That’s All Folks

I apologize for the lack of posts lately. Over the last few weeks it seems there has been no end to the last minute things that needed doing, amongst other distractions, as I prepared to leave China. Now I’m just a few short hours from starting my journey home, and I’m not even sure I’ve allowed myself the time to reflect on what my time here has been for me. In any case, I’ll cover a few things as quickly as possible to get you up to speed:

 

I was without a passport until this past Monday, and had no valid visa for a total of 28 days. I received my visa to allow me to stay my final month yesterday
morning. I leave the country this afternoon. This is how my life works. Despite it being out of my control that my visa expired while not in possession of my passport, they still kept saying they would charge me the $3000 in overstay fees. I was praying the whole time I waited in line to pick up the visa – especially after they handed me a bill that read 16000 RMB (about $3000) and told me to go downstairs to pay it. The cashier lady only asked for 160 RMB (about $30) – they had forgotten the decimal and given me a heart attack. I was thanking God all the way home.

 

2. Paul

I may not have mentioned his name before, but Paul is the boy at the boys home who was applying to that special school that would better meet his needs. Unfortunately, Paul is missing some important paperwork, something similar to a birth certificate, so they could not approve his application. An attempt was made some years ago to find this same paperwork in Paul’s home province,  but it was never located. The heads of the boy’s home are trying again to track this down, so keep this in your prayers.

 

I never got around to telling the story of a student at my school that has been a focus for me for the last several months, so here’s a nutshell version. I’ll call him Stan for now. Stan is an extremely intelligent 11 year old that doesn’t believe in God (even though he’s at a Christian school), which I didn’t know about him until I asked him something from a workbook one day (I don’t remember what), and a few hours later we were still discussing some of the most advanced theology problems I can think of. This is an 11 year old with English as his second language asking questions that they base college level courses on, and rather effectively following and debating the arguments all the way through. I loved it. It was one of the most challenging and interesting conversations I’ve had in recent memory. At the end, Stan decided that he needed to know more about who God was before he would commit to following Him, and since then I’ve been sharing scriptures with Stan on a regular basis and hearing him out as he wrestles through the implications of each passage. Fluff answers just don’t cut it for him, so we’ve had some great talks (again, he’s only 11!). I see him becoming a great apologetic and a strong Christian leader one day, so be praying that God would be very real to him and that he would come to recognize the need for a step of faith.

 4. Philippines

Christie Albaugh, of team Seven:Eleven fame, moved herself to the Philippines not too long ago to carry on ministering with Kid’s International Ministries who hosted us while in Manila last year. I couldn’t pass up a chance to spend some time with her, so I found a cheap flight and will be spending the next 4 days in Manila with her before flying home to Vancouver on Wednesday.

 

5. World Race Wedding

When a World Racer gets married, as many people as can afford to come from our various corners of the earth make our pilgrimages across nations and oceans, as much to see one another as to see the bride and groom usher in a new season of life. It’s always over too soon, but it’s also a weekend of the best fellowship you can find. Next weekend Jenn Fancy, my fellow Canadian racer, is getting married in Vancouver so everyone is coming to my backyard this time. It’s going to feel like one big homecoming extraveganza for my first week home, and I’m really looking forward to it.

 

A million things happened this week unexpectedly, and so instead of reflecting and properly saying goodbye to friends here, it’s just been a rush from one thing to the next. I think a few important people don’t even know I’ll be gone today. There’s a number of people I only just connected with after working beside them for months, and with the churches here I feel like I just started to get a vision for what’s going on and what to do about it, how to strengthen each of them. So I feel like I’ve started things and walked away mid stride, which is normal for me if I’ve found or raised up someone God has chosen to carry on the work. But that hasn’t happened here. It will take some time and talking it out with people to figure out exactly what I’ve just gone through, and maybe some of the whys.

 

In any case, while there will be more stories and thoughts on China to come that I didn’t get the chance to tell or write yet, as far as blogs straight from the orient go this is the last of them. Goodnight, and good luck.