News indeed!

Dear friends,

I am so grateful to God and so blessed by Him just to be here and serving Him and beginning my life's journey doing His work. It's so awesome and words alone cannot say how I feel, but everytime there's chance, I would be singing and shouting praise to the Lord our God. Halleluyah! Generally, it's good to know where I'm heading, and good to know that God knows the way there.

This past week, I have two highlights that I would like to share with you. And the first is this, my parents have given me their blessing for my work. I didn't expect this, because first, I am the oldest son in a Chinese family, and second, they've given me so much, it's become hard to see how they'd let their son go into fulltime missions work, and possibly go to Africa and be really out of reach. And with their blessing, I feel complete and I feel that there is no way that anyone can keep me out of Africa, and I'll definitely do my work there, soon as the Lord sends me. I am so encouraged by this, and I just really want to thank God for showing my parents how to let go, and for taking care of them, so that I can be free to serve Him all my life.

I love my family very much and I've been stuck between wanting to serve and wanting to provide for my family for a long time, and I think it's the only thing that's anchored me here and kept me from leaving. But this time hadn't been wasted, because God had used it to show my parents that I'll be stuck at this point if I can't make up my mind about this, and I know I can't, so they made it for me. My parents let go, gave me their blessing, and told me to make that choice, between putting family first, or putting God first. I guess they realised after all these years that unless if I'm doing my true calling, I won't be happy, and that my calling is to serve God in the front lines.

This is really encouraging, and it brings my mind back to the story of the Jailer who believed in Christ and then through his faith, his whole family is saved. (Acts 16:16-35) I've always wondered at what that means, because obviously salvation is a personal choice, and you have to choose to accept Jesus, to be saved. But I guess, what I'm getting from my experience in this situation is, God is definitely and willingly going to take care of my family, whilst I'm choosing Him and choosing to serve Him with all of my life, because then, I would not have the time or resources to do what I need to be doing as a son. And what I didn't bank on was that God isn't just going to stop at physically keeping my folks healthy and living, but He's really going to show them more how to also be spiritually well, even though I won't be there to show them myself. This is really amazing! Praise God!

The second thing that I wanted to share about is a grave mistake that I've made over the last 6 weeks of serving here at HOLF. There are other volunteers who are here for a much shorter time than I intend to, and a lot of them are youth and university students, so naturally I took to them and had chosen to spend more time being in the same place and doing the same chores as they are, and forgot that my responsibilities, if I wanted to serve fulltime, included a lot more than what is demanded from the short-term volunteers. Pui Yee, the head nurse, reminded me, and I felt very ashamed of my actions, and became very gloomy for a couple of days, especially because she mentioned that if I'm not suitable, then I won't be able to serve for a year, and that came as a very shocking reminder. Now the pressure from the reminder was immense and very overwhelming because Pui Yee was going to leave on a missions trip 11 days from the serious talk that we had, and I wasn't sure I could change her mind in that few days, but I realised that there was time left and I wasn't going to give up on God. I needed to shape up and to be working hard, remembering hard how to run things, and become as able as any of the fulltimers to run the entire operation, because unless if I know full and well how everything goes, I will not fulfill their requirement.

And that's what I did. I am a bit slow still, but I haven't made any mistakes or needed any reminders from the other fulltime health workers, and I'm working my butt off and God is really giving me enough energy to last it out, and I feel that I'm doing quite well. Praise God! Pui Yee's now on the trip, and will be back in 10 days, now there's still a chance that I will be made to leave on August 12 with all the other college volunteers, but I'm no longer worried about Pui Yee not being here, and that I can't show her that I'm capable of serving, because I know God is in control, and what I do unseen by others is seen by God, and if God has a mind to keep me here or to send me to Africa, noone can take me away. And between Pui Yee's reminder, and my parents' encouragement and advice, I'm really choosing God each and every day. That is so great!

And that's my update for the past weeks. Thanks for your prayer support, it's what I need most. Keep praying for my work, and my health, and also for the kids' health and for their joy and their own unique spiritual experience and journeys. I don't know how receptive they are, but maybe they have a better way of talking with God and we're just missing out.

I now have $1,700 (US$213) of sponsorship for each month, together with my tutoring ($1,800/month), it's enough to cover my expenses, but after the summer, I won't be able to tutor as much, and that may change the way things are. So also please keep praying for my financial support, and for God to really help me out here. I'm sure He will, but it's really good to pray and ask about it, we are His children after all.

God bless you, my friends.

James

Contact information and sponsorship.

In the case where you'd like to sponsor me, and have already given it deep thought. Here are a few methods that you can send me your money.

1. Call me or talk to me in person if you are in Hong Kong, and I can give you my bank account number, and you can transfer directly.
2. If you are not in Hong Kong, I have a Paypal account and you can donate to me through there.
3. You may also choose to give it to me directly, though I would always encourage you to give it some thought and prayer first, because I like things to be intentional rather than spontaneous.

My Paypal account email is jameswithorphans@gmail.com.

If you are sending money on Paypal, it would be good if you can let me know in advance how much you'd like to give, either through email (jameswithorphans@gmail.com) or through Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/jameswithorphans). It would also be good if you can send your gifts quarterly if you'd like to support me on a regular basis, that way we can cut down on the transaction cost on Paypal.

Thanks for raising this question, and thanks for following my work.

On a side note, prayer support is also very much needed, so be sure to pray for my health and the health of all the residents and workers at the orphanage. Thanks!

The past few weeks..

My dear friends,

Life has been so filled with joy and praises, God has been blessing me in so many ways. I love everything about being here at the Home of Loving Faithfulness, from changing dirty diapers to taking the kids out on their walks. I don’t always find the work exciting, and there are some boring parts, but all in all, I end each of my days feeling very joyful and very tired, and my health has also been improving a great deal. Though I’m still somewhat careless, and end up getting hurt. Last week I hurt my back, and this week I had my toe stitched up. But both injuries are healing well, so praise the Lord!

I’ve been sharing a very close fellowship with some of the other volunteers here, as well as keeping a good relationship with all of my other colleagues. This has been a real blessing, as I had been worried about having difficult colleagues. Please pray for me and my association with both the Christians and the non-believers amongst us, as I would like to grow deeper in my bonds with both of these.

As far as volunteers go, there are a lot of volunteers that come once a few times a week for several hours, as well as ones that come and live in for a few days at a time. Almost 3 weeks ago, four American students, 3 girls and 1 boy, came to work with us and they’re staying for 6 weeks, and two of them are in my unit, the boy (Lap Ching) and a girl called Anna. And through my association with Lap Ching, actually, I’ve been spending more off my “off” time in fellowship and talking to different people that lived in the rooms next to us, and it’s been wonderful, because we’re starting to expand our nightly fellowship from just us two at the chapel, to include a nurse from the Ark called Joanna. It’s been a lot of fun, and we’ve been doing a lot of sharing and it’s been a real blessing.

There was a lady that volunteered a while ago, and she only stayed for two weeks, but during her two weeks, she’s done such amazing work, just serving however possible, either helping the kitchen staff with the dishes or cleaning, or helping Pui Yee with the garden, and throughout that entire time, she’s also been witnessing to one of our unbelieving colleagues, and she also spent a lot of time with Lap Ching and I. She’s very humble and very blessed, and she’s taught me a few things and has been a great source of encouragement and a reminder for each day, even though she’s back to her family almost a fortnight ago. We’re still keeping in touch, and through her sharing with her fellowship, one of her friends has been enlightened and has offered to sponsor me for my work, and I feel greatly blessed. Between the two of them, they’ve committed to giving $1,200 a month for a year, and that brings my deficit to $3,800. I’m still in need of funds, but I know God will take care of this for me. My rule for offerings is that if God leaves you no doubts about giving to me, then I’ll accept it. For non-believers, I’ll accept your gifts without asking you to pray, because I know God’s association with you is very different from what He has with ones who listen for Him.

Recently, I’ve been responsible for leading a small group on Sundays, we’re going through a book called Holy Conversation, and this week’s chapter is about Talking about Jesus. Since I’ve cut my toe, I’ve been sent home to rest, and I’ve been spending this valuable time meditating and getting my homework done for the week. I realised despite knowing all the stories in the Gospels, and knowing about Christ’s miracles, I cannot retell His story from another angle, or in more depth. I’m just limited to what I know from the Gospels, and the Bible isn’t exactly a highlighted studying guide, and I’m stuck! So I realised that one of my first and foremost goals for this year has just revealed itself to me. I need to know Jesus. I need to know who I claim to be my Savior, who I accept as my heavenly Father, and who I call Lord. I need to know who I am serving. It’s such a big shock that I’ve been serving Him for so long and I haven’t even scratched the surface of who He really is. Blind faith indeed! So I’m going to work really hard, and study and really get to know Christ. That’s my first goal.

My second goal is to, of course, prepare my way to Africa. That’s where I’m called to serve, so I need to know how to get in, how to survive, and how best to train for it. So that means kinds of ministries, living expenses, travel and medical insurance, cost of training, etc. My first step towards this is to get back in touch with my friend, Cheuk Chung from OM that I bumped into on Doulos, and from there, who knows.

So those are my goals. And now for some prayer requests. My dad might be transferred to Australia for a year, so please pray for my family, for our health and for our love for each other. Pray that I’ll be able to really get some housework done on my day off, and really show my brother and my mother that I do care for them, despite needing to be away most of the week to seek my purpose. My parents don’t believe in Christ, so please pray for that. And also, please pray for my brother’s studies, he’s going into year 11 (grade 10, or form 5) next year, and there’ll be a lot of coursework to do and a lot of important exams that he has to work with. Just pray for clarity of mind, and steadfastness and patience in his studies. And that he’ll know when to rest, and how much to work, and that he’ll have a goal to work towards, rather than just letters on a grading sheet.

My dear friends, also pray for my work, my clarity of mind, as I do have a bit of attention deficit and that becomes apparent sometimes, but God will account for that for whatever plans that He has for me, and He will give me a hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11). Please pray for my steadfast love for our King, and my health and my love for the kids.

In Christ’s Name I serve,

James.

June 7th to June 20th

These last two weeks had been amazing, I don't know where to start! But let's start with lighter stuff and build up from there. Last week, God had given me the chance to meet some of the volunteers at the St. Stephen's Society, which is a organization set up by the Christian missionary, Jackie Pullinger back in the fifties. It's purpose is to reach out to drug addicts and invite them to become part of God's family. The government gave them a beautiful plot of land on a hill in Shatin to establish their rehab. One of the friends of the head nurse (Pui Yee) at the orphanage had sold their flat, and wanted to give away the things in it, so Pui Yee remembered that the St. Stephen's Society needed more clothes, and drove them over to see what they can find there. We found clothes, baskets, mattresses, and tools, and they were really glad to receive all these donations. After we got back to their rehab, Craig gave me a tour, and that was pretty amazing. God has blessed their ministry so much, and I can see why, they have saved and provided homes and families for 50-60 addicts, and all this was done without a stable financial backing, just by relying on big and small donations over the years from people who learn about the ministry.

This week, we visited MV Doulos, which is the missions cruise ship that goes around the world selling books of a kinda for low prices, or in some countries, giving books away for free. This ship is owned by Operation Mobilization, and its goal is to go to different countries around the world and support them with food, water, and knowledge, and also through that, a testimony of the Christian faith. Pui Yee was part of a team that was going to go on a short term missions trip with OM, but it was cancelled because of some recent bombing in the area, so she was invited to go on a tour of the MV Doulos and she invited everyone else to go. It was quite amazing. Firstly, when we got there, Pui Yee, knowing my goal is set on serving orphans in Africa, introduced me to Mr. Lau, which turns out to be someone I have worked with before when I was serving at OM (summer 2002)! And then, she also found out that Mrs. Lau was part of her church back in London. It's so great to be blessed with re-aquaintances like these. And the tour was really fun too. They have 350 volunteers on the ship, ranging from doctors to dentists to firemen to engineers to laundry ladies and deckhands, and they have to pay to serve on the MV Doulos because of the heavy costs that the ship and the mission bears. It's pretty amazing still, it would be awesome to be part of that. But then again, it's not my calling, so I can only rejoice for those who are, I have somewhere else that I have to go to serve, but we're all serving the same God, and that's what counts!

Now to the meat of the week's happenings! Last week, I met a little girl called Tung Tung, and she has extra chemicals in her head that causes her to feel itchy on ever part of her skin all day long, and she would scratch without stopping even if it hurts and it bleeds, so what they do is that they wrap her up like a mummy and strap her to a chair, and put bandages on her arms to straighten them. She's also under-developed, so despite being 8, she's still really small and really cute. She has a deformed face, and her eyelids are too big that she's long learnt to lift her eyelid with her finger by poking her thumb into her eye, and that sometimes causes bleeding. And since she doesn't see so much, she's really attracted to the TV, so whenever we let her walk around, she would stand right up to the TV and touch it, and gurgle with joy. I hate seeing that happen, because it's not right, it's a big attraction even for normal children, but most parents would restrain them from getting up too close. Well, the first time I met her, I fell in love with her. I knew there was something I could do to help her, she just had so much extra energy stored up, being a child, and being in that chair makes her want to scratch. So I decided that I would take her for walks and play with her daily, so that she'll be distracted, and she'll be healthy and she'll strengthen her legs, and hopefully grow enough in other areas that the scratching will go away. That's my hope anyway. She's really smart and she realised that I was spending lots of time with her, so she recognises me and really enjoy being with me. It's such a joy! I would take her for walks everywhere away from the TV, and the heat outside, and we'd go upstairs to the dorms, or next door to the family unit call the Ark, which is for the more capable disabled children, who live in a family fashion to prepare them for adoption. It's my hope that one day, she'll be moved there. That would be good. But in the meantime, I'll adopt her in my heart, and love her like a daughter. I quickly found it heart breaking to restrain her from the TV and from scratching, but it's needed, and once she's free from her chair, and we're exploring the different places in the orphanage, it's become another world for us. And what's really good about all this is that she used to be restless at night because of the itching, but since I started spending so much time walking and being with her, she's become so exhausted that she falls asleep shortly after being put to bed. Thank God!

There's another girl called Wing Sze, and her testimony can be found on the HOLF website. She's 25, and she can't move below the neck and she coughs and suffers a lot from that, and she can't speak, but she learnt English just by listening to it, and is really smart. In short, there's nothing wrong with her brain. But the only way you can talk to her is to ask her yes/no questions, and she'll stick out her tongue to say yes. It's really hard, I tried talking to her but I can never formulate a series of questions to ask in order to converse with her. That gets me frustrated at times, and that's what happened yesterday. I tried to read to her, but she didn't like the book, and I didn't know for a while until she turned away her face and frowned. It must have been because it was a grade school fiction book, maybe she thought I was insulting her, but I really did like that book. Oh sigh, I didn't know what I could say to explain it. But a miracle happened! To me it was a miracle, because I couldn't tell her the things that I wanted her to know or to talk to her like I would to a normal person. I was taking care of Tung Tung, and we went into Wing Sze's family unit, and when Wing Sze watched me take care of Tung Tung with so much love and caution, she watched very intently and after a while, she joined in with her laughter. I'm glad she understood, and she could see how much I love Tung Tung, despite Tung Tung being different. Since both Tung Tung and Wing Sze enjoyed it, I think we'll go back there more often. Tung Tung likes exploring and the Ark is pretty cozy compared to the Big Unit that she lives in, which is more practical.

So I had a really wonderful week. And thanks for your prayers again. Please pray for my health, as I caught a cold last week, and all the coming in and out of air conditioned rooms and into the hot outdoors is causing the problem.

Oh, I also have a new roommate, he's called Lap Ching. He came to serve this summer instead of just visiting Hong Kong between school years. He's 18 and he has a great heart. There are also 3 American girls that will be joining us next week, once they've been quarantined for a week. They'll be such a joy to have, the kids will get a lot of quality time. Pray that I do spend more time with other kids once they're here, because I'm sure they'll give Tung Tung a lot of love too.

Also, a prayer of thanksgiving. One of the short-term volunteers here, after hearing about my calling, decided to help me fundraise amongst her friends and her church, that would be interesting. So pray for that. And pray that God will provide for me financially, so that I can support myself in this work without burdening my parents, which is the last thing I'd want to do.

Dear friends, thanks again for reading in. God bless, and have a great week!

Good news!

Dear friends, I have some good news today. Firstly, I have completed 50 hours of service at the orphanage. The administration had a meeting this week, and they decided to invite me to continue serving with them for a year. That is really good news for me, because I've been in constant prayer concerning whether this is really suited for me, and about alternatives, but despite how different and difficult this work is compared to anything that I've done before, I've been able to cope. Praise the Lord!

And on the side of that, they now have a room to accomodate me! It has 2 beds, a desk with window view, half a porch, and a sink and closet. It looks really comfortable to be resting in, and it's at the orphanage, so I won't have to commute to work at 4am!! That's the best thing really. And for the first month, starting next Thursday, they're going to allow me 2 day offs per week to wrap up things at my church. But what's really amazing is that after the first month, they will still allow me Sundays off so that I can go to my own church and fellowship. I think that's a really good blessing, and it will help re-energize for each week to continue to spend time with my friends at the church, and with the youth.

It'll also allow me to share my journey with more people than just on this blog, which I am intending to do. So.. today's my day off, and I'm going to some cleaning around the house, and some cooking, and also some swimming later. It's going to be a great day! =)

I'm going to start asking people around me to support my work, now that it is confirmed that this is what I'm going to be doing. I need both prayer support, and financial support. Please do keep reading, and praying. If you would like to support me financially, please pray about it first, and let God decide whether you should support me, and also the amount that you should commit to.

Heart opened and broken.

This last Sunday, we sang Hosanna at worship. The chorus talks about how we can't quite understand God's love, and asks if God can break our hearts with what breaks His. That became my prayer this morning, as I've only started to love these kids, but I still couldn't feel their pain.

God answered my prayers today, and I cried so much this morning. I was having breakfast, just wondering how it would be like to live like them. One of the girls, called San San, can't move much, she is wheeled around on a bed and can only turn her head left and right, and for as long as anyone can remember, she's been in that position everyday. At first, it was pretty funny trying to imagine what everyone else would look like when you're lying down at table height all the time, but then, God diverted my thoughts to what heaven would be like for them.

I realised that in heaven, they'd be made more whole than anyone else on earth. It's easy to say that we have our disabilities too, just that theirs were easier to see, but we get to live our life and to move with so much freedom, even if they didn't know another life, they still know theirs is really limited. One of the boys can't move at all, and sometimes he gets very emotional, and it's heart breaking just hearing him cry. So that's what I felt, when I realised what salvation would mean to them. How once more they'll be made complete by God's grace, and how the loudest, most joyous praises would come from them.

I'm really thankful that God has shown me this. It feels so good and so right to finally feel the pain behind the cries, rather than just hear the noise in front of the pains. I've learnt to really cherish the sound of their laughter. They don't always laugh because theirs is a hard life to live, but when it iss you that has found a way to make them laugh, not only is it the sweetest and most joyous sound that one's ever heard, but also, you realise how much joy you can bring them just by trying. I walked in the garden when Siu Ping today, she doesn't usually make any sounds. She liked singing, so I sang, hoping that she likes it as much as I do. But it wasn't until I got to Jesus Loves Me, did she start making laughing sounds. I'll remember that sound and that moment forever. I didn't know she could make sounds, and for me, that first laugh was the most beautiful thing I've ever heard.

Dear friends, please continue to pray for me, as I continue to work here. Pray that God will provide me with enough rest and energy for each day's work, and pray that I can love them more and more, and that this love will change lives.

The dawn of a new beginning.

The interview went very nice. The head nurse interviewed me, whilst giving me a tour around the facilities. She asked about my plans, as well as cruising over my strengths and weaknesses while we were walking. I was very truthful and didn't disguise my weaknesses, because I think it would be much better that way, and also, if I'm meant to be here, nothing's going to keep me away. She explained that the work at this orphanage would be very different from work that would be required of me in an orphanage in Africa, but I felt that this was where I should start, because first, I'll be working hard, and training my patience as well as picking up some nursing skills. She's a really kind and passionate woman, and she saw that I was passionate about learning how to care for children, so she actually decided to help me a bit by arranging for me to shadow one of the resident nurses for the first few days, and told me that if I make it through the first 100 hours of working there, then we can go back to deciding whether I am meant to do this work. So then.. technically, I got accepted into the orphanage as a volunteer.

Now there was a piece of bad news, since they have a shortage of rooms, I would have to stay at home, and commute to work each morning, arriving at or before 7am.

This is going to be a real challenge, because that would mean waking up at 4.30am and walking to the nearest KCR station to catch the first train from Hunghom to Sheung Shui. It'll take me 1 hour to arrive, but if I miss any of the transports in between, I'll be delayed for up to 20 mins. Then I'll work from 7am to 5pm each day, stopping only for an hour for breakfast and lunch, and an hour's break after lunch. Not to mention the need for attention to details and patience with working with disabilities that I may not be comfortable with.

This would normally be enough to break me, but it's been a few days now, and I know for sure that God's been holding my hand and keeping me on my feet this whole time, because I have not been completely overwhelmed yet, and I feel refreshed in the midst of my tireness, and I feel that I am starting to look past their disabilities and am learning to love these kids, and I am starting to feel that I can survive more than just 100 hours. God's been giving me so much support through all the other volunteers there, and the head nurse actually decided to let me skip the garden phase, where most other volunteers have to spend their first few weeks doing garden work to get used to the kids, she decided that it would be best for me to start by tailing one of the nurses and looking after the kids, as she must have prayed over me and have recognised my passion for serving children.

I do feel overwhelmed by the difficulty of working with these kids, but God is really lifting me up right now, and there is no fear for me to keep doing what I'm doing, because He is going to carry me through. I may feel squirmish at times, but it hasn't stopped me from carrying on with what needs to be done, and He's really given me strength for each task for each day. I have never had to rely on Him so much just to survive each day, and now I am just so grateful that He's there to renew me with energy, love and patience for each child for each day.

So.. dear friends, I've been working quite intensely for Thursday, Friday and Saturday of this week, I'll be going back for more tomorrow straight after church, and I'll have a break on Monday. Please pray for sleep to be restful and quick when I lay down to rest, and pray for perseverance and resistance to illness during the day, and for my adaptation to the work and the children.