Meeting Relatives

Dinner with 表姨媽s & 表姨丈s, also got an haircut from another 表姨媽. It was a good chat with them, catching up and learning more about my past and my family.

--> Family Photos updates

The Peak/Stanley

The Peak and Stanley today for the Dragonboat Festival.

--> The Peak and Stanley Photos

Lamma Island

Went to Lamma Island today with Jenny. When we got off the ferry, it was pouring rain... but amazingly, God provided with the sun and covered us with warmth.

Sorry, I don't have the time update everything. Jenny's blog have a good recap of the day.

www.xanga.com/jennybchu

--> Lamma Island Photos

Plans for the upcoming week

Sat, May 27 - Cheung Chau Island with Alex and Witty
Sun, May 28 - Church, dinner w/ Yee Ma
Mon, May 29 - Shenzhan, China with Mike
Tue, May 30 - Lamma Island
Wed, May 31 - The Peak/Repulse Bay/Stanely, Dragonboat festival
Thur, Jun 1 - Logos HK reunion
Fri, Jun 2 - harvest field, Thailand

Shenzhan

Went to Shenzhan with Mike and Nikki today. Sorry, no pictures. I did not bring my camera for safety reasons. I can't believe I survived. lol. Nothing like getting yelled at by the border guard as soon as we left the Hong Kong border, and having faith in the drivers to stop as we crossed the streets. It is like a different world out there.

Don't Compromise... Fight!

The Lord had promised the Israelites the Promised Land, yet, the Israelites still had to march into the Promised Land and claim it for themselves. They had to fight for it.

We cannot just sit around and wait for God to drop His providence on out lap. This is all part of the lesson in patience. Wait on the Lord and fight for His promise.

However, this is what usually happens: As we wait for the Lord of His promise, we become impatient and try to resolve His promise ourselves. As a result, we compromised on His promise and miss out on His full blessings. God's promise is perfect, and because of His love for us, it is not in His will for us to receive a watered-down version of His promise. But it also does not mean we sit waiting and do nothing.

Just like the way He called the Israelites, the Lord wants us to fight for His promise. He wants us to rely on Him, obey Him, and fight to claim His promise for us.

Matthew 13:44"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
45"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

God's promise is like finding a hidden treasure or fine pearls. Would you sit around and do nothing? Or compromise on this great treasure? Or would you go to lengths to fight and claim this promise?

Enough sitting and compromising... I think I know what I must do to claim His promise for me. ;)

--> The Vine photos updated

Dinner with 姨媽 & 姨丈

Tonight I had dinner with 姨媽, 姨丈. I am beginning really enjoy the conversations I have with 姨媽, 姨丈. With 姨丈's engineering education from MIT, everytime we sit down we have an awesome discussion on theology. LOL. I'm turning into a Sunday School geek.

Conversations with 姨媽 is equally awesome. Since we only see each other twice a year we spend our time catching up with what's happening with the family.

Praise God for a wonderful family.

An Urge to Play Tetris

Raining today, so my trip to Cheung Chui with Alex and Witty was cancelled. We went to catch a movie, X-3, and ran around the city instead. We were thinking about bowling, so we took the MTR to Olympic, but the waiting list for bowling was so long that we went to “Adventure Zone” instead. We felt like kids breaking the record at the “Wack-the-mole”.

Afterward, we MTR to TST for some Russian cuisine. The food was amazing, we had a chicken casserole and a ribs kabob. :P There was live Russian music too… it made me feel like playing Tetris.

--> Witty and Alex Photos

--> Scenery Photos updated

New Friends in Prayer

With the passing of each day, I begin to see great God's plan is. So much better and grander than anything I can ever come up with.

Why did we panic when this trip was postponed? Human nature. Losing control. But weren't we all created in God's image? Why panic when we lose control of our lives. It is because of Sin obstructing our line of sight to God. Because if Sin we became turned our focus from God to our sins, therefore losing sight of His perfect plan and holding on to our temporary and imperfect lives.

How great is God's plan? By coming to Hong Kong first He has provided me with a church filled with prayers. Mark and Andria, Vinnie and Emi, Mike and Hannah, Alex, Winnie, Joanna, Gloria, and the Togo brothers in Christ. What else can I ask for? Thank You, Lord.

Me, Sheung Yin, Jenny, Mark and Andria

--> The Vine photos

The Great Occupation of All

Hanging around my grandparents house for the past week I realized what is the greatest and the most demanding occupation in the world -- it is that of a housewife. Because of the small kitchen in Hong Kong, grandma does not allow me of enter the kitchen. (Well, if she's already in the kitchen there is no room for another body anyway) But observing 嬤嬤 over this week, everyday after dim sum, she goes to the market for groceries. Once she comes home, she begins the preparation for dinner all the while she serves lunch. After lunch, of course there are dishes. Same during the dinner hours, preparations and dishes. I wanted to help at least with the dishes, but once again the kitchen it out of bound. So all I could do is setting the table and whipping down the table afterwards.

嬤嬤 is 85 this year… if has been 20 years since 爺爺 retired from the police force and yet there is no retirement in sight for 嬤嬤. Therefore, I shall declare her job as the greatest occupation in the world!

Three cheers for 嬤嬤!!!

After one week in HK

Hong Kong is as beautiful as ever. Though it has been mostly cloudly the time I have been here. I am counting every drop of rain as blessings.

Funny, people say this is a fast pace city, I usually find myself walking faster everybody else. Whenever Jenny and I are running around in the city, we constantly have to remind ourselves to slow down and enjoy what God is showing before us.

It has been 18 years since my family have moved away from this city in search for the "Canadian" dream (lol), but it seems like I did not skip a beat in terms of keeping up with the pace of this city.

Spending the week here I grew to appreicate the politeness of the people in Canada. How fortunate I have to grow up in Toronto. Yet, my heart goes out to those in Hong Kong -- sick and tired for things that are fake, and longing for what's real.

--> Scenery Photos

Tuesday, May 23. Macau.
Went to Macau with Jenny and her Aunt and grandma. This is the first time all three of them have been to Macau, so I became the tour guide. Hahaha... and what a terrible tour guide I was. I just love the street of Macau, you can get lost in one and never see the light of day again.
I am amazed at Jenny's grandma's endurance. Praise the Lord. We covered a great distance on foot and yet she was able to keep up without any trouble.

--> Macau Photos







Wednesday, May 24, Wetland Park
What a blessing to witness the nature in HK. I took this opportunity to venture into NT (a whole different country to me) up to Sheung Shui to meet up with Jenny and head off to Wetland Park.
http://www.wetlandpark.com/en/index.asp
We were blessed with awesome weather for a nature walk. It was cloudy but did not really rain. I my opinion, they did an excellent job putting this park together. Combining a nature reserve with educational component. It was definitately more fun than self-guided nature walks in Ontario.
It is too bad that the population in Hong Kong have yet to learn to appericate nature. They are looking for a specticule, expecting the wildlife to put on a show. Also they need to learn to repect nature.
All in all, we had a great time. Learned a lot about the wetlands too.

--> Wetland Park Photos

Sleep

Thanks for everyone's prayers. I got 8 hours of sleep last night. Though I woke up twice in the middle of the night, it is the first time in many nights I got more than 5 hours of sleep.

Are you ready for His gift?

Patience is a funny lesson to learn.

If you give a scalpel to child, he/she will damage the scalpel, others and even him/herself. If you give a scalpel to a master surgeon, he/she could heal many lives. Yet, this master surgeon was too once a child.

In the same way, God may give a vision of a gift to His children, but it is until we mature in Him we cannot have this gift for ourselves. We all want our Lord to open the floodgate of heaven, but will we be ready for it and use it in its full potential?

Patience. Patience for the Lord to teach us, equip us and prepare us for His gift. So that we will treasure it and use it for God's work.

What is Real?

After spending close to a week in HK, I'm starting to understand the culture here. Here is a short summary of what I observed so far. As I stated in a pervious post, some things does not change.

1) It is all about making money.
The latest craze is the stock market. With the global public offereing for Bank of China, people line up just to get an application to apply of shares of Bank of China. Also, your success is measured by your career.

2) Free is good.
Another fruit of the materialist culture is the craze for anything that is free. People line up for free oil, free toothpaste, free cookies. Eventhough if it is completely useless to you, if it is free, you need to get it.

3) What is real?
This one is the best one of all, to cap off the fears of this culture. Fake merchadise has been around for a long time. Every Asian family in one way or another owns a fake LV, fake Prada, fake Nike, etc. It is not an issue if it is something you wear. But now, thanks to the greed and the morals of those in China, anything can be fake. Fake soya sauce, fake egg, fake everything.

The news are filled with cases of hospitailization due to fake foodstocks or banned food production practices. Even medical procedures uses illegal medicines (ie. PAAG). People in Hong Kong don't know what is real anymore.


To top it all off, putting these three points I have observed together: People line up for free cookies. Then upon getting the cookies, they realized it was made in China, Guangzhou, and doubt the cookies.

I really feel for the people of Hong Kong. Why spend your life chasing for something and then in the end doubt whether or not you got is real. That why these people need the Truth. The "Real Deal". God, give me strength to share the Truth to these people.

No Expectation --> Great Expectation

People often ask me what I expect from this mission trip. There are so many things I can expect from this trip, from the people I meet to the people I interact with. But if I place an expectation on these things what if my expectations are not in God’s plans?

We all have dreams and hopes, but how are our expectations aligned with God's will?

Matthew 26:42 "My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done."

I realized I needed to give my heart up to the Lord, and have His will be done. By having no expectation of my own will lead to great expectation from God's plans.

Crazy Pills

To prevent malaria, I've been taking Mefloquine Hydrochloride tablets... once a week, till 4 weeks after I return to Canada.

However, this medication has an interesting side-effect:

"Occasionally, more severe neuropsychiatric disorders have been reported such as: sensory and motor neuropathies (including paresthesia, tremor and ataxia), convulsions, agitation or restlessness, anxiety, depression, mood changes, panic attacks, forgetfulness, confusion, hallucination, aggression, psychotic or paranoid reactions and encephalopathy. Rare cases of suicidal ideation and suicide have been reported though no relationship to drug administration has been confirmed."

Hence, the "crazy pill".

Maybe because of the side-effects, spiritual attacks, or both, I dunno, but I had a pretty vivid dream last night. I dreamt that I was pleading with 婆婆 to have some sort of medication and I was sobbing. That was weird... when I woke from my dream, I didn't want to open my eyes because knowing all I'll see is the red light from the alter.

But I have nothing to fear... :)

Matters of the Heart

Ever since the flight to Hong Kong, I have been paying close attention to my heart. Emotionally, I thought I was acting fragile because merely thinking about 嬤嬤, 爺爺 moved me to tears. Thinking about the upcoming mission trip moved me to tears. Thinking about God's plan for me moved me to tears. What's going on, Joel?

Then, I realized Jesus was too moved to tears when he prayed for His children. Is it true that an emotionally sensitive heart can be moved and shaped by God? Maybe God are using these tears to soften this harden clay of my heart.

Pastor John Read from Sunday Service said it perfectly:

"As the metal deforms itself, it increases in strength."
~Pastor Tony Read

In the process of being deformed, shaped and molded, our heart is strength and equipped to do God's work.

Pictures - May 21

嬤嬤, 爺爺


嬤嬤 morning exercise.


Cousins: 華華 and 阿Man, 昌昌, 嬤嬤, 爺爺, me, 雯雯

Shrewd as Snakes/Innocent as Doves

2:00a, I’ve been up for an hour already. Jetlagged? Still? No, because I would stay up all day and fall asleep exhausted by 9:00/10:00p. it has been like this for the past 3 nights. Sleep for 4 hours, wake up still tired but cannot go back to sleep. Actually, it has been like this for the past month. I’m worried. I know this is taking a toll on my body.

I also know that this is a form of spiritual warfare. Satan is trying to strip away my energy and strength. Trying to destroy my body.

Matthew 10 “28Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 30And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”



Go ahead and try to destroy my body. You cannot touch my soul for it belongs to my Father. And God loves me so much more than this little sparrow in Kowloon Park. If you want to play, if you keep me awake I will spent this time praying and dwelling in God's word.

Matthew 10 “16I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.”

Bring it on, Satan. With the Triune God playing on my side I’ll play hardball with you any day.

Changes

Heading into my fourth day in HK, I have seen all sorts of weather, all sorts of people. How fast does a city grow? Numerous new buildings, the re-urbanization of Wan Chai. How much more changes will there be the next time I return?

The passion of individuals also changed. When I came back 4 years ago, real estate was all the hype. Now, all 爺爺 talks about is the stock market. The first thing on TV is the stock ticker and business reports.

But one thing remained the same, for which I praise God for, is the morning exercise. Praise God for blessing 嬤嬤, 爺爺 with health and energy. As I am writing this, 嬤嬤 and羅婆婆 are screaming at the top of their lungs, exercising their voices. Joy overwhelm my soul at the sight of this. Joy, yet a hint of fear. Fear of being a bad witness. Fear of not seeing them in eternality. Yet, I can only do my part, only God can change lives and soften hearts.

Time

3:27a, HK time. Flying over Japan, 3 hours till we land. I just realized that I would not have seen the sun for almost 24 hours. But the moonlight glittering off our port side wing is magnificent. Thank God for the south facing window seat.

It was only merely 24 hours ago that I frantically fired off my last minute emails. Yet time flew while I was on this plane. I only got up to stretch while we were on the ground in Anchorage. Praise God. Over the last few weeks time seem to move in slow motion. I am glad to have this time to wind down and relax. Relax a trans-pacific flight? Funny Joel. But once again in Christ anything is possible.
I am nervous about the next two weeks. God make me a good witness to 嬤嬤, 爺爺 and 雯雯.

Are you ready?

Anchorage, 2:22am local time. We have landed into Anchorage for refuel. Service vehicles and crew buzz aroundthe Airbus A340-300. The passengers are required to stay on the aircraft during the refueling and serviceing. Which is kinda perfect because during the first leg of the flight my reading lamp did not work. For 6 hours I could not read or write. Hopefully an engineer could come and fix my lamp - I must learn to be patient.

Praise God that on this Airbus I get my very own personal TV. I was able to watch The Chronicles of Narnia and CSI:New York to pass time. I am sad to say that this is my first time watching Narnia from start to finish. But I could relate to Peter as he was called to protect Narnia. He knew of his calling, yet he himself and his family boubted his abilities and readiness. Throughout last week, brothers and sisters had constantly asked me the same thing: "Are you ready?" I really don't know how to anser that question. I would like to say after experience the journey just to get to this point, it should have somehow equipped me for the ministry ahead. Yes, it has, but to say I am truly ready would mean that I nee to check my humility. The truth is I am not ready, yet in God's plan he will guide me and protect me and my team through this mission. And in God's designated monemt, with the prompting and leading of the Holy Spirit, I will have everything I need to accomplish God's work.

It is middle of the night in Anchorage, yet it looks like the sun is about to rise. Oh I do wish I could take in a breath of cool Alaskian air. Do remember and prayer for Dave, Michelle and the Alaska Team, who are corrently in their ministy.

Perfect, the engineer is here. I havee light for the rest of my flight. :)

Team Mekong

Please pray for my mission team:

Shannon Conaghan – team leader
Joel Tang
Kathryn Gerwig
Kim Raymond
Tyler
And a local guide.

Do pray for the local guide. I do not know his name yet, but I just heard today that he received news of a family emergency and have returned to Singapore. Pray for his situation and his readiness to lead our team.

Mekong Blog

All pack, all ready to go. Both my arms hurt from vaccinations. First off, thank you all so much for you financial and, more importantly, prayer support. It has been quite a ride getting to this point. From the lengthy team building process, the postponement of the trip to the emergency changes for the itinerary, there was my share of doubts. But in the end, God comforted my heart and prevail in all situations. Praise God for this opportunity and experience. There will be many stories, testimonies, and pictures to share. I have set up this blog to share my experience.