We received this gift in the mail yesterday. Aunt Grace, I'm glad you had a chance to go shopping while in New Zealand. And I'm even more thankful that my dad was healed, otherwise this NZ dishtowel could be an unpleasant reminder :) I am thankful that God saved my dad's life. Sometimes I forget it even happened. Appa, you better live life well. Tell your wife, kids, and grandkid you love them.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Thanks Aunt Grace!
We received this gift in the mail yesterday. Aunt Grace, I'm glad you had a chance to go shopping while in New Zealand. And I'm even more thankful that my dad was healed, otherwise this NZ dishtowel could be an unpleasant reminder :) I am thankful that God saved my dad's life. Sometimes I forget it even happened. Appa, you better live life well. Tell your wife, kids, and grandkid you love them.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Tony Snow's Testimony
This is an outstanding testimony from Tony Snow, President Bush's Press Secretary, and his fight with cancer. Commentator and broadcaster Tony Snow announced that he had colon cancer in 2005. Following surgery and chemo-therapy, Snow joined the Bush Administration in April 2006 as press secretary. Unfortunately, on March 23, 2007 , Snow, 51, a husband and father of three, announced the cancer had recurred, with tumors found in his abdomen,- leading to surgery in April, followed by more chemotherapy. Snow went back to work in the White House Briefing Room on May 30, but has resigned since, "for economic reasons," and to pursue " other interests."
"Blessings arrive in unexpected packages, - in my case, cancer. Those of us with potentially fatal diseases - and there are millions in America today - find ourselves in the odd position of coping with our mortality while trying to fathom God's will. Although it would be the height of presumption to declare with confidence "What It All Means," Scripture provides powerful hints and consolations.
The first is that we shouldn't spend too much time trying to answer the "why" questions: Why me? Why must people suffer? Why can't someone else get sick? We can't answer such things, and the questions themselves often are designed more to express our anguish than to solicit an answer.
I don't know why I have cancer, and I don't much care. It is what it is, a plain and indisputable fact. Yet even while staring into a mirror darkly, great and stunning truths begin to take shape. Our maladies define a central feature of our existence: We are fallen. We are imperfect. Our bodies give out.
But despite this, - or because of it, - God offers the possibility of salvation and grace. We don't know how the narrative of our lives will end, but we get to choose how to use the interval between now and the moment we meet our Creator face-to-face.
Second, we need to get past the anxiety. The mere thought of dying can send adrenaline flooding through your system. A dizzy, unfocused panic seizes you. Your heart thumps; your head swims. You think of nothingness and swoon. You fear partings; you worry about the impact on family and friends. You fidget and get nowhere.
To regain footing, remember that we were born not into death, but into life,- and that the journey continues after we have finished our days on this earth. We accept this on faith, but that faith is nourished by a conviction that stirs even within many non believing hearts - an intuition that the gift of life, once given, cannot be taken away. Those who have been stricken enjoy the special privilege of being able to fight with their might, main, and faith to live fully, richly, exuberantly - no matter how their days may be numbered.
Third, we can open our eyes and hearts. God relishes surprise. We want lives of simple, predictable ease,- smooth, even trails as far as the eye can see, - but God likes to go off-road. He provokes us with twists and turns. He places us in predicaments that seem to defy our endurance; and comprehension - and yet don't. By His love and grace, we persevere. The challenges that make our hearts leap and stomachs churn invariably strengthen our faith and grant measures of wisdom and joy we would not experience otherwise.
'You Have Been Called'. Picture yourself in a hospital bed. The fog of anesthesia has begun to wear away. A doctor stands at your feet, a loved one holds your hand at the side. "It's cancer," the healer announces.
The natural reaction is to turn to God and ask him to serve as a cosmic Santa. "Dear God, make it all go away. Make everything simpler." But another voice whispers: "You have been called." Your quandary has drawn you closer to God, closer to those you love, closer to the issues that matter,- and has dragged into insignificance the banal concerns that occupy our "normal time."
There's another kind of response, although usually short-lived an inexplicable shudder of excitement, as if a clarifying moment of calamity has swept away everything trivial and tiny, and placed before us the challenge of important questions.
The moment you enter the Valley of the Shadow of Death, things change. You discover that Christianity is not something doughy, passive, pious, and soft. Faith may be the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. But it also draws you into a world shorn of fearful caution. The life of belief teems with thrills, boldness, danger, shocks, reversals, triumphs, and epiphanies. Think of Paul, traipsing through the known world and contemplating trips to what must have seemed the antipodes ( Spain ), shaking the dust from his sandals, worrying not about the morrow, but only about the moment.
There's nothing wilder than a life of humble virtue, - for it is through selflessness and service that God wrings from our bodies and spirits the most we ever could give, the most we ever could offer, and the most we ever could do.
Finally, we can let love change everything. When Jesus was faced with the prospect of crucifixion, he grieved not for himself, but for us. He cried for Jerusalem before entering the holy city. From the Cross, he took on the cumulative burden of human sin and weakness, and begged for forgiveness on our behalf.
We get repeated chances to learn that life is not about us, that we acquire purpose and satisfaction by sharing in God's love for others. Sickness gets us part way there. It reminds us of our limitations and dependence. But it also gives us a chance to serve the healthy. A minister friend of mine observes that people suffering grave afflictions often acquire the faith of two people, while loved ones accept the burden of two peoples' worries and fears.
'Learning How to Live'. Most of us have watched friends as they drifted toward God's arms, not with resignation, but with peace and hope. In so doing, they have taught us not how to die, but how to live. They have emulated Christ by transmitting the power and authority of love.
I sat by my best friend's bedside a few years ago as a wasting cancer took him away. He kept at his table a worn Bible and a 1928 edition of the Book of Common Prayer. A shattering grief disabled his family, many of his old friends, and at least one priest. Here was an humble and very good guy, someone who apologized when he winced with pain because he thought it made his guest uncomfortable. He retained his equanimity and good humor literally until his last conscious moment. "I'm going to try to beat [this cancer]," he told me several months before he died. "But if I don't, I'll see you on the other side."
His gift was to remind everyone around him that even though God doesn't promise us tomorrow, he does promise us eternity, - filled with life and love we cannot comprehend, - and that one can in the throes of sickness point the rest of us toward timeless truths that will help us weather future storms.
Through such trials, God bids us to choose: Do we believe, or do we not? Will we be bold enough to love, daring enough to serve, humble enough to submit, and strong enough to acknowledge our limitations? Can we surrender our concern in things that don't matter so that we might devote our remaining days to things that do?
When our faith flags, he throws reminders in our way. Think of the prayer warriors in our midst. They change things, and those of us who have been on the receiving end of their petitions and intercessions know it. It is hard to describe, but there are times when suddenly the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, and you feel a surge of the Spirit. Somehow you just know: Others have chosen, when talking to the Author of all creation, to lift us up, - to speak of us!
This is love of a very special order. But so is the ability to sit back and appreciate the wonder of every created thing. The mere thought of death somehow makes every blessing vivid, every happiness more luminous and intense. We may not know how our contest with sickness will end, but we have felt the ineluctable touch of God.
What is man that Thou art mindful of him? We don't know much, but we know this: No matter where we are, no matter what we do, no matter how bleak or frightening our prospects, each and every one of us who believe, each and every day, lies in the same safe and impregnable place, in the hollow of God's hand." T. Snow
"Blessings arrive in unexpected packages, - in my case, cancer. Those of us with potentially fatal diseases - and there are millions in America today - find ourselves in the odd position of coping with our mortality while trying to fathom God's will. Although it would be the height of presumption to declare with confidence "What It All Means," Scripture provides powerful hints and consolations.
The first is that we shouldn't spend too much time trying to answer the "why" questions: Why me? Why must people suffer? Why can't someone else get sick? We can't answer such things, and the questions themselves often are designed more to express our anguish than to solicit an answer.
I don't know why I have cancer, and I don't much care. It is what it is, a plain and indisputable fact. Yet even while staring into a mirror darkly, great and stunning truths begin to take shape. Our maladies define a central feature of our existence: We are fallen. We are imperfect. Our bodies give out.
But despite this, - or because of it, - God offers the possibility of salvation and grace. We don't know how the narrative of our lives will end, but we get to choose how to use the interval between now and the moment we meet our Creator face-to-face.
Second, we need to get past the anxiety. The mere thought of dying can send adrenaline flooding through your system. A dizzy, unfocused panic seizes you. Your heart thumps; your head swims. You think of nothingness and swoon. You fear partings; you worry about the impact on family and friends. You fidget and get nowhere.
To regain footing, remember that we were born not into death, but into life,- and that the journey continues after we have finished our days on this earth. We accept this on faith, but that faith is nourished by a conviction that stirs even within many non believing hearts - an intuition that the gift of life, once given, cannot be taken away. Those who have been stricken enjoy the special privilege of being able to fight with their might, main, and faith to live fully, richly, exuberantly - no matter how their days may be numbered.
Third, we can open our eyes and hearts. God relishes surprise. We want lives of simple, predictable ease,- smooth, even trails as far as the eye can see, - but God likes to go off-road. He provokes us with twists and turns. He places us in predicaments that seem to defy our endurance; and comprehension - and yet don't. By His love and grace, we persevere. The challenges that make our hearts leap and stomachs churn invariably strengthen our faith and grant measures of wisdom and joy we would not experience otherwise.
'You Have Been Called'. Picture yourself in a hospital bed. The fog of anesthesia has begun to wear away. A doctor stands at your feet, a loved one holds your hand at the side. "It's cancer," the healer announces.
The natural reaction is to turn to God and ask him to serve as a cosmic Santa. "Dear God, make it all go away. Make everything simpler." But another voice whispers: "You have been called." Your quandary has drawn you closer to God, closer to those you love, closer to the issues that matter,- and has dragged into insignificance the banal concerns that occupy our "normal time."
There's another kind of response, although usually short-lived an inexplicable shudder of excitement, as if a clarifying moment of calamity has swept away everything trivial and tiny, and placed before us the challenge of important questions.
The moment you enter the Valley of the Shadow of Death, things change. You discover that Christianity is not something doughy, passive, pious, and soft. Faith may be the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. But it also draws you into a world shorn of fearful caution. The life of belief teems with thrills, boldness, danger, shocks, reversals, triumphs, and epiphanies. Think of Paul, traipsing through the known world and contemplating trips to what must have seemed the antipodes ( Spain ), shaking the dust from his sandals, worrying not about the morrow, but only about the moment.
There's nothing wilder than a life of humble virtue, - for it is through selflessness and service that God wrings from our bodies and spirits the most we ever could give, the most we ever could offer, and the most we ever could do.
Finally, we can let love change everything. When Jesus was faced with the prospect of crucifixion, he grieved not for himself, but for us. He cried for Jerusalem before entering the holy city. From the Cross, he took on the cumulative burden of human sin and weakness, and begged for forgiveness on our behalf.
We get repeated chances to learn that life is not about us, that we acquire purpose and satisfaction by sharing in God's love for others. Sickness gets us part way there. It reminds us of our limitations and dependence. But it also gives us a chance to serve the healthy. A minister friend of mine observes that people suffering grave afflictions often acquire the faith of two people, while loved ones accept the burden of two peoples' worries and fears.
'Learning How to Live'. Most of us have watched friends as they drifted toward God's arms, not with resignation, but with peace and hope. In so doing, they have taught us not how to die, but how to live. They have emulated Christ by transmitting the power and authority of love.
I sat by my best friend's bedside a few years ago as a wasting cancer took him away. He kept at his table a worn Bible and a 1928 edition of the Book of Common Prayer. A shattering grief disabled his family, many of his old friends, and at least one priest. Here was an humble and very good guy, someone who apologized when he winced with pain because he thought it made his guest uncomfortable. He retained his equanimity and good humor literally until his last conscious moment. "I'm going to try to beat [this cancer]," he told me several months before he died. "But if I don't, I'll see you on the other side."
His gift was to remind everyone around him that even though God doesn't promise us tomorrow, he does promise us eternity, - filled with life and love we cannot comprehend, - and that one can in the throes of sickness point the rest of us toward timeless truths that will help us weather future storms.
Through such trials, God bids us to choose: Do we believe, or do we not? Will we be bold enough to love, daring enough to serve, humble enough to submit, and strong enough to acknowledge our limitations? Can we surrender our concern in things that don't matter so that we might devote our remaining days to things that do?
When our faith flags, he throws reminders in our way. Think of the prayer warriors in our midst. They change things, and those of us who have been on the receiving end of their petitions and intercessions know it. It is hard to describe, but there are times when suddenly the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, and you feel a surge of the Spirit. Somehow you just know: Others have chosen, when talking to the Author of all creation, to lift us up, - to speak of us!
This is love of a very special order. But so is the ability to sit back and appreciate the wonder of every created thing. The mere thought of death somehow makes every blessing vivid, every happiness more luminous and intense. We may not know how our contest with sickness will end, but we have felt the ineluctable touch of God.
What is man that Thou art mindful of him? We don't know much, but we know this: No matter where we are, no matter what we do, no matter how bleak or frightening our prospects, each and every one of us who believe, each and every day, lies in the same safe and impregnable place, in the hollow of God's hand." T. Snow
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Enter his gates with thanksgiving
"I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds. Psalm 77:11-12"
On this Thanksgiving morning, I thank the Lord, remembering how he saved our brother's life and restored him, also remembering the kindness of God's people in Christchurch, New Zealand.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Encouraging Testimonies
Dear family:
Way back in August, I had meant to share God's blessings to us, but I didn't get to. But I guess, now in this Thanksgiving season, it is appropriate to recount God's blessings especially in the month of August.
August has been such a full month for me. Two other churches and our church was working together to hold a combined VBS. What a delight it has been to meet two other Sunday Shcool teachers - such outstanding women from whom I have been learning so much. On the first Saturday in August, we had a 5-hour VBS training workshop. We wondered about how many youth volunteers we could have since we come from small churches. When we had our VBS on the 13th and the 14th, we had about 15 youth helpers. That may not seem much to you from big churches. But for us, that was huge, and we praised the Lord.
The first week of August week, of course, was the sisters' reunion. I don't know when I had such fun and laughter as I did with the sisters. We laughed, we joked, we shared, we took pictures and on and on. I am so thankful to God for my sisters. I really appreciate that 1) they have such a bright outlook on life - always smiling, always laughing, always looking at the world in a positive way. 2) they are creative problem-solvers. If they can't do something they had planned, they think of other things to do. 3) They are resourceful stewards of what God had given us. My family was surprised to learn that when we stayed from Monday to Thursday in Indiana, we went out to eat only once. Leave it to my resourceful sisters to figure out how to feed us and still save money!
By the way, my sister-in-law, who has a print shop is doing Halabuji and halmoni's biography. I was reading what she had typed so far and I was so moved by the tributes that my siblings had written - they could write books on their own! We should be praying for the LORD to see this biography to completion and that all who read it will be blessed and inspired.
Psalm 37:23 reads "The steps of the godly are directed by the LORD. He delights in every detail of their lives." During the sisters' reunion, aunt Grace had mentioned how flaxseed is so good for you, and I had wanted to get some, but totally forgot about it. Then, few weeks later, I was at a luncheon to encourage a fellow sister in the Lord who was having some health issues. At the luncheon, another sister in the Lord brought a bag of roasted flaxseed to give to the lady with the health issues. Not only that, but this sister brought an empty bag of flaxseed to explain what it was and how you can roast it and so forth. I was thinking, "Isn't the LORD such a God of deatils to remember how I had wanted to get flaxseed, and had forgotten, and then the Lord brought this lady to show me the empty package!
At the gathering, the hostess also shared some encouraging testimony. Her husband had been laid off suddenly about several months ago. Also, around that time, his Dad had passed away. And, as they were remodeling their home, the builder decided to sue them. Needless to say, they felt pressure from all sides. Yet this lady, Jodi, shared, that the time her husband was laid off was so good for them as a couple. Since their marriage, he had always been traveling as a salesman. But for the first time, they were able to be together - they had Bible study, they shared, spent time together. Jodi says that her husband now is on fire for the Lord.
Also, when her husband was laid off, Jodi thought that they should stop tithing, but her husband said, "No, we should continue." so they still tithed. And recently, her husband got a new job, that pays twice as much as the previous job, and her mother-in -aw, sent a check in the mail. This mother-in-law is so stingy she never gives, and yet she sent a check for the fmaily to spend. It was the same amount as the amount of the tithes that they had given to the Lord since the lay-off.
What an amzing and and awesome God we serve! And how faithful he is!
I just wanted to share these because it encouraged my heart so much.
Love in Christ,
Hae Kyung
Way back in August, I had meant to share God's blessings to us, but I didn't get to. But I guess, now in this Thanksgiving season, it is appropriate to recount God's blessings especially in the month of August.
August has been such a full month for me. Two other churches and our church was working together to hold a combined VBS. What a delight it has been to meet two other Sunday Shcool teachers - such outstanding women from whom I have been learning so much. On the first Saturday in August, we had a 5-hour VBS training workshop. We wondered about how many youth volunteers we could have since we come from small churches. When we had our VBS on the 13th and the 14th, we had about 15 youth helpers. That may not seem much to you from big churches. But for us, that was huge, and we praised the Lord.
The first week of August week, of course, was the sisters' reunion. I don't know when I had such fun and laughter as I did with the sisters. We laughed, we joked, we shared, we took pictures and on and on. I am so thankful to God for my sisters. I really appreciate that 1) they have such a bright outlook on life - always smiling, always laughing, always looking at the world in a positive way. 2) they are creative problem-solvers. If they can't do something they had planned, they think of other things to do. 3) They are resourceful stewards of what God had given us. My family was surprised to learn that when we stayed from Monday to Thursday in Indiana, we went out to eat only once. Leave it to my resourceful sisters to figure out how to feed us and still save money!
By the way, my sister-in-law, who has a print shop is doing Halabuji and halmoni's biography. I was reading what she had typed so far and I was so moved by the tributes that my siblings had written - they could write books on their own! We should be praying for the LORD to see this biography to completion and that all who read it will be blessed and inspired.
Psalm 37:23 reads "The steps of the godly are directed by the LORD. He delights in every detail of their lives." During the sisters' reunion, aunt Grace had mentioned how flaxseed is so good for you, and I had wanted to get some, but totally forgot about it. Then, few weeks later, I was at a luncheon to encourage a fellow sister in the Lord who was having some health issues. At the luncheon, another sister in the Lord brought a bag of roasted flaxseed to give to the lady with the health issues. Not only that, but this sister brought an empty bag of flaxseed to explain what it was and how you can roast it and so forth. I was thinking, "Isn't the LORD such a God of deatils to remember how I had wanted to get flaxseed, and had forgotten, and then the Lord brought this lady to show me the empty package!
At the gathering, the hostess also shared some encouraging testimony. Her husband had been laid off suddenly about several months ago. Also, around that time, his Dad had passed away. And, as they were remodeling their home, the builder decided to sue them. Needless to say, they felt pressure from all sides. Yet this lady, Jodi, shared, that the time her husband was laid off was so good for them as a couple. Since their marriage, he had always been traveling as a salesman. But for the first time, they were able to be together - they had Bible study, they shared, spent time together. Jodi says that her husband now is on fire for the Lord.
Also, when her husband was laid off, Jodi thought that they should stop tithing, but her husband said, "No, we should continue." so they still tithed. And recently, her husband got a new job, that pays twice as much as the previous job, and her mother-in -aw, sent a check in the mail. This mother-in-law is so stingy she never gives, and yet she sent a check for the fmaily to spend. It was the same amount as the amount of the tithes that they had given to the Lord since the lay-off.
What an amzing and and awesome God we serve! And how faithful he is!
I just wanted to share these because it encouraged my heart so much.
Love in Christ,
Hae Kyung
Saturday, November 3, 2007
Ohio 007 ROYALee family reunion
We gathered together the last October weekend 2007 in Ohio.3 photos from Diane's Home Page http://www.cyworld.com/di412
Monday, October 22, 2007
Passage of time
The picture was from another weekend in September, Bob and Brian walking toward the golden dome, on our way to Basilica for Sunday morning Mass.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Should be Liu family Jr. or Liu family #2
Hello everyone! Sorry it's taken so long for us to post. You have to understand that internet connection in Indonesia is ridiculously slow. So I've set up an account for our family here in Singapore. We're sad we didn't get to see many of you on our recent trip to the US. We had a great time in Orlando. I'm sure you've seen Helen's pics. I need to keep this post short. If you don't know I have a xanga site http://www.xanga.com/paulailsacaitlyn. It's mostly my ramblings and ravings so please excuse the stream of consciousness writing style. We were unexpectedly delayed here in Singapore. They cancelled our flight back to Indo but we didn't know until too late. Hahaha! We are all well and will post again soon. We love you all and thank you for all your prayers. And it was so good to see halmuni and harabugi out and about in sunny Cali. =) If you're ever on this side of the world, please come and visit us. God bless!
hello from hae kyung
Hello, everyone!
During the summer I attempted several times to contribute to this blog, but was unable to.
Today, Aunt Grace stopped by Chicago, and we were visiting Halmoni and Halabuji. Together with David's Dad's help, Aunt Grace is helping me to be able to contribute. Hopefully this will be successful.
I had been writing notes about my summer happenings.
Perhaps I can begin to be a "Blogger"!
Love, Hae Kyung
During the summer I attempted several times to contribute to this blog, but was unable to.
Today, Aunt Grace stopped by Chicago, and we were visiting Halmoni and Halabuji. Together with David's Dad's help, Aunt Grace is helping me to be able to contribute. Hopefully this will be successful.
I had been writing notes about my summer happenings.
Perhaps I can begin to be a "Blogger"!
Love, Hae Kyung
Friday, October 12, 2007
Orlando Family Vacation
Hello FamiLee!
Seong Weon, Elizabeth, my parents, Paul's family, Paul's in-laws, and I were in Florida last week. We had a wonderful time!
Here is a link to the photos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9551&id=635882755
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9555&id=635882755
Seong Weon, Elizabeth, my parents, Paul's family, Paul's in-laws, and I were in Florida last week. We had a wonderful time! Here is a link to the photos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9551&id=635882755
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9555&id=635882755
Friday, September 7, 2007
Thank you!
Hello famiLee!
I am 15 1/2 months old. I love walking around in my neighborhood and picking up rocks, leaves, pieces of grass, flower petals, acorns, and bugs. I think they might taste good but mommy keeps taking them out of my mouth and throwing them away. I like to look at the water sprinklers, drainage holes, plants, and the fire hydrant.
Daddy, mommy and I are very thankful for all your prayers. I like to pray, too....but only if it's not too long. Sometimes when Daddy is praying too long, I nod my head to say, "Amen" but Daddy isn't paying attention and still keeps on praying so I nod my head more but he still doesn't get it. I guess Daddy isn't as hungry as me.
Time to look for more things to put in my mouth.
Thank you for your prayers!
Love,
Elizabeth Park
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Thank you!
Thanks to Grace and Bob, Halmuni and Halabugi stayed in Laguna Beach for three weeks. Halabugi got real dark, taking walks on the beach every day. Halmuni would stay on the balcony enjoying the sea breeze and the sunshine. She talked about growing up in a beach town and taking swimming lessons in the sea. We had a good visit. Thank you!
Monday, September 3, 2007
Golf Award
This year's most improved golfer award goes to Mr. Ted Park and the rookie of the year to Mrs. Shinae Park. Photo taken from the Mission Viejo Country Club (AKA Mission "Impossible" County Club).
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Shu wa subarashi!!! (God is Great!)
konichiwa famiLEE!!!~
wow our famiLEE is entering the 21st century... coooool =)
wow our famiLEE is entering the 21st century... coooool =)
Japan was to say the least.. life changing....
I think for all of us we've grown up in homes where God was at the center of our familes. Even just being in America, Christianity is culturally prevelant that most likely any person you stop on the street will know something of Christianity and who Christ is. So to go to Japan with it's 2% christian population was a rude awakening to see that so many are lost because they really just have never heard the Gospel.
Here's a link to the video we showed our church, it explains more:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLDjI1VbSaY
I will try to write more later but just wanted to get this link out there .... oh and....
i'm going back to osaka, japan on september 18th to work at the chruch we partnered with this summer for one-year... =) hehe definatly more on that later, but please keep me in your prayers!!!!
Arigato gozimasu!!!!!
-jonie
Friday, August 24, 2007
the other Parks
Hello grandparents and aunties and uncles!
I'm 15 months old now and running around everywhere. If you would like to find out what mommy, daddy and I are doing, please visit us in Ann Arbor or you can see us at www.xanga.com/heronipark .
I love you! Muuuaah! (big kiss)
Elizabeth, Mommy and Daddy ParkWednesday, August 22, 2007
China Mission
Hi Everyone!
Here is a brief report for the China trip this summer. This is my third time visiting and teaching at Yanbian University of Science & Technology, located in a rural city of the northeast corner of China, called Yanji, where the other side of town is North Korea.
What is so unique about this university is that all faculty members are the volunteering Christian professors with mission in mind. Although this university is under control of the communist government and the Bible teaching is forbidden, the campus atmosphere is full of Christian flavor and spirit.
I taught the environmental engineering course and had 85 students. Most classes have about 25 students, but my class was very popular. We discussed at class about the environmental contamination and how to clean it. I also talked about the contamination of our heart and how to clean it at the same time without actually referring to the Bible. They knew I was talking the bible and seemed to like my teaching style.
When students enter this university, most of them do not understand about God, Jesus, Bible, salvation, love, sharing prayers, etc.., all these Christian stuff. But four years later by the time they graduate from school, half of them become Christians and the other half are almost there. The Chinese society has a very good impression from the graduates of this university because they work very diligently with honesty and integrity. Getting a job after graduation is 100%!
During the summer time, it is very hot and humid. Domestic water is supplied only three time a day, so you have to schedule accordingly to take a shower or go to the bathroom. There is no toilet papers in a toilet room. So if you don't carry your own pocket tissues, you will have many embarrassing moments. Even if you carry the toilet papers, you are not supposed to put them in the toilet bowl after you finish your business. The sanitary system can not take the toilet papers and you have to put it in a separate basket.
Traffic in town is impossible; automobiles, buses, taxis, bicycles, and pedestrians are all intermingled and flow together in the street and nobody keeps the traffic signs. Taxis are passing you by inches away. When you buy something in the market place, you will get ripped off very easily if you are not careful. To negotiate, you have to cut down more than 50 % of their asking price to start with and then, ending up buying something at 30 % of the original asking price. Illegal copies of DVDs are sold very cheap in the street market. They like to cut corners whenever they have chances. That is their life style and they do not see anything wrong with the way they do the business.
That is why this university is emphasizing honesty and integrity and Christian like living. If this university can produce good Christian graduates, the impacts that these young people will make on the Chinese society will be tremendous. If even one student at my class is touched through my teaching, I think my trip is worthwhile. Thank God!
Ted
Saturday, August 18, 2007
Look Who's Talking
Fine, you don't have to ask me twice to share about Calista. She is such a fascinating baby to us and has totally captured mom and dad's heart.
You can check out a video of her talking away and rocking in her rocking chair at www.xanga.com/rejoyce247
Friday, August 17, 2007
Laguna Beach is calling you
Ah, what a perfect beach day! Just a few minutes ago, couple of dolphins came pretty close to the shore and played around. Brian is enjoying the beach with his friends for the last time for this summer, as he prepares to leave tomorrow, driving first to the Bay area to pick up one of his roommates and then to South Bend together.
Bob left for his golf trip to Ireland with nine friends on Wednesday. Halmuni and Halabugi arrived on Wednesday, after almost four hour delay. It is difficult for them to travel even when flight is on schedule. Needless to say, they were very tired yesterday. Halmuni complained of some pain on her gum, so Halabugi took a shuttle bus to downtown (he is a PRO!) to a drug store and got some medicine for her. He couldn't remember the word "gum" so he said, "tooth, inside, pain" and was able to get what he was looking for.
What?! No takers for this golden opportunity to share your family news, thoughts, photos on our family blog site? Hey, don’t be shy and be a blogger, and post your articles, it is even free. For example -- Helen & Joyce, news and picture of Elizabeth & Calista? Karen & Joni, news and picture of your summer mission trips? Uncle Ted, your recent teaching trip to China?
Bob left for his golf trip to Ireland with nine friends on Wednesday. Halmuni and Halabugi arrived on Wednesday, after almost four hour delay. It is difficult for them to travel even when flight is on schedule. Needless to say, they were very tired yesterday. Halmuni complained of some pain on her gum, so Halabugi took a shuttle bus to downtown (he is a PRO!) to a drug store and got some medicine for her. He couldn't remember the word "gum" so he said, "tooth, inside, pain" and was able to get what he was looking for.
What?! No takers for this golden opportunity to share your family news, thoughts, photos on our family blog site? Hey, don’t be shy and be a blogger, and post your articles, it is even free. For example -- Helen & Joyce, news and picture of Elizabeth & Calista? Karen & Joni, news and picture of your summer mission trips? Uncle Ted, your recent teaching trip to China?
Kevin and Molly wedding pictures online!
Well, as somewhat of a skilled veteran blogger, I thought I'd throw some family news up, plus show off my hyperlinking skills. The picture above is one from Christina's camera, but as you recall there were a couple professionals taking photos throughout the night as well. To view (and possibly order) these photos, follow these steps:
- Go to the Pictage home page and create a login (it's free).
- Search under the last name "Dowdell" and locate the wedding photo collection.
- Peruse through the photos, and if you want, you can order some photos as well.
And while you're at it, you can always order a CD from Kevin's band Mercer's webpage!
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Welcome to the Lee Family Journal!
Hello Family!!
What do you know? We are becoming a modern, sophisticated, and trend-setting family with our own family blog site, where we can share our family news, photos, prayer requests, etc. To celebrate this momentous occasion, with joy and thanksgiving, I am posting the news of our sisters' very first reunion.
We first met at our brother's house on August 4th, went to Michigan City on August 6th to 9th, and our big finale was to spend the night of August 9th at the Marriott on Michigan Ave. in downtown Chicago. Our days were packed with many activities -- just to mention few, going to Indiana Dunes, touring University of Notre Dame, attending an organ recital at a local church, a musical "Crazy for You" in Michigan City and "High School Musical" in Chicago, an art gallery, taking a walk at the International Friendship Garden in Michigan City (a perfect setting for wedding), hanging out at the Navy Pier, and of course shopping at the factory outlet stores in between. It was a great fun, and we can't wait until the Sister Act 2.
Halmuni and Halabugi will come to Laguna Beach from August 15 to September 6. Please pray for their safe travel and that their stay here would be enjoyable and comfortable.
Goodbye, until the next posting (John told me not to get addicted to blogging).
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