It's all WORKING out!!

We have work! And although it's not in a traditional classroom as we had initially anticipated, we do believe it's right where God wants us. Beginning on August 11th, the Ewalds will become the newest employees of a reputable English teaching organization. This organization is also a media outlet (and yes, both Chip and Chels will likely be on television in Taiwan:) So...why employment here? After much prayer and consideration, it seemed more and more clear to us that we could serve, grow, learn, and stretch ourselves by accepting employment with this organization. We're quickly learning that as employees, we'll be doing far more than simply going to work everyday. Some things we like about our new employer. First and foremost, it serves as a ministry. It seeks to reach the people of Taiwan through the media, through Bible study and worship, and through teaching. Second, it serves as the island's most reputable English-teaching organization (or so we've been told by SEVERAL of our Taiwanese friends). We're thoroughly impressed with this organization, to say the least. Our duties there will consist of, well, several things. It sounds like we'll be doing everything from teaching in university classrooms, to writing and editing educational publications (used in school classrooms across the island), to performing in front of the camera for educational programming, to traveling around the island to present English programs to eager young learners. We anticipate that the phrase "never a dull moment" will aptly apply to life at this organization. We're so excited to see what the next two years with this organization hold. One more thing--since both of us accepted positions with the organization (which we're thrilled about because we'll have the same hours, vacation, holidays, etc.) housing is provided for us. It seems as though we might even be upgrading from our cozy little one-bedroom basement apartment. We'll be living in an apartment complex complete with 2.5 bedrooms (the .5 we assume will be used as office space), furniture, a television, a washer/dryer, and a quick walk to work (we won't even have to commute!!!). We feel so blessed to see the many ways in which God is continuing to orchestrate our mission to Taiwan. Please pray for our transition, our influence, and our growing passion for the people and culture of Taiwan. We fly out on the morning of August 7th. We'd love to see as many of you as possible before leaving. Thanks for your continued support!

Presenting the Gospel in Taiwanese Culture

During our recent trip, the students got a chance to walk around Longshan temple, Taipei's most famous temple, containing statues of both Buddhist and Taoist gods. We all prayed to our God as the hundreds of Taiwanese locals prayed to theirs. I'm constantly wondering how our prayers might be different from their prayers. Do they pray for the same things we pray for? I suppose, I'm constantly wondering IF our prayers are any different from their prayers.
In front of the statues, there are tables full of food that people have brought and offered to their gods. The gods are thought to eat and enjoy "the essence" of the food, even though the physicality of the food remains there on the table. When the worshiper is ready to leave the temple, he or she takes the food home and eats it or serves it to his or her family. (The Christians at Corinth struggled over this very issue--eating food sacrificed to idols. ) From what I understand, these food offerings are not really "thank offerings" (given out of gratitude for what the gods have already provided) as much as they are "please offerings" (given along with petitions for what the gods might provide in the future). Apparently, the gods are the ones who control good luck and prosperity as well as bad luck and bankruptcy. So its always a good idea to keep the gods happy with their favorite snack foods.
People of all walks of life go to Longshan to offer their prayers. Grandparents with their grandchildren, young couples on a date, businessmen on their lunch hour--everyone coming to ask the gods for good luck and success in this life. Not a lot of prayers for a good afterlife. Not a lot of prayers for salvation from sins. Not a lot of prayers of repentance, unless it is going to have an immediate effect on this life. In comparison, my faith in Jesus is not so practical. Its not very this-worldly. We don't really offer ourselves to Jesus because we think our lives will be healthier or wealthier as a result. And if a Longshan-worshipper were to ask me why I follow Jesus, my answers would probably sound very abstract and uninteresting in their ears. I doubt it would scratch where they are itching. My story wouldn't really answer the questions they're asking. Does the gospel message intend to answer the questions that the typical Longshan-worshipper is already asking?--"How can my life be more complete?" Or does the Longshan-worshipper first need to be taught to ask different questions before the gospel can really connect to their lives?

Surreal

It was pretty surreal for me to be sitting in a church service led by Marlin, Isaac, Kelly, and one of their classmates (Hui shin) they helped bring to Christ last year. Marlin, Isaac, and Kelly became Christians at our International Bible study 3 and 4 years ago at the Campus House. They went home to Taiwan excited to share their faith and help lead Bible studies of their own. With the help of Craig Thompson, a Team Expansion missionary, their Saturday morning Bible study became a Sunday afternoon worship service for the first time while our Campus House team was there. Their Saturday morning group gathered together with a Bible study group from NTUT (National Taiwan University of Technology) that Craig leads each week. Marlin was a sort of emcee for the service, welcoming everyone, making sure we foreigners were properly introduced, and making sure the service flowed as smoothly as possible. Kelly led us in singing some well-chosen worship songs with the help of an accompanying CD, and Hui shin led the prayer time. Isaac led the communion time, and if he'd spoken two minutes longer, we probably would have called it a sermon--he basically preached and taught a communion sermon! I was so proud of them all. This wasn't the result of Craig simply putting words in their mouths, telling them what to say and what not to say, what elements the worship service should have and shouldn't have--this was their coming to their own conclusions by studying the scriptures and observing how the church community has put them into practice over the years. It was the high point of my trip to be seated there in a worship service that my friends were leading--possibly one of the highlights of my life!

Home from Taiwan!

After 11 days and plenty of time spent on an airplane, Chip and his students have returned safely to the U.S. While in Taiwan, they took in and experienced as much of the country and its culture as time allowed. From participating in church services and Bible studies, to eating the food, practicing the language, and sight seeing, Chip and his group gained new perspective on just how big and diverse this world is. During his stay, Chip also had time to catch up with old friends Kelly and Isaac, and Richard and Marlin. This was of course the highlight of his stay in Taiwan. We anticipate growing our relationship even more with these couples during our two year hiatus on the island.

Chip has also narrowed his job possibilities. After a couple of interviews, much prayer, and lots of discussion, we have both decided that taking jobs with [a reputable English teaching organization] seems like a good fit for us. They're a faith-based organization that uses English teaching as an outlet for ministry. Pretty cool. Our duties would range from being on English education television programs, to writing articles, to teaching at a university, to whatever else they may need. We're pretty excited about the opportunity. Nothing is set in stone yet, but we hope that by the end of this week it will be.

Here are a couple of pics of Chip's trip...these pictures show Chip and the group at the high school where Marlin teaches.

Inching Forward

As the days go by, the time to head to Taiwan draws nearer and nearer. Most of the time it seems completely surreal that we're going to be living overseas, and at other times we're reminded of how very real this all is. Take tonight, for instance. For the past several hours we've been packing down suitcases with winter clothes, books, and other items we think we can live without until we head to Taiwan in August. And exactly why are we packing so early, you may ask? Well...Chip will be heading to Taiwan this Wednesday (May 14th) for a 10 day trip with 7 students from the Campus House. The students were nice enough to agree carry some of our belongings on with them...they've essentially become our "pack mules"...and boy are we grateful! It will be nice to have that much less to worry about once we make our big move in 3 months.

While Chip is in Taiwan this week and next he'll be interviewing for teaching jobs with a couple of different companies. Ideally, we'd like for him to come home with a job. This is definitely something that you could be praying for.

We'll certainly keep you posted and updated about Chip's trip and our job opportunities as we know more.

Language Learning in Urbana

So we are learning Mandarin. We have been blessed to be in contact with Lydia Huang, a licensed Mandarin teacher, who is volunteering her time to teach our class of 4 students each week. Because the class is so small, we are able to get a lot of interaction. It's pretty close to professional tutoring for free--a huge blessing. At this point, the hardest thing about learning Mandarin Chinese is getting used to the tones. Mandarin has 4 or 5 tones. So words that sound the same to English ears are actually totally different words. An English example might be the difference between saying, "huh" with a dropping tone (like, "interesting...") and saying "huh" with a rising tone (like, "what?"). We would say that changing the tone changes the meaning. In Mandarin, changing the tone totally changes the word. So when you're trying to say, "I need a restroom," you might actually be saying, "Cheese my teacher today," or something far more ridiculous or offensive. It's been rough, but we're learning. When friends learn that we've been taking Chinese classes, they often say, "Talk to me in Chinese." I usually count to 5. It's pretty intimidating to struggle to flop and flail through a sentence that probably wouldn't even make sense to a Chinese-speaker. Now I have a better idea of what my international students have been experiencing in their conversations with me.