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Recently I was surfing the net and an article entitled “No need for God?” caught my attention. The summary was telling of Professor Stephen Hawking’s new book explaining his M-theory, (a ‘scientific’ theory which conveniently “enjoys no observational support” says Stephen Penrose) in which ‘God’ is not needed for the universe to exist. Naturally curious, . . . → Read More: No Need For God?         Good news! I was asked to do an interview for China Travel Net to be their featured blogger this week. Not a huge deal, but still pretty cool nonetheless! You can read it here as well as check out China Travel Net and visit loads of other cool blogs about China. Enjoy and God bless! . . . → Read More: China Blogger Spotlight  Leave a comment  Blogging, Chinese Culture, Christianity, Faith, Shanghai, Teaching in China, Travel  China, Christianity, Church, Faith, God, Jesus, Ministry, Shanghai, Teaching 
So I’ve never done a book review before, but this one was just too good to pass up. If I’m 100% honest, I’ve been really slacking in the reading department lately, and aside from this book, I’ve been in the middle of about half a dozen books on and off over the past year…..finally finished . . . → Read More: The Irresistible Revolution: A Book Review 7 comments Book Reviews, Christianity, Faith Chinese, Christ, Christianity, Church, God, Homeless, Jesus, Pray, Shanghai 
It seems a day doesn’t go by anymore where the word “China” isn’t mentioned in the papers or on TV in the west. But I suppose it’s to be expected from one of the world’s richest and most rapidly developing countries. ‘Richest’ not only in monetary assets, but culture as well. China’s (relatively) recent openness . . . → Read More: Teaching English in China: My Journey….. 9 comments Christianity, Faith, Teaching in China, Travel China, Chinese, Christ, Christianity, Church, Faith, God, Jesus, Pray, Prayer 
This post is dedicated to all who supported my venture to the Inner Mongolia region of northeastern China this summer, where I was able to volunteer at a summer camp. To all those who gave financially, prayerfully, and in any other way, here is my gift to you: the fruit of your investment.
This summer was very typical of each new adventure in my life; it didnt go how I expected it to. And thats a good thing, because it continues to humble me when I realize that my plans and my methods are often a far cry from what Gods are. This experience put forth challenges that Ive never faced before, stresses Ive never dealt with before, and trials that pushed me to step up or go home.
For those of you who followed my blog this summer, I dont need to tell you that Inner Mongolia is a fantastically beautiful place, largely still untainted by urbanization and other environmental problems China has become known for. Blue skies abound, animals both wild and domesticated running through seemingly endless green pastures, and a diverse culture full of relatively unknown minority groups abound in this region. Inner Mongolia is a cultural crossroad of Mongolia, China, and Russia, and little is known about it in the western world. This, of course, intrigued me as well as the fact that Inner Mongolia had a summer camp that had spawned from an existing summer camp in my also relatively unknown region of northern Minnesota. A few emails and phone calls later and I had received the go ahead to spend the summer there.
Like most things in my life now, I try not to have big expectations, especially when it comes to China because things change so rapidly here. This is not at all derogatory towards China; in fact its one of those cultural differences I find extremely interesting. And it really helps me to live day to day instead of by my 5-year plan. One of my favorite English idioms is: Hindsight is 20/20. Which, simply put, means looking back on life its clear to see what the Lord was doing and how He used my (and our) circumstances to make us, mold us, discipline us, and grab our attention. My life today is vastly different than what I thought it would be like 10 years ago; five years ago; one year ago.
Inner Mongolia is a place that exceeded even the expectations I did have. A place that I knew little about, but still a place where God is moving. It wasnt at all like what I thought it was going to be like; it was much much more than I had anticipated. So without further adeiu, I present to you a picture show highlighting the summer of 2010 in Inner Mongolia. Enjoy and be blessed.
We bonded. Kelsey, myself and Tyler were the new ‘foreigners in town. These two were a Godsend and all of us mutually agreed that we would not have survived the summer without each other. Thank God for His Body. We also got to live in yurts.
We were guests of honor. Mary, John (couple who run the camp), myself and Tyler (and Kelsey who took this pic) got to be special front row guests at a local middle school. The whole party was attended by thousands and basically revolved around our schedule and arrival. It was amazing, especially considering the choir sang the song He knows my name to close out the ceremony.
We witnessed the spectacular beauty of rural Inner Mongolia.
We introduced Ultimate Frisbee.
We had water wars rafting down the river.
We sacrificed a lamb.
We ate said lamb, a very traditional delicacy in Mongolian culture.
We had an Amazing Race each week.
We made great friends.
We played basketball against the local village police department.
We conquered mountains.
We fit 29 people in a 12 passenger van.
We had lots of great bonfires and great conversations.
We taught English.
We performed. I dont think I, or the kids have ever laughed harder in our lives, nor have I ever acted so ridiculous.
We danced. Then danced some more.
We played Octaball.
We performed some more.
We hung out with camels.
We were amazed by the beauty of Gods creation.
We cooled off in the river.
We performed some more.
And we performed yet again. This particular skit was special though. Its entitled the Parable of the Hats. Hats represent sin and its a great skit because it covers all the way from creation to Christs coming, crucifixion, and resurrection, in very simple terms. Virtually every student, unless he/she was skipping rally time that day, got to see this skit, and they all loved it!
We made loads of new friends of all ages. We had bountiful opportunities to share what Christ means to us in our lives. We had countless conversations that went far below the surface. We saw many seeds planted. We laughed together. We struggled together. We saw eternal differences being made in the lives of the students, staff, and fellow volunteers. God is moving in Inner Mongolia, and in China.
And thats the bottom line. piese auto 2 comments Chinese Culture, Christianity, Faith, Sports, Teaching in China, Travel China, Christ, God, Inner-Mongolia, Prayer 
Recently I’ve felt burdened for the homeless and beggar community here in Shanghai. There is enough of them where it breaks your heart a bit, and there’s even more rumors flying around about how you shouldn’t help them out because they either have money already, or are trying to rob you somehow, just to name . . . → Read More: The poor, the widows and the homeless 5 comments Chinese Culture, Christianity, Faith, Shanghai, Social Issues in China Bible, China, God, Guitar, Homeless, Jesus, Shanghai, Sports 
These last few weeks have been a bit of a rollercoaster, hence the lack of attention to my blog. But I hope (fingers crossed) to finally move my blog to a private host soon so I can do more with it, and try to get into more regular posting as I get into a routine (hopefully more interesting postings as well). So whats the deal here? Well Shanghai doesnt seem to have much of the good ol fashioned Chinese hospitality Im used to. Its been quite an adjustment. Last week I was informed that the landlord of the apartment I was staying in didnt want a foreigner staying there as it was too much trouble to deal with. I didnt get the full story, but it was something to do with the fact that she didnt want to pay the extra taxes on her rental: IE: the powers that be probably dont know shes renting this place and since Im a foreigner and must register with said powers that be, it could be cause for suspicion. After days of apartment searching, trying to be frugal and save a buck, Id found several suitable places, only to be turned down for similar reasons. Needless to say I was rather frustrated after spending all my free time looking at countless rooms and apartments, often with false information. Not too mention knowing the fact I was going to have to pay a 35% commission again on a new place. Anyways, one of my co-workers, Fabian had been commuting to our school from Peoples Square, which is a giant park right in the center of the city. It is THE center of everything. There was a bus right outside his place that goes directly to the school we teach at (which is strange as our school is no where near much good public transportation) and it took him about the same time to get to work as it did me, even though I live 4x closer. So I went and had a gander downtown, and found a few really nice places. More expensive of course, but for a bit more money you get an infinitely better place to stay. I paid the extra cash and got an amazing flat on the 25th floor of a high rise. Im a block from the subway, and 10 minutes to Peoples Square, where almost everything in Shanghai IS. I have a Chinese roommate, Ben, who is cool, and seldom around. I have my own balcony off my room, and a full kitchen that Ben never uses. Seriously, the fridge wasnt even plugged in, and theres not even a chopstick to be found in the whole kitchen. His bedroom has a private bath, and my end of the apartment has its own bathroom as well. Its a really amazing place, Im really lucky, actually blessed is definitely the better word to use. The living room is shared, including the big screen TV, and the 2nd balcony looking south with an amazing view of Peoples Square and the rest of the city. Check out a few pics of the view: These two are from the balcony in my room, first one looking north, and the second one looking west with the river below. View from the living room balcony facing south, with the park a few blocks away. You can barely see the trees because of all the buildings, but its there! View to the east, you can see the top of the famed Pearl Tower on the left. Night shot looking south towards Peoples Square out the living room. On top of all of this, that bus I previously mentioned has a stop about 7 minutes walking away from my new place, and takes just over 20 minutes to get me right next to my school. Its really a great spot, and I will have much easier access to many things here, namely the fellowships Ive found here and have been attending, as well many of the friends Ive made. I praise the Lord for this! A great guy I met when I first arrived here, Don, prayed over me last week and told me some big changes were coming and they would ignite a fire within me. Ive already seen the evidence of this, as I unexpectedly had to move. And its not just the landlords forcefulness that made me move, but also I felt I had to because i was falling into complacency. I didnt really know anyone near my place because it was outside of town, except for a few Chinese ladies, and I was quickly falling into lazy habits. The morning of the day I moved, I had a LONG conversation with my neighbor and got to share the gospel with her, share my beliefs and why I believe them, as well as listen to her views as well. It was one of those divine meetings Id been praying for, as she was someone whom the Lord had put a burden on my heart for. And we had a really great conversation, I hope to have many more like it soon. I pray that she would continue to seek as the Lord is clearly doing something in her heart, please pray for her with me. October 1st marks the start of the annual National holiday celebrated in China. We are fortunate enough to have a full week off, and I was again blessed, with my brother Tim C coming down from northern China (He teaches in Hebei where I used to teach) to hang out and travel. Together with his girlfriend, Michelle, and another sister, Rena, we all went to a nearby city called Suzhou. Suzhou is known as the Venice of the East, famed for its waterway alleys throughout the city. It was a very tranquil and serene place, even with the bus loads upon bus loads of Chinese tourists. Right now though, we are on a train on our way to another city called Hangzhou, also famed for its beautiful West Lake. Just how beautiful is it? I guess Ill find out soon. More info and pics to follow! But for now check out these shots from Suzhou: style=”display:inline;border-width:0;” title=”P1030182″ border=”0″ alt=”P1030182″ src=”http://thenoseatbelttour.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/p1030182_thumb.jpg” width=”184″ height=”244″ /> Heres some evening/night shots around the town. Here is the biggest bell Ive ever seen. The walls were a foot thick, I have no idea how they made the supports strong enough to hold it. The whole thing shook when they hit it with the battering ram. All those little things on top are coins, and that support must have been 6 feet tall. The U-bolt holding it up, probably several feet thick, solid steel. Solid something. The whole thing just dangled there and shook when it was hit. They should have done a modern marvels episode on this thing! And this guy made our day! He was transporting his recently purchased doors. Fortunately, they were screen doors, so he had at least some visibility All for now! More to come soon! piese auto 
These last few days have been nothing short of amazing. The other night we got to go a small house church in Harbin. We got to worship with the Chinese brothers and sisters there, and just chill out, hear their stories, pains, trials, and questions. Lots of seekers; thats one thing I love about the Chinese people is their brutally honesty and directness. It was really cool talking to them and spending time with them, I dont even know how many times Ive shared my testimony this past week. The opportunities are plentiful here. The American group here working with them are amazing too, so bold, and so driven. Its been one of the most encouraging things Ive seen here in China. It tempts me to come here and join in the the good work in this city. This place is huge, nothing too out of the ordinaryl, close to 10 million people, but something about it speaks volumes. Im glad to have this opportunity to travel here, see whats happening, and spend time travelling with the college students who volunteered to come up to the summer camp as translators. Most of them are not believers, but with this spirit of service, I can see the wheels turning. Nonetheless, I am getting super excited about this year, wondering what awaits me in Shanghai, glad that I will be staying in China. I only pray I can find a minstry there like they have here. Im sure He will provide. Yesterday..O boyyesterday. All 12 of us went to visit the world famous Harbin Siberian Tiger Park. After arriving there, we quickly took our picture with the one month old baby tiger. Then we went into the ticket line where we were pleasantly surprised by the sign that had both English and Chinese. To our surprise, the English version said admission was 65 Yuan, and the Chinese said 90 Yuan. Usually its more expensive for foreigners, so this was quite opposite. So I gleefully walked up to buy a ticket, asked her for one in Chinese, to which she politely replied that I pay 100 Yuan. I informed her of the sign and yadda yadda yadda, but no luck. I got a few of the Chinese translators to come up and plead my case with her. She wouldnt budge. This is also typical here., so I just paid the 100 Yuan and got on with it. Chinese debates can go on for an eternity without ever reaching any point of rationality or common sense. I learned a long time ago to not ask why, unless Im ready for a gigantic waste of time. But without further ado, I will let the pictures speak for themselves. The Menu. The only words that came to mind were Jurassic Park. They loaded us up into a caged bus, and they had one other guy who drove around in an SUV with a full cage. All the caged areas had safe zones, where the gate would open and wed drive in an area fenced in with no tigers, just four other gates to choose from. There were hundreds of tigers, it was insane. We got a chicken ready, and they flocked to us instantaneously. As we drove around in a circle, they chased us as Jack, one of the student translators with us, dangled a chicken out the bus. Waiting anxiously for lunch. Then we released the chicken.. Two tigers leaped and grabbed it. This one got half.
This one got the other half. It was awesome. They tore the chicken in half easier than I could tear a spider web in two. Some white tigers, albinos I think..
Feeding the tigers beef strips. They jumped right up on the bus, claws in the cage and all. Close ups. They were like a swarm of bees on honey. This was the duck guy, he threw the ducks out from his spiffy little SUV. He was 100% crazy, his method to get the tigers away was throw a firecracker out, the tigers would jump then he would step out and whip the duck into the pond. One of the tigers was right behind his truck when he threw one out, I thought it was going to get him. A person wouldnt last a minute in there. And it wouldnt be the first time a person found themselves as the end of some tiger canines at this park. Getting ready to pounce on the duck who couldnt fly away. You have to watch the video to see what happens next. When I get a good internet connection, I will upload it and send the link out, I keep getting errors now for some reason. Its a must see. O ya, they had a Liger. Yes, they are real. Theres only about a dozen in the world, due to the rarity of it happening. Ligers inherit gigantism from a male lion and a female tiger. Tigons on the other hand, a female lion and a male tiger suffer from dwarfism. No tigons here though. But i can vouch, this liger was friggin huge!
Me and Federer (his chosen English name) and myself with Faye, some our student translators. Julia, me and Eve, then Jack, me and Alice, more of our student translators from the south. They are all awesome, I love em.
Ed and I, he is a cool brother from the states living here in Harbin, doing some awesome things her for the L*rd. Glad I got to run into him here and know him. The trainer, Dustin, and myself with the baby tiger. Dustin teaches down south and brought the group of college students up to help us translate at camp this summer, and kindly invited me to this little excursion to Harbin. Hes a really cool brother whose encouraged me a lot the last month, and you can be lifting him up too in you pryrs, as well as the ministry down south. piese auto |
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