Carrying Stones for Jesus?

Today after the conclusion of our small group meeting here in our coastal southcentral Taiwan setting, I had the chance to share the following story in Chinese with three of our community friends while we were sitting around drinking tea. The story is quoted in Tim Keller’s Prodigal God, page 51:

One day Jesus said to his disciples: “I’d like you to carry a stone for Me.” He didn’t give any explanation. So the disciples looked around for a stone to carry, and Peter, being the practical sort, sought out the smallest stone he could possibly find. After all, Jesus didn’t give any regulations for weight and size! So he put it in his pocket. Jesus then said: “Follow Me.” He led them on a journey. About noontime Jesus had everyone sit down. He waved his hands and all the stones turned to bread. He said, “Now it’s time for lunch.” In a few seconds, Peter’s lunch was over. When lunch was done Jesus told them to stand up. He said again, “I’d like you to carry a stone for Me.” This time Peter said, “Aha! Now I get it!” So he looked around and saw a small boulder. He hoisted it on his back and it was painful, it made him stagger. But he said, “I can’t wait for supper. “ Jesus then said: “Follow Me.” He led them on a journey, with Peter barely being able to keep up. Around supper time Jesus led them to the side of a river. He said, “Now everyone throw your stones into the water.” They did. Then he said, “Follow Me,” and began to walk. Peter and the others looked at him dumbfounded. Jesus sighed and said, “Don’t you remember what I asked you to do? Who were you carrying the stones for?”

Wind Generation Update

A couple of months ago when I was riding my bike along the west coast I noticed that a new platform had been erected to indicate how much power was being generated in Four Lakes’ 14 wind generators. Yesterday was the first time I observed it to be outputting power generation levels. It took a while, but the grid is finally working.

There’s also a new logo on one of the wind generators, apparently by a local temple. Everything is franchised out these days….

Singing Competition

Yesterday the community sponsored a Folk Custum Cultural Festival on the plaza in front of the local temple. In addition to drums, “country technique”, and many other performances put on by children and adults, there was a lottery in the evening in which lots of prizes were given away, including a half dozen or so bicycles and a large flat screen HD TV (I noticed the crowd was 10 times larger when they had the drawing than it was earlier in the afternoon!).

However, I went over there in the afternoon and once again in the evening not for these, but to watch parts of two rounds of the singing competition in which two acquaintances of mine participated. “Benz”, who I’ve written about before and is one of my earliest acquaintances here, came in 2nd place for the 2nd year in a row. Congratulations again this year, Benz!

The New Children of Taiwan

Earlier today I saw this link about families of foreign wives here in Taiwan as posted by OMF Field Director Phil Nicholson on his facebook page. As our bookkeeper/secretary said this past Sunday in small group, it is no longer appropriate to call them, in either English or Chinese, "foreign brides" since so many of them have lived here so long already.

Many places I have been recently (field directors' meeting from earlier in the month, mission prayer meeting, various other conversations) I'm hearing people talk about this-- even more than before. The 60+ children who participate in ShuiLin Presbyterian Church's tutoring and outreach programs 15 minutes down the road are almost exclusively from foreign bride Taiwanese families. How might God be wanting to love the so-called "new children of Taiwan" (xin taiwan zhizi) and mixed marriage families, and use them to subversively transform Taiwan's worldview to a Christian worldview from the inside-out (Paul Hiebert, Transforming Worldviews)? How might we move in line with Him in our church planting projects to accomplish this very purpose?

Moon Festival Truck