To Asia With Love

2008-02-07T19:15:00.000-08:00

Santa?

We really appreciate the free toys, Mister, but there is just something fishy about that 'stash and those 'brows. [Forget the lap...Mom, you sit by him.]

Right now we don't even have a camera, but this picture was graciously offered by our local library. Since we belly-laugh every time we see it, we thought we would share it with you.

Ho Ho Ho-ld on to that day job...

After two hours in line to see Santa, I guess the suspense is over. Santa is as real as it gets. Momma didn't want to hurt Santa's feelings, but quite frankly she was as glad to move the line along as the kids. Next.

2007-10-26T23:00:00.000-07:00

One Precious Year

One year has passed since we returned from Indonesia in October 2006. The past year has been one precious year of journeying with the Lord and each other. We have had much time to reflect, learn to wait and discern God’s will, adjust to the joys and challenges of having Kezia with her allergies and skin condition, and enjoy being with Grandma and Grandpa. We have no doubt that the Lord has seen it necessary to use this past year as a big time of preparation for the ministry He has for us ahead. And God has put us under the care of some of the most godly and loving people during this time of much learning: Grandma and Grandpa. We are so grateful for the way Grandma and Grandpa have cared for us and emulated to us God-honoring ways to live. Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa!

San Jose Here We Are!!!

After three long months of candidating with San Jose Canaan Christian Church (SJCCC), the church extended an invitation to Jay to become their first English Pastor. Both we and the church family sensed God’s guidance for us to serve at SJCCC for this season. God has confirmed that to us in various ways during this past month. We have been excited to have our new home in San Jose, and sad at the same time for saying good-bye to Grandma and Grandpa! We thank God that finally He sees fit for us to begin serving Him at SJCCC and the San Jose community. We feel humbled, as we can do nothing on our own, but the Lord is privileging us by working through us to build His church.

We live approximately 15-20 minutes from the church, in a Vietnamese and Hispanic concentrated area. All the furniture we have for our new home has been generously supplied by church members and their friends, and all in great condition. We thank the Lord for His provisions. Next to our complex, there are numerous Vietnamese and Mexican restaurants and markets. We are loving being here.

Lucy joins a Bible study group with Bible Study Fellowship International at a church nearby. It starts in Sept and ends in May. The wonderful thing about BSF International is that Lucy gets to dig deep into God’s Word, and Sammy and Livi also get to attend a preschool level bible class at the same time in the same place. And without any fees.

Jay is beginning to get into a routine with the ministry. The church does not have any office yet. There is an old small house in front of the church building which is not being used currently. The plan is to turn that house into two offices and a classroom. This building project is scheduled to next week and be finished by the end of November. Jay is looking forward to have an office, together with the pastor of the Taiwanese Congregation.

Two Very Special Birthdays

Precious Kezia turned one on the day we flew to San Jose, September 19. And Sammy turned five a few days later. We celebrated both birthdays with Grandma and Grandpa a few days before we flew out to San Jose. It was very special. Grandma made a castle birthday cake, as requested by Sammy. Kezia was not allowed to have any cake due to her milk allergy. She was still as happy as can be. And So Precious! Since Kezia is beginning to love more textured/table foods, Lucy has been trying out various recipes which substitute cow’s milk with soy milk. It is fun to be able to finally feed her the food we eat. Kezi has been loving it, too.

Our first Sunday at SJCCC was Sammy’s birthday. Sammy was given a surprise birthday party after lunch which followed the church service. Sammy was still a little shy, being his first time at the church, but beaming with delight. He received a huge box of Legos. Both Sammy and Livi have been building all kinds of things with the Legos. We were very touched and thankful. Livi continues to love being at church almost the whole day on Sundays. So does Sammy. There is a playground right outside their Sunday School room. And many big sisters and aunties who love to play with them.

Praises & Prayers

Praise the Lord for His:

1. Bountiful grace and strength that carry us through the past month of transition.

2. Abundant provisions.

3. People (all of you) who have been lifting us up in prayers and made such a difference in our lives.

Please pray for His:

1. Guidance as we look for a Christian School for Sammy and Livi.

2. Healing for Kezi’s milk and peanut allergies.

3. Spirit’s anointing on the ministry to the English congregation of SJCCC.

4. Protection over all aspects of our lives as we serve Him.

To God Be the Glory!

2007-05-26T08:26:00.000-07:00

Winter on Grandma's Back Porch

We survived our first (except for Jay) winter in Toledo, Ohio. Brrr..!!! The kids had fun playing with snow. Lucy preferred to stay indoors and keep warm. The dry winter air has not helped much with Kezi's eczema. However, we praise God that her skin condition has improved significantly, although she still itches often. The Spring weather is helping her sensitive skin from drying out further.

We love the beauty of Spring: flowers, green trees and grass, birds feeding their babies in the bird house. Pleasant weather. Could not ask for more...Grandma and Grandpa work hard to keep the lawn in perfect condition.

Kezi Faith

Kezi Faith is full of life and full of fun. She sits up well and is very close to crawling position. Although she now has four teeth, her solid food feeding is behind due to her allergies. Nonetheless, Kezi is still growing well in every aspect. We are so grateful to God for our newest bundle of joy. Kezi has taught us to have more faith in God.

This past month has been very eventful. Kezi had a fall 4 weeks ago in the church parking lot. CT Scan of her skull showed a fracture. We praise God her brain is protected. She has not been affected by the fall at all except for a big bump on her head, right above her left ear. I believe an angel of the Lord was there to cover her. The swelling has gone down completely. We had to go through the whole thing of being investigated by the Children Services Beaureau. Not fun....but we are glad it is all over now and they have closed the case. Grandma and Grandpa have been of the greatest support and encouragement through all this time. Thank you for walking with us through our struggles.

Happy Birthday Livi

Costumes By Grandma

Livi turned 3 in February. We baked her spiced chocolate cake, and had fun filling her dress-up box with costumes. Livi is very proud that she is now three. She feels like a big girl and wants to do whatever Sammy does, including writing and math. The exception would be in the area of eating vegetables. Both Sammy and Livi love to play with Kezi and make her laugh.

Three Sweetest-Pies

It is hard to believe that Sammy will be five this coming September. He has been such a helpful big brother, helping Lucy with watching over Kezi. Sammy loves to draw, read and write about military planes. He is learning to read and write and do math at a pretty fast rate. We thank God that both Sammy and Livi have a desire to learn. We are also working on Scripture memorization with him.

Job Search

It has been slow going in the job search department. Currently, we are in the early stage of interviewing process with two Chinese churches in San Jose, CA. Jay's substitute teaching is now over for the summer. We are looking into what temp summer work is available. We thank God for the grace and mercy He has poured on to us in times of need. Thank you for your faithful prayers and encouragement. You are God sent.

2007-01-22T01:15:00.000-08:00

Full Circle

We left Jakarta to return to the US on Oct 18, 2006. God’s grace strengthened us through the long journey with 3 little ones. We were embraced with much love by friends during our 2-day layover in LA. Since then, we have been living with Jay’s parents in Ohio. It is amazing how they have so graciously and lovingly taken care of us in every way. We are deeply grateful. Thank you for all the sacrifices and labors of love you have made in order to accommodate and love us, Grandma and Grandpa. God is using you to touch us and teach us some invaluable lessons during this significant season of transition in our lives. Not to mention Lucy is learning tons of practical home-cooking lessons from Grandma.

Miracle of Life

We were blessed with another miracle of life 4 months ago. Kezia Faith's vitals at birth were approx. 8 lbs and 50 cm. Kezi loves to coo and giggle nowadays. She is so precious and we have really been enjoying her. Some of the challenges we have had to go through with Kezi are: pretty serious cradle cap (now almost clear) and "severe" eczema. A few days ago, Lucy tried feeding Kezi rice cereal (with a little amount of formula added) for the first time. Kezi had an allergic reaction almost immediately: swollen lips, ears, and legs and rashes that started from her neck all the way down to her legs. She was puffy, and continuously gagged on some mucous stuff. Grandma later said that she looked like a sumo baby. We took her to the ER, and she was fine after being administered some benadryl. We were informed that the allergic reaction was most probably due to the formula. Not the rice cereal. We will try again with just the rice cereal and breastmilk this week. We thank God for His protection over Kezi. Many prayer warriors from Perrysburg Alliance Church where Grandma and Grandpa are a part and where we have been attending prayed for Kezi that night. Thank you.

What's Next?

The past few months have been a period of adjustments: having a third child, living with all the special people in Grandma and Grandpa's household, and job searching. It has been a process of learning and discernment with regards to where God is leading us next. Since leaving Jakarta, we have felt that California might be the best fit for us due to its multicultural element. We thank God that we have never been without any job leads so far. It seems like God is leading us to become a part of the Christian Missionary Alliance Church. Jay is currently candidating with Livingstone Church (a C&MA church) in Hacienda Height, CA. Jay has had the opportunity to meet and talk with the founding pastor two times about the possibility of working together. The first time happened before we left for Indonesia. The second time happened (unexpectedly) during the time Jay flew out to CA to candidate with a church in Thousand Oaks. Since we need to obtain licensing with the C&MA District Office, as well as candidating with Livingstone Church, the process is taking time. As of now, it looks like we will be able to complete all processes and paperwork by the end of February 2007. Only God knows. It is our part to trust and delight in God while we wait. We are hopeful and feel really excited about Livingstone Church. Jay is excited about possibly working together with the pastor since he has deep respect for him as a spiritual leader. By the way, this is a Chinese Church. If this is the church community that God has for us, Jay will be working to build the English speaking ministry starting with approx. 25 English speaking youth, alongside the founding pastor who is leading the Chinese speaking ministry. Thank you to all of you who have so faithfully prayed for us and encouraged us along our job-hunting journey. God bless you multiple times over for blessing us.

Bundles of Joy

Sammy and Livi are growing up fast and changing by the day. They have really been enjoying Grandma and Grandpa and uncle Stephen. As much as we look forward to having a job and get settled in our own place again, we will really miss being with Grandma and Grandpa when we leave Ohio.

Sammy is now 4. He is a big ball of energy and such a fun boy. He loves to learn and is showing interests in reading, writing and maths. His favorite toys are all sorts of military airplanes. Just a month ago, Sammy prayed with Lucy to receive Jesus into his heart. It was a precious moment.
Livi turns 3 next month (Feb 25). She loves to sing, do puzzles, watch Dora the Explorer, and go to Children Church. She is having fun being a big sister to Kezi.

Gratefulness

It is a difficult lesson to learn but like Veggietales sings it in Madam Blueberry, “A Happy Heart is A Grateful Heart.” We believe God wants to teach us to be grateful whatever the circumstance and not to complain and grumble. As for Jay and Lucy right now, they are in the “waiting place” page of the book, “Oh the Places You'll Go” by Dr. Seuss. And being with Grandma and Grandpa while in the “waiting place” makes all the different. Thank you, God. Thank you, Grandma and Grandpa. Thank you, friends.

Prayer Requests

1. Candidating with the C&MA and Livingstone Church, Hacienda Height, CA
2. Healing for Kezia’s eczema
3. Protection from food allergies for Kezia (we don’t know what she has yet, but her doctor
suggested that Lucy should try eliminating dairy product from her diet for now)
4. Attitude of thankfulness while in the "waiting place"
5. Not to miss the lesson God has for us during this season of transition
6. Wisdom and strength in parenting
7. Growing closer in our walk with God and with each other

2006-10-14T03:05:00.000-07:00

Precious Kezi...Passport Style

2006-09-23T21:00:00.000-07:00

Baby is Here!

After a full day of inducements, our precious Kezia Faith Thompson emerged on September 19th at 11:55pm, officially weighing in at 3.65 kg (just over 8 lbs) and 50 cm's in length. Though it took a long time to get going, once the time came it only took a couple of pushes. Lucy and baby have both been healthy and fine, but tired and sore from the big day. Doctors and nurses were exceptionally friendly and helpful. The biggest challenge here has been paperwork and red tape. Lucy left the hospital after three nights, which was the soonest possible in order to get all doctors and nurses to sign off on everything. We needed a lot of documents to get the hospital birth certificate completed, which was needed in order to get the official Indonesian birth certificate, which is needed to get Kezi a passport. On top of that we needed to get an Indonesian marriage certificate (and pay a late fee cause we were married 5 yrs ago) to complete the process.

Fortunately, Lucy and baby were able to make it home for Sammy's birthday, which we celebrated yesterday with toys, games, and McDonald's feast. You may not think of McDonalds as a feast, but Sammy certainly did. He does enjoy his daily rice and tofu, but cheeseburgers, fries, soda, and ice cream will not be surpassed in the mind of our now 4 yr old boy. Not to be outdone, Livi nearly finished a whole burger by herself.

Heading Back

Once we finish our paperwork process and Lucy her "confinement" period for recovery, we will be heading back to Ohio. We hope to make the journey on October 17th. Our further job searching has also begun. We are leaning toward a move back to S. Cal, but are open to anywhere God leads. Please let us know if you hear of any church ministry openings in your area. We appreciate your prayers too.

For those of you calling for pictures, we apologize as we have no functional camera here. We do have a camera on a cell phone, but the phone is not activated and we don't have the usb cable needed to transfer to the computer. Thus, pictures will have to come later...

Prayer Points

1. Praise to God for a safe delivery and beautiful baby
2. Timely recovery for Lucy and baby Kezia
3. Smooth processing of our official documents needed for travel
4. Discernment and guidance for our continued job search
5. Safe and smooth travel back to the States

2006-09-15T07:14:00.000-07:00

A Great Reversal

We have just recently made the stunning decision to decline the position of Associate Pastor at JIBC and ultimately to head back to the U.S.A. Our decision has come as the result of a long process of discernment as to whether or not God is calling us to live and serve in the Jakarta area. Our reasons for coming to Indonesia from the beginning have been to deliver our third baby, to be closer to Lucy's family, and to discern God's plan for us regarding a new church home and ministry. We have strongly sensed God leading us to be here during this time. However, in spite of pressing forward and holding on to hope regarding our future in this area, Lucy has had an increasing sense that she is not meant to live here in Indonesia. Though we love and cherish our family here, and have greatly enjoyed JIBC, due to Lucy's struggle we feel compelled to move on. We have felt that Lucy's realization about not wanting to live here after years of looking forward to it effectively releases us from a perceived call to this area. Ironically, the way everything has worked out here seems to confirm that to us. Now we feel free to serve the Lord wherever he may be leading us. Right now, it looks like we will be back in the States.

We don't really know what God has in store for us, but we trust that he has a plan. We have greatly appreciated all of your prayers and support for us all along the way. Please continue praying for us as we seek God further for the next step on our journey.

2006-09-10T08:00:00.000-07:00

Looks Like We are Staying in Jakarta

After a long process of interviews over the last couple of months, we have found a new church home and ministry. Jay will begin Oct 1 in the role of Associate Pastor with a focus on Youth, Missions, and Outreach at Jakarta Int'l Baptist Church. The church has a number of eager youth and families and structures are in place to do some great things. There are also several ministries the church partners with that we are excited about such as an orphanage and ministry to street children. We look forward to our adventures ahead.

Of course culture shock is always a reality for all of us and we would love your prayers and support. The church and our family members have been a huge support already in helping us get settled, and we have found a place to live. This is a huge blessing, and we will be moving in early this week. Feel free to email us for further details on our new home including address and phone #s, and to schedule your upcoming visit. We should be able to offer some pictures within the next couple of months, as soon as we find our own computer and get things a little more settled and hooked up.

Our prayer requests:
1. Praise God for taking care of our needs
2. Pray for His perfect timing with our moving this week and our baby due the end of the week
3. Pray for safe delivery of the baby and Lucy's recovery
4. Pray for His protection over our health and safety
5. Pray for God's anointing for our new ministry

We love you all and thank you for your prayers and support for us!

2006-08-11T06:41:00.000-07:00

Life in the Waiting Room: 10 Steps to a Successful Doctor Visit

Here is a little story of Lucy's doctor visit situation so far. This is the routine every two weeks. Since Lucy is nine months pregnant, fortunately this will be the "routine" only two more times...

Step one: call the doctor three days prior to the appointment in order to schedule a visit. Two: the visit time is scheduled for 7pm. Therefore, due to traffic, leave at 5 or 5:30 in order to get there in time. Three: wait for car and driver to arrive in order to be able to go. Four: because it is rush hour (and when is it not), press through traffic to go only a few miles in over an hour. Five: arrive at the hospital and take a number. Find out that we are in line behind 30 other couples. Six: leave the hospital to go to a nearby aunt's place. Eat dinner. Watch a movie. Hang out and talk. Seven: go back to the hospital to find out we are still 15 couples back. Hang out. Walk around. Play with the kids. Read a few magazines. Watch a movie on the waiting room t.v. Eight: finally our time has arrived. It is 12:30am. See the doctor. Have an ultrasound. Chit chat for 5 minutes. Nine: follow the nurse to the cashier. Ten: wake up the driver and head home. We are now ready for bed. The kids are too. It is after 1 am.

We used to think it was bad in L.A. waiting an hour or hour and a half to see the doctor. I guess a popular doctor in a city of 10 million is going to be a challenge. Well, actually we are learning how to negotiate the system in order not to get stuck at the end of the line. I guess when you are green you've got to work from the bottom up. The doctor is great and we have the special letter that gives us a bee line to the delivery room for when the time comes. If only we can get traffic to open up for us on our special day.

2006-07-30T20:14:00.000-07:00

If this had happened in the US, I could retire after litigation...

Just a funny story to recount. It's not even too funny yet, but undoubtedly will be soon. No doubt now for the rest of you.

Last night we set out picking up a few friends and relatives by car in order to head off to a family dinner at a local restaurant. After an hour or so in the car making the rounds, it begins to rain. By this time it is also dark, and by the time we get to the restaurant, the rain has become a heavy downpour. After we park, since we do not want to wait forever, we venture out of the car. We have only one puny little umbrella for the 7 of us (5 seat sedan, mind you). And since I am the only one who can actually get out of the car, thus how tightly we were parked, it was my task to shuttle persons one at a time from the car to the covered sidewalk via miniature umbrella . By the time I am done, I am near completely soaked. Nevertheless, we have made it, so we head down the sidewalk to the restaurant.

Bemoaning my soakedness, I do not notice that the sidewalk is holy. I mean holey. One small step out into thin air, and I plunge 5 ft down into a hole in the sidewalk. What it in the world! I don't know what it was, maybe a trash recepticle or wannabe sewage dump. Fortunately the bottom was relatively dry, though a little squishy. I pull myself out and begin noticing the pain. I have a huge cut on one leg and numerous scrapes and bruises to boot. Ten minutes after being treated by many helpful hands and a first aid kit, we proceed to our quite enjoyable dinner of all-you-can-eat steamboat.

Fortunately, it wasn't one of the kids who dropped in. Even more so, Lucy, eight months pregnant. Lesson learned: Some days are really good...

2006-07-24T13:00:00.000-07:00

In Jakarta

Well we made it. After 35-40 long hours of travel. Thank God for strength. Thank you for your prayers. We are still recovering from jet lag. Today we each took an 11 hour nap. And naturally we'll be up most of the night. Now it's night and we are up playing far too loudly and typing this blog. So far we've just done the usual Jakarta kinds of things: sweat and swat mosquitos, as well as watch American TV and eat some pretty good foods. Thanks to Lucy's brothers and sisters who have been feeding us. The kids are adjusting fine, though Livi has been extra fussy with everything. Sammy is in heaven playing with his two cousins and their toys...particularly toy swords and about 10 toy guns. Guess we all have to get out the aggression somehow.

Some of you may be wondering if Jakarta is being affected by all the earthquakes that have been happening in Indonesia. Lucy's sisters have felt some minor tremors last week. None since then. We are all doing fine though our hearts are breaking for those who have been affected by the quakes & tsunami.

News of the Week

This week, we are working on getting in touch with an ob/gy so that Lucy can have a check-up. Jay will be getting together soon with the senior pastor of an international church regarding an open position nearby. Lucy's dad has needed some medical attention in Singapore. Lucy's mom is, of course, accompanying him. We all hope that they will make it home to Jakarta end of this week.

No pictures on this post. We don't have a camera right now. Thanks to so many for the kind emails and comments. We have appreciated and feel encouraged hearing from you.

Please Pray For:

Recovery from jet-lag
God's hands on Lucy's new ob/gy
Jay's meeting with a local pastor
Those affected by quakes and tsunamis in Indonesia
Lucy's dad's medical condition

More later.

2006-07-18T21:00:00.000-07:00

To our Friends and Family:

Farewell to California!

Jay is graduating from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California this summer (2006). It is God’s unfathomable faithfulness that carried us through the last 7 years of study, work, and building a family. Thank you, Lord! We also thank so many of you who have walked alongside us, providing the support and encouragement we needed in times of struggles. You are God-sent.

Resting in Ohio!

It has been a wonderful time of visiting with Jay’s family in Ohio for the last 5 weeks. Sammy and Livi have had such fun with cousins, Grandma & Grandpa, aunts and uncles. We feel encouraged, refreshed, and strengthened by all of you we have spent time with in Ohio, especially the Thompson family. Thank you so much for your special touch. This has been good for our souls as we prepare to leave for Indonesia. You are blessings from above.

Heading to South East Asia!

By God’s intervention, all our travel documents were taken care of within a week. Thank you, Lord! Finally, the time has arrived for us to leave for South East Asia. We fly on July 19. Our first destination is Jakarta, Indonesia where Lucy’s family resides. We are excited to spend some time with Lucy’s family, and have our third baby there (due mid Sept.). At the same time, we hope to continue networking with other Fuller alumni/ae and friends in the South East Asia region to explore work and ministry opportunities. Jay already has had a couple of leads for ministry opportunities. It is such an assurance that the Lord is going before us.

We need your prayers:

Strength for and safety in travel – July 19-20
Adjustment to a new culture and language
Baby due mid-Sept.
God’s leading to the work He has for us
A Christian community
God’s protection overall