I have been in Shanghai for 5 1/2 weeks now, and am planning to stay
for a total of 12 weeks. It is amazing how quickly the halfway point
has gotten here! I can’t believe that time can pass by at such a
pace. One of the ladies here said, “I kept telling you that 3 months
is not really an ‘extended stay.’ It’s passing much too quickly!”
She has said that the time I’ve spent with her and the group here has
been very valuable for her (she thinks for all of them), and that she
hopes that we’ll manage to do this often in the future, with me
spending a few months at a time here with them.

My language studies are going along well. I’m enjoying the classes
very much, and feel challenged by them. It is good to have a place
to study where the courses are really designed for advanced
learners. Because much of my language learning has not been done
through formal classes, I know that there are big gaps here and there
in my ability with the language. The teachers here are doing a
really good job of seeing where the gaps are, and helping me to close
them up some.

I have two different teachers, one focusing more on oral language,
and the other on written. Both are very good teachers. I get along
with one especially well, and she has already asked me to make sure
that we keep in touch when I return to Singapore. We have spent a
good deal of time talking, and I do think she really wants to stay in
touch over the long term. I am pleased that it worked out for her to
teach me. Overall, the experience with this school has been even
more than I had hoped for, both in terms of the studies, and in terms
of making more contacts with people here.

The schedule since I have been here has been surprisingly busy.
(Probably why the time seems to be passing so quickly!) I’ve seen
some opportunities open up that never have on previous short-term
visits, nor would they have likely ever opened up without this longer-
term stay. One of the very exciting ones is that I have been
invited to teach the teachers in the preschool at the Singapore
international school. One of our members from Woodlands (in
Singapore) has been working with the school for the past 6 years, and
she has arranged for me to offer English lessons to the teachers, to
help them improve their ability to communicate with the parents. I
go once a week to teach them English, and have been able to make some
good contact with them. This Friday night, we’ll be having a bible
study at the home of my friend from Woodlands. Several of the
Singaporean teachers from the school will be there, as will (at
least) one of the ladies from the group I regularly meet with on the
weekends here. So far, I don’t think any of the local teachers from
the school are planning to come to the Friday study, but I do hope we
will see that develop over the next few weeks.

The weekend sessions have been going very well. We are enjoying our
time to study together, and I think the lessons have been
beneficial. I am working with the lady who teaches when I am not
around to prepare the lessons for the time after I have returned to
Singapore. She is glad to have a bit of time to get herself more
prepared for that, and I think it will be very good in the long-term.

One of the families from Woodlands was able to spend their recent
school holidays here visiting me. We had a very good time together.
I enjoyed having them visit, and so did the rest of our friends
here. I think it was a very good opportunity for everyone to get to
meet each other, fellowship and study — and play — together.

Please keep us all in your prayers. There is still so much to be done.

The time spent in China so far has been very productive. It is hard
to believe that nearly 3 weeks have passed since I have been here —
it is flying by! I have roughly 9 and a half weeks left here for
this trip. I know it is going to pass more quickly than I can believe.

My studies have gotten off to a good start — and very fast-paced!
The first week left my head spinning a bit, but I think I am settling
into a routine. I have written 3 short essays already, and have 2
more due soon. It is a challenge to write the essays. But I think
it is a good challenge, and can already see some improvement in my
writing. I will be pleased if the time spent here gives me more
confidence in the language and enables me to express myself better.
It seems that language-learning is a never-ending task.

I’ve had a good time being in touch with the people I am working with
here. Two of the sisters have been especially helpful in getting me
settled in, both to my apartment and into the general routines of
life. Without their help, getting set up would have been a very
difficult task, but they have made it very easy. For that I am very,
very grateful. They got everything ready for me, as far as all the
little daily needs go, and helped me apply for all the various
permissions, passes, and other things that seem to be so necessary
for a foreigner to live in China. All of those procedures would have
been very tough to manage on my own, just because they are things
that are not required in most places I have lived before. For
instance, I was not aware that I had to register my address with the
local police when staying for an extended period. In fact, when I
was told I needed to do so, I had no idea where to go or anything.
But with the help of one of the local ladies, it was done very
quickly and easily. She and another lady from Singapore who has been
here for about 6 years have been such a huge blessing.

The other ladies who we are continuing to reach out to seem to be
very glad that I am here for a longer stay this time round. It has
been good to have some time together, talking and studying and all.
I think the 3-month stay is going to make a real difference for
them. In addition, it is already a big boost to my former Chinese
teacher, the Shanghainese lady who was in Singapore for some time
(and was baptized there) but now has returned to Shanghai. She is
planning to start meeting with us each weekend, and I think that is
going to be really good for her, and also for the other ladies. I
did not think it was going to be possible to pull them all together
during this stay, but it seems that the timing is working out just
right. She is very eager to join the group, whereas in the past
there has always been some obstacle or another. I think that these 3
months will be good for helping them get to know each other, and
hopefully have a bond that they will maintain even when I am not
around. Please do be praying for that.

Next week, I will have company with me from Singapore. My
godchildren and their mother will come to see me. I am really
looking forward to the visit. Arranging the tickets was not easy,
but we managed to get it all taken care of. I will take the week fof
from school to spend time with them. I know they will be a big
encouragement to the group here. It should be a very good week.

Thanks to all of you for your support and prayers.

[I won't be able to check into the website here until I am back in
Singapore. I won't see any comments left here until mid-May, so if I
don't answer them, please be patient.]

I left Singapore for Shanghai on Monday and have arrived safely. One
of the ladies was able to meet me when I arrived, and we went
immediately to start looking for apartments. By the next afternoon,
I’d found a suitable place, and paid a deposit on it. I’ll be going
this evening to finalize the contract and make sure everything is in
proper working order. One of my Singaporean friends who is working
here will be going with me to help me check the place and the
contract thoroughly.

I am looking forward to a very good stay in Shanghai. I am going to
school this afternoon to make all the final arrangements for my
studies. I am not sure if there are other students at the same level
I am. If so, I will have 2-3 other classmates. If not, I will do
the course alone, with just me and the teacher in class. We’ll
arrange the schedule and all this afternoon, and I should be able to
start classes by next week, at the latest. That will give me just
enough time to get settled into my flat before I start studies, so it
should work out nicely.

Things in Singapore have been going well for us over the past several
weeks. Besides the two new members I mentioned in earlier reports,
one from the Philippines and one from Malaysia, we have had another
man from the US visit with us, and he has recently placed his
membership in Woodlands as well. On the weekend before I left, we
had 2 more ladies visiting with us, with 2 children. They are from
the Philippines, and will be working in Singapore. It looks like
they enjoyed being with us, and one of them indicated that they plan
on being there when I get back from Shanghai in May. It seems we
have a lot of new people coming in from neighboring countries, and
the extra help and enthusiasm is a great blessing.

We began our routine of doorknocking again just before I left. We
covered about 600 homes on the two weekends before I started my
travels. The plan is to continue each week, at a slower and steadier
pace than we have done in the past. We are not necessarily planning
to cover all of the neighborhood in a short time frame, but want to
keep on inviting new people on an ongoing basis. The day before I
left, we had one visitor with us who had received the information at
his home the week before. I don’t know whether he will be back
again, but it was good to see him there this past weekend. We also
had another phone call come in after the second round of
doorknocking. I hope we will see them with us soon too.

I will continue to send my updates back to League City to be posted
here. I won’t be checking in at the site till I am back in
Singapore. I will respond to any comments at that time.

Thanks again to all of you who support the work here. It is very much
appreciated.

This month has marked a very good beginning to 2008.  In addition to the new member that I mentioned in my last update, we have had another young man come in from Ipoh, Malaysia, and place his membership with us.  The two young men (22 and 26) have fit in very nicely with our young adults, and the group is bonding very well.  They have even gotten together to plan a training workshop for this weekend.  Two couples will come from Manila and conduct the workshop, and we have invited all of the congregations here to attend.  From the sign ups we have received so far, it seems that there will be participants from several other congregations in Singapore here with us on that day.  We are really looking forward to the time together this weekend, and it has especially been a pleasure to see the young adults working together to plan it. 

We have restructured the Bible classes this year, adding a new class for the preteen and teenage boys.  With most of our secondary students having recently finished their O-level exams (and doing very well!), there is a natural progression for them to move into the young adult class.  That leaves one boy in a sort of “in-between stage.”  He is older than those in the children’s class, but a bit young (and left out) when he joins the young adults.  We’ve made some adjustments so that he is now joined by 3 boys who are a little younger than him, but still close enough to his level to make for a workable class.  I think the arrangement is good overall, but it is a little more demanding of our resources (teachers) than what we were doing in the past.  I would appreciate your prayers for those who are teaching here, praying for their strengthening and encouragement.    

Next week we will celebrate Chinese New Year.  It is always a good time for families to get together, and also a time of warm fellowship within the congregation, when we spend a good deal of time visiting in one another’s homes.  I am looking forward to the week, especially because our guests from the Philippines will be here to celebrate with us.  I think it is going to be a good time for everyone.  

I have made my plans to spend 3 months in China  after the holiday.  I will be leaving on the 18th, and will be back in mid-May.  During that time, I will be studying in a language school, hoping to make some progress with my Chinese while working with the group there.  I won’t be personally updating this blog while I am away, but I will send news back to a friend in League City who will post updates and information here.  I will probably not be able to log in to comment during that time either, but any comments you leave will be forwarded to my email address.  If you don’t see my reply then, it is only because I am not able to log into the site, but do know that your words of encouragement are greatly appreciated, as are your prayers and support. 

It has been a couple of months since I last posted an update here, and most of that time has been spent on the road.  I was in the US for a month, then back to Singapore for a short while before making my way to Shanghai for almost 2 weeks.  I am back in Singapore at the moment, but will be leaving on the weekend for a very short trip to the US again. 

The next half year, and possibly more, will continue to see a lot of travel time for me.  When I was in the US in October- November, I spent some time with my supporting congregations talking about the possibility of spending more time in Shanghai in the upcoming months, possibly years.  We are going ahead with a plan, beginning in February, for me to spend 3 months in Shanghai, studying in a language school.  I will be back in Singapore in mid- to late-May, and spend the summer months here.  If things go as we hope, I could continue on a schedule that sees me alternating time between Singapore and China, most likely on a 3-month basis.  I am excited about the plan, as I think it represents a step forward in the work in Singapore as well as China.  The time spent in language courses will be very valuable too, I think.  I have found a school that seems to be just the sort of place that I need for the level of language studies I am looking for. 

Over the past couple of weeks, one of the teenage girls from Woodlands was able to go to China with me.  We made the plan a few years ago, aiming to make this trip together when she finished her O-level exam.  We were able to do just that, and the trip went very well.  She did a very nice job, and seemed to enjoy the trip a great deal too.  I really enjoyed having her along. 

In my last report, I mentioned a Filipino brother who had visited with us in Woodlands.  This past weekend, he placed membership here, making Woodlands his church home.  He knows he will be in Singapore for at least another year, and is considering staying on longer than that.  I ask that you pray for him as he contemplates this decision.  He is a bright spark, and brings a nice touch of enthusiasm to the group.  I am very glad he has decided to be with us, and am enjoying seeing him interact with the other members here.  He is a very pleasant young man.  I know that many of you who have visited us in the past will enjoy meeting him the next time you are here. 

We are continuing to make plans for our campaign in 2009.  We have been toying with some very exciting ideas, and I like the way things are coming together.  We’re seeing something of a different process than what used to happen when we planned campaigns, with more involvement from more of our members.  One of our boys, who will be entering secondary school in 2009, is very eager, and very involved in the planning already.  It is fun to watch this enthusiasm, and to see the younger people at Woodlands grow and take on new roles.  

I wish all of you a happy holiday season, and all the best for 2008. 

This past month that I have been back in Singapore, after a stay in China, has been an eventful one. As soon as I got back, we had our annual Mid-Autumn Festival celebration. We started doing this not long after we started the congregation in Woodlands, and it is perhaps the event that gets the best attendance this year, usually with lots of visitors. This year we had a somewhat smaller crowd than in previous years, but it was still a time of warm and happy fellowship. Several of our regular visitors were able to be with us.

This past weekend, we were able to participate in an inter-congregational singing session at the Pasir Panjang church. They had hosted a singing workshop for 5 days, which one of our guys was able to attend. The Sunday afternoon fellowship was really good. I appreciated the work the PP members put into organizing the event, and we from Woodlands really enjoyed both the singing and the fellowship.

We have had several visitors with us over the past month during our Sunday worship services too, and that has been a real encouragement to all of us. There have been several guests who were friends and family of some of our own members. This past weekend, we were happy to welcome a family who has recently moved into our area from the Philippines. It was very good to have them with us. I don’t know if they will decide to worship with us for their entire stay here, or if they would prefer to join the Filipino fellowship at the Pasir Panjang congregation (for the comfort of a more familiar cultural and language environment), but we enjoyed getting to meet them and are happy to have them here in Singapore.

Our regular small group studies have continued to go along well. We are studying the book of James, starting this week. On Friday night, all of those from the congregation who are able to be there will read the whole book together. We’ve been doing this for the past several months, a habit one of our members learned from the congregation in Seremban, Malaysia, when he visited there. What we do is read through the whole book together, aloud, before we start our study of it in our Bible classes and worship together. We don’t have a lesson that night, but simply a time of reading and prayer. Any thoughts that someone has, of course, are more than welcome, but there is no expectation of a formal lesson of any sort. The casual atmosphere has been a very pleasant environment for reading through the Word together. It’s been going very well, and I am thankful that we’ve learned this habit from our brethren to the north of us.

I will be leaving tonight for my regular trip back to the U.S. I will be in League City till mid-November, and plan to make visits to all of those congregations that support me, and hopefully visit Oklahoma Christian University during that time too. I will look forward to seeing many of you then.

I have just returned from another visit in Shanghai, and once again it was time well-spent.

The group I have been studying with for the past 3 years plus is doing better than ever. The one lady who is a Christian is continuing to do an excellent job as she teaches those who are not. She is steadfast in her studies with them, even though she feels very inadequate for the task. I ask that you will continue to keep her in your prayers.

The other two ladies had a lot on their minds while I was there this time, and I enjoyed some good discussions with each of them one-on-one, and with all of them together. Both have said that they have come to believe that there is a God, but that they are still pondering about whether it is right to say that Jesus was in fact God in the flesh (or, in other words, whether the God we read of in the New Testament is the same as the God who exists). It has been fun to watch them get to the stage where they are, and I am excited about what the future holds for them. Both are doing a good deal of searching, thinking, and praying. I ask that you will continue to support them too, through your prayers.

I had the good fortune on this trip to meet up with three new workers who are stationed in the area near where I usually stay — near, of course, being a relative term. We traveled for about 2 hours to meet them, as they stay quite far outside of the city. They are all three teaching at a university, and are starting a group. Several of their students are meeting to worship with them. The young man who translates for them does quite a good job of it, and I was very impressed to see how vibrant the whole group was.

The three workers who are there are closer in age to the younger of the two ladies who has been studying with me for the past several years. She was able to join me when I met them, and I am excited about the connection they made. These 3 can travel about 45 minutes to reach the train station near where she works, and they are all planning to try to make it a more regular habit to get together and encourage each other. After the talks this young lady and I had over the past week or so, I am pretty sure that spending some time with these young workers will do her a world of good. Just like when I was there in May with the two interns who spent the summer with us here, I think it will be an excellent opportunity for her to connect with young people closer to her own age, and to have a group of peers to interact with. I am really pleased with the opportunity that this all presents.

In addition, while I was there, I got to do a good bit of research into several different language schools. I found a program that would really be helpful to me, and if all works out, I hope to spend several months there improving my Chinese language next year. Not only will this be beneficial for my language skills, but the school will enable me to get a visa to stay longer in the country. I hope you will be praying for me, that this will work out in whatever way is best.

I plan to be home in the middle of next month, making my regular report. This upcoming January will mark 15 years that I have been in Singapore. (That is hard to believe!) This is the regular 5-year point in which we will need to review my work and renew commitments to it. I will be looking forward to seeing all of you back home when I am there.

I know it has taken me a long while to get this report on the summer activities out, but I hope that will just be a testimony to how busy a summer it was. It was a very busy, and very fruitful, summer.

We began our activities in June with the arrival of a group from the US, including two ladies who stayed for 2 weeks, 2 interns who stayed for 6 weeks, and some of our family members who were here with us for 3 months. All of these brethren who were with us for the summer activities have spent time in Woodlands in the past, and it was really wonderful to have these well-loved friends back with us. With all of the activities that went on, and which will make it into each of our respective reports, I think the thing that can not be overlooked is the richness of the fellowship we share together, and the blessing that is to the congregation here when we have these brethren spend their holiday time helping us in the work here.

While the 2 ladies were with us, they put together a very nicely-run VBS. We were so impressed with the creativity that went into it, and the resourcefulness. The stories were well-told, and the kids had a great time. We still talk about the re-enactment of the calming of the storm, and all the great “special effects” that helped bring the story to life for the kids. The ladies did such a wonderful job putting the VBS together, and it got the summer off to just the right start for us. There were 16 kids in attendance during the week, about half of whom were visitors. Of the visitors, one was from the neighborhood, a new visitor, and the rest were friends of our members. The new visitor is a secondary school student (late Jr. High or early High School in the US), and actually a little older than our target audience for the VBS. The 2 interns who were here with us took a special interest in helping him feel comfortable, and he continued to meet up with them after VBS was over, even attending the ongoing study we have for boys his age.

In addition to the VBS project, I have to commend these two ladies for their kind and willing spirit of service. They constantly presented to us an attitude of putting others first, and always looking out for the good of others. It brought such an upbeat, positive spirit to everything we did together. They were such a blessing to us.

The two interns were with us for an additional 3+ weeks after the ladies departed. They did a good job following up on the VBS. They spent time with the boys in the congregation, and made a special impact on two families, I think. These families each have 2 sons, and they spent a good deal of time with the interns. They went through the Force 410 material together, which is a series of lessons aimed at teaching the boys the basics of the faith, but also how they need to conduct themselves as men in service to God.

This was a special ministry that the interns were involved in. One of the issues this congregation has struggled with since we began back in 1999 is a lack of male leadership. It is an issue we have prayed and prayed about. Somehow, it seems that our prayers are never quite answered as we expect, because shortly after we began our earnest prayers for this problem, we had an influx of boys into the congregation — boys too young to fit the idea of “male leadership” that we had in mind, I suppose. But all the same, they were eager and willing to serve, and to be trained. The problem that then arose was how to effectively train these boys. It’s one that we have left largely unanswered before this summer, despite trying desperately to figure it all out.

The time that our 2 interns spent with these 4 boys was outstanding, and I think it will have a long-term impact on the congregation here. For two of the boys, their father is a new Christian, and he is not yet stable himself, nor is he overly involved in the regular leading of the congregation. The two sons spent a weekend with our interns, learning how to serve better, and discussing what things they are each willing to do as they begin on the path to greater service. They are still young, but their response to the things they learned has been very encouraging.

For the other two boys who were able to spend a good deal of time with the interns, their father is not a Christian, though their mother is. These two boys still have a lot of decisions to make, and a lot of thinking to do, but the time spent with the older guys who were here for the summer was invaluable. They soaked up the attention given to them, and the interns really did focus a good deal of their energies on helping these two boys, spending time nearly every day with them and their family. I have noticed a marked difference in the younger of the two boys since then, and in his father. The interns did a work this past summer with that family that may only bear its fullest fruit some years down the road. This sometimes can be a bit of a thankless task, rather out of the spotlight, but it is one that I know this family will remember for a long time, as I will. I am pleased with what they did, and with the willing and giving spirit with which it was done.

That, actually, can be said of everything that the interns did. They spent their time doing whatever was needed, and whatever was asked, and doing it with a good attitude. Whether it was painting the gate, teaching and preaching, developing a questionnaire aimed at helping the men get more involved, or visiting with the members, they did it willingly and happily. I think it was a very positive example to the congregation.

For the family members who were visiting with us, they did the usual good job they do of encouraging and uplifting the congregation here. While it would be easy for them to come and spend their summer relaxing and enjoying time doing their own things, that is just not how they operate at all. They are always involved, and always serving. The teaching and preaching that one of the men brings is especially welcome, his wife fits naturally and easily back into the roles of service that she has always played here, and the involvement of the kids is likewise encouraging and enriching to the members here. Their absence, now that they have returned to League City, is felt very accutely. We miss them, and we look forward to their time with us again next summer. And, we are grateful to all of those back home who sent them over and helped make this summer so special for us.

We’ve had a busy summer, with lots of great work done. I know some of you have been checking in regularly to see when this would be updated, and might have been disappointed up until now. My apologies.

Do check back soon. I hope to have a lengthy report of all that was done during the summer, and an update on my plans for the rest of the year. It will probably be a several-part post. I hope to get it going next week, when all of my company for the summer has returned to their homes.

Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night and other course materialsI am preparing this for my first lecture of the semester tomorrow night. It is one of my least favorites of Shakespeare’s plays. I am, however, still looking forward to the session with the students all the same. For all that I don’t really love the play, I have to admit that it does bring up a lot of interesting ideas for discussion. And, I have some fun video versions that we’ll watch too.

Jasper Fforde’s Something Rottenand The Well of Lost Plots

Something Rotten is the 4th book in Fforde’s Thursday Next series. The Well of Lost Plots is the 3rd (I might have read it in June, actually). I started loaning the series to a friend while he is visiting Singapore on his summer holidays, and decided I would finish up the volumes I hadn’t read yet before he got to them. I was reminded just how engrossing this series is. I actually wrote an earlier series about Fforde, and I know I got at least one other blogger from the community reading his work. Maybe some others around here would enjoy looking him up too. (I’m about to finish the newest in the series, which just arrived in the mail yesterday.)

The Book of God by Walter Wangerin

I am still working on the audio version of this one. It hasn’t been the best time for me to read (er, listen to) it because I usually listen on the road while I commute. With the school holidays, and with a house full of company (and therefore a truck full of passengers), I haven’t made much progress on this one. But still, I am enjoying it when I get a few minutes to listen.

Jeffrey Archer’s False Impressions

I can’t help it. I just like Jeffrey Archer.

I was surprised how well he wrote a book that included the events of 9/11. It was not at all plausible, of course, but still fun to read.

J. K. Rowling’s newest, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

After waiting so long, it was nice to get some closure to the series. I won’t say anything more about it, because I’ve done so on other blogs already. My first reactions were recorded in a quick look at how close I’d come with my earlier predictions. There are spoilers in that one, so don’t click if you don’t want to know how it ends. I did follow that up with more reflections, and have been talking about it over and over with different friends as they finish the book.

The Gods Look Down

I have not read the first 2 books in the series, but I did still enjoy this one (the 3rd). It isn’t going to make my top 100 favorite book list or anything, but it was interesting enough.

Books & Culture

I took a back issue with me to Shanghai to read. That is always a great journal to get you thinking. There were a number of good articles in it.

They Went

They Went is a short anthology of essays about travel writing. I am enjoying the insights by the authors there, and am challenged by the way they look at writing about travel experiences. There are loads of things I have never thought about, and these writers have considered them so deeply and thoroughly. Sigh.

Also, I did some browsing through these in the library one afternoon, and got a chance to jot down some reflections on other blogs:

The Real Story
English Language Myths
Action Asia Magazine
Photo China Magazine