“Seek the shalom of the city where I have sent you, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its shalom you will have shalom,” (Jeremiah 29:7). God started by bringing this shalom into the lives of Lizzy and Cheryl themselves. Cheryl in regards to her fractured childhood family and Lizzy in regards to substance abuse and addiction. Because of the restorative work God has done in own own lives, in 2008 we moved into a working class community in Dayton, MN where we ministered to young families.
In August of 2015 we moved to Taiwan to serve with Overseas Missionary Fellowship. Since then we have made our way to the village of Guoyihou in rural Tainan where we partner with a young local church plant, Xingwang Church.
Church planting here is slow and difficult. Families face varying difficulties; poverty, dysfunctional relationships, alcoholism, poor educational and economic opportunities, neglected elderly, the lure of gang life. Not only do families face social challenges, but generations of ancestor and temple worship keep people bound in fear and darkness. Faith in Christ often requires a person to breakup with their social network, value system, cultural and belief system, and potentially economic ties. We have to be creative, flexible, and patient to reach the working class with the Gospel.
Our vision is to see people radically transformed; the community set free from spiritual bondage, families restored, and individuals know their sense of worth that stems from Creator God.
We seek to meet both the physical and spiritual needs of youth and families in our community, and strive to see lives transformed through God’s Gospel of hope. Our team is unique in that God called our local partners, Peter and Esther, to our village a few years before we arrived. So we arrived here not to lead something new, but to come alongside what God has already begun through them.
Our after-school program assists 30+ children and youth with homework. Slowly the kids' behavior has begun to change from angry, disinterested, sad, disrespectful, and refusing to talk, to kind, helpful, engaged, hopeful, and happy. The villagers have started to take notice and have been deeply touched by the care for their children. God is on the move!
Yet there is much left to do. So we continue to press on in prayer and persevere in building relationships and planting seeds. Join us in praying Isaiah 61 over our villages with us. That God will bind up the brokenhearted and proclaim release to those held captive in darkness. Ask the Lord to convict people of robbery in their burnt offerings and to clothe them with garments of salvation, a cloak of praise instead of a disheartened spirit. Pray that people will be released from their shame and receive a double portion of God’s grace and everlasting joy.
As a couple, we are 100% funded right now. So if you desire to give financial support, please give directly toward our ministry by clicking on this link to our project fund: https://partnerhub.omf.org/jiaenministryproject
Shalom
