Favorite things in Taiwan – Part I

Hey y’all-

There are many things in Taiwan that I like. So, I thought I would post some from time to time of my favorites. One of my favorite things in Taiwan is the people. They are friendly, kind, considerate, and love to help foreigners with their bad Chinese. Well, the Taiwanese people that I’ve gotten to know are like that. Here are some of them:

These are some of our friends from ChirLee Technical School in BanCiao. From left to right: E-Fan, Brian, Example, Wei, Eunice, and the King, baby! (Remember, these are my bad English transliterations of Chinese names when they don’t have an English name.)

This is Frank and Shine. We hang with them about every week for some conversation and good food.

This is Shelly, Frank’s older sister. You’ve met her before.

This is my new friend, Jacqueline. I met her last night at our group. I shared the Gospel with her and gave her a DVD to check out. Her English is very good.

So, here are some of my favorite things in Taiwan – friends.

Hope you enjoyed getting to meet them.

Uncle Jeff

Practicing Silence and Solitude – Part V

Shhh....

Hey y’all-

Being able to do this (pictured above) is difficult for me. How does this shake out each day? Like this….

1. Wake up. (Very important.)

2. Make coffee. (Equally important.)

3. Eat breakfast and drink coffee.

4. Have some time with Jesus in His Word. (Huge.)

5. Pray.

6. Go to my place of solitude.

7. Relax.

8. Pray when it’s over.

9. Repeat the next day.

That’s it. Thoughts?

Uncle Jeff

Taiwan traffic

Hey y’all-

Here’s some traffic in Taiwan. It’s a busy place.

Uncle Jeff

Silence and Solitude – Part IV

Hey y’all-

I’m still meandering my way slowly through this book. I’m really taking my time for a few reasons. The main one being I tend to rock through books like a rocket sled on rails and I would like to grasp a bit more of what she’s saying….

So, back to Ruth Haley Barton and Invitation to Solitude and Silence. She hits on a major theme on page 51. Speaking about the desires of the heart, she writes,

But there is an even greater truth: before you were even aware of your desire for God, God desired you. He created you with a desire for him that groans and yearns in the very fiber of your being. We love God because God first loved us. We desire God because God first desired us. We reach for God because he first reached for us and created us with a longing for himself.

This is a huge point. The Bible says, “No one seeks for God” (Romans 3:11). That is the truth. God is the First Seeker. He comes after us. We do not seek him. Remember, when Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden, God went walking in the cool of the day looking for them. He sent His Son, Jesus, to earth to live among us. To be a sacrifice for us. He seeks us….we do not seek him. This is a big, big point…..

Kick that one around in your solitude and silence time this week. Ponder. It’s worth it.

Uncle Jeff

Solitude and Silence – Part III

Ruth Haley Barton’s Invitation to Solitude and Silence is really hitting me right between the eyes. I like it. I don’t like it. And then I like it again. Where did she smack me last night? In the areas of fear and control…..

She writes,

Entering into solitude and silence also moves us into a realm where we are not in control. The practice of silence in particular honors the reality that it is God who initiates the spiritual life; he is the One who calls forth in his way and in his time. But even as silence and solitude bring us face to face with our addiction to being in control, there is also an invitation: the invitation to let go and allow God to be in control (48-49).

I think this pretty much sums me up. I like to be in control. Or, more accurately, I like to think I’m in control. The reality is God is in control. Doesn’t that seem like a better idea? To allow (and desire) the Creator of the Universe to be in control rather than a bald, single, 38-year-old seminary student? Really, whom would you rather follow? Me or God? Trust me, you’re not hurting my feelings…I’m with you….I’d rather follow God, myself.

Now, how about your life? Who is in control? You? God? Someone else? A friend? Family member? Boyfriend? Girlfriend? Who is in control of you? Trust in the Lord Jesus. Let Him be in control. That is the way it is supposed to be. That is the only way I want it to be.

Thoughts?

Uncle Jeff

Trust in the Lord

Hey y’all-

Right now, I’m trying to decide where God wants me to serve after graduating seminary. Should I apply for a pastor position back home? Should I apply as a missionary with an agency? Good questions….

I’m just working through this (see the entry on Solitude and Silence) with prayer and a lot of listening. Keep me in your prayers that I’ll be obedient to what God wants me to do….

Just thought I’d share.

Uncle Jeff

More about Solitude and Silence

Hey y’all-

This new book Invitation to Solitude and Silence by Ruth Haley Barton is getting all up in my Kool-Aid. I’m trying to read it slow, savor it, and put her thoughts into practice. Here are a few things she says that are right on the money.

Reliance on our own thoughts and words, even in our praying, can be one facet of a need to control things, to set the agenda, or at least to know what the agenda is even in our relationship with God. It is in silence that we habitually release our own agendas and our need to control and become more willing and able to give ourselves to God’s loving initiative. In silence we create space for God’s activity rather than filling every minute with our own” (35).

Me? Control? I’m not sure this applies to me…..or maybe it does. It is interesting how full I can make my life to avoid boredom. With my own personal noisemaker (some call it an iPod) and other entertainment devices (like the laptop I’m currently using), I can fill tons of space in my life. I can entertain myself into numbness.

What about those who have other obligations? Family? Kids? School? Good question. Even there, one can fill, fill, fill the time to feel necessary or needed or valued. Maybe we could all cut some “noise” out of our lives and make space to listen to God? Maybe we could let some things go (laundry, yard work, Facebook, football, etc.) and connect with the Creator of the Universe? That sounds like a good idea….

Barton also says this,

And solitude and silence are not, in the end, about success and failure. They are about showing up and letting God do the rest. They are not an end in themselves; they are merely a means through which we regularly make ourselves available to God for the intimacy of relationship  and for the work of transformation that only God can accomplish” (36, emphasis author’s).

That gives me a bit of room to breathe. I am accomplishment-oriented. I like to get things done. I want to feel as if I have marked things off of my mental to-do list. This is not that kind of experience. Rather, this is the anti-accomplishment experience. One must show up, shut up, and listen up as God takes control. That is a sweet, sweet idea.

Wonder how this will work? So do I. Maybe it’s time to stop talking and start listening…….

Uncle Jeff

Solitude and Silence

Hey y’all-

A book was recommended to me recently that I thought I’d give a spin in my “free” time. I’ve got a fair amount of reading to do for my school studies, but I like to read for fun, as well. So, when a friend recommended Ruth Haley Barton’s Invitation to Solitude and Silence, I thought I would take a look.

Those of you who know me are already thinking, “Silence? I’ll believe Uncle Jeff can be silent when I don’t hear him.” True. I feel you. That’s one reason I think I could use some insight into the spiritual disciplines of silence and solitude. I am really good at filling my personal environment with noise.

When a friend recommended Barton’s book, I asked another friend about it and he recommended two other books of hers, as well. So, I may be looking at those pretty soon, too.

Anyway, check it out. See what you think. Let me know. I’m early in this book, but I’m enjoying it…..

Uncle Jeff

Friends in Taiwan

Hey y’all-

Want to introduce you to a few friends of mine from Taiwan.

This is Frank. He’s a 9th-grader at a local junior high school. (They have three years of high school here.) He goes to school all week and cram school on the weekends to work on English and Art. He helps me with my Chinese and finds us good places to eat.

Frank - student, basketball player, Chinese master

This is his older sister, Shelly. She is a 12th-grader at a local high school. She goes to school all week and three cram schools on the weekend for Math, English, and Art. She has a huge test in January or February for which she is currently studying. That test will determine what university she will attend….

Good score. Good school. Not so good…..well….

Shelly - math student, artist, Chinese guru

Just thought you might want to meet a few new friends of mine….pray for them and for me as I share with them about Jesus.

Uncle Jeff

What I Believe about Jesus

What I believe about Jesus in a few short, simple statements.

1. Jesus is God.
2. Jesus came to earth as a man.
3. Jesus lived a perfect life.
4. Jesus died on the cross to pay for the disobedience of man.
5. Jesus rose from the dead three days later.
6. Jesus told His followers to tell others about Him.
7. Those who believe in Jesus and obey Him will be saved from death, hell, and eternal separation from God.
8. To be saved means Jesus has made a person right with God.
9. Jesus is coming to earth again to gather those who are saved.
10. Those who are saved will live with Jesus for all eternity in peace and harmony.

Trust in Jesus,

Uncle Jeff