the issues we would face back in the US, but I know that there would still be many difficulties no matter where one lives. Maybe being here just makes them   more interesting. Haha. However, there is pain in the world as a whole: “creation groaning” Romans 8:22. And all of us must deal with that reality in our surrounds. But I wanted to write something more upbeat today and decided to discuss a bit about Dragon Boat Festival which is Monday. Of course the minute that I decided on the topic, I remembered that the obscure origins of Dragon Boat Festival probably revolves around the suicide of a much loved counselor in ancient China. He was so distraught that his advice about a moral State was being ignored that he drowned himself…..or maybe it...

Hollowness: book excerpt BLESSED

"Mourning" means looking at pain, shame, and hollowness. Previous posts address pain and shame. The next section deals with the hollowness within. I am posting: Book excerpt: BLESSED Eight Steps to Emotional, Relational, Spiritual Wholeness: The Healing Power of the Beatitudes Chapter 2 Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted. Matthew 5:4 The empty feeling. The certitude that nothing will ever make you whole. The bottomless pit of need. As the saying goes, the morning after the night of laughter is hollow and thin. Addicts are usually seeking to fill the void and they need more and more of their addiction to keep life meaningful. Addictions are not just drugs, alcohol, and eating disorders. Nearly all of us are “addicted” to something. We have things in our lives that we just can’t seemingly live without. It might be as simple as chocolate and, in truth, the craving to fulfill some needs does not negatively impact our lives ...

Pain in This World

I sat last night crying with a friend from Ivory Coast.  She is a one of the many, many scholarshipped students here in China. Our international church has close to a majority of African students.  (One of the things we love about our church.) The little I know about the Ivory Coast comes from our time in Senegal. In 2002, about 90 young transfer students arrived at Dakar Academy overnight. There was a civil war in Ivory Coast that threatened a large boarding school and they were evacuated to Senegal. The brother of my friend here was just killed by one of the left -over gangs of teenage soldiers from Ivory Coast civil wars. She was devastated being separated from her family at this time as they mourned this believing young man. I think too of the news this week of two celebrities who have committed suicide. Particularly Anthony Bourdain brought tears to my eyes. I was introduced to his program through Peter, our second son. Peter watched with nostalgic jealousy “...

Last Friday Night Study, But Not by Choice

We wanted to have Friday night study for 3 more weeks until we left for the States, but the office we have been using suddenly moved locations last week! That means that the only other choice that we can come up with for meetings is a café. Our church sponsors and uses this café and many weekly meetings are held there. However, this is for expats with expats. That is not who attends our Friday night study. It is just too questionable, even possibly dangerous for our students to go to such a public place for this.   There is that within me that immediately said, “The evil one has won this time.” We are up to the resurrection in John. The meetings have been very good, with much deep teaching, and now it is over at least until next fall. It is our experience that the same students do not show up each semester. But I know that the evil one never really wins. Our father always brings good on some level. We often do not ever know what that good is, but we are trusting that it is true t...

Language Affecting Eternity

Just saw a really interesting clip from a TED talk on how language structures our thoughts. https://www.ted.com/talks/lera_boroditsky_how_language_shapes_the_way_we_think It might be easy to listen to something like this and make the statement as I did above: ”really interesting”. Of course the issue is that languages are more than “interesting”, but rather are the very essence of life and death to individuals as well as even cultures. Living as we have lived in so many different places, we have had the   opportunity to see how languages affect daily lives. Even languages we do not speak, but know something about, have been the object of mental investigation. In Zambia the area that we lived was the home to the Bemba tribe. Now, although we studied chiBemba for about 3 weeks, really we never spoke it, but we were told that chiBemba has 2 future tenses…..and 23 past verb tenses. Do you know how drastically that affects lives….planning…economies? How do you do a budget an...

Please, Remember Them

It is always difficult to discuss some issues here. We are receiving articles that tell us that meetings in houses are being curtailed more and more. They have been told that they must have surveillance cameras in their meeting venue. Some are refusing and having their water cut,   and it is threatened to have their electric cut as well. The individual leaders of this movement are trying to decide what is the best step, but regardless what they do the assumption is that there will be more restrictions and difficulties. In discussions during our Friday night meetings, one gentleman, in awe, has repeatedly said how mutually supportive our groups are. He says that it is extremely rare in this culture to reach out beyond one’s family, and he sees this happening in his village and also in other contexts. He has previously worked with the government, and he says, “This is why the government is so concerned. Any group that can come together like this is a threat to the government.” ...

Did you want the next section from the chapter on "Mourning"? The next section deals with the cross-cultural sidebar describing some of our experiences observing mourning in other cultures. Book excerpt: BLESSED Eight Steps to Emotional, Relational, Spiritual Wholeness: The Healing Power of the Beatitudes Chapter 2 Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted. Matthew 5:4 Cross cultural sidebar Mourning In the cultures we have lived, there are differing expressions of mourning. In Taiwan, it was usual to stage a big parade for the deceased with all of the things they might enjoy, including foods, pole dancers, and movies. Hired mourners would at times wail for the duration of the parade. Ancestors need to be attended to and placated. However, I always said that I want to be buried in Zambia. Mourning is extravagant mourning. For three days the whole village grinds to a halt. No one washes, or even hardly changes clothes. Everyone th...