I feel bad for not updating in a while. Sometimes I forget that I have this blog. I have things that I would like to share, but don't find time to squeeze this in my schedule. I am going to make it an extra effort to update more often.
I had such a wonderful Christmas this year! It was refreshing to see all my loved ones again after 5 months or so. I got to see a great majority of the people that I wanted to see and hang out with. It's funny how you don't seem to realize how much certain people mean to you until you are gone away from them for an extended amount of time. That's the same with God. You can't comprehend how much you truly, madly, deeply need Him and miss Him until you spend a certain amount of time apart from His presence.
This weekend was good and relaxing! On Friday night, a couple of my co-workers and myself finally found what we had been looking for for the past several months...a tasty Mexican restaurant!!! I left the place with a huge smile on my face and feeling content. Then on Saturday, I had a lunch reunion with some Taiwanese peeps who were exchange students at Murray State. After lunch, I went to a bible study at my church and then we had a gathering afterwards.
In our bible study, we're going over Exodus and are presently studying the 10 commandments. On Saturday, we went over the "Do not murder" commandment. Matt, our pastor, brought up about good anger, which I talked about in one of my first posts on this site. So, that was good....talking about how we should be upset when there is injustice and if others are being mistreated.
Well, I just wanted to give a brief update and be on the lookout for more posts coming up more frequently!
Peace out and may you feel God's blessings!
Monday, January 14, 2008
Monday, November 12, 2007
Joy Restoration
This is going to probably sound crazy to you...But, Oh, how I have missed being around middle school students! God called me in that direction for a reason. I don't know exactly why, but I do know that He has given me a heart and passion for that age group. I am currently teaching 4th and 5th graders and am internally reminded of how much I miss the middle school students that I student taught last semester and also those who I mentored all last summer at camp. I bring this up because a young married couple who are teachers at my school have youth group one Friday night a month at the school. Some of the students are current students at the school and some of them were there last year, but aren't this year. This past Friday night, I joined in and participated in one of their youth groups...it was so much fun! A few of my colleagues and I volunteered to be in a skit, which brought me back to my good ol' days of being on Zeteo. Being around these middle school students restored a joy that I had been missing by teaching upper elementary. It's been a slight struggle this year because I am not meant to be an elementary teacher. After this year, I would prefer to never be an elementary teacher again....it's just not meant for me and it's not where God has called me to be. I accepted the position because there wasn't a middle school opening at the time. I figured it wouldn't be all that bad since 5th grade is part of my degree and I really enjoyed teaching that age group in Belize. It's not that I don't like my students...because they're pretty cool little people. I just don't really like teaching that age group. So, please keep that in your prayers as I continue to persevere. Pray that I continue to look on these students with the eyes of Christ and will be an influential example to them. They need Jesus' love in their lives and I have had the opportunity to share some of that love with them since the beginning of the year. God has also opened doors for me to talk with them about Him. May He continue to open those doors and gates!
Thanks for your thoughts and prayers! God Bless!
Thanks for your thoughts and prayers! God Bless!
Sunday, October 14, 2007
I found a church!!!!!!!
Hello Everyone! Sorry it's been a while since I last posted. Whenever I get on the Internet, I just mainly check my e-mail and talk with friends through Skype or MSN messenger. I've been keeping pretty busy here. I have so much on my mind right now that I would like to share, but I will try and keep it short...short but sweet.
This morning, I visited a new church and was in awe after the service. The majority of churches that I have gone to here have messages that are "on the surface." I've been wanting something deeper. Something more challenging. This morning was that and more. It's a newer church here and God used the pastor in some pretty a-mazing ways! The singing was also good and the people reached out in such a way that my colleagues and I felt like part of the church family. I will most likely attend this church regularly now....yay! I was kind of getting tired of "church hopping."
The message this morning covered 1 Thessalonians 2:17-3:5. The pastor talked about Paul's priorities as a leader. He talked alot about the evil kind of boasting (pride in ourselves) vs. the good kind (boasting in the cross of Christ). He also talked about seeking joy and delighting in rewards for whenever we boast in the Lord. In this particular scripture, Paul boasted in the fact that God used him to share the message with others....this was a priviledge to Paul. The pastor talked about how it's better to endure affliction than to run away from it. God tests our faith because, as humans, we are slow learners. We are destined to affliction, not the wrath of God. Only mercy comes from God. God is the only one who destines; there's no such thing as luck or fate.
Those were just some of the truths that were discussed in church this morning. If I went into more detail, this post would be extremely long, but I hope that you got something out of the above, even though it's not very detailed.
As I mentioned in the last post, this month is Kindness Month at our school. The students have to do about 15 kind acts in order to go to the Fall Festival on the 30th. I'm making my students work for their stickers. At first, they were coming up to me and saying that so-and-so let them borrow a pencil and many other silly simplistic things. I know all too well that all my students have at the minimum 3 writing utensils each. So, I told them that they had to go out of their way to be kind to one another because I want them to learn what it means to be kind. I can see a change in some of thier behaviors; others don't seem to care as much. So, please continue to keep them in your prayers. The hatred between my students is getting better and I am getting a new 4th grader tomorrow!
Also, pray for my family. My great-uncle (he's 92 years old) just passed away about 12 hours ago from when I'm writing this. This is hard for me to be thousands of miles away from my family. I wish that I was there to be of some comfort and to spend some time with my uncle, whom I have looked to like a grandfather.
Thanks for all your prayers! God Bless!
This morning, I visited a new church and was in awe after the service. The majority of churches that I have gone to here have messages that are "on the surface." I've been wanting something deeper. Something more challenging. This morning was that and more. It's a newer church here and God used the pastor in some pretty a-mazing ways! The singing was also good and the people reached out in such a way that my colleagues and I felt like part of the church family. I will most likely attend this church regularly now....yay! I was kind of getting tired of "church hopping."
The message this morning covered 1 Thessalonians 2:17-3:5. The pastor talked about Paul's priorities as a leader. He talked alot about the evil kind of boasting (pride in ourselves) vs. the good kind (boasting in the cross of Christ). He also talked about seeking joy and delighting in rewards for whenever we boast in the Lord. In this particular scripture, Paul boasted in the fact that God used him to share the message with others....this was a priviledge to Paul. The pastor talked about how it's better to endure affliction than to run away from it. God tests our faith because, as humans, we are slow learners. We are destined to affliction, not the wrath of God. Only mercy comes from God. God is the only one who destines; there's no such thing as luck or fate.
Those were just some of the truths that were discussed in church this morning. If I went into more detail, this post would be extremely long, but I hope that you got something out of the above, even though it's not very detailed.
As I mentioned in the last post, this month is Kindness Month at our school. The students have to do about 15 kind acts in order to go to the Fall Festival on the 30th. I'm making my students work for their stickers. At first, they were coming up to me and saying that so-and-so let them borrow a pencil and many other silly simplistic things. I know all too well that all my students have at the minimum 3 writing utensils each. So, I told them that they had to go out of their way to be kind to one another because I want them to learn what it means to be kind. I can see a change in some of thier behaviors; others don't seem to care as much. So, please continue to keep them in your prayers. The hatred between my students is getting better and I am getting a new 4th grader tomorrow!
Also, pray for my family. My great-uncle (he's 92 years old) just passed away about 12 hours ago from when I'm writing this. This is hard for me to be thousands of miles away from my family. I wish that I was there to be of some comfort and to spend some time with my uncle, whom I have looked to like a grandfather.
Thanks for all your prayers! God Bless!
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Green Island
Yesterday, I went back to teaching after a very nice 4-day weekend for the Moon Festival. For this Chinese holiday, I went to a minute island off the coast of Taiwan called Green Island. It's so small that you probably can't even see it on a worldwide map. It used to be an island only where prisoners went and was also famous for its deer population. There is still a prison there, but is now a big tourist spot. It has one road that runs around it and you can drive all the way around the island in about 1 hour.
On the ferry to the island, the waves were rought and the ride was pretty rocky. About 15 minutes into the ride, people around me and my co-workers starting getting sick, left and right. One of my roomates and I both got sick. Both of us had never gotten sea sick in our lives or had had sensitive stomachs when it came to fast moving objects. But this really affected us. I felt like I was in an Alfred Hitchcock movie with everyone around us literally getting sick. After that, though, everything was fine.
Although it was a very small island, it was composed of some of God's most beautiful landforms and sea creatures. I saw some of the most gorgeous mountains I had ever seen in my life! I also had the priviledge to go snorkeling and saw some fish that I had never seen before. I was simply in awe of God's creation to say the least. I was reminded of how detailed God is. I wondered to myself: How can someone look at all this beauty and not believe that there is a God from which all this came from? While riding the scooter around the island, I would just gaze with my mouth drooped open and smile. The mountains, the fish, the coral, the seafloor....God is soo creative!
Next month in school is designated as "Kindness Month." The students get rewarded for doing kind deeds. They have to do a certain number of kind actions to receive their "ticket" to the fall festival at the end of October. Please pray for them. They really need this month to learn what it means to be kind to one another. Pray that they won't do these actions to just receive their "ticket," but that they will want to be kind to others and will see its importance. After all, it is one of the fruit of the spirit.
Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers!
On the ferry to the island, the waves were rought and the ride was pretty rocky. About 15 minutes into the ride, people around me and my co-workers starting getting sick, left and right. One of my roomates and I both got sick. Both of us had never gotten sea sick in our lives or had had sensitive stomachs when it came to fast moving objects. But this really affected us. I felt like I was in an Alfred Hitchcock movie with everyone around us literally getting sick. After that, though, everything was fine.
Although it was a very small island, it was composed of some of God's most beautiful landforms and sea creatures. I saw some of the most gorgeous mountains I had ever seen in my life! I also had the priviledge to go snorkeling and saw some fish that I had never seen before. I was simply in awe of God's creation to say the least. I was reminded of how detailed God is. I wondered to myself: How can someone look at all this beauty and not believe that there is a God from which all this came from? While riding the scooter around the island, I would just gaze with my mouth drooped open and smile. The mountains, the fish, the coral, the seafloor....God is soo creative!
Next month in school is designated as "Kindness Month." The students get rewarded for doing kind deeds. They have to do a certain number of kind actions to receive their "ticket" to the fall festival at the end of October. Please pray for them. They really need this month to learn what it means to be kind to one another. Pray that they won't do these actions to just receive their "ticket," but that they will want to be kind to others and will see its importance. After all, it is one of the fruit of the spirit.
Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers!
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Cool Stuff
Last Thursday, the 4th and 5th graders took their first field trip of the school year. We took them to the postal museum about 30 minutes away from the school. On the way there, I supervised the 5th grade girls. One of the girls randomly started me asking about Heaven and Hell and what kind of people go to both places. It was a very interesting and God worked through that conversation in some pretty cool ways. I just hope and pray that she will continue to inquire about God and will want to learn more about him. Keep her (her English name is Joanna) and the other students in your prayers.
On Saturday night, I had the opportunity to go to a orchestra and chorus production. One of the Chinese teachers at the school I teach at...her son recomposed many songs and that's what the production was about. There was another concert last Sunday that I went to...it was only with the orchestra. But on Saturday night, the orchestra played and the choir sung church hymns. It was beautiful! It was quite a big place and it was nearly packed...Praise the Lord! All of it was in Chinese, of course, but I recognized the majority of the hymns. Near the end of this glorious event, a lady came out on stage and gave her testimony of how she found God. So, all of these people that were present got to hear about Jesus in their own language!!! I bought one of the CDs...excitement!
God is mightily working here in Taiwan and I'm getting to be a part of it! He was working on the hearts of the people here long before I came.
On Saturday night, I had the opportunity to go to a orchestra and chorus production. One of the Chinese teachers at the school I teach at...her son recomposed many songs and that's what the production was about. There was another concert last Sunday that I went to...it was only with the orchestra. But on Saturday night, the orchestra played and the choir sung church hymns. It was beautiful! It was quite a big place and it was nearly packed...Praise the Lord! All of it was in Chinese, of course, but I recognized the majority of the hymns. Near the end of this glorious event, a lady came out on stage and gave her testimony of how she found God. So, all of these people that were present got to hear about Jesus in their own language!!! I bought one of the CDs...excitement!
God is mightily working here in Taiwan and I'm getting to be a part of it! He was working on the hearts of the people here long before I came.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Positive Anger
A few weeks before I left to come to Taiwan, I heard Rev. Mark Whitt preach at Westside Baptist Church in Murray, KY. On that particular Sunday night, his sermon was about anger. But, he came from a different viewpoint than what is usually preached on this topic. He talked about how we should become angry whenever people are being mistreated...are hurting...etc. Whenever others are being put down, we should be upset about it. Whenever there are people all over the world suffering because they don't have food, shelter, water...we should be angry and try to do something to help out.
I have felt this way for the past week or so. I have seen my students mistreat each other in some harsh ways. They have drawn negative-viewed pictures about other students. They have called other students hurting names. They have made fun of those different from them. My heart is broken for the lack of respect and kindness from the students who are performing these acts and hurting others. I am seriously angry about the situations at hand. I'm not talking about anger that leads to sin...I'm speaking of the kind of anger that comes out of concern and a kind that results in positive reactions.
Please pray for these 4th and 5th grade students. Pray that they will come to an understanding of how hurtful their words and actions can be. Pray for salvation.
Also, please pray for next week. Every day in the afternoons next week, we have parent/teacher conferences. May those go smoothly and may God give us (the teachers) the right words to say.
Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers! Love you all!
I have felt this way for the past week or so. I have seen my students mistreat each other in some harsh ways. They have drawn negative-viewed pictures about other students. They have called other students hurting names. They have made fun of those different from them. My heart is broken for the lack of respect and kindness from the students who are performing these acts and hurting others. I am seriously angry about the situations at hand. I'm not talking about anger that leads to sin...I'm speaking of the kind of anger that comes out of concern and a kind that results in positive reactions.
Please pray for these 4th and 5th grade students. Pray that they will come to an understanding of how hurtful their words and actions can be. Pray for salvation.
Also, please pray for next week. Every day in the afternoons next week, we have parent/teacher conferences. May those go smoothly and may God give us (the teachers) the right words to say.
Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers! Love you all!
Monday, August 27, 2007
Cockroaches are Disgusting!
So sorry it's been a while since I've posted. I have been extremely busy with this teaching stuff and hanging out with friends during my free time on the weekends. In this post, I would like to share how my teaching is going.
I am currently in my third week of teaching here in Taiwan. I'm teaching 4th and 5th grade Math, Science, and Social Studies. I have fifteen 5th grade students and twelve 4th graders. I absolutely enjoy my 5th graders and am still trying to decide on how I feel about my 4th graders. Since I'm more accustomed to teaching middle school students, teaching 4th graders is quite different than what I'm used to. The 4th grade class, even though it's a small group, consists of all different levels of learning. Three of my students don't know their English very well. I have a few who will finish their homework very quickly, a few who work at a steady pace, and a few who are very slow. During the first 1 1/2 weeks, I was a little frustrated with the 4th graders and was really praying for patience. Today, I actually enjoyed teaching them! That was for sure an answer to prayer! My 5th grade students are that a-mazing group of students that every teacher hopes to have! That's just a brief synopsis of my feelings about teaching thus far.
Funny story: Today, during Math class, things got a little dramatic. A student was at my desk asking a question and I started feeling something crawling on my leg. I had a long skirt on and I slightly lifted it up to see what was going on and it was a cockroach on me...yuck! So, I flew it off my leg and it landed under one of my students' desks. So, all the students who were right around it moved away from it. One of my students went and got a broom (right outside the classroom) and began trying to kill it with it. That didn't work. So, another student just stomped on it and killed it. Then, a different student swept up the dead cockroach and put it in the trash and then mopped up where the guts had been. It was pretty intense...hehe. But afterwards, I told my students that we all learned a lesson: Teamwork! Different students helped in killing the cockroach and we accomplished our task at hand.
This month was Ghost Month. Many people of Taiwan burnt money and sacrificed food to the evil spirits to make them happy. I saw it pretty much everywhere I went. Pray for the people here who serve false gods and believe that they are gaining merit by offering these sacrifices of food and money to dead spirits.
Peace out.
I am currently in my third week of teaching here in Taiwan. I'm teaching 4th and 5th grade Math, Science, and Social Studies. I have fifteen 5th grade students and twelve 4th graders. I absolutely enjoy my 5th graders and am still trying to decide on how I feel about my 4th graders. Since I'm more accustomed to teaching middle school students, teaching 4th graders is quite different than what I'm used to. The 4th grade class, even though it's a small group, consists of all different levels of learning. Three of my students don't know their English very well. I have a few who will finish their homework very quickly, a few who work at a steady pace, and a few who are very slow. During the first 1 1/2 weeks, I was a little frustrated with the 4th graders and was really praying for patience. Today, I actually enjoyed teaching them! That was for sure an answer to prayer! My 5th grade students are that a-mazing group of students that every teacher hopes to have! That's just a brief synopsis of my feelings about teaching thus far.
Funny story: Today, during Math class, things got a little dramatic. A student was at my desk asking a question and I started feeling something crawling on my leg. I had a long skirt on and I slightly lifted it up to see what was going on and it was a cockroach on me...yuck! So, I flew it off my leg and it landed under one of my students' desks. So, all the students who were right around it moved away from it. One of my students went and got a broom (right outside the classroom) and began trying to kill it with it. That didn't work. So, another student just stomped on it and killed it. Then, a different student swept up the dead cockroach and put it in the trash and then mopped up where the guts had been. It was pretty intense...hehe. But afterwards, I told my students that we all learned a lesson: Teamwork! Different students helped in killing the cockroach and we accomplished our task at hand.
This month was Ghost Month. Many people of Taiwan burnt money and sacrificed food to the evil spirits to make them happy. I saw it pretty much everywhere I went. Pray for the people here who serve false gods and believe that they are gaining merit by offering these sacrifices of food and money to dead spirits.
Peace out.
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