While in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Mike and Carolyn Miller took us to a Taoist war-god temple. The eight of us all gathered in the parking lot and prayed before we went inside. We prayed for opportunities to share, and God was so faithful! Carolyn, Jessica, Stephen, and I walked around the temple for a while – Carolyn explained to us what different things stood for, what motions people were going through, etc. It hurt my heart to see these people; they were so hopeless. The Taiwanese people come in and rub a golden calf for good luck, buy incense to burn to offer prayers to the gods, buy paper money to burn and send to their ancestors, and offer food offerings/sacrifices. Parents bring in their young children and the children just follow their parents around, mimicking their movements and actions. It was terribly sad to see people kneel before these idols, hoping their prayers would be answered. It was so blatantly obvious to me that the gods were only statues – they have no ears to hear, how can they help?
The Lord blessed us ladies (and Stephen) with a very special opportunity while we were at the temple. As we were walking around, Jess and I noticed a Taiwanese woman walking around with burning incense. We made eye-contact with each other and smiled. Then we walked around a while and saw her again. We made eye-contact and smiled (this time bigger!). I felt like I should go over to her, but I wasn’t sure what to do or say. So we walked a ways, turned around, and saw her – she had come over to us! She said hello and we began conversing – she spoke very good English.
She asked Jess and I why we were in Taiwan. I told her we were here to learn about Taiwanese culture and tell others about the wonderful love of Jesus. We then began to talk more about her – what she does (she sells insurance), why she was at the temple (she comes every week to pray for her clients, her family, love), etc. We told her it was very nice of her to think of her clients and family. Carolyn asked if coming to the temple and praying worked. Judy, which is the woman’s English name, said sometimes it works.
After talking for a while, Judy, and her friend Joyce, offered to show us around the temple – she explained she had about 20 minutes to get through the whole temple before her incense burned out. We gladly accepted her offer!
As we were walking, Judy said she was very fortunate to have met us. She used to teach English to young children, but had not done so in a long time and was looking for a chance to practice her English. She said she had seen us in the parking lot, but wasn’t sure how to approach us. Praise God for bringing us together!
We gave Judy one of our testimony cards which had an invitation to English classes on the back. She seemed a little interested (certainly something to pray for – the English studies come from the Bible – it turns into a mini-Bible study). Mike and Carolyn both introduced themselves to Judy and Joyce. They all chatted quite a bit – some in Taiwanese and some in English. Judy brought up the idea of getting our picture taken together and I’m glad she did. She was really the first Taiwanese person I talked to – thank you Lord for boldness! I’m looking forward to hearing how God works in Judy’s life. A seed has been planted!
No comments:
Post a Comment