Gloria

Gloria has really taken charge of her own faith. Before she left for winter break, she was unsure if she was truly a believer. I asked her to share her experience with me. I came to the conclusion that she was a genuine believer. I also asked her the "3 Questions" I'm kind of known for asking students.

1. Do you believe you have sin? Do you believe you have offended God and disobeyed Him?
2. Do you believe Jesus can erase your sin through his life and death? Do you want his forgiveness to cover you?
3. Do you want to commit your life to God and be faithful to Him always and only?

She answered yes to all the questions. And was kind of shocked that how easy the whole process was. I told her if she believed all those things to be true and wanted to commit her life to Jesus, then all she had to do was believe it in her heart and affirm it with her mouth. She did. She's been blossoming ever since!

(Gloria is on the right. Yvonne is on the left.)

Starting in March, she and others have been reading James together. Coco asked, "How can God make us stronger and give us peace?" Gloria wanted to share a personal story.

Gloria shared about how she always felt guilty going to the temple and bowing down when she believed in God. She never felt like she could stand up to her parents. After she made her confession verbally, she felt much more strong spiritually. She told us how she stood up to her parents over the winter break. She felt great peace and power. Like she could do anything! She feels stronger and stronger each day. She was not disrespectful, but lovingly said no, that she would not go to the temple and bow down. She would not burn incense. She would not give offerings.

Listening to her story and her witness to the other students almost brought me to tears. She has such a sweet soul. She's so gentle and kind. She could've been disowned from her parents, it could've caused a lot of drama and conflict. But she stood her ground. This is a great difficulty for many brothers and sisters in Asia. Many festivals and holidays are focused around the afterlife and worshiping ancestors or temple activities.

I'm excited to continually be a part of Gloria’s growth and just watch her blossom. I'm not doing anything. It's all the Spirit alive inside her.

Mandy

This story is from a couple weeks ago with my Sunday afternoon Bible study with Mandy and Sherry. Mandy is on the left and Sherry is on the right.

Sherry asked the question "What do Christians think about luck?"

I said Christians don't believe in luck. Or they shouldn't. They believe everything is God's plan. Whether it is good or bad. Some people might say that Bryant and I meeting was lucky; being in the right place at the right time. But I believe it was God's plan that we should meet each other.

Then Mandy asked if she could share a personal story. I said of course.

But before I tell you a story she told I should give you a little background. There are more than 55 people groups in China. Meaning they're all Chinese, but there of a different ethnic backgrounds. Their language, culture, customs festivals, and traditions all differ a little bit. There are two groups that seemingly always are having conflict. Xinjiang people and Han people. Xinjiang people are closer to Muslim culture than Chinese culture. Han Chinese people are the majority in China.

On to Mandy. She told us about how she was traveling to another city with her father. They were in the train station. Literally the next day there was a riot where Xinjiang people killed many Han. In that exact same train station at the exact same place that her and her father where the previous day. She also told Sherry and I that every time she travels she prays that Father would keep her safe. She went on to explain and express that she doesn't think it's just luck that they weren't killed. She doesn't think it's just luck that they were there the day before not the day of this riot. She is sure and confident that that was the Lord's providence that they were kept safe.

It is always fun and such a tremendous joy to see fellow sisters share their own life experiences with non-believers!

Keep praying for Sherry. When I asked her this week, "If there is a scale of 1 to 10. One is you don't believe there is a god. And Jesus wasn't real. Ten is you believe fully in the Bible. Where are you?"

She said, "Five. I think I am a five. I don't know what I think yet."

Bernie and the Messiah

A couple weeks ago, we talked about the Messiah in my Bible class. Isaiah 52:13-53:12 talks about the Savior that will come. He will be beaten. He will be punished. He will be innocent. He will take our punishment. He will be condemned on our behalf. He was sinless. We are the sinners. We deserve the punishment.

After discussing the passage, we related it back to the Penalty Offering (Leviticus 5:14-6:7). It talked about how each person had to sacrifice a sheep/ram for their sin. Whether they knew they sinned or not, they would still be held accountable. Each time they sinned, they were to give this sacrifice or offering. So, over a person's lifetime, they would offer thousands upon thousands of sheep. We connected that fact that the Messiah was the Final and Ultimate Penalty Offering. There would be no need for sheep anymore. Then I said, "I'll tell you a secret, Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus is so important and talked about so much by all people because of what He did and what it means. All your sins can be forgiven, IF you believe in Jesus and his sacrifice for you."

Bernie had a question, of course.

"So, it doesn't matter what we do? We are forgiven, if we believe in Jesus. So, we can do whatever we want without consequences. It doesn't matter what we do because we are forgiven."

My response:

"No. And Yes. Imagine this. You kill someone. You are guilty. You have broken the law and you are sent to prison for the rest of your life. You will die in the prison. You will never be able to leave. But your friend comes one day. He says, 'You don't have to stay here. I am going to take your punishment. I'm going to stay here forever. You can go free.' What will you do? Will you go and commit more crimes? Will your friend's sacrifice mean nothing to you? No. It means something. It's important. It's your friend. If you go out and break the law again, it's like spitting in your friend's face. His sacrifice means nothing then. You leave and you want to honor your friend with the rest of your life. Doing your best. Trying your hardest."

Brea

Our meeting started as usual. We got right to work. Or I did. This is our thing: I make some baked good. She videos me and asks questions. Then we wait. I make coffee. And we eat the baked good. Then it gets to the good stuff. We talk about God, Christianity, beliefs, philosophy, boys, life, friends, etc.

This Saturday wasn’t any different. Or at first glance, anyway. We, as in I, made the cheesecake and since I was out of coffee beans, she brought coffee for us. 

Then the conversation began. But let's back up. June 2014 she had told me she had made a decision to become a follower of Baha’i. I have to admit, I don’t know the ins and outs of Baha’i, but what I do know doesn’t make sense. Since June, I was under the impression that things were pretty set in stone and I wasn’t sure how much I was going to invest in her. But a recent discussion in my Bible class made her feel insecure about our friendship. A student had asked me what I thought about Baha’i. I made sure to preface what I said with, “This is just my opinion.” I went on to say how ridiculous it all seems. Baha’i says all beliefs lead to the same god. How can one, two or even three different beliefs being saying the same thing? A lot of belief are based on works; doing good things, being a good person. But Christianity’s base is in faith. It’s not what we do, but what Jesus has done for us. He’s sacrificed his perfect body, mind and soul for us. We deserve punishment and banishment from God, but he took that for us. We are therefore exempt. 

As we began to talk, she revealed she was still searching. She feels lost and frustrated. She doesn’t want to be in the middle. She wants to make a choice. But she wants to make the right choice.

Heaven and Hell.

Christianity is clear. Those who believe in Jesus and follow Him are going to be with Him forever in Heaven. Those who don’t are going to a Lake of Fire, aka. Hell.

Baha’i has a more fluid belief about eternity. There is no hell. The more developed your virtues (honesty, kindness, etc.) are the closer you are to God. The less developed your virtues are the further away from God you are. The more developed you are, the more complete your spiritual body will be. I posed the question, “So, there is no punishment for people?” Her response was, “Being far from God is a punishment. It’s like Hell.”
Me - “But people that don’t care about God and virtues, don’t care if they are close or far from God. So, there is or isn't a Hell?”
Brea - “It’s like Hell, but God is sad if the people are not close to him.”
Me - “But if the people don’t care, it doesn’t matter if they are close or far away from God.”
Brea - "But it will make God sad."
Me - "But they don't care if God is sad."

Virtues/Good Works vs. Faith in Jesus and what He has done

Of course we had to hit this topic. She insisted that developing kindness and honesty and other good character qualities was not self-centered. She said developing those virtues was actually focused on God. I told her it sounded like Baha’i was centered on self-development.

But Christianity was centered on what Jesus had done for people. His sacrifice compels people to show him honor, praise and please Him. But ultimately, what we do is “filthy rags” to Him.

She reiterated that the development of virtues is about God. I asked how.
Brea - “Because we want to become better people. So, then we can deserve God.”
Me - “See that is a huge difference in Christianity. We deserve death because of our sin. Baha’i doesn’t say anything about being enemies with God. It doesn’t say that people have disobeyed Him. We don't deserve to live. We deserve death. But God is gracious. He erases our sin, if we believe in Jesus’ sacrifice for us.”

Different messengers with one message from one god

Baha’i says that different “deities” or religious leaders (Muhammed, Jesus, Buddha, etc.) have the same message to share and are different messengers sent for one god. I started with the statement that all those different leaders had different messages. Muhammad said you had to follow the pillars of faith. Hinduism says try and try again until you reach the highest level of enlightenment. Jesus says I love you and I want to take your punishment for you so that you can live. None of those are the same message.

Brea - “But the essence is the same.”
Me - “What essence? They all have a message, but all their messages are different. They can’t all be real or true.”
Brea - “God is the essence of all those messengers.”
Me - “Then why does the message change? In Christianity, God is the same. God is constant. He is faithful. He is loyal. He doesn’t change. People do. He sent many messengers, prophets. They all said the same thing. The Bible is consistent. But different religions have different messages. That's why they aren’t the same.”

Bernie

Bernie.

Oh Bernie. He was in my English class last year. He's in my Bible class this Fall. I have to say, I was a little surprised to see him sitting there when I walked in. He always had things to say and challenging questions. He loved talking about politics, history, the Pope, religion, among other things. He just LOVED debating. He always had something to say. And when I challenged him back on his views, he would just smile and say, "Well, that is what you think. You are American. But Chinese do no think this."

So, Tuesday (Sept 2) was the first Bible class. We talked about some Bible history and basics. We practiced navigating through the Bible a little as well. I told them we would start in the beginning. So, page one, chapter one. They took about 15 minutes reading the Creation story. A former teacher/mentor of mine, has created a wonderful study of lessons for people seeking the Lord. And it kind of targets Asians. So, that's what I use in my class. We were walking through the first 3 days of creation; light, darkness, sky, water, land. I asked, "What did God create the first day?" Bernie shouted, "The sun!" I smiled and said, "The sun isn't created till day 4. Look. He created light and darkness. God is so powerful, He doesn't need the sun to create light." Bernie looked down at his Bible and was quiet a moment. He looked up and smiled, "Okay." Hahaha, it was just too funny. I think he'll be a great addition to the class and says and asks things others might be too shy to say or ask. And when his inquisitive attitude, he may conclude Christianity is not for him. But his curiosity could help others to believe. We will see where the story goes...

My Cousin Vinnie

Do you remember that movie? I don't remember much. But I remember the title. I think someone was on trial and he had a crazy cousin from the Bronx that was going to be his lawyer. Anyways...

This is my friend, Vinnie.

He is just a pleasure. I loved having him in my class and loved how active and inquisitive he was in the Bible class I taught. And last Spring, we studied further in the Bible with several other girls. This past Fall, the tradition continued and we all studied together again. However, this Spring, they had to get real and do an internship in order to graduate. So, in December 2013, we all had dinner together and said good-bye until graduation in July of 2014.

I prayed for him and the others off and on over the past months. But that was about it. Then I got a text.

Wait. A little back story: In Spring of 2012, he completed my Oral English course. At the end of the oral final, a small group discussion, he asked, "Did you give me a bad grade because I'm gay?"

I was a little shocked and stricken. But I smiled and replied, "Vinnie, you received a bad grade because you weren't a good student. I LOVED having you in class. When you came. But you rarely came and sometimes, you would play on your phone the whole time. Do you think coming to class half the time and playing on your phone deserves a good grade for an Oral English class?"

He laughed. "Okay, okay. I understand."

"Honestly, I never knew you were gay. I thought, maybe. But until you said something NOW, I assumed you weren't. It's rude to make assumptions based on appearance or actions that may not mean anything."

"Thank you, Nila. Wow. You have such principles."

Fast forward to June 2014: Our text conversation...

Vinnie:
my dear Lina, thank you for teaching me the Bible and I do enjoy the days when we talk about everything related to christianity .I leart a lot of things from you and I cherrish it very much. I am back home now ,because something terrible is  happening to me ！I beg that you can pray for me by the name of God and I do hope you can have a good life wherever you are！  from your lovely Vinnie！

Me:
Oh Vinnie!!! You are a dear dear DEAR friend. I will definitely pray for you! Thank you for asking! I'm sorry to hear your bad news. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do for you. And if you ever want to talk, I'm always ready to listen 

Vinnie:
maybe it is not the right time to tell you that and actully I dare not tell you . I got a terrible disease which will kill me gradually , but if i take pills everyday i can have a normal life as you have！ I know you are a nice girl who i can trust,so i want to share my secret with you and it will realax me a lot！ dont ask me what disease i am with now,i will tell you when necessary.what i want now is your praying and a normal life. i hope that i can see you again in the future！

Me:
Ok. I will still pray for you. And I will wait for you to tell me your secret when you are ready. I hope you know I will accept anything. I think you are a very good friend of mine 

Vinnie:
:-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) i need to have a rest.good night,my friend！

Glasses Twins

Every fall term I teach a class called The Bible and Christianity. This alone is very rare and special in China. I have never heard of any other person doing this. And I highly doubt I will ever. The students in that class are my old sophomores. When they are juniors they have the choice to take several electives. I’m always encouraged and excited to see 50+ students in my class that first day. Some take the class because they are truly interested, some just like me as a teacher.

Let me tell you a little about Ocean. He has one of the most gentle and kind souls. Even in English class, he was attentive, active and so insightful. So, I was excited to see him in class.

Throughout the fall semester, he was SUPER active and a GREAT participant. As we walked through creation, the first sin, the Law, the Messiah, Jesus and his parables, Ocean lit up each week. He asked wonderful questions and had thoughtful insights. And half the time when other students posed questions, he was quick to jump in and respond with accurate answers. He just GOT it. It was great.

From earlier posts, you may have read about some Kentucky friends that came to visit. While they were here, Ocean had some time to hang out with Ben and Tyler. I don’t know the details of what they talked about, but I did hear that both parties enjoyed talking with each other. The information I got from Tyler and Ben was that Ocean considers himself a believer or at the very least, very close to becoming one.

In the spring, I always offering to study further with students from the Bible class that desire to study more. Ocean was one of those students. We’ve been studying through James. And once again, he just GETS it. 

Continue to pray for him and his journey towards the One True God.

Isn’t he the cutest? We’re glasses twins. I couldn’t resist a photo.

Linda and her heavy burden...Part Two

If you haven't read my previous post, Part One, you should.

Ok, picture it. August 2013. Linda calls and asks about my upcoming Bible class!!! I'm so glad she remembered, or Father reminded her. I told her the time, place and date. She said she could come the first couple weeks because she doesn't have class. She teaches freshmen and they start later in the semester. I was excited and told her I would meet her and we could walk together.

The first couple weeks we cover Creation, the Fall, freedom, The Law, etc. Some good ol' good Old Testament stuff. She loved the Creation story. 

"God must be so creative and so powerful to do all those things. But I still can't understand how there is light, but there is no sun. He is also very organized."

When we talk about the Fall, I pose the "What is freedom?" question. And "Are rules necessary?" "Can you have rules and freedom?"

"This is such a good question. It really makes me think and I think it makes your students think too. I always thought freedom is doing what I want. But there must be rules. If there is no rules, things will go crazy. Maybe society can not be under control. And God gave the man and woman one rule. It's very easy, but they didn't follow. Before I knew the whole story, I thought God is so cruel. But I can understand more. We must follow rules. We should follow rules. Or there will be chaos."

After a couple weeks, she couldn't come to class anymore. We met a couple times outside of class and talked more about the Bible. I also gave her one to borrow. She said she had been reading it and loved all the stories. They were very interesting.

Around November 2013, she told me she didn't want to be separated from her husband anymore. She was really upset about this. But he was unwilling to move back after graduating in May 2014. He wanted her to go there. But she knew the difficulties of moving and how hard their life would be. He didn't have a promise of a job after graduation. She also wasn't sure if she was going to be able to find a job. Many Chinese people say, "The competition is fierce." There are SO many people with much of the same certificates and qualifications. You have to be exceptional in order to stand out and be hired. She wasn't confident that she would be noticed in such a massive city. All these worried about her marriage, finances, her in-laws, her son and job weighed heavy on her. But she was pretty sure, even if she didn't want to go, her husband wasn't going to budge. She would more than likely be moving in summer of 2014.

I told her I would be praying for her and her family. I would be really sad if she would to go, but I understand. If I was married, I would most DEFINITELY not live in a different city. I told her to keep reading the Bible I gave since it gives her peace. And that she is more than welcome to take it with her. Join me in praying for her.

Week 2

It's Week 2, here on the East Side. The semester doesn't really feel like it's in full swing, but I'm sure by next month, I'll be ready for a little break.

In my normal oral English classes, we are learning a couple of new vocab words and idioms. As well as having a discussion on questions students brought to class. So, far, these are some of the questions we've discussed:

What is your opinion on Syria?
Why do you prefer tattoos? (Just to clarify, I never said I PREFERRED tattoos. I have one, so I must prefer them, right?)
Are you for or against Cosplay? (I had to look that one up!)
Is it possible for you to marry and Chinese man and live in China forever?
What was your impression of Chinese before coming to America?
How do you deal with your meals on the weekend? Eat at a restaurant or cook at home?
What do you do when you face difficulties?
What kind of music do you like?
Do you like horror movies?
How many kids do you want to have? (They were shocked by my answer, 3 or 4.)

In the Bible class, we are discussing the creation of humankind. We also talked about human freedom, peace and love. When I asked "What is freedom?" This is what I got:

To be an individual
To have choose your own personality
To do what you want
To say what you want
To be able to NOT do something
Financial independence

When I asked, "Can you have rules and freedom?" There was a resounding YES. They thought there is no way to have a concept of freedom if there are no rules.

We also discussed how there is risk in love. You can give your love to another person, but there is a chance that they will reject that love and not return love to you. Rejection can be painful. They could easily understand this idea of freedom and rules and love and risk. When I related that to man and God, it was a little more difficult to accept.

Why would God give them a rule?
Why would God test man like that?

Overall, good discussion and good questions. What a good time.

It's like Christmas!

A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to hand out 50 Bible to my students. I teach 6 Oral English classes. But every once in a while, I get to teach a "Bible and Christanity" class. It took some convincing, but I finally got my supervisor to give me the okay to let students BORROW Bibles IF I could find some place to purchase them. He wasn't convinced I could find a place that had that many or that I had the funds to buy them. But the Lord always provides... So, some friends helped me ordered them online. The students were excited for their new books. And I prayed that unkind eyes would be sheilded from what I was doing. So, when I handed them out, it felt like Christmas to me. Giving them a great gift.

September 18th

To me, today is like any other day...But for my Asian World, it's a day to remember... I'm not politically savvy. I tend to avoid the topic with my students and nationals here. However, the unavoidable topic is all around. Japan and China have never gotten along. Or at least not fot the past +50 years. Many students have expressed their hatred of Japan. Most of the time, I let them vent and express their opinions freely. I encourage them to forgive Japan and move on. This hate in their hearts is only hurting them. I think some of them are truly hurt by Japan's actions. Others have simply taken on the opinions of those around them. And VERY few have moved on and ask others to do so as well. The video is full of photos of peaceful protesters, posters on buildings, school property and cars. My limited reading ability lets me know that China loves its homeland and doesn't seem to have a positive attitude towards Japan. Quotes from Students

"We show anger to express our love for our homeland."

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

"We should not beat someone if we are angry. But it is okay to talk badly about them. Japan can not here us. There are no Japanese here. We should not keep it in. We should let our anger out."

Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. Ephesians 4:25-27

"We would forgive, if they just apologize."

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. Matthew 18:21-22 If you, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you. I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. Psalm 130:3-5

Nana, the Turtle

I went to visit a friend in another city this past week. It was a lot of fun. She has a great big apartment. I was a little jealous. But that isn't what I want to write about. It was a really joyous time. I loved getting to hear about her heart and share my own with her. It was really great to hear about the lessons she's learned here and what she hopes to take back with her. I felt like we talked about EVERYTHING. Like every possible topic. And even though I'm an introvert, I process externally. She just inspired me and refreshed me. I felt so encouraged through our time together. We found out we both had done the same summer program. And I think she went to school with the brother of another friend here. We talked about boys, decisions and guidance about the future, doubts and new found trust, friends, family, going home, language study, teaching, people we meet with, peace, praises, culture things, and crazy Asian things. Things we love and things not at the top of the love list. I think it's really rare that you meet a person and connect so quickly with them. It will be really fun/great to see her again in May. She also introduced me to some local noodles which were out of this world. SO GOOD. We also stopped by her favorite coffee shop. I loved it. It was fun to be shown her city by her. I'm kind of a mug collector and she helped me find one. It was just a really good time. Around 5 it was time for me to head home. It was refreshing and fun to travel alone on the way home. Some people might be leary of it. But I kind of like it. And I just feel proud and comfortable that I knew exactly where I was going and how to get there. The video has photos of her apartment, mine, noodles, the coffee shop, a local toilet (just in case you've never seen one), the bus, and a prank that was pulled on me. My national friends have always tried to punk me and others before. But they don't really know how. One idea they had come up with was putting a bag over someone's head. I think they just didn't know what to do, or where to draw the line. I think they had a little help this time. I got home around 1030. My apartment was kind of a mess. So, I cleaned stuff up and unpacked. Then I was getting ready for bed and noticed a note and a funny bag with pellets. I skimmed the note and then held my breath. I thought they had put something terrible in my bed. I throw back the blankets and...nothing. I read the note again. "...share the bathroom." Oh no!!! I go to the bathroom and expect a fish in my toilet. Nope. A turtle in my shower. Hahahahaha! I couldn't believe it. I thought it was dead at first. But it was very much alive. So, I called my crazy friends and congratulated them on punking me. All in all, this past holiday break was good.

Our Depravity

The other day, I was trying to read my Bible. I was really sleepy, but knew I had no other time in my day to do it, so I really tried to buckle down. However, right outside my window (or so it would seem) there was a little girl screaming her head off. I'm not even kidding. There were moments of silence when she would take a deep breath and then wail her little heart and lungs out. My lack of rest contributed significantly to the fact that this was annoying the heck out of me. I took several deep breaths and prayed. For peace. For quiet. It came.

FAST FORWARD ABOUT A WEEK:

This time I wasn't reading my Bible, but looking over material for a study. A girl about 5 years old was screaming, "Grandma!" at the top of her little lungs. Over and over and over she shouted. Crying for help. As I looked out my bedroom window, I saw the little girl with her purple back pack running back and forth, back and forth, back and forth across the small patch of grass. Searching. Straining her eyes for something to tell her someone was coming for her. This time I wasn't annoyed. I felt sad and sorry for the little girl. I was upset that the grandmother wasn't anywhere in sight. She was so fearful.



I couldn't help but think about my relationship with God. Is that what I am? I feel like a child often with Him. Without experience, without knowlegde, without patience, without wisdom, without courage. Is that what I do...? Scream. Yell. Search for help. Panic when I think I'm alone.

Stay Tuned for Part II

24 hours of Joshua

Recently, I wanted to do something a little wacky. I got this idea. There are 24 chapters in the book of Joshua. There are 24 hours in a day. The reason I looked at Joshua is because I'm about to finish the book of Deuteronomy. Anyways, I decided that I would read a chapter each hour for 24 hours, starting at midnight on February 18th. Now, you might be thinking, "But she has to stay up 24 hours?" Which at first, I didn't mind or think it was a big deal to sacrifice a night of sleep.

However, at 5 am I was reading and not retaining anything or understand it. So, from 530 am to 10 am I slept. From 11 am to 2 pm I caught up on the missing chapters. So, at every hour I read a chapter.

Some things I learned/remind of:

Family is important.
Love and duty go hand-in-hand.
Obedience is a command.
Sin is always brought to the light.
Sin does not only have consequences for the sinner, but for the people around them.
Consulting/Inquiring of the Lord is essential.
The Lord provides rest.
The Lord's promises are always fulfilled.
The Lord is true to what He says; whether it's promising rewards or punishment/consequences.
Every person has a choice to make; to follow or not follow.

Dawn

I may have told you all before about my tutor Dawn. I met her this summer and she's a pretty great girl. She's funny. She's spunky. And she wants to teach a foreigner English. Well, that's how it all started, kind of.

This summer, Brandi (one of my greatest and dearest friends) and I talked to her about Jesus and his importance. She seemed much more eager to learn than her friend, Michelle. But ever since we started tutoring, she shyed away from the subject. I was a little discouraged, but I continued to pray for her and ask every time if she had read anything new in her Bible. Each time she said no.

Flash forward to last week: She came over and I noticed she brought her Bible. We usually study language for 2 hours. Half way through, she says, "I want to learn about this." And holds out her Bible. What a blessing!!! I was so excited. I asked a couple questions to see what she remembered from this summer and she remembered pretty much everything. Then I told her the Creation story and the Fall of Man. She listened intently. We talked about souls, death and sin.

I also had a weird moment. I realized people here don't really believe in an absolute Truth. Truth to them can be relative. She doesn't believe she has a soul, but I do. And we are both right. We both believe two, opposing thoughts, but both are true, or so that is people here believe.

Even though I didn't push to tell her, I didn't think that was possible, I gave her an assignment. She is supposed to read 5 chapters before we meet next. I think she will really do it. I'm excited to meet with her soon!

Video

Teaching... from michelle on Vimeo.

This is a little video about baking with my English classes and interviews with my students in my Bible class. Enjoy!