Shared Birthday Celebration

I have always enjoyed sharing my birthday with sister Sue (i was born on her 7th birthday). It was especially fun to be together with sister Jodee and Sue's daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren for our celebration this year!

Touching Home Base

I arrived in Florida on June 21 and had a great week with Mom and Dad. They are in the midst of a very challenging time in their lives, but God's grace and strength are very evident as they trust Him day by day. A great blessing to me during that time was fellowship with Nancy's Team--my prayer partners who have met monthly to pray for me for about 20 years.

"The Cracked Pot"

A dear friend recently passed along this parable. It is a great expression of an important lesson I have been relearning lately. Let me share it with you!

The Cracked Pot
(author unknown)

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master’s house. But the other pot had a crack in it and always arrived only half full. Of course the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments but the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its imperfections and miserable that it was only able to accomplish half of what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer, by the stream, one day. “I am ashamed of myself and I want to apologise to you” said the pot. “Why?” asked the bearer. “What are you ashamed of?” “Well” said the pot, “For these past two years, I have only been able to deliver half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master’s house. You do all this work and because of my flaws, you don’t get full value for your efforts.” The water carrier felt sorry for the old cracked pot and so he said “Don’t worry about it. Just look at the flowers on the way back to the master’s house and enjoy them” So, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers at the side of the path, and this cheered it up a little. But at the end of the trail it still felt bad because, again half the load had leaked out, . and so once more it apologised to the bearer for its failure. The bearer replied “Didn’t you notice that there were only flowers at your side of the path and not at he other side? That’s because I have always known about your flaw and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path and every day while we walked back from the stream, you’ve watered them. For two years I’ve been able to pick beautiful flowers to decorate my master’s table. Without you being the way you are, he would not have had this beauty to grace his house.”

Each of us has our own unique flaws. We’re all cracked pots. But if we give our weaknesses to the Lord, He will use even them, to grace His Father’s table. In God’s great economy, nothing goes to waste. So as we seek to minister together and as God calls you to the task He has appointed for you, let’s not be afraid of our weaknesses for God can use them to His Honour and Glory. As He says in 2Cor 12:9 “My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness”

Turn to God from Idols

When a person turns from idol worship to love and serve the one true God, the creator of the universe, it is a wonderful thing. Many times I have seen individuals make that choice. But it is always challenging for them to live out their faith in the shadow of the idol worship of their families. The thing we pray for is that the head of the household will come to Christ and decide to cleanse his home from idols. This is of course a huge decision. Many are fearful of retribution from the gods they no longer serve. Many believe that the spirits of their ancestors reside in the ancestral tablets on the god-shelf and if they are not worshiped, they will haunt the family. A brother in our church has been a believer for about 5 or 6 years. Just this week, his parents decided to remove the idols from their home. His father is not yet a believer in Jesus, but he has become much softer and open and he has lost faith in the other gods. His mother has more faith and seems to have really trusted Christ. Yesterday, Rev. Pan led a group of us from our church in the idol cleansing ceremony.



We sang, prayed, listened to a brief sermon and then the pastor removed the idols, took down the shelf and it was all carried away to be burned!




May this beginning of turning to God from idols continue and bear fruit in the life of this family, and also as a powerful testimony to their extended family, friends and neighbors. The power of the message is demonstrated in changed lives! Praise God for his mighty work in our lives! May there be many more such public demonstrations of love for Him.

Prayer Requests for May 2007
Precept Ministries
1. On June 9 we are holding a meeting in Taichung for our constituents. This is with the same purpose as the meetings we held in Hsinchu and Taipei in March and April. We already have 25-30 positive RSVPs so we are excited to see how God will use this in the Taichung area. Please pray especially that God will raise up churches who are willing to support the ministry of Precept and establish a partnership relationship with us.
2. Our Taipei classes started as scheduled on May 15. Dai led the first session for both of these classes since I was only 10 days post-op. She did a great job and we are using the remaining classes to continue to give her more opportunities to lead, without having to bear total responsibility for the classes (I am sharing it with her)
3. The most recent phase of our rural outreach will be completed on June 9. Pray for us as we consider what our next step should be. We are looking for more volunteers who are willing to be sent out.
4. Please continue to pray for the special meetings we will have with Dorie the last two weeks in September. We are working now on arrangements with various churches and organizations as well as some Christian Radio stations. We will have large meetings in 4 cities with some smaller scaled meetings with various groups who minister specifically to more severely wounded individuals. Pray that these meetings not only minister to the immediate needs of the attendees, but also lead them into more long-term Bible study.

Hsinchu TEAM Church
1. The parents of a man in our church have decided that they want to remove the objects of idol worship from their home. It appears that this is a first step in the direction of putting their faith in Christ. Please pray for the Wu family to make a clear decision to “turn to God from idols to serve the living and true God” (I Thess. 1:9)
2. Please continue to pray for the spiritual growth and commitment of the individual members of the congregation.

Trailblazer Camps
1. Continue to pray for the process of acquiring the new land and the transition period from the old camp to rented facilities to a new location.
2. As we enter into the summer camping season, please pray for the spiritual effectiveness of the camp programs as well as for the safety and protection of all those who work with us and who come as campers.

Nancy's Personal requests
1. Thank you for your prayers regarding my surgery and recovery. I am doing very well. I am pretty much pain free at this point with the only evidence of having had surgery being a lower energy level than usual. And even that improves week by week.
2. I am looking forward to my week in Florida June 21-28 when I hope to touch bases with folks at Coral Ridge as well as being with Mom and Dad.
3. June 28-July 24 I will be in upstate NY at Camp of the Woods sharing about my ministry. Pray that these times of interaction will be a source of spiritual encouragement to people, as well as a challenge to be more personally involved in mission.

A Surgical Adventure

After 27 years living in Taiwan, I have had my first hospital stay! It was a blessing to have friends care for me and the good hospital/medical care that is available here.


I was not feeling so hot for several hours after surgery. The bed made my back ache and the anesthetic made me nauseated. But, God helped me through (with lots of moaning and tears). A nurse friend says she has seen healthier looking corpses!



The next morning I felt like a new person and my color certainly looks better! I left hospital just about 24 hours after returning to my room from the recovery room. I was kindly hosted for three nights in Taipei by mission friends and colleagues....that gave me a very quiet three days to do more recuperating before having to make the trip back to Hsinchu (1+ hour car trip). I am home now and getting stronger each day. Dr. says to be careful for 6-8 weeks....no heavy lifting and LOTS of rest. I am taking it as a gift from God....time to focus on Him.

Precept "Pep Rally" in Taipei

One aspect of our strategy for promoting the vision of Precept Ministries in Taiwan is to hold "Pep Rallies" (for lack of a better term) in major cities. We have invited everyone who has had any contact with us over the years, by purchasing a book, attending a class or making a financial contribution. Our goal in these meetings is to share our vision as well as to report on what we did in the last year. Then we hope to encourage attendees to become more involved with us in the ministry--through attending classes, leading classes, praying for us and giving.

We held our first such meeting in Hsinchu, on March 3. There were about 20 people in attendence. It was a good "first go" helping us to clarify for ourselves what and how to communicate.

April 28 was our second meeting and we held it in Taipei in the coffee shop area of the Christian Tribune offices.



The program included a summary of past and future activities, testimonies of people whose lives have been changed by studying the Bible using Precept Bible Studies and a demonstration of our newest Bible study materials. We also honored those who have been leaders and gave those in attendance an opportunity to share their response to all they heard.

Precept Ambassadors Leadership Development Conference

Every two years, Precept Ministries International invites all of its Directors and Coordinators of International offices which are under the leadership of the Ambassadors at Large (Bob and Diane Vereen) to come to Chattanooga for a Leadership Develpment Conference. It has become a very important time for many of us. A time for renewing friendship with our counterparts around the world. It is also a time for being challenged and renewed in our spiritual lives and for gaining new vision for the work God has called us to do.


My roommates for the conference were Valerie Murphy, Director for Precept N. Ireland, and Clara Egbigwe, Director of Precept Nigeria. I was blessed to have two weeks with these two women...the fellowship was a little taste of heaven.


The newest attendees at the conference were Michela and Luigi Incarnato from Italy. They are lovely servants of God and I am privileged to be co-laboring with them as well as all of the others in our group.

God touched me in a very special way this time by bringing Philip from St. Louis to tell me thank you for training him as a Precept Leader over 10 years ago. Since he was trained (in what was my "maiden voyage" as a trainer) he has continually led Precept classes and had more than 1500 students! That is a lot of "grandchildren" for me!

Launch of Rural Outreach

From the time I returned from England/N. Ireland and Christmas was past, I found myself caught up in a whirlwind of visits to the rural churches that Precept Taiwan hoped to be able to help. In each case, I came to the church and led whatever people were gathered together, in an introductory study in one of the Precept 40 Min. Series Bible studies. The purpose was to sort of "test the waters" in each place and determine what would be the most helpful.
My visits took me to Orchid Island, and churches in Miaoli and Ilan Counties. I visited five churches in all. Each church had about 10 people attend the intro studies. There was a variety of receptions and levels of readiness. The impression I came away with is that some of the churches will benefit from immediately beginning to use the 40 Min. Series to study the Bible. There are some churches that really need something a bit more basic to get them going. I am asking God to help me to prepare the basic materials so that we can continue to help these churches. God desires for all of His children to know the truth. So, we take it to them in a form that is attainable for them.

Back to Cheadle...and then home!

It was hard to leave N. Ireland.....everyone had made me feel so much a part of things. I expect that it won't be my last visit. How could I not go back to visit my new little sister (and all her lovely siblings, the very large labrador, and of course all of my friends at Precept N.Ireland?



Mags was waiting for me when I de-planed and she spent the next three days treating me like royalty. I had so many special Christmas treats.....minced pie, Christmas pudding, Christmas cake, etc., etc.....The Christmas markets in Manchester were so much fun to walk through.





Then the day driving through the Peak District really topped everything by way of scenery. It made all of the British novels I have read come alive in my imagination.

Sunday's early communion service at St. James was a very moving time. It sort of culminated the sense that I had been aware of for two weeks...God was blessing me with kindness after kindness. He loves us so much! It was so hard to say goodbye at the airport, but it was so good to be back home. One of those paradoxes (what is the plural form of paradox?) that we live with all the time.

On to Belfast

After visiting with Mags for 3 1/2 days, I flew to Belfast. Valerie Murphy, the director of Precept N. Ireland, had casually invited me to visit sometime, and I took her up on it! Because I was planning to spend a week, and it corresponded with lots of special Christmas events, I was honored to be able to participate with her and expernience the same position I am in, but in another context. It was a really special time in many ways. I also got to see lots of the beauty of N. Ireland, but I understand that there is still much more I need to see.



The rock formations on the Giants Causeway were so awesome, along with the wild wind and surf...it was worth freezing our faces and hands to see it.



Later in the week, I had the opportunity to share with many Precept leaders and students about what God is doing with Precept in Taiwan. I also had the privilege of introducing the 40 Minute Precept Bible Studies to the Mandarin fellowship of the Belfast Chinese Christian Church! That was so much fun!

A Fabulous holiday!

Per usual I have waited too long before posting.....there is simply too much to share. Dec.3 I left Taiwan to travel to Manchester, England.....well, actually Cheadle. My dear friend Mags (I have known her for more than 10 years in Asia) lives there now and I wanted to see her, and experience her new home. She is a fantastic hostess, tour guide,etc. as well as a good friend and I had a wonderful time "hanging out" with her.

We visited the old Roman city of Chester with its medieval cathedral and its old Roman wall. We also spent time with her good friend, Di, visiting an English aristocrat's home that has been left to the National Trust. It was beautifully decorated for Christmas and really fun to walk through. The day was stormy, but we were met with a beautiful reminder of God's faithfulness as we left.

A New Precept Leader

One of my main goals in all of the Bible teaching that I do with Precept Ministries is to see new leaders develped. Nothing thrills me more than to see someone who has a burden from God to lead others in studying His Word. You can imagine my thankfulness and excitement recently, when one of my students told me that she was planning to get some of her smallgroup members together to study Luke again. (that was the study we were doing together).



My prayer is that many, many more will catch the same vision and step out with the same kind of faith and enthusiasm as Yi-Mei has.

Thanksgiving Retreat

TEAM takes the Thanksgiving break that is observed in the Morrison school system to have a mission-wide retreat every year. A highlight of this time for me, is the traditional Thanksgiving dinner that we enjoy at the outset of the weekend. But, in addition to that, we also have three days of fellowship, lots of playing together and 4 sessions of spiritual input. The speaker this year was one of the pastors from Bill and Ginann Franklin's sending church. This year, we also had a retirement tea for Eloise Harder and a going away celebration for George and Marlys McFall. (I hate saying goodbye, but that seems to be a big part of life here)



Going to Heng Chwun (Eternal Spring) is always a lot of fun, because of the beauty of God's creation that surrounds us there. We have both mountains and ocean beaches to enjoy.....and enjoy we did!

Deacon board Installed at Hsinchu TEAM Church

The Hsinchu TEAM Church took a new step in organization and leadership development with the installation of its first official Deacon board. The sermon which prefaced their installation exhorted them to live exemplary lives and to serve as living testimonies of God's power and grace. They were also charged to care for the flock alongside of the pastor. The congregation, was likewise encouraged to follow them and join together in working with them. The final exhortation of the sermon was to bring all concerns to the Deacon board to deal with, rather than making them the subject of gossip and or slander. And, we were challenged to pray for one another, striving for unity in the body.

Public Television Fellowship

Ever since the 40 Minute Bible Studies were released, I have believed that they were ideal for Christian fellowships in the workplace. We were delighted when the fellowship at the Public Television station called and said they were going to start to use this series. We offered to go and get them started. Praise the Lord! They are ready to go!

Installation of Rev. Pan

The day we have been anticipating for a long time came on Aug. 13, 2006 when the Hsinchu TEAM church installed our first full-time pastor. We have had missionaries, tent-making elders and lay-leaders work with us for many years, but for the first time we have a full-time pastor. It is hard to describe the difference in how it feels to me....I guess it is mostly the sense that there is someone who is called of God to oversee and offer guidance to the flock.

Precept Staff Retreat

The three of us from the Taiwan Precept office headed to the east coast of Taiwan for a 4 day retreat last week. It is so thrilling to see God's marvelous creation.

Birthday Blessings

July 4 is not celebrated as a holiday in Taiwan, but that didn't keep us from having a great time in celebration of my birthday! My Precept co-workers took me out for a great lunch at the Skylark. Then in the evening Dai, Kevin, Andrea, Carrie, Andrea's mom Lynette and Eve all went bowling together!


What fun! I even got flowers!

Hsinchu TEAM Church's Prayers Answered!

We have been praying, waiting and searching for the last two years, for God's choice of a pastor for our church. Many have prayed with us and for us. As of July 1, 2006, Stephen and Grace Pan accepted our call and came to lead and pastor our church. Please pray for their adjustment to our city and our church. Also, pray for the church's adjustment to working together with a pastor. This is a new experience for us.