You Know It Is A Bad Week....

When you can't leave your house without a mishap happening!!! That is what has happened to Page this week. On Monday, Page and Wade were on the scooter going to the bank. As Page was backing up she forgot the kick stand was down and smashed her big toe. She had to go to the emergency room and she now has no big toe nail -- ouch!!!

Then today as she was driving home from a store a scooter driver pulled out right in front of her and she hit him!!! Thankfully, he is ok -- just a few bumps and bruises.

It certainly has been an interesting week for Page!!!

From the mouths of babes!

The first graders at Morrison Christian Academy had to write a sentence on what they would do if Jesus came to their house. The answers are posted outside the classroom. The words touched my heart, and I wanted to share them with you. I understand why Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." (Matthew 19:14)

If Jesus came to my house, I would play the piano for Him.

If Jesus came to my house, I would teach Him how to sing and run fast.

If Jesus came to my house, I would teach Him now to read.

If Jesus came to my house, I would tell Him to stay as long as He wishes.

If Jesus came to my house, I would give Him my watch.

If Jesus came to my house, I would whistle for Him.

If Jesus came to my house, I would want Him to live there.

If Jesus came to my house, I would give Him the best thing in my house.

If Jesus came to my house, I would do whatever He wanted me to do.

If Jesus came to my house, I would teach Him how to draw.

If Jesus came to my house, I would give Him a pet dog.

If Jesus came to my house, I would give Him all my best jewelry ("julry").

If Jesus came to my house, I would play piano for Him.

If Jesus came to my house, I would let Him eat my food all up.

If Jesus came to my houes, I would give Him some hand lotion ("loshin").

Milly in MS Play!!!

Milly recently had a part in the middle school play. The play was funny and entertaining. All the students did great and Milly played her part as a prissy student very well. Below are some pictures that were taken after the production. The top picture is of the actors and actresses bowing as they receive an ovation for their great acting ability. The middle picture is of the entire cast while the last picture is of Milly and her proud brother, Wade.

Taiwan Churches vs. Temples

Even though statistics tell us there are only 3 to 5% Christians in Taiwan there are several Christian churches here, like the one pictured below. The building on the left says, "Jesus is Lord" while the building on the right says, "God loves the people of the world".

However, there are many more temples than churches here in Taiwan, like the one pictured below with Milly and a few of her classmates standing in front. There are temples like this on literally every street corner. The temples are usually either Daoist, Buddhist or a combination of both.

Please join us in praying that the people of Taiwan will understand and see that there is one true God, and that He loves them and sent his Son, Jesus, to this earth to die for their sins so they could have a relationship with Him. Thanks.

Lantern Festival

This week, the Lantern Festival is celebrated in Taiwan. It falls two weeks after Chinese New Year. On Saturday, we went to Taichung Park with another Morrison teacher's family. As you can see in one picture there was a man there dressed like a Star Wars jedi with a baby dressed like Princess Lea - so the boys had to get their picture made with them. Other highlights of the evening were riding in row boats, fishing for minnows, and seeing fireworks, lanterns and a water show. This year is the Year of the Mouse!!!

Seeing Old Friends

Last week at our meetings it was extra special to see the Minner family. They are a family from our home church -- Green Street Baptist Church. Since we left for Taiwan, they also have been called out. It was good to talk with them and see how well their family is doing on the "field".

Elephant Rides

When we visited Thailand recently, we had an opportunity ride some elephants. Page did not want to ride so she was the photographer. The first picture below is of Keith, Hunter, and Levi. The second picture below is of Milly (and her crazy hat) and Wade.

Back in Taichung!!!

After almost two weeks in a hotel room, we are finally back home here in Taichung. The weather in Thailand was in the mid-90's. However, when we arrived back in Taiwan we were greeted with some cold weather. Taiwan is a sub-tropical island, however, a cold front has moved in. We are hoping that next week brings some warmer weather.

Meetings and more meetings

We are enjoying our meetings with our co-workers in warm and sunny Thailand these last two weeks. Although we have had many meetings, we have been very encouraged and it has been great to see many of our friends. We will return to Taiwan on Thursday, Feb. 14 and we will post some pictures of our trip at that time. Thanks for praying for us and the people of East Asia.

Mustangs win tournament!

In spite of a pinched nerve in his back, Keith managed to coach the JV boys MCA team to victory on Saturday at the season-end tournament. They won all three games that day, but the last one was especially exciting. They played against their rival, Taipei American School (TAS), and won by 28 points! This win came after two previous meetings against TAS this season in which we lost by a total of 4 points (the first loss was by 3 points and the second was by only one point on a last-second shot). These circumstances made the victory Saturday all the more sweet!

We celebrated the season's end with a team dinner on Tuesday night prepared by Page and the campus principal's wife, Doni. Their son, Sean, is a freshman on Keith's team.

Keith thoroughly enjoyed coaching basketball again. He is already looking forward to next year! Go, Mustangs!!

Wade's sports party!

This afternoon we had Wade's eleventh birthday party at Morrison Academy. Wade decided he wanted a sports party, so we planned on basketball, capture the flag and football. However, a cold front arrived today with a cool, drizzly rain - therefore the games were moved indoors. It was a great party. Coach Curlee was the referee for an intense game of basketball and then hand ball. Mom was in charge of refreshments for all the athletes. Milly took advantage of the opportunity to hang out with her buddies, so you won't see her in any of the photos.

After the party, Hunter commented that the first part was more like PE since Dad had them all doing all the drills. Wade said he was a little embarrassed about it - he had never been to a birthday party where the dad made everyone do hamstring stretches and sprints. Here are some photos - one group photo of the whole gang (brothers included) and another one of the boys doing pre-game drills.

Wade is 11!!!

Wade celebrated his 11th birthday this past Wednesday. He had a great day. Thank you for all that sent presents, cards and e-mails his way. The picture below is of Wade and his 5th grade teacher, Mrs. Lima.

A Great Visit

We had a great time with the Severs and Scarboroughs this past week. Both families are from our home church, Green Street Baptist. It was great to be able to show friends where we live and what our lives are like here in Taiwan. It was also neat to be able to do ministry with them. Because of their visit we were able to meet some new friends, share the Christmas story with around 100 students in Levi's school, distribute hundreds of salvation bracelets and also prayer walk some streets in Taichung. Above is a group photo of the "team". The dog is named Amy. The Severs were fortunate enough to dog sit Amy the entire week :)

Severs and Scarboroughs are Here!!!

We have had a great time with the Severs and Scarboroughs. They arrived on Christmas night and are here for a week to help us in our ministry. We have had a great time in reconnecting with each one of them and all the kids -- both families have 3 kids -- have enjoyed each other's company. The picture is of the adults hard at work preparing for tomorrow. We will be putting on a short drama at Levi's school.

Christmas Party!!

Our apartment building had a Christmas party today. It was a great way for us to meet many of our neighbors. They asked Page to teach them a song -- so she chose Silent Night. Below she is singing it with the children. (She led it in Chinese and English).

We also had an opportunity to teach the kids and their parents that Christmas is about celebrating Jesus' birth. Page made a birthday cake for Jesus and we sang happy birthday to Him.

We had a great time and look forward to some other opportunities to share Jesus' love.

Coach Curlee!!!

Little did we know when we left for the mission field 2 years ago that Keith would ever coach basketball again. Well, he is at it again, coaching the JV boys team. We figured the other day -- out of the 18 basketball seasons we have been married, this is his 13th year involved in coaching a school team. Of course, he loves it. It really is amazing that God led us to Morrison and Keith's work is somewhat similar to what he did in the States, most recently HPCA. His team's record is 7-2 heading into the Christmas break. He coaches a diverse bunch. About half of his players are MK's while the other half are from Taiwan or known as business kids. His starting five are all originally from different countries -- Taiwan, Philippines, America, Australia, and New Zealand. We will let you know how the season ends up.

Softball season comes to an end

Milly decided to play softball and the end of season tourney ended this past weekend. The Mustangs finished in 2nd place and Milly had a good time hanging out with her friends.

Prayer Requests of Children

Tonight as we were putting the "little boys" - Hunter and Levi - to bed, we asked if they had any prayer requests. Hunter said he wanted to pray for the old Chinese people who were about to die to know about Jesus and for missionaries around the world not to be persecuted. Levi said he wanted to pray that Santa Claus would not die before Christmas! What more can I say?

MCA Elementary School Christmas Concert

Here are some pics of Wade and Hunter at the Christmas concert for the elementary school.

This first one is of the two handsome boys before leaving the house.

This one is Hunter as King Herod.

Following his acting debut as King Herod, Hunter was able to perform with the other beginning strings class members on his cello. He had a terrible cold and felt awful, but he hung in there and made it through the performance.

Finally, here is Wade in the beginning band class on his bass clarinet. We were very proud of our boys! What a great way to celebrate this special season!

Page passes Level 3 Test!!!

We have both been studying Chinese for close to two years. This past Friday, Page was brave enough to take the Level 3 test that our company gives to all m's on the field. She passed it!!! Although, this is a big relief and shows the hard work that Page has put into her language it does not mean that she is done studying. She will continue to study. Many thanks to you who were lifting her up during this time.

By the way, Keith hopes to pass his test in June of next year.