1/16/2009 vol 5.1, Shifting Down
"HAPPY NEW YEAR!" can be said so casually and without much thought. But we'd like to encourage everyone by praying that 2009 will be as much of a blessing as it may be a challenge for you. Thank you for your friendship and emails and support and prayers. Timothy will graduate from kindergarten this March, and join Lydia for homeschooling thereafter. Lydia enjoys going with her mom to help take care of the little kids at a local MOPS (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers) group twice a month. Sarah has added another weekly responsibility by tutoring a friend's friend in English; she wants to focus on homeschooling, but our friends seem to demand more of her attention.
SHIFTING DOWN SOUNDS LIKE A STEP BACK. But, I've decided to spend less time meeting new people, and more time doing administrative work this year. This will have a double benefit in trimming our budget in line with the expected decrease in donations in 2009, and in increasing the structural framework for developing one or more of the ministries I'm focusing on: Chonburi Center, OLC (the English Bible study group), and Newsong Bangkok. I decided to stop going to BCIS to preach and teach the Bible every week. Still, upon request, I have begun teaching business English to a couple of OLC students on a bi-weekly basis. There is no tuition or fees for OLC. The photo above is of our Christmas dinner with OLC.
CHRISTMAS DAY IN THAILAND is not a holiday, not at all. People work and go to school like any other day. Ironically, Thais take no offense in celebrating Christmas as a cultural event. "Merry Christmas" banners can be seen everywhere, and traditional gospel melodies about Jesus Christ can be heard in the malls. Even more shocking for American educators, public schools welcome Christmas presentations! Seminary students in Chonburi Center spent the Christmas break going to about thirteen schools and several villages, as well as two malls, to sing, dance, act, and preach about how Jesus is the reason for the season. I've seen many many students raise their hands and pray to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior! The teachers and the administration sat by satisfied that their students were exposed to the Christmas tradition. Try that in your local school and get a taste of some American justice!
VISITORS ARE ALWAYS ENCOURAGING. Michael, from Pilgrim Church (English Ministry), visited last fall for a little over a week. We were encouraged by his taking his vacation time and money to visit a mission field, and also by his monthly donations. He happens to be the nephew of this pastor I had known since I was a kid, and also of our chairman of the board. The day after he left, Rev. Min and Elder Choi from Choonghyun Mission Church visited for a day on their way back from ministries in India. Sarah's parents have been long-time members of that church, and I had known Rev. Min since I was dating Sarah. Elder Choi, it turned out, is the father of another pastor in whose church I had guest-spoken. And I met many relatives in Korea at the end of November when I went to attend my grandfather's funeral. That was also encouraging.
You can read more about my grandfather and the nursing home he founded in my blog.
Please pray that:
1. My widowed grandmother will survive her first cold winter in her nursing home.
2. The OLC professionals will continue to grow in their knowledge of God, as well as in English.
3. We will be able to organize our ministry schedule to include time for both people and paper.
In Christ,
Paul, with Sarah, Lydia and Timothy
