Stakes.

Pretend you're Abraham.

Hammer in hand. About to drive the stakes into the ground.

You've just arrived in the "distant land."

You've journeyed. You've dreamed. You've believed.

Far from familiar. Everything is different.

What are you thinking as you drive your tent stakes into the foreign soil?

Those words must be ringing in your ears...His words...His promises...

Are they certain? Is HE certain?

Tomorrow, I hammer stakes into my new home in China.

You can insert whatever metaphor you'd like for that here,

but the bottom line is I trust Him.

His words are ringing in my ears,

and they are certain because He is certain.

I know in Whom I have believed,

and into that soil I'll joyfully hammer my stakes.

Rejoicing!

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A few notes...

-I'm not sure how long it will take me to set up the internet in my apartment, so there might be a bit of lag in my communication. We arrive tomorrow night, so hopefully I'll get that taken care of on Tuesday!

-Thank you all for lifting me up so consistently. Requests in His name certainly are powerful- I'll testify to that.

-My team is awesome. I just met them yesterday, and I already feel so comfortable with them. I'll definitely have more on them later.

-I love your comments and e-mails. Please keep them coming, along with updates on you!

Tastes like chicken.

Yes, I heard you. You're that person who's been saying,

"He's in a foreign country, but where's the crazy food?!"

Well, this post is for you.

In case you're wondering, snake actually tastes

more like rubber than chicken...yum...

...which is why I Chris and I followed it with fruit topped with

melted sugar. That's better.

[this is why I wouldn't make it on Bizarre Foods]

I could go into more detail about other

[how should I say] foodstuffs [yeah that's it],

but I actually want some of you to come visit me!

[If you must know, you can check it out here.]

To China's credit, this was a tourist trap, and the

real food is amazing. I love it.

Just had to throw that in there.

Greater.

The Great Wall is awesome. Not in normal, everyday use of the word "awesome" either, but truly awe inspiring.

This was my second trip to the wall, and I still had the same head-shaking astonishments. Step after step I kept trying to fathom the vastness of it all. It's difficult to grasp the feasibility of even one section of the wall, hand-laid into the side of a steep mountain, but to think that it stretches on for almost 5,500 miles...yeah, wow. If you're not impressed, either read more about it here, or just go see it for yourself.

But an interesting thing occurred after we ascended the staircase to the Wall. As our group climbed the last step and gazed out at the winding masterpiece inlayed into the distant mountains, our attention was drawn to a nearby tree. We had just said our "oooh's" and "ahhh's" when a loud bug caught our attention, and we turned around just in time to see a preying mantis stalking the poor crying critter. There we were, having paid 50 RMB (around 8$) to climb a seemingly unending staircase to the Great Wall, mesmerized by nature.

A comment was made about this fact and laughter ensued, but then our friend Jeremy said, "but God's creation is so much more amazing than man's."

I love moments like this, where we step back from what man considers great and look to the One who is in an entirely different category of great. To even say that the Great Wall is great, and He is greater doesn't even seem right. You can't just compare thing like that! So although true, please forgive the title of my post.

Don't get me wrong, the Wall is truly great- the greatest structure I've ever seen on this planet. I left with a renewed sense of admiration for the Chinese and their determination.

I know, I read into everything, but I think I needed to that day. I needed my vision to expand. I thought of the Creator. I thought of the One who put the stars in place. I thought of my Father. How great has He been in my mind lately? How much am I believing Him for? What areas of my life do I see as greater than Him? Do I just put Him in a great-sized box? Is He GREATER to me?

Thank you, China, for showing me how small my wall is.

Greater things are yet to come.

Have a look...

Beijing. 20 Million. Not in Alabama anymore.

Which is why I love scenery when I can find it.

This is Houhai, a pretty cool lake district.

My living scenery for the month. The RuYi is great!

So is the Forbidden City! My Dad: "I just don't understand- if it's forbidden, how can you get in?" My thoughts exactly, Dad.

Where I learn to teach. Very informative classes.

Why I learn to teach...

What's that saying, "you can take a man out of America,

but not America out of the man"? Yeah.

And again, just to prove a point.

Do you line up like this every Sunday morning? A local Three-Self Fellowship. You can read more about this one here. Amazing to see how the Kingdom is expanding here... I love having a front-row seat!

So that's a small glimpse of my life. We just finished a teaching methodology class last week and began Asian Culture and Communication this week. Back to school...but I'm a nerd and I like it.

Fun fact:

To get a sense of how crowded this part of China is,

take the U.S. population,

multiply it by 4,

then move 95% of those people east of the Mississippi River...

that's the population distribution here in Eastern China.

Crowded, ya think? But as we've been reminded (because it's true), the Father's most beautiful creation really is people. So the more the merrier!

Thanks, Mom

Oh hey, laundry.

As I laid socks over the drying rack, I could help but remember the good ole days:

Casually tossing clothes in a basket and meandering to the laundry room downstairs.

A "Thanks, Mom!" and that was it. Done. I would next see my clothes folded in a nice stack.

And now I'm in Asia.

This rack is in my room because that's exactly where laundry happened this week.

"In the washing machine?" you might ask. No, no, no. Try the shower...

Yep, a laundry stomping performance reminiscent of Lucy stomping grapes at the vineyard.

(Nick-at-Night anyone?)

I think I'll try the cleaners next time, but I'm glad I gave it a shot.

If anything it has made me more thankful for my mother. And she deserves it.

Thanks, Mom!

Adjustments

So that's just a small glimpse. You learn to embrace adjustments and flexibility here. It's the kind of adjustment that keeps me going back to Phil 2:5-11. Time after time I end up at: yes, yes it's worth it.

Stay tuned for more!

stains.

Yep, my first casualties.

Apparently, holding a dumpling with chopsticks over a plate of soy sauce/vinegar is problematic (note to self).

That's the bottom picture. The top one is of a boiled peanut that was out to get me (but hey, at least they have boiled peanuts!)

The good news is that I fit in now with most pedestrians walking the streets with "accented clothing," as I like to call it.

There have been plenty of cultural spills these last few days- idiosyncrasies you just learn to take in stride. The smells, sounds, and perilous traffic all speak of transition. How wonderful it is to have to constantly remind yourself why you are here. Really, it is wonderful.

The latest: Training/Classes

They've taken it easy on us the past few days. We've had orientation type meetings in the mornings and free afternoons after lunch to explore. Beijing is great. Intriguing history, bustling modernity, flourishing hope. Overall, I'm thankful for the room to breath a bit. Especially since our teaching certification classes start tomorrow- not so much room to breathe. However, I am excited about being further equipped to teach. You can remember me in that and make requests for strength and focus!

Now that I've gotten settled in Beijing, I'll be posting more often.

Thanks to all for your support!

Surely.

Rising and setting.

Which is which?

Not sure I'll know after 24 hrs of traveling (starting at midnight tonight!)

But, I know the One at the beginning and end of each.

Transitions.

Goodbye, Greeley, CO, USA.

Hello, Beijing, China.

I'm joyful, hopeful, and thankful.

Expecting much.

"Let us acknowledge Him.

Let us press on to acknowledge Him.

As surely as the sun rises, He will appear.

He will come to us like the winter rains,

like the spring rains that water the earth."-Hosea 6:3

I'm glad I won't be leaving sunrises/sets behind.

Detailed update: Training has been awesome. I feel fully equipped and encouraged. My head and heart are full. Flight schedule: CO>NJ>Beijing (arrive 1:45 p.m.). We will be taking teaching certification classes in Beijing for 3 weeks, then team building for 1 week. At the end of that I will be traveling by train to Nanchang, China- my new home! Keep the e-mails coming. I love them. See you on the flip side!