Pastor A

The team met for breakfast today at 8:00 a.m. It was awesome and one of the best meals that we have had since we left on July 20… WOW, that seems like so long ago. We are down to two full days and then our departure day on Wednesday, August 3. We will arrive at the PHX airport around 19:30 and then plan to arrive at TBT around 22:30 if all goes well with luggage.

Now back to today… I invited one of the “English speaking families” that TBT supports to speak for our group this morning. He preached a very convicting and challenging message from II Timothy 1. I am not to be ashamed of the Gospel or those who are being persecuted because they are standing for the Gospel. He gave several examples of that which takes place here in China. He had the privilege to see “Anna” saved in 2004. Immediately her family began to ridicule and persecute her for her new faith. She was a part-owner in a company and told her partner that they would no longer lie or do things wrong… she lost her company.

She persevered and for six years has suffered verbal abuse and isolation from her family. However, her mother in 2010 told her daughter that she wanted what she had and she has been gloriously saved. She now owns her own company and the Lord is blessing in spite of all that her unsaved friends might do or say about her.

Two men in this man’s church just lost their jobs in the last two weeks because they refused to work on Sunday. They are counting it as joy, not sacrifice. This family started this church three years ago and now  has 60 people. In the fall they are going to split their church three ways. They have members who travel two hours to attend church and they live in Beijing. This is a monstrous city!

This family then took 20 minutes to answer great questions from our group. We learned that this family can buy a case of 24 Bibles. They take these Bibles out to the villages on the weekends as their outreach ministry. If you will remember, we are in the process of distributing the funds from our KJV 400th celebration. We are giving our missionaries who promise to buy Bibles $400 to do so. We gave this family $400 following the service. At $1.35 each, we will have a part in distributing God’s Word right here in China.

Following our service, we changed clothes and then boarded our bus to go visit the Aquarium and Zoo. We saw many different creatures in the aquarium and then we saw elephants, tigers, lions, zebras, giraffes, monkeys, several animals that we don’t have in the US, many different kinds of reptiles, and finished with the infamous Panda Bears! It was fun and several even purchased Panda Bear hats. They will be coming to you very soon!

We then traveled to Pizza Hut and ate together as a group… it was delicious, some of the best pizza we have ever had. After supper, we returned to our hotel for this group is TIRED. Off to bed they have gone and hopefully will be refreshed in the morning.

Several are feeling puny: Janet has a full-blown cold and cough, Jonathan is congested, Shelby had a migraine today, Lauren R has been renamed Lawrence for she has a deep, deep voice, Jenna is having some stomach issues, and Bethany has the makings of a cough and cold. Everyone else is doing fine for the moment but most are just flat worn out.

God is good though; we had a terrific day in which all 24 team members had a personal time with the Lord today in which they read and prayed. It was spiritually refreshing and the camaraderie is great among our team. God knew who to have on this team and there have been very, very few problems. All in all this has been a flawless trip.

We are headed to bed; so, in the morning we will get up and meet for breakfast at 7:00 a.m. to begin our day of rigorous activities. Tomorrow is a super long day! We love all of you and miss you but are still praising Him for that which He accomplished this last week in our live and the life of the ministry team!

It is now the end of Saturday (01:00 a.m. Sunday morning) and time to retire for the evening. We allowed everyone to “sleep in” today. There were no responsibilities until 11:00 a.m. I got up early, completed my morning responsibilities, went to the bank to exchange money at 9:00 a.m., went to the 4th floor to eat breakfast (many team members were also eating), and then took a taxi with Jonathan to our new hotel to get the group checked in. We then took a taxi from the new hotel back to the old hotel. As I arrived, the team already had our luggage at the street and were awaiting the arrival of our bus.

I went inside to pay our bill (hate doing this but it is a necessary evil) and completed our “check out” process. The manager and staff thanked us repeatedly for our stay. The reason that we are moving hotels is that the old hotel was located in the north part of Beijing and not very close to anything except the Day Camp location. The new hotel centralizes our location and will reduce the amount of time it takes to travel to the various planned activities over the next few days. The traffic is so horrific in this city that anything we can do to minimize sitting in a bus is a good thing.

Once we arrived at our new hotel, everyone was given 30 minutes to drop off their luggage in their new room and return to the bus. We then drove to the Pearl Market for the team to experience an event that is extremely difficult to describe. Suffice it to say that I’m sure many of you will hear all about this little adventure. Our group had the opportunity to purchase souvenirs, Christmas gifts, and gifts for family and friends. By the looks of the bags carried out, many of you are going to be blessed immensely.

As always, I looked for something special for the children of the church. In my two years at TBT I’ve given the children of the church coins, carved animals, necklaces, candy, gum, hand carved wooden spoons, etc. I was able to find a very, very nice gift for the children. As usual, I shall invite the children of the church to my office on Sunday evening, August 7 following the China testimony service. Parents, you want to have your children present in the service… it will be awesome.

We stayed until the market closed at 6:00 p.m. and then took the bus ride back to the hotel. There was loud, noisy, laughter, and so many people “bragging” about the deals they were able to make. Again, I say that many of you will be blessed by the good “deals” your family and friends bartered for today.

Back at the hotel we ate supper together at the hotel and then everyone was given the rest of the evening off. We will meet at 8:00 a.m. in the morning with our Sunday dress and prepare for our service. I have invited a man, that our church supports, to speak to our group here at the hotel. It is impossible for us to go to a “house” church as the attention we would draw would not be favorable for this family. Therefore, we have a family, that we support, coming to speak to us. I pray that the Lord will use this service in a mighty way in the morning.

Good night to all and thank you for praying for our team!

In my last update I discussed the Day Camp team members; this update will discuss the Teen Camp team members:

• Pastor Woody - Although young and inexperienced as far as mission trips are concerned, Pastor Woody has done a remarkable job leading the teen camp. The campers fell in love with him. He maintained order. He loved on the teens. He preached using an interpreter for the first time. He adjusted the schedule as needed. He really was a blessing to have on this trip.
• Daniel Taylor - His responsibilities were primarily in the area of games and skits. Daniel’s preparation and understanding of the games prior to our arrival was evident as the gametime and skits ran flawlessly. Daniel has been an invaluable asset to this team.
• Shelli Armstrong - Prejudicially speaking, Shelli had one of the most difficult responsibilities and burdens on this trip… feed 50 people three times a day in an inferior environment while ensuring that no one was sickened by the food or unsanitary conditions. Mission accomplished! Shelli and her team did the unbelievable, unthinkable, and successfully conquered an impossible mission.
• Emily Morrison - Emily was one of the other kitchen ladies and she was a spectacular help to Shelli. She created desserts that would have been difficult in good conditions. She seemed to never tire and always had a smile on her face.
• Kimberly Jones - Kimberly completed the third part of the kitchen crew and she excelled. She washed dishes, helped serve, created Rice Krispy treats, and even had time to participate in the special music program. She was not with the Chinese teenagers as much as everyone else; yet, she was able to forge friendships in spite of her time constraints.
• John Buntin - John was a counselor with several boys in his room. He was always helping rearrange the dining room or helping with a game. John was instrumental in helping lead a teenage boy to the Lord which he shall never forget. John earns the award for the ability to be the fastest to soak a shirt with sweat in the humid conditions we endured… 3 seconds flat!
• Sandra Buntin – Sandra was a room counselor and endured really difficult conditions with not enough sleeping space and a ceiling that leaked. She was responsible for the crafts that turned out to be a smashing success! The campers loved creating their photo albums and backpacks and bracelets. Awesome crafts and many happy campers. Sandra also served as the camp nurse but praise the Lord we did not have any injuries of significance.
• Martha Castro – Martha helped with the snack shop, serving meals, and served as a room counselor. Martha had a five foot square of her ceiling cave in and go “splat” all over the floor. It was a huge mess. However, Pastor Woody, John Buntin, and I jumped in to help clean up this mess… the ceiling still leaked most of the week. Martha had a birthday and after breakfast, Pastor Woody called Dan and he listened in as we sang H Bday to Martha. She cried. Then, Pastor Woody said there was someone else that wanted to sing her H Bday… so both boys from Tucson sang to Martha… she really cried… it even choked me up. She misses her boys so badly.
• Analis Castro - Analis was a room counselor with Bethany Jones. Analis helped forge friendships with the girls in her room. She has been smiling and ever so pleasant to have on this trip.
• Bethany Jones - Bethany was a counterpart to Analis in a room with Chinese teenagers. Bethany always smiles and has a sweet, sweet disposition. She is a blessing just to watch from a distance. Bethany really worked with the girls in her room as she had a tremendous burden for their spiritual condition. Bethany also participated in the special music program each day.
• Lauren Cutright - Lauren was a room leader who also had mold and a roof collapse. We had to move her Chinese girls and Lauren and Carissa to the craft room to sleep at night. She maintained a positive attitude with bouncing back and forth from sleeping to getting ready each day. Lauren has had a couple of serious headaches; yet, she has tried to work through them and still maintain a sweet smile.
• Shelby Jones – Shelby was a room leader with several Chinese teenagers… her roof did not collapse. Shelby really worked diligently to develop a relationship with the girls in her room. By weeks’ end, she had accomplished her mission. She has maintained a great attitude without complaining once. Shelby really pushed her girls at gametime and verse memorization. Shelby blessed us with the special music program each evening.
• Carissa Frisinger – Carissa was also in Lauren’s room and served as a room counselor. Carissa was willing to help whenever she was asked and frequently was seen helping without being asked. Carissa also had to bounce back and forth from the craft room to her other room without ever complaining, just smiling.
• Keith Bee – This is Keith’s first time to ever do something like this and he has adapted well. He was a room counselor which pushed him way out of his comfort zone; however, he did a marvelous job. He has taken lots of pictures for us to use at a later date. It has been a blessing to have such a fine young man on our trip. Even the Chinese girls like him… I even have a pic of Keith running away from one that was chasing him.
• Jonathan Armstrong – Jonathan was a room counselor with three other Chinese boys. He also taught the morning devotion time using an interpreter. Jonathan helped in numerous ways and has been a huge blessing to have on this trip. Although he has been to China numerous times, it was great to see him serve others.

There you have it, two teams that have impacted so many from TBT right here in China. Each person has contributed in some way. Praise the Lord for allowing us to accomplish our mission.

Could not sleep so I thought I would update all of you on the team members:

In our Day Camp we had -

• Joe Jones - Amazing leader and work ethic. Although at times outside his comfort zone, Joe came through in a big way. Praise the Lord for his heart, tenderness, and fabulous work ethic. I could not have done what I needed to do at the Teen Camp without Joe’s leadership at Day Camp.
• Janet Jones - I feel bad that she is so sick. She probably received her illness from one of the day campers who was sick and used her chopsticks by giving food to Janet. Janet is so neat, organized, and tenacious. She is a hard worker!
• Diane Rognlien - Diane is an unsung hero on this trip for she never actually worked at the Day Camp but taught English classes all week so as to allow the family we are working with  to attend the two camps. Diane experienced something unique – teaching and tutoring Chinese students who were not part of the two camps. In this, Diane was able to have her own mission field.
• Jenna Grantham - Jenna worked with the music program and the games. Jenna was unable to bring her guitar due to group luggage restrictions. She never complained but asked if we could find one for her in China. We did and a string broke on it while practicing. Still no complaints. The strings were replaced and all worked well in the end.
• Candice Hornung - Candice has been a child in a candy shop. She has laughed, had her heart touched, and experienced a life changing trip. The smells have been difficult for Candice. We just laugh at her. She has worked with crafts and loved the children in a special way.
• Lauren Rajchel - Lauren cried all day Friday. She will never be the same! She is a real trooper. Her hip has given her fits this entire trip but she has NEVER complained even one time. She has walked for miles, often grimacing with each step. I have a new appreciation for her tenacity.
• Marta Spears – Marta, Marta, Marta – what can I say? Come on, think of something… Marta is short!
• Debbie Wilbur - Debbie has been way outside her comfort zone. She has taken lots of pictures and helped out wherever needed. I do think that Debbie will never be the same with her involvement back at TBT. This has been a life-changing trip for her. I’ve seen her heart touched!
• Marta Spears – Marta has been absolutely wonderful to have on this trip. It is a joy to tease Marta for she truly loves her pastor! She has been delightful in her teaching lessons. The children have listened well and if they didn’t, she called them on it. Marta never slowed down and worked with crafts, music, story time, etc. She was always serving. She knew that the Lord would save children and teenagers and was not content just to walk away. Marta is tenacious and I love her for it! It has been a JOY to have her on this trip.

Ok, I am now tired so I am going to crawl back into bed… it is 2:00 a.m. I will update all of you on the Teen Camp staff sometime tomorrow. Until then… Good Night Again.

Today is Friday and I am wide awake at 4:00 a.m. I went to bed at 1:00 a.m. The next time someone asks me if I want coffee – no way – even at the risk of offending them. The caffeine has me wide awake. Oh well, best get up and get started. This camp is so dark, damp, humid, and dirt. Sorry I couldn’t think of a “d” word for humidity. Today is going to be another incredible opportunity.

It is the fifth day of camp and even though everyone is supposed to be up at 6:30 a.m., the camp is still  eerily quiet at 6:30 a.m. There are many tired bodies. Everyone is dragging a little as we start a few minutes late today. The kitchen ladies fix pancakes and bagels for breakfast. They had to make another batch of pancakes as there is nothing wrong with the appetites of the Chinese teenagers.

We might as well have thrown out the schedule for today. It was one adjustment after another… the owner wanted us to “check out” sooner than we had planned. It was raining “cats and dogs.” This meant that everything was wet, damp, smelly, and heavy. Jonathan feels awful and sounds awful; yet, he did another great job with the morning devotions. This has been a great opportunity for him at 17 to speak and experience the thrill of influencing others with the Word of God. God and I time went well. Due to the pouring rain, we cancel the first activity and use this time to check out of our rooms (in the American mind this sounds like it is a hotel – only if you could really see what we are talking about) and move our luggage to a holding area.

I have the great privilege to speak once again around 10:00 a.m. Daniel has a game after our morning session and the kitchen ladies are ready to eat lunch at 11:30 a.m. We eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, delicious watermelon, cheese, raisins, quesadillas, dessert, etc. As soon as lunch is over we have craft time and it was enjoyed by all. They designed backpacks and the creativity was phenomenal.  Following craft time there was an hour of free time and a final snack shop time. The Chinese students and Americans spent a little over 1600 RMB in our store.

Then it was time for our final session. I was able to speak one final time and the Lord gave incredible freedom to speak for 45 minutes. Although an invitation was not given, we did learn through our closing process that there were three teenage girls that were not Christians. This was difficult to know that Pastor Woody and I have preached our hearts out, the counselors have loved these girls, and everyone has interacted with them for a full week.

Following the message we have our group sing one last time and then enter into a testimony time. The testimonies were sweet and tearful. Each one was difficult for the Chinese students as this is not something normal. They were brave and frankly, it was one of the most awesome times we have had on this trip. Allow me to share one testimony exchange… Josh testified first and his testimony was simple… I’ve prayed for Kevin since we were in the 4th grade and I am happy that Kevin is now a Christian. One of the most poignant moments of this camp came when Kevin somewhat awkwardly stands before all of us and thanks us for coming to China. And then he did something that I will never forget, he walks over to Josh, extends his hand and thanks him for sharing the Gospel with him. WOW! Here is a teenage young man that trusted Christ and publicly testifies about it and then thanks the young man who did not give up on him since they were in school all the way back in the 4th grade.

Pastor Woody gives a moving testimony. I close out in prayer with one final plea to the three young ladies to see the wife of the family we support if they would like to ask any questions. We then dismiss everyone to the courtyard to play a game as we wait on the bus. Low and behold, about 20 minutes later, the wife of the family we support and one of the three lost young ladies emerge from the hotel with tears flowing. You see, the first family this TBT supported family met 17 years ago was this girl’s parents. They met the very first week they arrived in China 17 years ago. She finally trusted Christ and there were many, many tears. The wife wept and wept some more. 17 years to persevere and then witness the seed finally sprout and come to fruition.

A sad note: One of the three girls was asked what was preventing her from making a decision. She said that she had been taught her whole life that there is no God in school and she just could not go against that teaching. Sad, sad, sad! She goes to bed tonight lost but has heard the truth. She could wake up in hell because she knowingly and willfully rejected Christ.

We boarded our two buses and headed back toward Beijing. We stopped at KFC for a quick bite to eat. We rejoined the Day Camp team to hear that 21, yes, TWENTY-ONE had trusted Christ at Day Camp TODAY! one of those 21 is a 14 year old young man who has a serious heart condition and does not have much time to live. Everyone was tearful with this young man’s decision. More to come on the Day Camp as we debrief them.

It is now after 10:00 p.m. Friday and we have given all team members Saturday morning off. They are tired, weary, sick, and in need of hot showers and a long night’s rest. We will meet at 11:00 a.m. Saturday to begin our next day of activity. Thank you for praying for us. We love and miss all of you. Good Night!

Several team members were so excited to share with me that four teenagers had trusted Christ. Our counselors had the privilege of leading these Chinese teenagers to the decision point of trusting Christ. We decided at the beginning of camp that we would not give a public invitation to the teenagers if they needed to make a decision; however, we would strongly encourage them to ask their counselors questions about becoming a Christian. Several did just this! Four had trusted Christ, including Kevin who had been brought to camp by his best friend, Josh, who has been trying to witness to Kevin since the fourth grade.

Suffice it to say that it was a glorious atmosphere and the excitement was most noticeable among the team. The dam had been broken and the Holy Spirit was really working. Praise the Lord for the sensitivity of the team members. One reading this blog must understand that it is very difficult for one in China to accept Jesus as the answer to life’s problems and as the answer for all of eternity. It is drilled into these students heads from birth that there is no life after death and there is no such thing as a relationship with God. It takes a long time to break down the walls of the government’s teachings and their need of a Savior.  This was a miraculous event to have four students enter into this new relationship.

Pastor Woody and I completely missed lunch as we were discussing a couple of camp issues that had developed while I was away overnight. As we were talking, there was a rush of excitement, tears, and enthusiasm. Another teenager had trusted Christ. She had struggled with these questions: Who is God? I cannot see God? Why do I need God? Why is there a hell? Yet, through the working of the Holy Spirit, the scales of unbelief fell from this beautiful teenager’s eyes. Although she was sobbing, she was so incredibly relieved that now she was a Christian.

The rest of the day was like floating on air. The game time went well. The kitchen ladies (Shelli, Emily, Kimberly) fixed another unbelievable meal of chicken, mashed potatoes, cucumber salad, and a “to die for” dessert. These Chinese teenagers can really eat. The service along with the special music was so sweet. I completely messed up the schedule as the Lord allowed great freedom to preach for 1:40 minutes without taking a break. Oh to be able to do this in America!!! These students took incredible notes. We did not even use the Chinese interpreter. God really allowed us to enjoy a piece of heaven on earth in this service. That is a long time to speak – but you don’t interrupt the Holy Spirit when He allows such an opportunity.

There is a buzz or air of expectancy or air of anticipation… the skit time, singing, mind teasers, free time, snack shop time is going terrific. Yet, just about the time to go to bed, yes, another great victory is won as another Chinese student asked to speak with her counselor and follows the same steps as others over the past 24 hours and trusts Christ! Woo hoo! This is AWESOME! They all want to be baptized too! They are ready to take this step of obedience. We have now witnessed the Holy Spirit convicting and convincing SIX precious souls that they needed Jesus in their life and they obeyed!

Finally, lights out; however, it is hard to sleep for all that God has accomplished in this day will not soon be forgotten…

The Day Camp team and I met at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday to walk to a Pizza Hut for supper. The 3/4 mile hike turned in to two miles. Marta was not very happy with me! She survived the walk though… one-way. We enjoyed a great meal at Pizza Hut, then the group walked next door to a Cold Stone Creamery. Most had a small dish of ice cream. This was a real treat considering the meals that this group has been eating.

Marta, Debbie, Lauren, Jenna, and the husband, of the family that TBT supports, took a taxi back to the hotel for a whopping 10 RMB. We decided to save the RMB and walk the two miles back to our hotel. Along the way we stopped at a Walmart to buy bread for the Teen Camp. This was quite an experience… the seafood section was unlike most have ever seen – squid, octopus, and every kind of sea creature imaginable. The smell was not the most pleasant and Candice had to cover her nose in this section… quite humorous. After buying 10 loaves of bread, we continued our walk to the hotel. About half way on our return trip, we walked beside a park where the older folks were dancing and exercising to Chinese music. It was immensely entertaining and we watched them as they waltzed through three songs. We were even invited to join but decided none of us were quite old enough.

Upon returning to the hotel (10:10 p.m.) I repacked my suitcase, checked for any new emails, and then prepared for an early morning departure for Teen Camp with my ten loaves of bread for Friday lunch. It was wonderful to see Joe, Janet, Candice, Diane, Marta, Jenna, Lauren, and Debbie. They are doing a marvelous job at Day Camp. Janet is quite sick but still has a huge smile on her face. I truly feel bad for her knowing that she is working so hard, yet, feels so awful with her head and chest cold.

It is now Thursday morning and it is time for me to head back to the Teen Camp in the mountains outside of Beijing. I am scheduled to speak at 11:00 a.m. so I need to arrive no later than 10:45 a.m. I am to meet the taxi driver at 9:00 a.m. outside my hotel. This is plenty of time to make the 1:15 minute ride; especially since we are going against the flow of traffic in Beijing. I arrive before the taxi driver and wait, wait, wait, and wait. It is now 9:37 a.m. when he shows up but I think that we are still just fine on the time.

I must interject a side story at this point. I love the smell of coffee BUT hate the taste of coffee. It is just nasty, defiled, and bitter (yes I know that you can put sugar in it). When the taxi driver arrives, he has a large cup of black coffee from Burger King. OK, what do I do in this situation? I do not want to offend this man; especially since the husband of the family that TBT supports is trying to win him to the Lord. So, I bravely wait until the coffee is cool enough to taste my first sip – YUCK, YUCK, and YUCK! This is nasty stuff and I understand again why it has been years since I’ve participated in this nastiness. Oh well, this “sludge” that was blacker than black and stronger than anything I’ve ever tried to drink was successfully downed over the course of this trip back to Teen Camp. In fact, it was so strong that I’ve not slept since drinking it! (jk)

OK, back to the story. I suspected that we might be in trouble when I jumped into the taxi only to find that there was this woman in the back seat. Hmmm, this is a strange thing! I’ve never had another passenger in a taxi ride before. Oh well, I’m in China and maybe the taxi driver didn’t want to make the long ride back to Beijing alone. I knew for sure I was in trouble when just ten minutes into our trip the driver stopped to ask for directions. To spare you the details, the long story short is this, we stopped a total of NINE times to ask for directions. We drove through the mountains (even though there is a four-lane road almost to the camp), crossed the dam, recrossed the dam, did a u-turn, did another u-turn, listened to laughter between the driver and his female passenger, stopped for her to go to the toilet, and finally arrived at an intersection that I recognized, just ten minutes from camp. Oh, by the way, this joyful taxi ride cost me 300 RMB. OUTRAGEOUS! Oh well, I did get a large cup of coffee out of it that I did not have to pay for…

Now by this time, I have already been texting Pastor Woody back-and-forth advising him of what was going on. Suffice it to say that I was not only late; I was seriously late and completely missed my speaking slot. Pastor Woody had to teach his Friday section on Thursday.

We finally arrived to deliver the bread to the kitchen ladies and to hear the conclusion of Pastor Woody’s lesson. There was such excitement when he finished because everyone wanted to tell me what had happened while I was gone the night before….

Following our hike we returned to the camp with a mandate for everyone to shower before supper. Supper was served at 6:00 p.m. Just how the ladies keep pulling off these miracles amazes the entire group. Tonight we had roast (fork tender), mashed potatoes (delightfully delicious), corn, Rice Krispy treats (handmade by Kimberly), and bread. It was a fabulous meal.

Once supper was completed, we rearranged our schedule so that I could speak 1 1/2 hours earlier than normal. The service was great with Shelby and Bethany singing before I taught/preached. Everyone listened intently and the hour and five minutes literally flew by. The son of the family that TBT supports continues to do a marvelous job interpreting for Pastor Woody and me.

Once the service was over, I caught a ride back to Beijing to see the Day Camp crew. I arrived back at the Holiday Inn Express around 9:30 p.m. I had a great meeting with Joe and Janet and then headed to my room to get caught up on my updates.

It is now Wednesday and the crew met at 7:30 a.m. for breakfast on the 4th floor. It was refreshing to see this part of the team and to hear of their stories. It was rather obvious that all eight have been dramatically impacted as each one had a story to tell. We loaded up around 8:15 a.m. to head to the Day Camp location. Folks, this is a rough, rough set up. This team is working without the benefit of air conditioning, on dirt floors (BTW, they sweep the dirt floors), and restrooms with no running water. This has not deterred this group one iota. They were off and running as soon as we arrived with all team members knowing what their responsibilities were and within a matter of minutes had everything organized and ready for the children.

These children are so incredibly lovable that you want to adopt and take them back to America. They LOVE the attention that the Americans give to them. Today I observed the story times, craft times, lunch time, teaching time, singing, etc. My oh my how they can sing. These children sing from their toe nails! There is no doubt that an impact has been made in the lives of over 50 children.

I was able to help cut up lotus root and tomatoes for lunch. The entire building uses one faucet for water. They wash hands, bodies, feet, and use this faucet for cooking. However, the meal that they cooked looked to be quite appetizing.

I watched with astonishment as Joe helped the older boys use tools and sandpaper for their craft time. Each boy is attempting to make a small bookcase. It has to be 110 or more in the little room that they are using. No one complains and no one wants to leave the room. Joe has made a tremendous impact on these young men.

Of course, behind the scenes, Janet is keeping everything running very smoothly. Although extremely challenging conditions, this team has adapted well and is actually flourishing despite the heat, dirt, and lack of water. I was able to attend the craft time with the smaller children and build a birdhouse. It was fun to help the children around me put together their birdhouse. The sweet little girl that was next to me followed what I was doing with my birdhouse. As I was painting my birdhouse, she would take her brush and take the paint off my birdhouse and put the paint on her birdhouse. She was adorable and even got paint on my pants and shirt! So thankful that God has blessed me beyond measure.

Hard to believe, today marks the half-way point of our trip. I am going to eat supper with the Day Camp crew and then head back out of town to rejoin the Teen Camp crew in the morning. Final interesting tidbit, today the police was looking for me… seems that they are watching us extremely closely and since I was not at the Teen Camp last night, they wanted to know where I was. This is kind of scary if you think about it. Big brother is truly watching here in China!

After the service on Monday evening, everyone had one hour of free time. It is thrilling to hear the Chinese students laugh, play ping pong, and interact with their American counterparts. At 10:00 p.m. it was time for everyone to go to bed. Just as everyone was getting comfortable for bed, the electricity goes out AGAIN. Well, everyone gets out their flashlights and you could hear everyone having a blast laughing and hollering – just like teenagers in America. Finally, everyone is settled down and we can go to sleep. Have you ever tried to sleep when everything is soaking wet. Here is what you do… put your sheets, pillow, and clothing in your bathroom and then turn on your shower for 10-15 minutes on the hottest water. As all of the steam is then absorbed by these items, take them out of the bathroom and lay down on them. This is what it feels like when you try to sleep. Everything is damp and your skin is really sticky. At some point I slipped off to sleep on Monday evening, only to wake up every hour. 5:30 a.m. finally arrives!

It is now Tuesday morning and I head for one of those rooms, that has a collapsed ceiling, to shower. Now you must know how different it is to shower here at the Teen Camp. When you walk into the bathroom there is a toilet, sink, mirror, etc. In this respect it is just like America. However, the hot water tank is just above the shower head. It looks like you have about two to two and one-half gallons of hot water. BUT, there is no tub or shower curtain. The drain is right in the middle of the bathroom. When you shower, everything gets wet. Yes, the water goes on top of the toilet, sink, mirror, etc. The floor is soaking wet. It is quite an interesting experience and I’m sure those within our group will talk about this unusual event.

John Buntin walked into his room to check on one of his guys… he was in the bathroom with the door wide open and there was his boy just taking care of his “business”, relieving himself in the drain in the middle of the floor. John had a meeting with his room to tell the boys that they needed to use the toilet for their “business.” I don’t think they understood why or what the big deal was with urinating on the floor.

By 6:45 a.m. there is a noticeable difference in the noise level throughout the building. At 7:00 a.m. everyone is in the dining room area and ready to eat cereal and watermelon for breakfast. They wiped out an immense volume of apple jacks, cheerios, corn pops. There may have been a fourth cereal but my brain is foggy as I write this update. We then transition from breakfast to our morning devotions.

Jonathan is in charge of the morning devotions and we are using the Striving Together resource, First Steps for New Believers. Jonathan is scheduled to cover two lessons but due to the language barrier, interpreting, and time to fill in all of the blanks, he is only able to complete one lesson. There is an excellent spirit among the group and it appears that all are excited about the days activities.

From morning devos there is God and I time (personal devotions), Scripture memory, and time with the counselors. Then we go into our morning session in which Pastor Woody speaks. He does a wonderful job talking about the authority that is in our lives. God is our authority and he really explains well the significance of God being a part of our lives, our obedience to our parents, and the other authorities in our lives. After the morning session, it is then time for team competition. Daniel Taylor is the game leader and is very organized and doing a remarkable job. The game just before lunch was incredibly intense and there were lots of bumps, bruises, cuts, and sweating. The Chinese students said the American students are too intense when playing competitions like this… in fact, we had one round where we only had our Americans and the Chinese students were shocked at the aggressiveness of Beth, Jonathan, Lauren and Analis against Shelby, Carissa, the son of the family that we support, and Keith Bee.

For lunch we have macaroni & cheese, hot dogs, fruit (watermelon, melon, apples), and cucumbers with lots of garlic. Again, they wipe out the food. There was only one Chinese student that had ever had mac & cheese. This is an American staple… they loved it and came back for 2nds, 3rds, and some 4ths until it was gone. Even one of the Chinese adults had 2nds and 3rds. She loved the mac & cheese. So far the ladies are our heroes. After lunch it is counselor time where the morning devotions and the morning sessions are revisited by the counselors.

After lunch, the group loads up on a bus (1,200 RMB) for a twenty minute ride up the side of the mountain to enjoy an afternoon of hiking…

Now that the teen campers have arrived, the teen camp staffers jump into action. All of the team members begin to unload luggage and supplies and carry them up the stairs in the rain. No complaints, only smiles and laughter. The teen campers are ushered into the registration room where they receive their room assignments, team shirts, devotional books, and schedule.

Pastor Woody asked me to walk up to the third floor to assess a situation. Oh No! Two more ceilings have collapsed and now we have a real opportunity for we have no place to relocate our campers. Everyone is just laughing by now. We end up making several changes that will work for the week. Four girls are now sleeping in the craft room, I am moved to the snack shop room, and two counselors are moving to the floor in another room. We have no more room to move campers so we are praying the other ceilings will stay put even as two other rooms show bulging and sagging ceilings. This is fun!

The Teen Camp orientation meeting is going well when all of a sudden I see Lauren Cutright wince and appear that she is ready to lose it. There is a huge bug that just jumped at her; no wait, it is a FROG! Daniel Taylor comes to the rescue, sort of. Lauren heads for a chair and is braver than anyone could have expected. Others would have been screaming for sure. Daniel misses the frog and as of this writing, the frog is still loose in this room. He has a hiding place in the tile floor. Other than this hilarious moment, the orientation meeting went well. The campers are now in full swing with everyone doing exceptionally well with the heat, humidity, rain, lack of electricity, deplorable kitchen conditions, mold, etc. Our team truly is remarkable for they wanted a true “mission trip” experience. I can assure all that the posh conditions that one might want on a mission trip has eluded this team completely.

Supper – will the kitchen ladies (Shelli, Emily, Kimberly) be able to pull off a hot meal, on-time, and edible? I must, must brag on these three ladies. Not only did they put together a meal on time, it was perhaps the best spaghetti meal that I’ve ever eaten and echoed by several who ate the meal.  The dessert was amazing! I do not know how they did it. This is humorous to me, the ladies fixed six pounds of spaghetti and a humongous pot of spaghetti sauce. By all accounts, they completely cooked too much food. We polled the Chinese teenagers and it was the first time any of them had ever eaten spaghetti. Not only was there nothing left over, there was a line that had to be turned away. They ate everything! Way to go ladies – you were simply amazing on this Monday night!

The song service was so sweet as all sang well. I had the glorious privilege to preach to this group on Monday evening. Everyone listened well and it was wonderful to see the appetite spiritually of the Chinese teenagers and Chinese adults in the service. There were no decisions as we did not and will not give an invitation as we do in America. Each person has been encouraged to talk with their counselor… at least three already have!

After unloading the bus, walking through the camp, assigning rooms on Sunday evening, our team met for a few minutes. It was raining outside which greatly helped with the heat… not so much on the humidity. The camp that we are using is terrible by US standards. The bad – two rooms have had parts of the ceiling collapse due to the excessive rain. There is black mold in many of the rooms. The kitchen is indescribable in its unsanitary state. These ladies shall deserve gold medals if they can pull this off. There are bugs, flies, gnats, etc. everywhere and on everything. It is certain that this kitchen has not been cleaned in years! They have the task to cook for 50 people and yes, three meals per day.

The electricity shuts off as soon as we turn on all of the lights. However, in spite of some pretty tough conditions, this team of 14 has a remarkable spirit! Teen Camp is what they came to do and nothing is going to deter or derail this effort. Everyone has a mind to work so the team goes to unpacking the 14 trunks and getting ready for the campers to arrive on Monday.

The bus driver is still waiting on the husband of the family that TBT supports and me to board the bus to return to Beijing. We finally board the bus and head back to Beijing. It is now a driving rainstorm and the driver gets lost. Great! It takes 45 minutes longer to return to Beijing than it should have taken. We finally make it. The husband of the family that TBT supports is hungry so we go to the wonderfully nutritious restaurant called Burger King. After eating and discussing all of the details of both camps, he leaves to go to his apartment. I had left my suitcases at the front desk prior to going to the Teen Camp. I retrieved my suitcases from the front desk and asked the clerk to call a taxi for me. (I had to go to a different hotel to sign the contract for our group stay on Saturday.) She said that you had to go to the street to hail a taxi. Did I say anything yet about it raining? Yes, there is a serious rainstorm outside that is refreshing… to watch. After she refused to call for a taxi, I headed to the street with two suitcases and a backpack.

25 minutes later… TWENTY FIVE MINUTES and counting. I am completely, 100% drenched at this point. Out of nowhere, I feel a tap on my shoulder… it scares me half to death in a millisecond. Here is a 4′ 5″ Chinese lady offering to hold an umbrella over my head. She had been watching me from the store window at 10:00 p.m. and felt sorry for me. At that very moment a taxi stops. Drenched, mildly grumpy, but oh so happy, I thanked the sweet older Chinese lady for offering her umbrella and then threw my luggage in this poor taxi driver’s car. He did not know where this hotel was that I was trying to go to. He spoke fluent Chinese and I, English. I refused to get out of his car. Finally he calls the number on the card that I gave him and then proceeds to drive slowly to the hotel. It should have only taken 15 minutes… he took 30. There was nothing I could do about it; at least I was out of the rain. I gladly paid the double-fare when we finally arrived. I can say that a hot shower never felt so good.

On Monday morning I took another taxi back to the hotel that I had just left the night before… still raining. The family that TBT supports only lives two blocks from this hotel. So I walk again in the rain to their apartment to meet the bus and the teenagers that are going to Teen Camp. We helped load the bus, the teen campers, and the wife of the family TBT supports. We are only leaving 35 minutes late which is pretty good considering the weather conditions. We had to make a second stop to pick up two more campers and bread for the evening meal. We are now only leaving one hour late. We arrived 1:15 late but we have arrived.

The Teen Camp staff is on the porch cheering our arrival on Monday at 12:30 p.m.! Hooray, we have arrived.

Today has been quite a day. It is now 11:00 p.m. and it is time for a little sleep. Last night was only three hours of sleep. Our team was ready to go at 8:30 a.m. this morning. Most of us had already eaten in the restaurant and our batteries were charged and ready to go! WOW! As soon as we walked outside we were hit with 100% humidity. This was going to be interesting for all of us.

Due to the size of our group and the size of the church family, it was decided to travel in a bus to a location North of Beijing. One of the church members owns a silver factory so it would not be unusual for a bus to stop and shop at his location. One of his rooms had been cleaned out and was set up with 55 chairs (all were full). We began to sing songs… no piano, no songleader waving his arms, and EVERY verse. We had a Chinese hymnal that had both Chinese and English words. I was standing at the back going through my thoughts for the morning message. I began to notice something amazing…

With each verse, various members of our group would begin dabbing their eyes. Pretty soon, almost the entire group was weaping as we sang songs (Amazing Grace, How Great Thou Art, etc.) Some more than others but is was touching. Here we are in a Communist country singing about the One who gave His life for us. At any moment, these Chinese Christians could be arrested for what we were doing. Yet, we all sang loud and boldly without any fear. Our Chinese and English voices blended together to form a sweet smelling savor for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

I then had the privilege to preach, with a Chinese interpreter, for one hour. It is always “fun” to preach the Word of God. However, to preach beside a man that had been saved and discipled by this family that TBT supports was a great, great honor. You will have to look at the pics but I am just saying, it was hot and humid and my clothes do not lie. I was soaking wet! What a joy to preach the Word of God in China.

During church they prepared a meal for us. I would try to describe it but just best left unsaid. It was interesting and somewhat delicious. I enjoyed pitching my watermelon rinds to the chickens in the courtyard and watching them fight over the rind. The ladies were able to see the craftsmanship of this silversmith – quite impressive. He has a contract with Crossway and is marketing his silver in 20 stores back in the United States. Of course they (the ladies in our group) had to purchase various items.

Once back on the bus we headed back to our  hotel to check-out by 1:00 p.m. We were late! The driver was driving so slow that I was ready to pull my hair out. We did not pass anyone except a flatbed truck loaded down with bricks. So frustrating… oh wait, I just preached the Word of God… maybe should let this one go.

Once back at the hotel, the Teen Camp crew checked out of the hotel. I ran to exchange some US money for Chinese RMB. As I returned from this exercise I arrived to see our guys loading a SMALL bus with our team and 30 pieces of luggage. Maybe the pics will show the hilarity of what we were trying to accomplish. We had to first put the young ladies in their seats. Then, we had to load the luggage and trunks in the aisle stacked up three high and all the way to the front of the bus. It is a miracle the back springs did not give way. The bus was way overloaded. However, we made it with no problems.

The Teen Camp crew arrived at their location in the mountains North of Beijing… just 50 yards from the Great Wall of China!

I ended my last update late in the afternoon on Saturday. After returning to the hotel from the Day Camp location and the team returning from the Summer Palace, I took Daniel, Jonathan, and Pastor Woody with me to go order and pickup pizzas at Pizza Hut. We have had several straight Chinese meals so I figured the group would like a taste of home.

We took a taxi to the Pizza Hut (25 RMB) and asked if we could order pizza-to-go? They handed us a menu and the charming Chinese young lady came over to help us with our order. I ordered 12 large pizzas (6 cheese, 4 Hawaiian, and 2 bacon lovers). She took our order and came back five minutes later to inform us that they only had enough dough/crust to make nine large pizzas. So we changed our order to nine large pizzas and five medium pizzas. She rang-up our order and brought me the receipt to pay. Oh, wait a minute, now they do not have enough dough/crust to make any large pizzas. I began to change the order again when she said if I pay now they will have enough dough/crust.

I then asked if she would give me a discount; she said, “yes! 90%.” Wow, that sounds too good to be true. We assumed that she meant 10% and that we would pay 90%. However, her boss came down from upstairs and began to chew this girl out. We all felt bad, even though we could not understand anything that was being said. I decided to give her a big tip (20 RMB) for helping us out. She was noticeably upset at the thought of receiving a tip. She pointed to the cameras that were overhead. At any rate, I paid for the 14 pizzas and she said it would be 30-40 minutes before the pizzas would be ready.

We saw a Starbucks and decided to go get a drink, cool down, and wait for our pizzas. However, on the way to Starbucks we saw that there was an event going on in the square that involved basketball. A basketball court had been constructed and encased with green mesh wire. After watching several players warm up, we found the entrance and I encouraged Pastor Woody, Jonathan, and Daniel to see if they could play. A tournament was in progress with the schedules outside the court. Jonathan bravely went inside the court area, walked up to the table, and with his excellent hand motions asked if they could play. So, the referees interrupted the tournament schedule to allow these three guys play.

It was quite a game and they drew many, many spectators. These white Americans were certainly an attraction. The guys played hard, did not have an opportunity to warm-up, and only lost by one basket. It was great fun. All of this took 40 minutes, so we hustled back to the Pizza Hut. They had made all of our pizzas and realized that they had made one wrong pizza – a shrimp pizza – yuk! We said we would take it. While they were finishing up the order, I ran to the street to hail a taxi. The guys jumped in and off we went back to the hotel. The group was awaiting our arrival at the 4th floor restaurant. Pastor Woody and Jonathan carried the pizzas while Dan and I hoofed it to Seven-Eleven to buy 25 drinks.

Supper was light-hearted and relaxing for Saturday had been a long day! Now everyone was encouraged to rest, prepare for Sunday, and be in the lobby with their church clothes on by 8:30 a.m.

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