Taiwan Mission
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Serving 2021 Taiwan Missions Both Virtually and In-Person
Last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we could not return to Taiwan for short-term missions (STM). This year, while the pandemic slowed slightly, people returning to Taiwan from abroad must first quarantine for 2-3 weeks, so those who can take leave to return would be very limited. After meeting and discussing with our co-workers, we deeply felt that although there were not many teachers returning from the United States, we could still make short teaching videos by American teachers in the United States, with the videos then guided by teachers present in Taiwan. I did not expect this proposal to be warmly received, so that we will start on a relatively small scale this year. There will be only one camp in Miaoli and Taichung, serving nine middle schools. We hope that next year if the pandemic continues to slow down, we can expand the scale of our efforts.
But the good times did not last long. When we recorded dozens of films in the United States and Taiwan also trained more than 100 short-term mission teachers, the pandemic outbreak in Taiwan suddenly increased in mid-May. As a result, we experienced a month of waiting to observe and finally had to cancel the 2021 short mission again.
Despite the absence of an STM, the seven community gospel centers established on the West Coast continue to serve faithfully. Unfortunately, because the pandemic was severe and no vaccine was administered, students could not come to our centers from May to July. However, our co-workers in the United States prayed weekly through ZOOM with co-workers in all centers, trained them to use online tools, and taught the new evangelizing method of the Happiness Group. In addition, we passed our experience in the U.S. of online gatherings over the past year to all teachers in the centers to help them improve their online skills. In the future, I look forward to continuing to serve them through the Internet.
The day of the Lord is approaching, and I believe that in this pandemic, God will attract millions of people to return to the Lord! If the Lord permits, we will certainly go to the west coast of Taiwan next year to make STM; but if not, I believe God will call His servants from all churches to pick up the baton to continue to serve Taiwan West Coast Missions.
網路與實體並進的2021台灣西海岸宣教
去年由於新冠疫情，我們無法回到台灣進行短宣，今年疫情稍有減緩，但是從國外回到台灣的人目前必須先要被隔離 2-3週 ，因此能夠請假回去的人將非常有限。我們同工經過開會討論，深深覺得，雖然從美國回去的老師不多，但是我們可以用變通的方式，由美國老師在美國製作教學短片，然後由台灣在場的老師實地指導。沒想到這個建議竟然一呼四應，響應非常熱烈。今年將嘗試比較小的規模，只用一個營地，分別在苗栗和台中服事九所國中，希望明年若是疫情減緩，我們能擴大規模。
但好景不長，當我們在美國錄製好了幾十支各式影片，在台灣也訓練好了 100 多位短宣老師， 5 月中台灣疫情突然加遽，我們經歷1個月的等候觀察，最終不得不再次取消 2021 的短宣。
雖然沒有短宣，但我們在西海岸建立的7個社區關懷中心仍繼續在各美地忠心地服事。由於疫情加遽，又沒有疫苗可施打，所以美地的學生在 5-7 月期間無法來到中心。我們在美國的同工就透過視訊，每週與各美地老師禱告，並訓練他們使用網上工具，並教授幸福小組的傳福音工具。將美國在這一年來網上聚會的經驗傳給各中心老師，幫助他們提升網路技巧。未來更盼望透過網路能夠繼續服事他們。
主來的日子近了，相信神在這波疫情中，祂要吸引萬人來歸向主！主若許可，我們明年一定會再去台灣西海岸短宣；即或不然，我們仍然相信神會透過一棒一棒的忠心僕人來引領西海岸歸向耶穌！