新年快樂！恭喜發財！Xin nian kuai le! Gong xi fa cai!
Happy Chinese New Year!
This week is really important for the people in Taiwan. It’s a time for people to return to their families, share a meal together, and rest. For the last few days, the city as really calmed down. There were still some festivities on 迪化街 (Dihua Street), but because of the pandemic, it was toned down. Usually there would be a lot of vendors and a lot of food samples passed out, but they were not allowed this year.
In January, our church did a 21 day fast together. We embarked on this fast to draw closer to God and to be able to depend on him more. Our ministry has been going through a difficult time with many changes and uncertainties. We want to position ourselves to be actively listening and acting upon God’s voice. We’ve been looking at the life of Samuel in 1st Samuel to see how being positioned to hear God’s voice can bring us closer to Him.
Despite all of the challenges, there has been so much breakthrough from God over the last two months! We know that God is still working in Taiwan. It is amazing to see your prayer support, financial support, and me partnering with God’s work here.
First of all, Aroma has just celebrated it’s 10th anniversary in Taiwan! God has sustained this ministry through some crazy times and will continue sustain us!
The Christmas season brought some much needed cheer and joy to Taipei. It may not be as big of a deal as in the states, but the cheer was welcome. We celebrated with a special Christmas service and candle lighting.
But most importantly, God answered our biggest prayer yet! We’ve found a new building! The prayer was to sign for a building by the end of the year… the lease was signed on December 31st. There is currently some remodeling being done, but the plan is the move in by mid-March. Thank you all for praying with us for a new building. We are moving in to a bigger location that will fit our changing needs. This allows us to serve and build even more relationships with the people in Taipei! Here’s a preview of the new layout.
Throughout my time here, I’ve been learning about how God and my call to missions will work out. So far, it definitely has not been about a location or a certain people. It has been learning about myself and who God created me to be. I’ve received a lot of affirmation from my experiences and the people here. God has created to see value, where others may not see, and be able to maximize it for His Glory. Whether it be people who feel like they are the misfits, or just ideas/processes that people think are useless, there is so much that can be used for the kingdom. I love the puzzle and the challenge to see how all of that can be used. It takes creativity and problem solving to put it all together. Think of the show Chopped – take weird ingredients that others would throw away, under limited resources like time or kitchen space, and work it together to produce a dish thats fit for strict judges. That is how my mission will unfold. I’m approaching my life in Taipei with this mindset.
As we continue on, please keep on praying for:
-continued learning and improving of my Chinese. It’s improving but can always be better!
-new ways to maximize the reach of our ministry, utilizing the few resources we have. I will be experimenting even more with new products for the English learning. Please pray for creative inspiration, as well as help filling in the educational aspects that I do not know
-the transformation of our new space! We are working with a designer to renovate our new space. Pray that goes smoothly and we can move in by March
-even more relationships with more of Taiwan. As I’ve been living here, I’ve been able to meet some interesting people. I’ve met Taiwanese people who have just started working, as well as other foreigners trying to business here. Pray that these relationships can strengthen and that God works through them.