father and son walk

Two days before Christmas, we had a sunny day and the wheather didn't like in winter but like in summer.

We took a walk in our local park. I was the professional photographer of our family.

Cool son of mine

Acctually my son is just out of hospital. He caught a serious cold. We dressed him up like this--warm and cool!

HBI Greetings Card DIY

Inside: centual picture-6 fishes. Fish has abundant Christian meanings. 6, this number in Chinese has a meaning of "every success".

Back cover: a pair of foot print with the verse from Romans 10:15

Front Cover: Next year of 2009 is the Year of Ox according to Chinese tradition.

All the pictures we used are from Chinese paper-cut. We also used Chinese Knot. It has the function to unit inside page and outside cover, also to make this card more Chinese. It is a pity that we can't mail the Chinese Knot together with the greetings card, the post office had us take it off!

Good friends

Taken By Gloria Wu

An old man's heart

"10.25, 2.16 by Lunar Calendar. Never ever forget."

My brother text me the short message, reminding me those two crucial dates: the first one is my father's birthday and the second, my mother's.

The day before was my father's 66th birthday. And I made a terrible mistake--didn't give him a call. Immediately I called my father’s cell phone wanted to say a late "Happy Birthday", but he would not answer it. I didn't know what happened until I called my parent's home that night. My mother answered phone,
"He waited for your call that whole day, morning and afternoon" she said "In the evening I saw he became very unhappy. You would not know how much he wished to receive your call and knew you still remembered his birthday!" The worst thing happened. My father's heart was hurt, by me. "I might remind you his birthday that day, but I thought, better let him face the truth. You forgot this time, but won't next time, even won't forever." My Mom, I could never be as cool in the way she was. Anyway, I had to face my own mistake.
"Mom, tell you a good news! I decided to go home tomorrow morning, bringing Haozi (my three-month old baby) with me. Dad hasn’t seen Haozi, right?" I made this decision right away. "Please have Dad listen to the phone."I asked excitedly believing my Dad would also be very happy of my decision, as I heard my mother calling my farther.
"He is in bed ready to sleep; He says he has nothing to say to you... And ...he says if you come home, he will go to visit his friend in another city. He says... you have no need to come back on New Year holidays either." (My husband and I had planned to visit my parents in January 1-3.) I was there listening and feeling my heart turned colder and colder. My farther has successfully extended his feeling of hurt onto me. Fortunately I had good friends around me at that moment; we were eating a late super in a restaurant together. I told them what happened. They wisely suggested me, "Just go. Your farther sent you a very strong message--he wants to see you and Haozi as soon as possible."

I went and spent Thanksgiving Day with my parents the next day.

My farther had long face in the first half hour. Then he turned happier and happier. He had I and my brother invite him eating outside that night to make up his birthday celebration, but he paid for the meal. He enjoyed being with Haozi, my son. He carried him around the house and took pictures of him.

Recently my uncle got cancer and actually my father spent his birthday morning with him. He felt that the most important thing in his life was the relationship with his family members; he would not lose any of it.
On my way back, my heart was not lighter...my father is old, how could I take good care of him, putting him under my wings just as he took me under his wings when I was a child?

Did you call your parents on their birthdays?

Loving Hunan---HBI Mission Training

Hunan Map is Like a person's head

Recently, for 2 weeks, HBI students were excited in the activity of Loving Hunan. To prepare for it, students have done their assignment of interviewing local government Religious Affairs Bureau (RAB)as well as prefectual church leaders in last summer holidays. From the government they were to understand how the whole government departments'--not only religious department's administration work were. They needed to list all the departments of the local government and describe their duties. From the RAB, they got the information on the religions' situation in that area, including Buddhist, Taoism, Islam and Catholic church. They also did investigation on the folk religion's influence in that area. Each student was required to serve in local church in summer holidays, and received comments for their performance. From the prefecture church leaders they got to know the whole prefecture's five year plan ahead.

One representative was seclected from each 14 prefectures and he or she should give the prefecture report. The report had to be short but catch people's heart. After all the reports were given, students would vote to say, "If I were recruited to be a missionary in one of the 14 prefectures, which one I choose to go and why."

Students spent two Wednesday afternoons on this activity. They were excited. After a report, students asked questions to the prefecture representative to clarify the local situation and to increase knowledge of that area.

Do you want to know the result? Xiangxi recruited the most. 18 "missionaries" wanted to work there, for that area was poor, coworkers their were a few, natural evironment was very stiff, people's heart was very hard and there were many minority people there. An interesting thing about Zhangjiajie prefecture was they recuited 10 "missionaries" but 12 tourists---many students wanted to go to Zhangjiajie just to enjoy the beautiful nature scenery there!

New pastor performing the duty right away