The Trip

I stepped off the bus in Taiwan, and hot air warmed me. Seoul has been getting colder, but Taiwan was like going back to Seoul a few weeks ago. It was stellar.

My hostel was a bit less than desirable, but it was adequate. I'm not even that tall, but the bed was too short. My bed had a curtain, a small fan, and a light. I quite liked it. :)

The highlight of my trip (next to seeing Nathaniel) was surely Baishawan Beach. We spent the day there on Wednesday. It was somewhere between 90-100 all day. We took the metro and bus from Taipei and arrived after about an hour and a half at the beach. After changing and walking through the little sea-side town, we finally hit the beach. Miles of white sandy beach with nothing but the sun and time.

The water was a beautiful clear blue with coral jut outs that created tide pools full of little fish, scuttling crabs, and coral roaches. I wore water shoes (thankfully) and we climbed on the coral and jumped off into the bathwater warm salty ocean. The sand was white and soft, and the ocean felt wonderful after being completely exposed to this blistering sun.

We walked down the beach and eventually came to a rocky path.

The path wound through what looked like the jungle. Green trees provided a canopy of sorts that was a wonderful welcome from the heat.

The path led around a rocky point. The rocks, big and small, piled high around massive boulders.

We climbed all over the rocks and swam in little beach-lets that we came across.

We eventually made our way to the end of the path and began walking the boardwalk. It was especially hot there because there was absolutely no protection from the sun.

We saw a nice little pool formed by the surrounding coral, and we lost track of time floating in it. That cooled us off nicely.

Then we finished the 4 mile hike to the sand dunes and climbed up the scorching sand. The view was beautiful. Coral spread out into the ocean, the sea that went past the sky line, beautiful mountains and greenery behind us, and soft white sand underneath us.

Eventually it was time to go, and we showered, changed, and finished off the day with milk tea and a beautiful sunrise that we watched from the "scenic lookout point."

The perfect end to a perfect day.

I was also able to visit the Taipei 101, which is the tallest building the world (as far as I know.) I looked at the overpriced shops and went to the book store where I read for hours (Where's Waldo and Guinness World Book of Records...) The day was foggy when I took the picture, so they top of the 101 was covered.

We also hit up the zoo with all the cute animals! It was super fun!!

It was an amazing trip all in all. I didn't want to leave, but I did and came home to chilly Seoul. I'm glad to be back and teaching again, but I'll always love Taiwan. God really blessed me with the money to take this trip and the time to go. It was relaxing, inspiring, and a really big blessing! Peace.

All His

Friday was "Talk Like a Pirate Day." The kids were to dress up like pirates, sing pirate songs, watch pirate skits, participate in a treasure hunt, and play pirate games. Some kids had great costumes and looked like little cartoon pirates.

I had recess duty, and as I sat an watched the kids play, I dubbed the day "Un-Pirate Day." I then called it by a number of names.

Hobo Day

Pajama Day

Birdwatcher Day

Tourist Day

Poor College Student Day

Ninja Day

Motorcyclist Day

I'm Just Trying to Get Out of Wearing My Uniform Day

I Raided a Thrift Store Day

and Gramma's Closet Day

...among others.

All in all, it was a fun day. We got to act a little crazy in the afternoon after we studied hard in the morning. We have school on Monday and then we have 6 days off for a Korean holiday. I'm quite excited about that. I will be going to Taiwan for 5 days to visit Nathaniel and a missionary family.

Today I'm making cupcakes for the church potluck tomorrow that takes place on the 3rd Sunday of every month. Real American style cupcakes thanks to Betty Crocker, a little Korean oil and water, and the chickens that gave their lives to make this cake possible.

I have to say that this year is passing by quickly. I know that Chuseok holiday will fly by and after that it's almost the end of September. Before I know it the winter chill will set in and then fade away as swiftly as it came. Before too long it'll be a new year and then the end of a school year. And I know for a fact that I'll be able to look back and see how God has provided, met my needs, and blessed me. I'm looking forward to seeing what He'll do in the future.

Not a whole lot more by way of updates on my life. I still find great joy in bike riding, and I've found some pretty spots to which I ride. I frequently stop at the pet store near my house to see the infant chihuahuas and pray for the little runt who seems to have little life left in him. His siblings are growing, but he's not. I want to take him home, but I know that's not possible. Such is life.

I'm continuing to pray for my future in China. I want to be totally submitted to God's will and make His desires mine and not the other way around. Things have been changing a lot lately, and at first I resisted. God taught me much about trust and submission in the last couple weeks. It's exciting to see what happens when God has FULL control of my life and I don't try to do ANYTHING in my strength. I'm praying for encouragement, and I've received much lately. I'm praying for wisdom and guidance, and God's showed me some closed doors and others that seem to be opening wider. I'm praying for faith that when it doesn't make sense and I'm led farther away from what I desire, that God knows, is in control, and has a greater plan than mine. Please keep praying that I simply do God's will and let mine fall away. Peace.

Little Ways

"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away." Revelation 21:4

No more tears. When I sit still an imagine all the beautiful Chinese children that are right now possibly barely holding on to life because they've been abandoned or mistreated or they are hungry or sick, it breaks my heart. I beg God to one day, in His time and if it's His will, let me go to these children. I pray for the ones that I don't even know and yet I already love. I think of my future. I picture myself there in China with these children, holding them and loving them. I also picture children dying. Death is a part of life, and I will have to accept that. But I also find amazing comfort in these words from Revelation 21 that Jesus will personally wipe away ever tear once we see Him in Heaven. These precious children who did not choose to born into this poverty and abandonment were still placed there by a loving Father who knows better than any of us do. These children who leave this life go immediately into the waiting arms of their loving Father and God who once said "let the little children come unto me." In that I find peace.

I've been reading a few blogs lately that have told the stories of these children.

I've read of both parents driving their truck into a lake and being electrocuted by lose wires in the engine thus leaving their two children orphaned.

I read about a boy who's cleft lip and palate were so severe that he was passed off to three different families. None of them wanted him. They planned to throw him in the river and end his misery and their shame. God still wanted him, however, because when they threw him in the river, God placed an old lady at the scene. She was partially blind, old, and feeble, but she rescued the boy from the water and took him home to her cave where she kept him for a time. He eventually ended up at the orphanage where he was taken in, loved, and his condition was cared for.

I read about children whose mother died. Their father's grief was so great that he took his own life.

I read about a boy who lived in the house where the local school was held. His elderly grandfather was sick and could not work to provide the money for him to attend school. Even though school was held where he lived, he was not allowed to be a student.

I read about children who had parents that were both mentally handicapped. They and their mother and grandmother were beaten by their father.

I read of the father running off and the mother dying.

And even when I met the children, little or none of this showed on their faces. They smiled and laughed. They still crave love, but God has given them a new home in these orphanages where they are loved and cared for. God has a bigger plan for their little lives, and if they had not been born into these circumstances, they would not have had the chance to go live in the orphanage, learn English, go to school, later go to college, and most importantly to learn about the Savior. So, as backwards as it seems, their lives were designed this way for a greater purpose.

Should we feel sorry for them? Sometimes I do. But then I think: what good does that do? Why not PRAY for them. Or PRAY and GIVE. Or PRAY and GIVE and GO. Those things will do much more for them than sitting on our computers reading about them in our comfortable houses with a cup of coffee in hand and thinking, "Oh, that's too bad." And then what? Move on with our lives while they still live in theirs? Why not lift them up to God in prayer? A few extra dollars in your pocket? The opportunity to take a trip? God can use any and all of those things to change the life of a child and bring them to a saving knowledge of Him.

Today I was doing laundry, and I put the soap in, put my clothes in, and pushed start. Then I started washing the dishes that I had dirtied when I ate lunch. Then I threw away the trash from the seaweed and fruit I had eaten. Then I got hot so I turned the fan on and sat on my bed. Then I picked up my computer and stopped. I thought back on all of those things that I had done, and it actually brought tears to my eyes. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. I'm so blessed. I just thanked God for giving me all these special things. It makes my heart sing to know that I am so loved and cared for beyond what I can imagine.

I was reading in Ephesians 1 where it says

"⁴According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

⁵Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

⁶To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved."

And I thought WOW. God chose me. I laughed because the magnitude of this thought amazes me over and over. I was reading about Ephesians, and it said that back in Paul's day, a servant could be legally adopted into a family of a higher class. Upon being adopted, this child was bumped up to a higher class, was now a part of this family, and had inheritances and privileges just like someone born into this family. I was a nobody. I still am. But because of God's grace, He adopted me into His family. Now I have a higher status. I am cared for. I am loved. I've gone from the scum of the earth to a daughter of the richest and most powerful King that anyone will ever know. I have a mansion and crowns waiting in Heaven for me.

I have "an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven" (1 Peter 1:4)

Let this awesome thought sink in.

Life has been going lately. School is school. The kids are showing me their other side (the one that's not angelic.) We're working on "obey right away" among other things. One of my goals this year was to try to help the kids grow closer to the Lord. I don't give homework on the weekends, but I decided to try something. On Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, the kids have to find three ways each day to help someone. It can be something as small as picking up a pencil when someone drops it or helping mom with the dishes or groceries. We talked about our human nature being selfish. We want to do what WE want to do when WE want to do it. We don't like inconveniences or things that make us have to put for the effort to help others. I showed them some ways that Jesus went out of His way to help others while He was on earth. Two of the verses we looked at talked about looking at the needs of others as well as your own and loving your neighbor as yourself. They groaned a bit, but I'm praying that God will use it to teach them (and me--yes, I'm doing it with them!!) to show His love to others each day and look outside ourselves.

Well, no need to bore you further with my daily life. Take time to thank Jesus for what He's given you and done for you and look for ways to show that love back to other. Peace!

Scrambled Pizza Pancake...thing...

I felt this to be very blog worthy. I might as well get a Nobel Peace Prize for it. I have been eating rice with seaweed and tuna for the last...ever. I went to the store tonight and decided that I wanted something different. I saw a box with pizza crust mix in it. I didn't know if it came with cheese and sauce, so I bought some little sausages and pizza sauce.

I got home, took the bag out of the box, and realized a couple things:

1) The directions were in Korean...I can't read Korean. I didn't know if it was a "just add water" deal, or if I had to put in all these fancy things like eggs and soda. Can you tell that I'm a top chef?

2) There was no cheese

3) I didn't have a pizza pan

Here are some things I found to work with:

A mixing bowl and whisk

Water

Eggs

Pizza dough powder mix

Sausage

A skillet

Pizza sauce

chopsticks and a bowl

And my intellect

I used them all. Except the intellect part. First, I mixed the dough with water and an egg to make it the consistency of pancake batter. Next I poured that into the skillet. When it started to burn, I "flipped" it. Actually, it broke in half and the batter poured all over the cooked part. So, I decided to scramble it. You can do that with eggs, so why not batter? It worked...sort of. No, it did work. Next, I cut up the sausage and put it in. After lightly browning the sausage (yeah right) I poured the entire concoction into a bowl, poured pizza sauce on it, and VOILA! Satisfyingly yummy.

Well, at least I can make something out of randomness.

Other than that my day was not wanting to wake up early, going to school, teaching my wonderful students, having a few laughs, going for a super fun bike ride with a friend, and then figuring out how I could beat the system and use my partially broken washer without it dumping the entire contents of the world's water onto my kitchen floor. The end.

Peace.

The Road

Even though I already updated today, I felt like updating again. I called this blog "The Road" and wrote why in my first or second post. I felt like writing a poem (that I'll later turn into a song) that went with the title of my blog.

The Road

The king left his crown, power and his throne

And walked the road of sorrow carrying my shame

He nailed it to the cross and died for the world

I'm forgiven by his blood praise his awesome name

For the road that Jesus walked

I' m so grateful

For the sin that Jesus bore

I will live to serve

And the love that Jesus gives

I will give the world

By his grace my Jesus walked

The road that I deserved

I walk in the steps that lead to his throne

As he walks beside me on this narrow way

Through valleys I will walk but a faithful friend

Walks beside me giving mercies that are new each day

For the road that I will walk

Will be walked by faith

For the gospel of the Lord

I'll continue on

And the love that Jesus gives

I will give the world

By his grace I'll walk with God

Until I reach his throne

For the road that Jesus walked

I' m so grateful

For the sin that Jesus bore

I will live to serve

And the love that Jesus gives

I will give the world

By his grace my Jesus walked

The road that I deserved

Peace.

Rain and Sunshine

Today I came home after being gone all day at church and shopping, and as soon as I walked in the door, I KNEW God wanted me to wash my floor. I was positive. How positive? Try a kitchen floor completely covered in water positive. Yep, it was to take up my next hour to be sure. My first thought and sound was *sigh.* Then Jesus so sweetly gave me a song.

I'll sing through the rain and the sunshine

I'll trust Him whatever befall

I sing for I cannot be silent

My Father planned it all

If it was anyone else besides God planning this, I wouldn't be happy with them. BUT since God knows how it all fits together, I'm more than happy to clean this mess up. I'm not sure what the future holds for my delinquent washer, but God does. It was a surprise to me, but not to God.

God is slowly but surely teaching me to turn my sighs into songs.

Church was awesome today. I was oddly wide awake even though I had stayed up so late the night before. I was thankful because the messages were a blessing. We also had communion, which was another wonderful experience of remembering what Jesus did for me on the cross. Every time we have communion, I can't hold back the tears. I don't bawl, but it just overwhelms me that God would see the sins I commit everyday and still choose to love with with that unconditional love and that He died for me. It blows me away. I know there is absolutely no good in me. All I can say is that I can't wait to meet my God in Heaven. That's going to be the cherry on top for my whole existence.

Philippians 1:12-18

¹²I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, ¹³so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. ¹⁴And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

¹⁵Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. ¹⁶The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. ¹⁷The former proclaim Christ out of rivalry, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. ¹⁸What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.

I love these verses. I was reading them in some time I was spending with God the other night. I love the way Paul has totally accepted that his being in prison is just the way it is. Not only has he done that, but he's used it to glorify God. He knows full well that it might not make sense to him, and it might not seem ideal or comfortable. It might be downright painful, but God knows just how to use this trial for His glory. "The whole imperial guard" knows that Paul loves the Lord. That has got to be a lot of people. One man being thrown in prison has now been able to reach all these men. Could anyone look at that and still think it's a bad thing that Paul is in prison?

The second part I love too. Even those people who speak of God to afflict Paul...even those words are taken, flipped, and used to praise God. God is being preached, and Paul is joyful about that. If God wants to be glorified for something, then He's going to be glorified.

It just makes me think of all the things that are going to come up in my future because I love God and I refuse to be silent about it. Even the "bad" things. I have to always remember that these trials and what seems confusing in my mind will be used for God's glory. And that is ultimately what I want and what God wants. I can also remember the promise, "I will never leave you or forsake you." God is a good God. I can't say that enough.

Have I mentioned lately that I'm thankful for my parents? Well, I am. I got their Happy Birthday box today (along with a card from Gramps and Grams!--THANK YOU!!) and I was happy. :D I laughed at the card and went through all the fun things they sent me. As I was opening the box, my friend said "What did they send you?" and I "jokingly" said, "Oh probably cake mixes, jello, and some smoke alarms." "Smoke alarms?" And I just smiled and kept opening it. She laughed, thinking I was joking. When I opened it, she was shocked. "They really did send you smoke alarms!" She laughed. Yep. They really did. Thanks Mom and Pops for being the coolest most loving parents ever!! I love you!!

Peace.

Typhoons and Kiddie Pools

A typhoon passed through Seoul on Thursday. Thursday was also my birthday. Much to my happiness, school was cancelled on Thursday because of the typhoon. I slept in quite late, which I greatly enjoyed since I had been staying up until all hours and waking up early for school. And then I realized that I had no internet because of the storm. Everyone seemed to be busy, so I just sat around not doing much of anything. I did get my apartment in tip top shape, though. Then finally at around 8, I went to a friend's house and brought my kiddie pool. Imagine me carrying this pool on my head for about 15 minutes through Asian people filled streets.

At her house I decided to make cookies. I mixed up the dough, put it on the pan, and was ready to bake them. My friend asked at what temperature the oven needed to be. I said 400, and she asked if that was a bit high for chocolate chip cookies. I looked at the recipe I had used and burst into laughter. I had made a muffin recipe thinking that they were chocolate chip cookies. I laughed for a good few minutes and decided to try and bake them as cookies. My friends, I give you mookies! They tasted like a mix between muffins and cookies and looked a bit like both.

On Friday I brought them to school, and my students loved them. We were supposed to have had a party on my birthday, but since school was cancelled, I moved the party to Friday. I brought party hats and balloons and a birthday banner and we threw a party. We played musical chairs and 3 on a couch. I also took the kids to the corner store to buy icecream. I made them wear their hats. I'm just a mean teacher is all. :) Nah, they looked just precious!

Now it's Saturday. I have a lot going through my mind. I slept in rather late, which was most enjoyable. Now I'll be eating lunch, working on some things, and heading to school to finish getting ready for next week. A teacher's job never ends, but I love it just the same. :)

Please continue to pray for 2 students I have who are unsaved. Please also pray for whatever ministry I might do in the future after I leave Korea. Peace.