January 24, 2016

If you haven't heard yet, it snowed here in Taiwan! Yesterday after church got out, we nearly had the entire ward out the doors dancing around like little children as the snow flakes fell. We had some 70+ women telling us it was the very first time ever in history that it snowed on the flat lands of Taiwan. Nuts huh??

None of it stuck, but watching it fall was entertaining and crazy nonetheless.

Last week I forgot to include this, but as we were riding to the church to email, we went to turn left at an intersection and I turned to look back right at the perfect second! My poor companion flipped HARD off his bike onto the payment right as the light turned green to oncoming traffic. I was dazed for a second thinking he just got nailed or t-boned or something, but I realized that there were actually no vehicles of any sort around him. I run out to help him get up and gather all his stuff and ask what happened as cars are starting to come at us. (The cars all went around, that really wasn't any issue) Turns out his front tire went over a foot-deep pothole as he was making the turn and also only had one hand on his handlebars.. Bike wrecks.. They happen all too often here lol. Good news is my companions and I have never gotten more than a scratch or two!!

Front row seat

This week was frigid cold. I had a few nights where my shoes were soaked and rain water had dripped off my rain clothes down my neck and into my pants and then XinZhu is as windy as Chicago. Although it wasn't walking through snow, it was what it was. One night, after finding for many hours, we went to a steamed buns shop and got a cheese bread roll then got a large ginger tea and went to the deserted convenience store next door and sat upstairs in the dark eating and watching the crazy traffic outside. It was pretty memorable.

Flip through those quick, gives you an idea of how the traffic works here..

Also, alongside all the funny occurrences that happen in a week, we had many awesome mission miracles as well. (Miracles surround us, isn't even something as small as every time we take in a deep breath a miracle?) We went up to a college campus to contact a bit for a while. We stopped a kid who at the start said "No thanks" but after talking to him a bit, we gave him our information and some material and set up with him. Two days later he showed up to that lesson! And then he came to church even in the freezing cold. And liked it. We won't meet with him for all of Chinese New Year coming up, but afterwards he'll be good to go. 

This parking garage at the college had four or five flours to it just like this one.

We are sent on missions probably not to prove what true religion is to the world and certainly not to fight with anyone about anything, but to invite those who actually do want it. And the miracle of my mission and some of these past weeks is that there actually are some people out there who do still want religion and a moral standard in their life. Sometimes you just have to get past that first "No thanks." 

I've been lucky to meet a lot of people here who have a desire to be in our church. It strengthens my desire as well.

I hope not everyone froze to death over on the other half of the world!!

Love you all!