July 1 in Gaoshong
We were picked up by Dean and David, the preacher at the Bilingual Church here in Gaoshong. We then drove all the way from Taipei to Goushong along highway 1. There seems to be no zoning laws here in Taiwan, something that I have seen echoed in other Asian countries. Gas stations will be build right next to a house, which is right next to an open field with rice planted in it, which is right next to a 30 story business office. Another really interesting piece was the number of farm area there was. If there was an empty lot, there was something planted in it. I don't know if these are family plots or just the way that farming is done here, but to what I'm use to in the states, it's kind of weird.
On arriving to Goushong, I know i'm spelling that wrong, we went to the church which is a sign and a door that leads down a flight of stairs to the actual worship/classroom/office area of the church. After unpacking all of our stuff, we went off to lunch at what David referred to as a "real" chinese restaurant. The food was great, nothing strange at all, but I think we all ate a good amount of food after sitting for such a long time.
David is an interesting guy, one who I don't know if I'll have the opportunity to learn much about. The church is currently running 4 different classes in 4 weeks. One other class is already going, some English class for a military school. David left Taiwan when he was 9 and grew up in the United states. After spending about 30 years in the U.S., around the Chicago area, he felt a calling to move back with his family to Taiwan. He has 5 kids, one of them who is adopted.
His Church runs off something called the Seeker concept, and I have mixed feelings about it's use. Basically it's the idea that you have classes for people who are seeking Christ, and those who are already Christians. Not a bad concept, but they seem to have problems serving both groups and seem to be focusing on the seekers, which by his own admission, makes in creasing the maturity of the church a bit of a challenge.
Also we have found that the groups that we are going to be teaching have nothing really to do with the Bilingual Church. It seems that there are people in this church that have a heart for the poor, and that this Church, being bilingual, brings in people who are generally better off and higher educated. So they decide to find the poorest area that they could find near the city and set up an outreach program with us being the spearhead. David admitted that he really doesn't know where this is going to lead, but that they are willing to just give it a try. Part of me applauds his willingness to give it a try, another makes me wonder if we are walking into this a bit blind. Either way, God will guide us and hopefully keep us out of trouble.
After the lunch and a hour of learning all the above information, we were driven to the school of the person who will be hosting us, from there we drove to her apartment. She actually has 2 flats. One which she shares with her 2 daughters and son, and a husband who is a college profession but from the sound of it, works away from the house during the week, in another town. The other flat is where Tami, Sarah, myself, our host's brother, Mother and the mothers Philipino assistant. It is actually a pretty nice place! I'll try to post pictures soon.
On arriving to Goushong, I know i'm spelling that wrong, we went to the church which is a sign and a door that leads down a flight of stairs to the actual worship/classroom/office area of the church. After unpacking all of our stuff, we went off to lunch at what David referred to as a "real" chinese restaurant. The food was great, nothing strange at all, but I think we all ate a good amount of food after sitting for such a long time.
David is an interesting guy, one who I don't know if I'll have the opportunity to learn much about. The church is currently running 4 different classes in 4 weeks. One other class is already going, some English class for a military school. David left Taiwan when he was 9 and grew up in the United states. After spending about 30 years in the U.S., around the Chicago area, he felt a calling to move back with his family to Taiwan. He has 5 kids, one of them who is adopted.
His Church runs off something called the Seeker concept, and I have mixed feelings about it's use. Basically it's the idea that you have classes for people who are seeking Christ, and those who are already Christians. Not a bad concept, but they seem to have problems serving both groups and seem to be focusing on the seekers, which by his own admission, makes in creasing the maturity of the church a bit of a challenge.
Also we have found that the groups that we are going to be teaching have nothing really to do with the Bilingual Church. It seems that there are people in this church that have a heart for the poor, and that this Church, being bilingual, brings in people who are generally better off and higher educated. So they decide to find the poorest area that they could find near the city and set up an outreach program with us being the spearhead. David admitted that he really doesn't know where this is going to lead, but that they are willing to just give it a try. Part of me applauds his willingness to give it a try, another makes me wonder if we are walking into this a bit blind. Either way, God will guide us and hopefully keep us out of trouble.
After the lunch and a hour of learning all the above information, we were driven to the school of the person who will be hosting us, from there we drove to her apartment. She actually has 2 flats. One which she shares with her 2 daughters and son, and a husband who is a college profession but from the sound of it, works away from the house during the week, in another town. The other flat is where Tami, Sarah, myself, our host's brother, Mother and the mothers Philipino assistant. It is actually a pretty nice place! I'll try to post pictures soon.
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love MOM