Thursday, March 25, 2010

As iron sharpens iron�

Proverbs 27:17
As iron sharpens iron,
       so one man sharpens another.

 

God�s blessed me with a small, but incredibly awesome group of guys at church. We had our first small group tonight, just talking with and praying for each other. I didn�t think about it too much until winter break, but I really miss being around Christians, having good fellowship, and being able to pray for and with others. I found a church a few weeks after I got here, but it was basically going every Sunday, saying hi, sitting by myself, and then going back to my room.

Last Sunday, one of the guys mentioned that they had started getting together with another guy, and invited me and one other guy along�

So�that�s the update. Still no word on internships or income, but hey, God�s got it under control. What do I have to worry about it for?

Sunday, March 21, 2010

…and it goes on

Ah…another week. Over. I can’t believe that we started the semester 5 weeks ago. It doesn’t seem like that long. I guess that’s a good thing. It means that I’m that much closer to summer, and internship (hopefully). We’re doing some more interesting classes, more practical than last semester, though a bit harder and a LOT busier.

I’ve started helping out at church a bit – I’m going to try to make it to the youth group on Friday nights, and help out. We also had a “young adult” day yesterday – we went hiking in Caoling, a place I had never been before – really pretty, but a LOT of stairs. I met some new people, invited one of my Taiwanese friends, and had some good conversations along the way.

For the past few weeks, I’ve been going to ITRI, a local company, on Wednesdays, to do a Bible study/English class. It brings back a lot of memories from my days as an English teacher – lesson planning, etc. It’s been good. I’ve met some good people, and enjoy the time I spend there. There’s a range of English levels, and I think everyone understands a different amount.

We’re going through Mere Christianity. I’m reading the book, taking notes, then making a summary and study guide each week. It’s time consuming, but I’m learning a lot, about teaching, my faith, and how to interact with the Chinese culture.

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I don’t know. What does it mean to be a Christian? Why are there so many people who say their Christians, yet don’t act like it. I know that I’ve got a long way to go, but at least I’m trying to go in the right direction – trying to go 2 steps forward before taking 1 step back. Thankfully, there are a few guys that I’ve been able to meet who are real Christians, and we’re going to try to meet up for a Bible study.

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Please pray that God would multiply my time and my finances, and that He would use me to touch my classmates and acquaintances. I feel like every time I try to say something about my beliefs, it comes out wrong, and has the opposite effect of what I want to say. God’s put me with so many people who need Him, and all I can do is live my life, and leave it in His hands.

I was reminded this week that reaching the lost isn’t the focus of our lives. Our only goal in life is to be a living sacrifice to Jesus Christ. Nothing else matters. If God uses us to reach others, that’s only frosting on the cake!

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

The Devil Wears Prada

This past weekend was a lot of fun. I spent Saturday and Sunday in Taipei w/ 2 different groups of friends. On Saturday, a group of people went to visit Evelyn, one of my classmates, and her husband Bruce at their home. Unfortunately, it was raining, but it was still a lot of fun. We talked a bit, ate a lot, and just had funTongue out.

We watched �the Devil Wears Prada, � a movie about one girl�s experience in the fashion industry. Although I really don�t care too much about fashion (as my family knows), it was still interesting, as it dealt with the whole issue of work-life balance. I�ve thought a bit about that, but haven�t come to any conclusions. I�m working on my MBA, studying to be a �successful businessman� HOWEVER, I know that a lot of people who make a lot of money also don�t have much social or family life. Everything they do revolves around their company. This is not the kind of life I want.

So what is the difference? How do some people become successful in business, yet are able to do so much more in life. Some people I can think of are William Wilberforce and R. G. LeTourneau. They were able to become incredibly successful in their professions, yet were able to stay true to their faith and family.

Adding to that is the whole Biblical idea that wealth and success isn�t measured in dollars. Though there were a lot of wealthy people in the Bible, their wealth often became a problem, and ended up being a hindrance.

What do you think?

Here are some pictures from last weekend� (Thanks to Natalie)

Windows Live Tags: Devil,Prada,Taipei,friends,Evelyn,classmates,husband,Bruce,movie,girl,industry,Although,life,haven,businessman,money,difference,Some,William,Wilberforce,LeTourneau,faith,Biblical,wealth,Though,Bible,hindrance,Here,pictures,conclusions,professions,weekend

Blogger Labels: Devil,Prada,Taipei,friends,Evelyn,classmates,husband,Bruce,movie,girl,industry,Although,life,haven,businessman,money,difference,Some,William,Wilberforce,LeTourneau,faith,Biblical,wealth,Though,Bible,hindrance,Here,pictures,conclusions,professions,weekendNote: Cross posted from Trevor's space.

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Friday, March 5, 2010

Back to Work…

Wow…the winter break is over, and I’m well into the next semester! After the first two weeks, I think it’s safe to say that it’s going to be a VERY busy semester. I have 6 classes, plus Chinese. Unfortunately, Chinese is a non-credit class, meaning that if something must be squeezed out, Chinese practice is the first thing to get dropped. On the other hand, I have a lot of friends who are eager to help, but I need to find the time to practice.

I have 5 classes, each with it's own small group! I’m not sure exactly how this is going to work out, but it’ll have to! Thankfully, I don’t have class on Friday, and only one class on Thursday morning. Unfortunately, that means I have 3 classes on Monday and 3 on Tuesday.

Last weekend, I went to Taipei with some new friends – foreign exchange students who are new this semester – 3 from France and 1 from Germany.

We met up with Amanda, a girl I had met before when I was working with King Car, and went to the Taipei Botanical Gardens, Sun Yat Sen Memorial, and the night market (I don’t remember which one) It was cool to be the “experienced” person – the one who was telling other people to eat 臭豆腐 (stinky tofu) and 珍珠奶茶 (pearl milk tea)

I’m still on the hunt for an internship, and someone mentioned an idea of looking for companies in the States that work in Taiwan. I sent out a few emails yesterday – hopefully something will come of that.

I finally got a license, though only for a super light motorcycle (50cc). It will only be useful for buzzing around Hsinchu, but it definitely beats walking! (and right now, that’s enough) I’ll get a different license (and a bigger moped) later, but I’m fine for now.

Other than that, not a whole ton happening…just projects, work, study, and more of the same.

Here are a few pictures from our Taipei trip last weekend, thanks to Emil.