Closing Thoughts

Thank you for traveling with me in the natural and in the Spirit for the past 2.5 weeks.

Today brought to a close my stay in Kaohsiung and the Lord willing I leave in the morning to start the trek home (Thursday night at 9:00 at home.).

A young man "John" became my e-mail buddy during my last trip here two years ago. Now he is 18 and what a joy to see how he is growing in the Lord. He begged and begged Pastor Bracken (Chris) to allow him to come to my hotel and see me and to practice his English. But Pastor rightfully thought it would not be best. Instead we met him for lunch and then on to see one more option for a new church building. He has no father in his life so I became "Ba Ba" to Brother John. His letter he gave me as I said good bye will tear you up.

It was so hard to tell the Kaohsiung saints good bye. While the reputation of many Asians is that they are cold, it could never be said of these folks. Their tearful good byes made it really hard. But home beckons me. And the hope of returning soon, the Lord willing strengthens me.

Typhoon Nuri went south of us by about 100 miles. But today we felt its effect. The winds were as strong as I have experienced. Late this afternoon, Pastor Bracken took me down to the coast and we watched the waves. In 46 years I have never seen any that compared in size. And this was in the Taiwan Strait which should have been a little sheltered.

After a family dinner with Abigail (age 5) and Ethan (age 3) tugging at my sides to color with them, we made one last stop....to the famous foot massage..... After all the walking of the past 2.5 weeks, it was the perfect close to the trip. It is the best $18 I spent the whole trip. Indescribable.

The boarding pass is printed and the bags basically packed. Behind I leave 1.2 billion Chinese that only know false gods and ancestry worship. But I bring home a life time of memories and experiences. I bring home a passion to reach them that has been fueled to yet higher temperatures. But most importantly, I bring home hope for a day they will be reached, faith that God is not willing that any one of them should perish and a love for souls never surpassed in me before. And the greatest of these abiding things is love.

God be with you til we meet together again!

AMH