First, just want to say thank you always for your continually support. I guess to experience and see the fruit of your support is and always have been a tremendous blessing and privilege and I just hope that you will be mutually encouraged with this report and will continue in your support for Matt and myself and the others who will be coming soon.
God continues to open doors to talk and share the gospel with some students from the summer. In particular, Mario and Stanley have been my own lot. I’ve met with both of them individually and each time we meet, there has been a desire to learn and to question what the book says and what the gospel means. Over the past weekend, I met with Mario and his girlfriend and we got to talking about the characteristics of God. Both of them were interested in what was being said and both wanted to do a small study about God’s characteristics. Please pray for God to be with us as this study begins in October, that the materials being covered will answer their questions and draw them closer to a decision to commit to the gospel. Also, please continue to pray for Stanley, for the desire to question and seek to increase and for that to lead to a study in the Bible.
Also this past weekend, I was able to meet with my language partner, Leo, who is a non-believer. I met him through his wife, who I met at a local church. Our meetings usually consist of us exchanging language lessons for two hours then we have dinner. But this last meeting was a little different. After dinner, we were talking and the wife brought up their marriage and why they had to postpone their wedding ceremony (I was a little saddened by that. I wanted to see what a Chinese wedding is like.) To make a long story short, Leo and I agreed to put away our language exchange and use that time to study the Bible and use that time to answer any questions he has about the faith. Please pray for continual humility and wisdom as this study begins, for his heart to be humbled and to receive the salvation from God, and for his wife’s support in all of this.
The past two Sundays, John, Mat and I have been checking out other international churches. It has been a blessing to go and see how other people are worshiping God. These gatherings are definitely a lot smaller and remind me of what Berean used to be when I first came. Please continue to pray for us as we continue to make our way to a few other gatherings.
Also, I will be making a visit this Friday to Urumqi. The October National Holiday is coming up and I have a week off from work, so I want to take that time to make my farewells to the people there. Please pray for fruitful time to be spent with those I know there and to be an encouragement to those who need encouragement. I will be going by myself, so please pray especially for protection and discernment while I’m there.
Hello everyone! Thank you guys for your prayers, its seriously really encouraging to hear from people that I am in their prayers. I really do feel the support because the transition has been going so great. And sometimes I want to take credit for it, but I know it is through the family I have back home. So my working situation has been settled and my schedule is pretty set, so it is time to pick up gears! Work then Chinese then WORK.
So we decided to combine our FOF studies with Daniel and Trog. They both agreed and we felt the discussion would be a more of a discussion with two people asking questions and learning from each other. Daniel is doing well, he has been attending a local church near his home, but is going to check out the one near his school. He has been reading the Bible more and I have been just challenging him to remember and understand what he reads. He honestly admitted that it seemed like he was reading a text book, so if you could lift him up to have understanding. I met with him today and it seems like he is understanding a little better. Trog, had many good questions at the FOF study, but still is trying to find a local body. I believe he is going to one that is near his school referred to him by Daniel Song.
John, Alex, and I have been meeting up for a small group, trying to read the Bible and share prayer requests. It has been a good time of fellowship between the group and John said he was really up happy. Like Alex mentioned we are still checking out different local churches, so pray for John to really find a home at a local church where he will be able to serve at.
Also I have been meeting my co-teachers at the kindergarten who are all very nice, but most of them are Christians because of culture of Koreans rather than truly believing it. If you guys could lift them up so that I would have opportunities with my limited Korean and their limited English to be able to share the good news with them not only in my actions but also in words.
