My First Baptism in the Mekong... (May in Mekong - Day 3)

Sarin and his Mom.

 On Day Three in Cambodia, I was invited by LTS (Lutheran Theological Seminary in Hong Kong) alumni Sarah and Sarin to  go out to the countryside, outside of Phnom Penh, where Sarin's parents live in a small village. Sarin's Dad had been crippled years ago, while living in a refugee camp, so his tiny Mom has worked to sustain their family with small business and farming projects.


Sarin was the first in his family to become a follower of Jesus Christ, and one by one the rest of his family came to faith, too.


Except for his Dad, who understandably, had a lot to wonder about this God, this Christ Jesus, this new Lord of his son's.


Through divine interventions... and maybe through the new, fresh voices of Sarin's bride, Sarah, and the beautiful grandchildren they gave to Sarin's Dad... maybe because of their regular visits, their persistent love....

And because of some dreams.  Over the last few years Sarin's Dad has been given some amazing dreams, and discovered that God's Son is for real.

It was an beautiful story and an moving testimony to me, of the power of God's Spirit to draw people to Christ, even in the countryside, even in Cambodia, where recent human history seems to contradict the existence of a caring, loving God.  

"So where were you baptized?" I asked, just out of curiosity.

"Baptized, I haven't been baptized yet.  But -" (he said in Khmer, with Sarah as our translator, but he was looking directly at me) "You're a pastor.  You could do my baptism!"

And there was a basin of water.  A congregation was easily, enthusiastically summoned.  An "acolyte" was found to add more water to the basin. 

Sarah (originally from Hong Kong) and  her father-in-law

A granddaughter who shares special treats with her Grandpa - fresh roast frog!

"You're a pastor, you could do my baptism, couldn't you?"

A congregation is easily gathered

An acolyte adds more water to the "baptismal font"

A preacher has been preached to, by this incredible experience of joy.

A long-married wife is delighted to present her  husband with a gift of flowers in honor of his new birth in Christ

^36-39As they continued down the road, they came to a stream of water. The eunuch said, "Here's water. Why can't I be baptized?" He ordered the chariot to stop. They both went down to the water, and Philip baptized him on the spot. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of God suddenly took Philip off, and that was the last the eunuch saw of him. But he didn't mind. He had what he'd come for and went on down the road as happy as he could be.  (Acts 8 - The Message translation of the Bible.... and I kid you not, my Bible just "happened" to be bookmarked at exactly this passage that day)

In Anticipation of Thanksgiving...

One of our students was kind enough to provide us with this photo from one of our recent fiestas.  After nearly two years in Hong Kong, and loads of experiences seeing the sights, dining out,  and meeting all kinds of people, one of our favorite things in life is still just sharing a meal... often yes, served in pots and pans rather than making more dishes for our chief dishwasher (Youngest Son).

In November we are anticipating a LOT of special meals.

Did I mention that I have started yet another new part-time job?   Two nights a week I now go and teach English to adults.  So far so good!  My first lessons included helping people to enunciate clearly the difference between "beach" and, um a similar sounding but very different-in-meaning word.   Ditto with the word "fork" AND the ever present tendency (in religious circles) to interchange "blessed" with "breast".

Tomorrow night I get to do my first "Fun with Christa" night.  Yup, it's really entitled exactly that, so I'm a little nervous.  If anyone has some games using English that's not too adolescent... pass 'em on. (I googled "English games adults" and you might be able to imagine what kind of stuff came up on the screen.  Not very helpful. 

Friday night we are having an outdoor Thanksgiving event on the lawn with about 35 people.  (Thanksgiving Day itself will not be a holiday here in Hong Kong, of course, so we are celebrating early).  I haven't snagged the cans of pumpkin yet, though others have assured me they are to be found in Hong Kong, if you look hard enough and are willing to pay the big bucks!

On Saturday I will be celebrating Holy Communion at the prison.  It is the first time our ministry team is attempting this, and it will be a stretch in every way - practical (I just got word today that we can only bring in "church type white bread" - do you think I can get by with pita bread?) linguistic (half the group speaks Spanish!), theological (these are NOT all Lutherans and have a wide variety of understandings of the Lord's Supper), pastoral (some may not be baptized, or not be ready to receive communion for a variety of reasons) and liturgical (How to best conduct the service in the  cluttered, classroom-closet kind of space we have, filled with long benches...)

So we are anticipating a variety of meals in the coming few weeks.  Stay tuned for the updates.

Guide me ever, great Redeemer, pilgrim through this barren* land. 
I am weak, but you are mighty; hold me with your pow'rful hand.
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven, feed me now and evermore, 
feed me now and evermore.            -- traditional hymn

*(although Hong Kong is NOT so barren... see below)

On the way home from church on Sunday we chanced upon this lovely bit of creation.

note to self- I will invest in a better camera, I will! And learn how to use it.

We heard there was a party!

Mmm, wonder what's flying by for dinner today?

                                            

Wayne's trip to Myanmar

Wayne just got back from a faculty trip to Myanmar, the country which used to be known as "Burma".

Who speaks good news in this land where wild elephants and the occasional tiger still roam in old forests, where the average wage for an educated teacher is rumored to be in the $35 USD a month range, where tropical downpours conspire with a heavy handed police presence to keep people isolated and careful, very careful of what they say and do and teach.

In this beautiful country, Wayne and his colleagues were able to visit small pockets of Christians who are living out Jesus' teaching to be like yeast mixed with flour, which works invisibly to perfume the whole house with the promise of good bread for the children, the old grandparents, and the hungry guests to eat.

"What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough." -- Jesus speaking in Luke 13:20-21

A big thank you to Wayne's German colleague, Dr. Jan Depner, for most of these great photos.

Visiting the Doctor in Hong Kong: A Comedy in 3 Parts

For those who know me, this photo is obviously not me... this is one of our LTS students from mainland China, performing an exquisite liturgical dance. 

I like to think that she represents the inner me, though -- this is how I see myself and how I hope to look in the New Creation, ok?

In Old Earth life, though, I am a good deal older and fatter than this --- and it was time for my first medical check up at a Hong Kong clinic this week, so  I thought I'd share a few of my observations with you all.

Part I  --  I had hoped the Chinese had invented a better way of doing mammograms, but no, it was the same, same deal, only with much tinier changing rooms (think airplane toilet and then cut the space in half) and no small talk to calm shaky nerves (my sister has stage IV breast cancer and I think every female on both sides of my family has had it... so I figure I'm a walking time bomb.  However, I'm pleased to report that everything is clear for another year).

Part II -- For a stool sample I was handed a container the size and shape of a pharmacy pill bottle.  Nothing else, just this empty pill bottle, handed to me by a nurse with very rudimentary English who didn't look like she wanted to be asked any questions.  You may not want to think about that for very long, and I'm not going to say anything else about it.

Part III --  I had all my appointments on Monday and the nurse dutifully wrote down my weight....  XX number of kilos.... which is exactly the same weight as I'd been when I left the USA.... and I could have sworn that I lost weight!  So for four and a half days I have been totally totally bummed about this, feeling sluggish and mad and sorry for myself.  All this extra exercise I'm getting in Hong Kong (we have no car here) and all this walking up and down the mountain and over to the metro station and up the steps and down the steps, and no weight loss at all??!?

But this morning, on my jogging path, it suddenly came to me... I did the math wrong!!!!  I had multiplied by 2 then added 20% instead of just multiplying by 2.2 (kilos x 2.2 = pounds)... So actually, I really and truly HAVE lost more than 10 pounds here in Hong Kong!!!

See, I'm already on my way to looking more and more like the beautiful woman in the picture.

Life is good!

I know that my redeemer  lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth. 
    ²⁶ And after my skin has been destroyed,  yet  in  my flesh I will see God;
    ²⁷ I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another.
       How my heart yearns within me!   -- Job 19:25

White Tongues of Fire

Last week the canal was drained revealing vast lumpy mud flats which smelled like sewage.  The egrets, however, seemed delighted, finding all kinds of delicious sustenance in the foul puddles.

In honor of Pentecost (the Christian celebration of the arrival of the Holy Spirit infusing failed disciples with great gusts of hope and energies) I thought I'd share some of my glimpses of these elegant birds transforming fetid drainage ditches into a whirl of movement and grace.

(This canal is a 5 minute walk from our home).

"Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.  They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them."   -- Theophilus' friend writing in the book of The Acts of the Apostles, chapter two

Summer nights, pizza, and the bishop's wife

For weeks now the temperatures haven't gone below the 80's F. (28 or so Celsius) even at night and yesterday we reached 99 F. with about 95% humidity. For some reason I thought August might be better than July but au contraire.

In the evenings we shut the windows (there is rarely a breeze to speak of) and turn on the air-conditioner (we tried going without it but found that our crankiness with each other was in direct proportion to the heat of the day. With the air-conditioner on, we like each other again :)

And with the more flexible summer schedule, we've been having more people over in the evenings for Wayne's Wonderful pizza! This photo is from Sunday night when we had our Bishop over with his beautiful family.

The previous night we had invited three students from the mainland of China. I won't show you their pictures because two of these students (a married couple) aren't "supposed" to be studying Christianity. They told amazing stories of their lives and the lives of their parents and grandparents, living through years of the persecution of educated people and the hardships... and joys of being believers in Christ's Way in China.

Among other things, I was sad to be reminded of the fact that young people such as these are only allowed (by law!) to have one child. How rich Wayne and I are, to have three sons, even if two of them are far away!

The third of our guests, "Esther", told how her family faced years of hardship because her family had adopted a second child. If I understood correctly, for years this adopted younger brother was not allowed to go to school or receive regular medical care because as an "illegal second child" he was a "non-person" in China. Last year, however, he received his official identity card . "What a wonderful feeling that was" exclaimed his big sister, "I went to chapel and just thanked God that day when I found out my little brother is recognized as a real person and can now go to school like any other child."

Esther's parents are not particularly pleased that their eldest daughter is studying for the Christian ministry, but in their love for her, seeing her happiness, they are supportive of her decision, even though there may be ramifications for Esther's father in his own job. Officials still often look with suspicion upon family members of avowed Christians. "Will your daughter devote herself to this Christian Church?" an official may ask, using the same verb in Chinese as the verb that is used to express what a citizen's attitude is supposed to be toward the Chinese state: devotion.

Esther is the first in her family to become a Christian, and is looking forward to the day when her family members are also ready to embrace the good news of Jesus.

When the Bishop came, we found out from his wife that she is a first generation Christian as well, and her father had just become a Christian a year ago. How beautiful to see the smile on her face as she told us the story of her father's coming to faith.

Wayne and I sometimes feel like we are getting to see and hear first-hand, as the Book of Acts unfolds around us in new ways, in Hong Kong and China.


"I will pour out my Spirit on all people, Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy." -- God quoted in Acts 2:17f

Pentecost & the languages of love

Hong Kong Languages of Love Pentecost 2009

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Other Creative Writing languages of love hong kong worship

Acts 2:6 Each one heard them speaking in his own language...

Acts 2:7-8 Utterly amazed, they asked, "How is it that each of us hears...in his own native language?"
Acts 2: 11 " -- we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!"

+++

On Pentecost Sunday I preached for the first time since arriving in Hong Kong.

I spoke on the languages of love, and the many different languages the Spirit uses to speak first to us, then through us, the many members of the Church of Jesus Christ...

I used an old Dave Watry mission story, from when he and Jude lived in Russia for a year. Their first week there, they went to the market to buy some eggs for breakfast. Not knowing the word for "egg" in Russian, Dave acted out what he thought was a pretty fine imitation of a chicken laying an egg. The lady in the market stall nodded earnestly, turned to rummage through the boxes in the back of her market stall, and turned around again to hand Dave... a roll of toilet paper.

Ah yes, the languages we use.

The languages of love include these classic five: Time, Gifts, Words, Practical Help, Touch, to which I would add a few more such as color, art, food, music... you probably can think of more. Anyway, check out the short slide show (above) for the languages I've heard lately.