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Dani

Jodi — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 18:03:57 +0000

We met at our Christmas party in December, and it was on my heart to meet Dani again and follow up with her. She said she had studied the Bible when she was in the states for a year, and several of her friends had become Christians, but she hadn’t. I wanted to find out why.

Well, I’ve been trying to use my language skills more recently, so we started off speaking the native language. It was going pretty well, switching back and forth when there were words I didn’t know. As we chatted conversation drifted towards her time spent in America, and I asked her why she didn’t join the family then. She replied, “I’m waiting for God to knock on my door.” I said, “maybe He’s knocking, but you didn’t hear Him.”

I began to share the story of the prodigal son and God’s deep love for Dani. I was trying hard to speak in her langauge, but there were so many words I didn’t know, and I was getting excited about the story. “Just speak English,” she encouraged me, and I continued to tell her that all of us are like the son in that story, and our Father is waiting for her to come home. I could tell I gave her some things to think about that night, and I’m praying that the next time we meet I will find her more hungry to know Him.

We’ve had some really good meetings with friends lately, and also a few discouraging ones. A couple of our new brothers and one of our new sisters faced a lot of pressure when they went home for the holidays and told their families that they had become Christians. As a result they are not sure they want to continue with their new faith and studying the Bible with us. Please ask that God will continue to draw them with his love, and that they will have the courage to follow Him, counting the cost and finding Him worthy.

I have no idea who is going to come this weekend, but we are still planning to have our first church meeting with the new brothers and sisters. I’m asking God to move in His power and presence during this time; please join with me in prayer for this. Also, I have been facing some personal discouragement and unclarity recently, and I am needing to hear His voice and direction.

Thank you for standing with us, we need you.

All for Him,

Skittles

Scattered Thoughts

Jodi — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 15:54:54 +0000

It sounds like a war zone outside. It’s the last night of the two week celebration of the Asian New Year, and people are excited! The intensity has increased throughout the evening, and I’m happy to be inside where it’s slightly quieter, and I know no stray pieces of debris will fall on my head. A few minutes ago I was watching some fireworks that were literally right above me, set off at the entrance to my apartment complex. It’s pretty crazy outside right now!

That was the end of the celebration, and a couple of days have passed, but I wanted to share that memory with you because it is a real part of my life here. Normally it’s not quite so crazy, and we’ve recently taken advantage of the holiday season to have some speakers come and share God’s heart with us. It has been good and challenging at the same time. I feel like I have so many areas of my life to grow in, and don’t quite know where to start.

Here’s something exciting to share with you- my team got together just the other day to plan out what the church is going to look like here! Now that we have several friends in our family, we want to start meeting together regularly, and we took some time to listen to God’s heart and plan together about what those meetings will look like. I’m excited! It’s something we’ve prayed for a lot, and soon it will be a reality! We hope to start meeting within a couple of weeks. Please lift up our new brothers and sisters, that they will draw closer to God and each other as we begin to meet together regularly.

So this is a kind of scattered recollection of what’s been happening for the last little while. I feel like God is doing a lot in my heart and it’s good, but not necessarily easy. Please pray that I receive and submit to what He is doing, and draw closer to Him during this time. Also, I have to make some more important decisions soon. Please pray that I will have wisdom and follow Him as He speaks to me.

I hope to send you some more detailed stories soon of what’s happening here. God is good, and He is moving and working in our midst.

All for Him,

Skittles

All The Way Under

Jodi — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 17:52:26 +0000

Three of our new sisters were getting baptized, and I felt a little nervous, the excited kind of nervousness I love baptisms here- it really is a symbol of new life and rebirth, and our friends are not willing to do it without a true commitment to follow God.

We had lunch together and then went to the guys’ home where there was a bathtub. Autumn led us in singing worship songs, lifting our praise and thanks to our Creator for all He’s done. Then I shared the story about the loving father and his son who returned home after going his own way. Oh, it was so cool to see the understanding on their faces that they were coming home, that they were part of God’s family.

We baptized each of them in the small bathtub, and before each one we prayed together. It was precious to hear them pray for each other as they acknowledged what Jesus has done for them. Each with her own special story of coming to know God, Helen, Yvonne, and Jane know that this is a starting point for the rest of their lives.

It was a wonderful day, but I can’t say that it was without bloopers. No one brought a towel, but that’s ok, we were prepared for that. Yvonne and Helen both wanted to wear dresses to be baptized, and Yvonne said she wanted to wear something beautiful for her special moment Jane somehow thought that she was not going to get completely wet and needed to borrow some clothes at the last moment. Jane is also a little taller and as I put her under she didn’t quite go all the way- you can see on the video my slight hesitation, and then an extra push to get her all the way under.

When I think about these small things it reminds me that we make mistakes in showing God to people all the time. But that those small things really are small. It is God who makes the seeds grow, it’s Him who changes hearts, and He’s the one who brings them home, back to Himself. He is pretty amazing!

We will be going to Thailand soon for our company retreat. I’m excited about this time of getting to see friend who are currently in other cities, as well as having time to seek the Lord together and hear from Him. Please ask for rest, refreshing, and vision during this time. Thanks!

All for Him,
Skittles

Safely Back Home

Jodi — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 17:48:22 +0000

I arrived at check-in, only to find that my flight had been delayed. The good part about it was that they didn’t want me to miss my overseas flight, so the counter agent was trying to work everything out. After several minutes she informed me that I would be flying with a different airline and have a layover in Tokyo before reaching the final flight destination. It meant I wouldn’t make it all the way back home, because I’d miss my connecting flight, but that’s what was available, so I took it.

As I settled in, I began to do some of my homework for class the next week, when I noticed the woman next to me staring intently at my attempts to write in a foreign language. She turned out to be from Taiwan, and spoke almost no English. We began to chat about life, and she just seemed happy to have someone to talk with. She had been visiting the US because of the birth of her first grandchild and was returning home.

We began to talk about faith, and I really wished I had something (anything) with me in her language on the plane, but I didn’t. I got to share with her from Johns words, how he said that God loves the world so much that He sent His only Son so that if we believe in Him we can have eternal life. I did my best to translate and explain the Gospel to her. I felt so stretched, sharing in a language that I am not even close to being fluent in. But I felt God was with us, planting seeds in her heart.

I left the plane with an invitation to visit her in Taiwan some day, and knowing that God had used me in her life. It was worth changing planes and going through extra travel to make a difference in someone’s life. I’m learning more and more that this life is not about now, but about eternity.

I am back home (in Asia)! Thank you for all your prayers for travel. I appreciate it so much. Right now we have a kind of wrap up time before our friends go home for the holiday. These next 10 days will be pretty busy, trying to meet people before they leave. Also, the baptism was postponed to this weekend- I’m excited about that Please pray for me to readjust quickly to this time schedule. I’m managing to stay awake during the day, but having trouble sleeping at night. Today I was awake around 4:30am and couldn’t go back to sleep. Pray for our friends that they will think about God and become more hungry for Him as they are awayfrom us, and that our meetings with them before they go will be fruitful and effective. Thank you!

All for Him,
Skittles

Best Christmas Gift Ever

Jodi — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 17:45:42 +0000

It was the night of our big party. The snacks were ready, the games were prepared, everything was in place. Our friends arrived and filled the apartment. I don’t know how many people came, somewhere in between 30 and 50, I just remember it was crowded. The evening seemed to go smoothly, from the game time where we had a human santa decorating contest, to telling the Christmas story in two languages. I could feel God’s presence with us. As we shared the story, the room seemed silent, so unlike other times when we’ve shared. Even as my friend shared in her language I could tell people were focused and listening. And then we asked if anyone was interested in joining our family.
A couple of girls followed my roommate into another room to talk more, and she said they asked some great questions. But they weren’t ready that night. As I mingled with people and followed up in the big room I had some good conversations too, and was encouraged to find some open hearts among our friends. I met a girl who has studied the Bible in the US before, but didn’t become a Christian when her friends did. She wants to study with us. I introduced other friends to my friend who shared, and could tell they were getting some questions answered as they talked with her. It was a good night
But as I tried to sleep that night my heart felt so burdened. I finally gave up and in the early hours of the morning continued interceding, not even sure exactly who for, but just having a heavy heart, wondering when these girls and guys would give their hearts to their Creator.
That evening my roommate and I had a special small party planned. Only three girls came, some of our closest friends this year. We chatted about different things and then opened the Bible to the story of Lazarus, one of Jesus’ most amazing miracles. My roommate turned the discussion towards the conversation between Martha and Jesus. The girls looked it over for a few minutes quietly. “Do you believe that Jesus is the Son of God?” I asked Yvonne who was sitting next to me. “Yes!” she replied. We asked if she was ready to follow Him. She had been waiting for a special day to make the decision, and this was it. It was so precious to watch her pray to receive Jesus! After she was done she looked up at the other two girls and said “I hope someday you can join our family too!” Wow!
I don’t think I can fully convey to you the feelings I had that night. There was such joy! It was probably one of the best Christmas gifts ever- to know that Yvonne is now my sister in God’s family! I feel like she is one of the first friends that I’ve been able to be involved in the whole process. When we met her she wanted to read the Bible to practice English, but that changed as her desire grew, and it’s been awesome to see her life transformed.
Please pray for these new believers, that their faith will be solid and continue to grow. By name they are Sophia, Jane, Sarah, Helen, Yvonne, and Li Yang (a new brother!). I haven’t gotten Li Yang’s story yet, but I’m excited to hear it soon, and also hear other updates on our friends. My roommate met with Helen and said she is changed so much just in the last few days! God is so amazing! It brings tears to my eyes to think of all His goodness and His amazing gifts to us.
Thank you so much for being a part of this adventure with us! I know we couldn’t do it without your support, and I’m excited about what is to come in 2010- God has good plans for us! I’ll be here one more week, and I’m looking forward to connecting with you too May this next year bring you hope, joy, and always closer to Jesus
HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Skittles

The Christmas Story

Jodi — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 15:36:27 +0000

As we stepped into the apartment, Judy and TingTing squealed in
delight over our Christmas decorations. It was exactly the effect I
was hoping for, and I thought it was a wonderful beginning to that
evening’s Bible study. We had not met for more than two weeks
because of their studies, but tonight they said yes We decided
to read the Christmas story instead of going to the next miracle on
the list. As we flipped back and forth between Luke’s words and
Matthew’s, we began to talk about why Jesus was born in this way,
and about God’s plan for salvation.

We talked about His name and how it means “the Lord saves” and how
He really is Emmanuel, God with us, just like was spoken about in
the times of old. They asked some good questions, but spent a lot
of the time looking thoughtful and concerned, gazing intently at
the words on the pages. As we discussed God’s desire to restore
relationship with Him through Jesus, we began to talk about our own
sin and how all of us need to be forgiven. Ting Ting shared her
heart with us about something she’s been struggling with and wanted
forgiveness for, but she seemed more interested in advice than
asking God to forgive her. Judy on the other hand, looked just
about ready. I think she’s really close.

That Bible study was really good, and I could see God’s hand at work
in Judy and TingTing, continuing to draw them to Himself. We’ve had
a couple of small get togethers to make Christmas cookies and
things like that, but we have two big parties coming up in the next
few days, and really need your prayers! There will be one with just
girls and one with our entire team. The first will be about 20
people and the second around 50. Please lift up these times as we
share with our friends the real meaning of Christmas. Ask that
their hearts will be softened and open to receive. That they would
truly understand that Emmanuel has come and God is with us. As
we’ve invited girls to the parties they have been super excited!

This morning I was reading through the story again, and was
overwhelmed by how awesome and amazing God is. His plans are so
strange to us, and yet so perfect. I found myself imagining what
the world would be like if Jesus was born in a palace instead of a
stable, and just how much God wanted to show himself to the whole
world, that ALL might know Him. In the fullness of time God came as
a baby, humbled Himself, lived life just as we do, yet without sin,
and sacrificed Himself so that we can be rescued, restored, and
reborn. There’s not a better gift that I can think of. He is
Emmanuel. Come, let us adore Him!

Merry Christmas!
Skittles

Why He Came

daniellew — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 16:59:16 +0000

It was cookie decorating time! We had had a slight crisis about an hour before the party started, when we realized we didn’t have any butter to make icing. I’m so thankful that God gave us the internet. After some searching we found a recipe that seemed good and decided to use it. The evening was filled with making snowflakes and decorating cookies, and even trying to bake a few more with friends who had never done it before. Christmas music blended into the background of their chatter as new friends and old friends mingled together.

Then Reebok and I shared the story of Christmas. The room was quiet as people listened attentively, while munching their newly decorated cookies. After Reebok talked about the special way He was born, I got to talk about the reason that Jesus Christ came to earth, and share a little bit of the rest of the story. Afterwards the conversation drifting about the room was more about God than cookies or snowflakes.

There have been some special moments like this where we have gotten to share the truth with our friends, but we haven’t had any moments of decision. Tomorrow night (or maybe even today when you get this) is going to be one of those moments as we hold our big Christmas party. I am not quite sure how many people will come, maybe around 60. This week we have been buying gifts and thinking about the skit, songs, and dance we will do as part of the performance. But I know it’s not about us. It’s about God moving on their hearts and drawing them to Himself. Please join with us in asking him for a harvest among our friends.

As I watched the nativity story last week, I was reminded again about His amazing sacrifice for us. Sometimes it’s easy, even here, to be caught up in the busyness of life, and forget the “reason for the season.” I hope that this Christmas you will again be filled with the wonder of the gift that we have been given, the gift for all mankind, for the lowest of men and the highest of kings. We can rejoice in our Savior! Merry Christmas!

A fun story: Before we had the decorating party we baked the sugar cookies with our friend, Yi Mei. One of the last shapes she made was a cross. I thought it was pretty cool that she made it by herself. Then she put Jesus on it. I smiled and told her that Jesus wasn’t on the cross anymore because he came back to life. When the cookie came out of the oven, he wasn’t on it anymore! The cookie had baked into itself, and he was no where to be found!

Thank you! I appreciate all your prayers so much. Merry Christmas!

Change of Plans

Jodi — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:45:26 +0000

I was on the bus coming home tonight from the market after trying
to locate the last few items we needed to finish decorating. I
hadn’t been able to find everything so I was thinking that a
necessary trip to Walmart was in order. And then it came. It was
a text telling me that a girl was on the way to my home and would
arrive in 20 minutes. I wasn’t sure if I would arrive in 20
minutes! I had already confirmed that there weren’t any girls
coming over tonight, except I forgot that I invited someone new to
come study with us.

The mental shift was difficult and I spent the next little while
talking to God about how I was feeling with changing my plans to
meet Angela tonight. I was in decoration buying mode, and this
scenario didn’t really fit. I was sorely in need of His grace to
give up my plans for His.

When I met her, one of the first things she said was that she’s
been reading the Bible and just doesn’t understand and needs some
help. We spent the next two hours talking about the Bible and God’s
plan to have a close relationship with us. She noticed our small
nativity, and I got to share the Christmas story with her. There
were so many things she seemed to understand that I almost asked if
she wanted to join our family tonight. But I could tell she needs
more time; this is all still new to her.

One of the first times I met Angela was at our Thanksgiving party
last year. My most vivid memory of that party was when we were
sharing things we were thankful for and she declared that maybe God
is a girl. It used to be a popular song here, and I could tell she
didn’t know much about Him at all. She didn’t seem so interested
either at that time. Then I met her again in May at our goodbye
party where she told me that she had a friend who was interested in
studying the Bible and that she was too. I promised to contact her
when I got back in the fall.

Well, I arrived back and her phone wasn’t in service. I left her a
message on the instant messenger but never heard back. Then I
gave the situation to God. Not too long ago she found my friend,
Rocky, at an amusement park and told him to give me her phone
number. Which all brought us to today. It’s amazing how God
waters those seeds that are planted. I’ve been reading recently
about how one plants, another waters, but it’s Him who makes it
grow.

Please pray for Angela, that she will choose to follow Jesus and trust
Him. She promised to try praying this week. Also please pray for
us as we plan these next days before Christmas- it seems like it is
arriving so fast this year. We don’t have much planned yet,
including our big party. There are some decisions and plans that
need to be made soon. Please ask God for hungry hearts in our
friends and that they would join our family soon. Thank you to
everyone who helped to send the package. It just arrived and had
perfect time, since we just ran out of coffee, and we are planning
to make cookies this weekend Thanks!

Merry Christmas!

Skittles

Review and Preview

Jodi — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:38:04 +0000

I don’t feel there is an effective way to paint you a picture of
the last three months. So much has happened. We have made a bunch
of new friends this year. In so many ways I feel leaps ahead of
last year. We have two solid Bible studies going and are hoping to
start a couple of more in the next few weeks. Also, we are about
to head into one of the busiest times of the year- the Christmas
season. This is one of my favorite times of the year in Asia, with
decorating and cookie making and Christmas caroling and telling the
Christmas story over and over again. I’m excited for it!

Today we had lunch with four girls. They took us for dry pot,
which is an array of vegetables and meat and spices all cooked
together. It’s really good We were meeting two of the girls
for the first time, so we covered the familiar topics, hometowns,
hobbies, favorites, etc. As we worked our way to talking about
faith, the girls mostly have not heard much about God, except for
Amy. She said that her grandmother is a Christian. She shared a
story about over the summer living with her grandmother and waking
up to find her in the middle of the night kneeling by the bed,
praying and singing.

We talked a little more on the way back to the bus stop. She said
several members of her family are Christians, but that she
hasn’t really thought about it for her own life. I remember the
last time we met her, Autumn and I both thought she wasn’t
interested, but maybe God is awakening her heart to Him. Another
girl, Olive, told Autumn that we could introduce the Bible to her.
This could be the beginning of a new study

Please continue to pray for us as we enter into this season. It’s
such a busy time of the year, and I know it will be busy for you
also. Please ask for wisdom as we plan events. Sometimes it seems
that when we invite girls to more than one thing during the week,
the Bible study gets forsaken for the fun thing. I want to be able
to do both, and need God’s creativity in this. Please ask God to
bring salvation to our friends during this season. It seems
several girls are almost there.

Also, I feel so busy and am missing so many people that I want to
be in touch with but haven’t been able to contact. Sometimes home
really feels so far away, and I appreciate it so much when you
write. Please keep in touch! Thanksgiving is this week, and I
want to take a moment and tell you how thankful I am for you.
Thank you for your friendship, your support, and for being a part
of my team and what God is doing here. May He bless you in a
special way this week as you celebrate Him and give Him thanks!

All for him,
Skittles:-)

You Never Know

Jodi — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:38:43 +0000

Do you ever feel like God brings people into your life that you wouldn’t have chosen by yourself? I can think of several friends I’ve made this year that I feel that way about. I met Ting Ting at an English corner, and didn’t think much about her, until I was flipping through my contacts one day and thinking we needed more friends from her campus. So we decided to meet her. The meal together went ok, but I felt like the couple of times we mentioned God, she had no interest at all. Again, I didn’t think about her too much, until we invited our friend, Wang Qing, to watch the Passion with us, and she brought Ting Ting and Judy with her.

Ting Ting was on the edge of her seat the entire time. After the movie finished, we only had a few minutes to talk about it before they went to class. Autumn and I asked what she was thinking and feeling. “We need to love God and love people!” she replied. She’s definitely on to something. Last week they came back to talk about the movie. I could sense her interest growing, and it seemed strange to me that the girl we had met for lunch a few weeks ago could have so many questions about God now. He is really doing a work in her heart! We gave her a Bible to read and she seemed so happy to have it. She’ll be coming next week to hear more about God and study with us.

As I thought about this story, I started to wonder. We all have people in our lives who are searching for the truth, but don’t know God yet. Even though I’ve been sharing with people about God for a while, I’m definitely not perfect at it, and feel like I’m always learning new things. From this experience I learned that I can’t judge who might be interested in God, and that sometimes it takes the direct question to receive an answer. As we step out in boldness, God is working, and we are seeing Him move in the hearts of our friends!

We had asked God to give us 5 Bible studies by the end of October, and we’re almost there! It’s been so amazing to see Him work in people’s hearts this year and draw them to Himself. Right now, we have studies set up on Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. I’m really excited to see what He will do. In some ways this year seems so completely different than the past. We are praying more than ever, and getting to see the answers! He is giving us the hungry ones. I found that part of initiating Bible studies is just asking and getting a commitment from the girls. There are some that I never knew were interested until we asked. Wow!

Thank you for praying about discouragement. I am feeling better now, and have found that getting enough rest is one key to that. I really covet your prayers- they are so important to me. Thank you! Also, please write when you can. I want to hear about you.

All for Him,

Skittles :-)