2016 Taipei VBS - Day 2 - Julia Chang

Today, our day started off with some quiet time to do our daily devotions as well as time to pray for our kids, strength, and whatever was on our minds. After the quiet time, we began a fruitful 45 minutes of meditation which included sharing our devotions, singing praise, and praying together for our day to come. We finished all of this around 8am, an hour before the VBS began. With the time we had left, we had a delicious breakfast of McDonald's provided by the Taipei HOC staff. Within the time breakfast ended, kids began to arrive and we were ready to start the VBS day!


VBS began with small group time which consisted of us spending time with our kids and just getting to know them through ice breakers. We also spent some time letting the kids review the bible verse of the day as well as the one for yesterday in both English and Chinese. The kids worked super hard to memorize the particularly long English bible verse of the day (John 3:16)! Then we headed off to the chapel so all 5 small groups could receive the message of the day and such things.
 

The large group time started off with worship. Today the kids learnt 2 new songs which they really seemed to enjoy (which we also taught at the VBS back home): ABC Submarine and Remarkably Made. Since some of the kids were wondering why we came all the way from the U.S. just to be part of the VBS, Lynn prepared a presentation explaining. She told the kids the parable of the lost sheep: A Shepard had 100 sheep but lost 1, so he herded the 99 sheep and went to search for the lost one. In our case, us, Antioch fellowship, are trying to herd back the lost sheep into the flock back to be with God, where they belong. After the great presentation, we had a skit telling the story of nicodemus which included some underwear and sock tossing (haha).
 

Afterwords, we spent the afternoon in our rotation groups and each group got to go to crafts, English/games, and science. And we ended with another group worship time.
Overall, the day had some difficulties with our language and cultural barriers but we got to know all the kids so much better. They were all very open to learn about the world of God and we thank Jesus for that!

Walking to the bus stop on the morning

Worship time!

Our skit!

When it's hard to love

When I came in Wednesday morning I sat in my office as usual but a strange smell lingered. The trash can was empty and it was subtle so I didn't think much of it.

It wasn't overtly offensive or very noticeable, actually. 

But it was there. 

Eventually, I took a break from the computer and the copious amount of sitting that is killing me to clean up the couch area a little. 

It was then that came across one of those Sunday lunch boxes. 

"ODD," I thought to myself. "There's no way this was actual food... left here from SUNDAY by SOMEONE, COULD IT?"

Oh, yes. It could. 

I usually love my youth kids no matter what but there are times you just want to cry and acknowledge that you have failed. Failed in life and as a youth pastor. Failed to teach them basic life skills like using the trash can. 

So I grieved. 

Well, no, after my incredulity I opened the box and to add insult to injury, a small black fly lazily flew out as the pungent smell of two-day old Chinese food hit me.

*sigh* Forget theology or church history, we need, "How to Use a Trash Can 101."

Life.  

Living the Gospel by Faith (Galatians 3:1-5)

The application and conclusion from Sunday sermon 7.6.14 on Galatians 3:1-5:

The question that needs to be answered here is; how then shall we live? The answer goes back to Galatians 2:20. “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” It is not I, but Christ.

Live in such a way that makes much, much, much of Christ.

McCheyne, the Scottish pastor who died at 29, has some words of wisdom and live for us regarding practical Christian living. The acronym “ROSE” is taken from McCheyne's description of his teenage years when he was careless, worldly, and unconverted. He said, "I kissed the Rose nor thought about the thorn."

From Piper: 

He meant by it: "I indulged in all the amusing and beautiful pleasures of the world, and didn't give a thought to sickness and suffering and death." That's what he meant when he said, "I kissed the Rose nor thought about the thorn."

But after his conversion, he spoke often of Jesus as his Rose of Sharon, and he lived in almost constant awareness of the thorn of his sickness and that his time might be short.

ROSE

R – Rise.

"Rose early to seek God and found Him whom my soul loveth. Who would not rise early to meet such company?"

Rise, early or late, but rise to meet Jesus face to face. You can’t expect to just roll out of bed or roll off the computer after watching House for 3 hours and be intimate with Christ. "A great part of my time is spent in getting my heart in tune for prayer. It is the link that connects earth with heaven."

Get your heart in tune with Jesus, rise early to meet Him! :)

O – Open. 

"One gem from that ocean is worth all the pebbles from earthly streams." McCheyne speaking of the Scriptures.

Open the book. You need to read the Bible, there is no other way to substantially grow in your faith than by going to the Word.

Charles Spurgeon from his excellent sermon on "How to Read the Bible" says this,

“As for you, my brothers and sisters, who have not to preach, the best food for you is the Word of God itself. Sermons and books are well enough, but streams that run for a long distance above ground gradually gather for themselves somewhat of the soil through which they flow, and they lose the cool freshness with which they started from the spring head. Truth is sweetest where it breaks from the smitten Rock, for at its first gush it has lost none of its heavenliness and vitality. It is always best to drink at the well and not from the tank. You shall find that reading the Word of God for yourselves, reading it rather than notes upon it, is the surest way of growing m grace. Drink of the unadulterated milk of the Word of God, and not of the skim milk, or the milk and water of man's word.”

S – Sweat.

"Lord make me as holy as a pardoned sinner can be." Grow in holiness/Work out your sanctification. 

In God’s strength and power, work with joy to grow in holiness. This will most likely be stopping some things, like poor use of time, and starting some things, like memorizing scripture. Not out of obligation or duty but because you've seen the loveliness and treasure that is Jesus Christ and that compels you to. 

Don’t do it because you want to earn God’s favor or add to your salvation punch-card, do it because you want to know Jesus more, you want to love and grow in appreciation for your Savior who loved you and died for you.

E – Evangelize.

"Live near to God, and all things will appear little to you in comparison with eternal realities."

Living near to God snaps things back into the right perspective. You no longer fear what that person will say because their eternal fate is more important and you needing to feel cool for 4 years. Maybe less.

Live the gospel by faith. You’ve heard the gospel, you’ve believed it by faith, now live it by faith.

As you are doing all this, “For every look at self, take ten looks at Christ." Because of the gospel you’ve heard and believed by faith, look again to the Christ who already came, look to the Christ who already died, and look to the Christ who already resurrected to bring you into fellowship with Himself.

Look to that and be reminded and assured that the Jesus who saved you, the Jesus who loves you, the Jesus who will never forsake you, is the Jesus who will carry you all the way home.