There’s been a lot of great stuff happening in youth ministry over the past few weeks. It’s hard to explain how much preparation went into all these events, how much joy I find in them, and in each of the students who were part of them.
Imagine you are at a party at someone’s house when suddenly a house plant starts talking to you. Perhaps you would ignore it, ask if the person next to you heard it, or try talking back while laughing at the situation. I am that house plant.
This year ANZAC Day comes with terrible timing, but it’s important to me to go to the Dawn Service at the Australian embassy one last time. While I’ll be groaning when I get up in the morning, I know I’ll be glad I went.
Spring is more than new life – it is hope. Knowing that new life waits under bare surfaces is the hope that sustains through Winter. Life is the same. The knowledge that things will not always be this way keeps us going through hard times.
A large part of cultivating Good China Days is changing assumptions and expectations. Here are a bunch of things that help me adjust my attitude toward China – and create space for days that make me love this country, and its people.
I arrived back in Beijing with NO IDEA how I was going to make this China thing work. There I was, wondering what on earth would come next. It was a year of huge upheaval for me, and it was in many ways the beginning of my adult life.
At this year’s EPIC conference I had a team of 7 very enthusiastic and skilled young men to lead worship with. I also led a small group; we had a great time, with interesting conversations and some laidback silliness I think all teens need in life.
Qing ming jie was instituted in 732 by Emperor Xuanzong as the only day on which citizens could pay formal respects to the dead at gravesites. Since then, it has been a day for families to get together and clean/decorate the graves of their ancestors.
Bad China Days happen when people do not live up to my expectations for them; Good China Days happen when people surpass my expectations for them. Good China Days have the ability to change me, and change how I experience China.
Qingdao is a coastal city 550km (340 mi) southeast of Beijing. I wasn’t there as a tourist but enjoyed looking at the ocean, especially the seaside boardwalk. Though it was strange to watch an entire ocean disappear into a greyish smog haze.
My past two visits to Australia have been the easiest I’ve made in ten years. Were they easier because I’m already looking ahead to moving there? It’s still strange to think about not being in China, but I feel more at peace about the coming move.
I was surprised by how many people were intently staring at hand held touch screens of personal electronics. 75% of the people in our full subway car were looking at a screen – most playing games or watching TV dramas.
Stories From Tanya 