It's really amazing how God orchestrates events to happen in the perfect order. Before I get started, let me give you a quick rundown of town orders that we've been to while in China. I'm going to give each town a number, with the exception of Hong Kong, to keep anonymity for the sake of people we've met along the way. HK, 1 Lang Zhou, 2 Xiahe, 3 Laqu, 4 Lang Musi, 5 Maqu, 6 Luqu, 7 Xiahe, 8 Lang Zhou, 9 Beijing, 10 HK. #3 & #6 are the same town. as are #2 & #7, #1 & #8. And, obviously both HK's are Hong Kong.
Okay, our first experience with 3/6 was very different than our second experience. When we first got to Luqu, we didn't know what to expect. The moment we stepped off of the bus, a crowd of Chinese men came up and took us to two different hotels. Neither of them allowed foreigners (We have found that very few hotels/motels/hostels accept foreigners in some of the smaller cities because the taxes/fees are really high and often not worth it to them). A few games of charades later we found ourselves in a van for 2 hours on our way to a city a few towns over.
We spent a total of 20 minutes in #3 between getting off the bus and leaving in a van to another city. It's crazy how God works things out for his glory and oftentimes for our mutual benefit. After we left town #5, we stopped again in #3 and this time was a completely different experience.
We had been praying for a while for our experience to be different, because it seemed like such a beautiful place. The minute we stepped off the bus, God answered us. Right outside our bus was a college student, we'll call him Wilson, from another city who spoke english. He was able to take us to his hotel, and through a series of events, we found a place that allowed us to stay there that was not Wilson's hotel.
That night, we went out to dinner and we were able to spend time with WIlson, learn about him and then share the gospel with Him. Only God knows what kind of impact it had on him, but I'm praying great things over him, and proclaiming that the grace & blood of Jesus would come to cover him.
Another blessing mutual blessing came in town 2/7. One of our teams was in this town the whole month and it's through them that I met Rachel. Rachel is a missionary from the states in town 7. She is only there for a few months. Rachel and I have many similarities, from where we grew up to living in Denver the last few years. I knew her for a total of less than 12 hours. Over the course of the day, she learned that we were going to the Great Wall of China and asked if everyone was going. Bea informed her that I was not going to go because I didn't have money. Rachel then gave me money to go see it.
Can i just tell you how much of a blessing that was?! At that point I was okay with not going and then out of no where, not because of anything I said or did, God allowed her to give me money to go which was in turn a blessing to be able to spend time and bond with my squad. It was such a beautiful picture of God's provision!
. In the Philippines, I acquired a new pair of sandals and a fleece. The sandals have been great as it's so nice not to have to wear tennis shoes the whole trip, especially since I mispalced my flip-flops before we left the Philippines. And the fleece is the only way I survived the cold weather in China, especially when paired with my rain jacket. Also, Marian has graciously allowed me to use her camera while we're on a team. It's been amazing, God's provision has been very evident to me on this race
It's really amazing how God orchestrates events to happen in the perfect order. Before I get started, let me give you a quick rundown of town orders that we've been to while in China. I'm going to give each town a number, with the exception of Hong Kong, to keep anonymity for the sake of people we've met along the way. HK, 1 Lang Zhou, 2 Xiahe, 3 Laqu, 4 Lang Musi, 5 Maqu, 6 Luqu, 7 Xiahe, 8 Lang Zhou, 9 Beijing, 10 HK. #3 & #6 are the same town. as are #2 & #7, #1 & #8. And, obviously both HK's are Hong Kong.
Okay, our first experience with 3/6 was very different than our second experience. When we first got to Luqu, we didn't know what to expect. The moment we stepped off of the bus, a crowd of Chinese men came up and took us to two different hotels. Neither of them allowed foreigners (We have found that very few hotels/motels/hostels accept foreigners in some of the smaller cities because the taxes/fees are really high and often not worth it to them). A few games of charades later we found ourselves in a van for 2 hours on our way to a city a few towns over.
We spent a total of 20 minutes in #3 between getting off the bus and leaving in a van to another city. It's crazy how God works things out for his glory and oftentimes for our mutual benefit. After we left town #5, we stopped again in #3 and this time was a completely different experience.
We had been praying for a while for our experience to be different, because it seemed like such a beautiful place. The minute we stepped off the bus, God answered us. Right outside our bus was a college student, we'll call him Wilson, from another city who spoke english. He was able to take us to his hotel, and through a series of events, we found a place that allowed us to stay there that was not Wilson's hotel.
That night, we went out to dinner and we were able to spend time with WIlson, learn about him and then share the gospel with Him. Only God knows what kind of impact it had on him, but I'm praying great things over him, and proclaiming that the grace & blood of Jesus would come to cover him.
Another blessing mutual blessing came in town 2/7. One of our teams was in this town the whole month and it's through them that I met Rachel. Rachel is a missionary from the states in town 7. She is only there for a few months. Rachel and I have many similarities, from where we grew up to living in Denver the last few years. I knew her for a total of less than 12 hours. Over the course of the day, she learned that we were going to the Great Wall of China and asked if everyone was going. Bea informed her that I was not going to go because I didn't have money. Rachel then gave me money to go see it.
Can i just tell you how much of a blessing that was?! At that point I was okay with not going and then out of no where, not because of anything I said or did, God allowed her to give me money to go which was in turn a blessing to be able to spend time and bond with my squad. It was such a beautiful picture of God's provision!
. In the Philippines, I acquired a new pair of sandals and a fleece. The sandals have been great as it's so nice not to have to wear tennis shoes the whole trip, especially since I mispalced my flip-flops before we left the Philippines. And the fleece is the only way I survived the cold weather in China, especially when paired with my rain jacket. Also, Marian has graciously allowed me to use her camera while we're on a team. It's been amazing, God's provision has been very evident to me on this race
It's really amazing how God orchestrates events to happen in the perfect order. Before I get started, let me give you a quick rundown of town orders that we've been to while in China. I'm going to give each town a number, with the exception of Hong Kong, to keep anonymity for the sake of people we've met along the way. HK, 1 Lang Zhou, 2 Xiahe, 3 Laqu, 4 Lang Musi, 5 Maqu, 6 Luqu, 7 Xiahe, 8 Lang Zhou, 9 Beijing, 10 HK. #3 & #6 are the same town. as are #2 & #7, #1 & #8. And, obviously both HK's are Hong Kong.
Okay, our first experience with 3/6 was very different than our second experience. When we first got to Luqu, we didn't know what to expect. The moment we stepped off of the bus, a crowd of Chinese men came up and took us to two different hotels. Neither of them allowed foreigners (We have found that very few hotels/motels/hostels accept foreigners in some of the smaller cities because the taxes/fees are really high and often not worth it to them). A few games of charades later we found ourselves in a van for 2 hours on our way to a city a few towns over.
We spent a total of 20 minutes in #3 between getting off the bus and leaving in a van to another city. It's crazy how God works things out for his glory and oftentimes for our mutual benefit. After we left town #5, we stopped again in #3 and this time was a completely different experience.
We had been praying for a while for our experience to be different, because it seemed like such a beautiful place. The minute we stepped off the bus, God answered us. Right outside our bus was a college student, we'll call him Wilson, from another city who spoke english. He was able to take us to his hotel, and through a series of events, we found a place that allowed us to stay there that was not Wilson's hotel.
That night, we went out to dinner and we were able to spend time with WIlson, learn about him and then share the gospel with Him. Only God knows what kind of impact it had on him, but I'm praying great things over him, and proclaiming that the grace & blood of Jesus would come to cover him.
Another blessing mutual blessing came in town 2/7. One of our teams was in this town the whole month and it's through them that I met Rachel. Rachel is a missionary from the states in town 7. She is only there for a few months. Rachel and I have many similarities, from where we grew up to living in Denver the last few years. I knew her for a total of less than 12 hours. Over the course of the day, she learned that we were going to the Great Wall of China and asked if everyone was going. Bea informed her that I was not going to go because I didn't have money. Rachel then gave me money to go see it.
Can i just tell you how much of a blessing that was?! At that point I was okay with not going and then out of no where, not because of anything I said or did, God allowed her to give me money to go which was in turn a blessing to be able to spend time and bond with my squad. It was such a beautiful picture of God's provision!
In the Philippines, I acquired a new pair of sandals and a fleece. The sandals have been great as it's so nice not to have to wear tennis shoes the whole trip, especially since I mispalced my flip-flops before we left the Philippines. And the fleece is the only way I survived the cold weather in China, especially when paired with my rain jacket. Also, Marian has graciously allowed me to use her camera while we're on a team. It's been amazing, God's provision has been very evident to me on this race and I am so thankful for it!
