Last Post from Beijing

We are headed home this am. The trip has been incredible with so many sights and sounds from a city and its people trying as best they can to welcome the world. The officials even promised to allow web visitors in the country to have access to Amnesty International and Voice of the Martyr's websites (www.amnesty.org and www.persecution.org) during the Games. I just checked both out and they do work fro here in this apartment.

Yesterday we visited Lama Temple and the Temple of Heaven sites. I did not know if these were now cultural sites only or if open worship took place there. Much to my dismay and sadness, Lama Temple has plenty of idol (Buddha) worship still going on. Its also a big business on the temple grounds and it surrounding businesses selling incense to be burned. Many people offering prayers for a variety of reasons I am sure to lifeless carvings, the largest one was a 60 foot Buddha carved from a single piece of wood. As we toured the sites I noticed that varying images were for varying things such as prosperity, peace, love, etc. The very things many prayers are prayed each day. I was almost overcome with the hopelessness of it all as people bowed and rendered worship to wood that cannot ever help. Yet in this place, no one would dare speak aloud of Jesus Christ, the only One Who is Hope and Love and Truth. The only One worthy of praise. 

As we walked and talked yesterday taking all of this in, we realized that apart from the Lord, everyone is lost and hopeless. In His grace and Mercy, believers have been granted pardon and freedom. Remember the litmus test, "He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son, does not have the life" or "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. Apart from Me, no one comes to the Father". There are no degrees of "lostness". Those who do not know Jesus are as far away as anyone worshipping idols. At least they realize they are seeking help from beyond themselves. 

The underground church of Christians here are on the move. God is doing a miraculous thing among them. I am committed to pray for the people of China but have a renewed sense of urgency  for those on my Andrew List and those around me. For that, I am thankful. 

We wrap this up today with a really long flight leaving here around noon (Beijing time, midnight at home) and fly to Korea. We have a 3 hours layover and then fly until 7pm EST to Atlanta. Then we will drive home from there. That will take a few days to get over!!

Oh Well, Now we know how the New England Patriots feel

Oh well, after being undefeated the entire Olympics which includes 2 wins against Japan, we had a poor offensive showing last night and lost the Gold Medal game to Japan 3-1. Normally you'd think a team with 2 losses would have to beat you twice but that's not who round robin softball is played. It's kind of like the Super Bowl, regardless of your records, the title game is all that counts. That really hurts and we were frustrated but not as much as the coaches, players and families who have invested so much to have one of the best teams in the history o the sport. Sadly, this was the last Olympics for softball (unless their appeal reverses the situation and even then it will be 8 years before they can play again..all these ladies will be retired). Although none of them will see it, I would like to thank them for the class acts they have been over the years and the hours of enjoyment we have received from watching them play and visiting several of them at camps. They've been nothing but class, no controversies, no failed drug tests, no scandal, just excellence that has started with Coach Candrea and permeated throughout the team. Thank You Ladies.

Yesterday was a slow day for us prior to the game. Caroline did not feel well all day (the game helped a lot there) so Pat and I just did a little market shopping. It rained off and on all day, including interrupting the game. Fortunately it cooled off the city and helped with the smog. 

We hope to make the temples I referred to yesterday and do a bit more shopping before catching the plane home in the morning. I do dread that flight!! 

Cough, Cough..Now I know What They Mean

In the run up to the Olympics much news has been made regarding the weather and air conditions. I am writing this on Thursday am Beijing time (Wed nite at home) at its raining. If I recall correctly, the Chinese had proudly proclaimed that had figured out how to control the weather and promised no rain. Not only is it raining, this is not the first day of rain. Looks like God's way of saying Booya!! Actually, rain is a good thing after yesterday's coughfest. The air quality yesterday could be compared to pea soup. It burned your eyes and throat and we weren't the competitors!! Rain does help push the smog down.

Yesterday was a super day for us at the games in that the US Softball team beat Japan in an international tie breaker (win or lose I hate those things). The win put the US in the Gold Medal game today if they are able to play. Hopefully the rain will stop. 

We also took in the Forbidden City and shopped in a market with a couple million of our new friends. However, I'm ready to bag the Gold in Softball and come to the house. People like our friends Casey and Mal and others grow in stature in my eyes as they go and live in foreign cultures for extended periods of time. After almost 2 weeks, I have grown weary of being away even with all the fun we have had. I have discovered 1 thing the Chinese don't import to us...mattresses. Here are few of the things I am ready to reconnect with:

1. My son

2. My home, including bathroom, clean water to drink and brush teeth in (rather than using bottled water to brush and clean brush..try that if you don't believe me), mattress, English speaking tv (we have 2 english channels...CNN is worse here than home), refrigerator, more than 1 room, yard, etc.

3. My extended family

4. My church family and friends

5. My job and pals there

6. Wades and home cooked meals

7. A place of no stupid security checks (like airports and Olympics venues. I was really ticked off at the security forces at the softball venue yesterday who took my sunscreen...kind of the straw that broke the camels back. If you've heard of a security threat with sunscreen I'd like to know). I have had the lecture about being an ambassador etc. Just ticked me off and took a while to adjust!

8. USA..home soil 

I think that about says it. Visiting a foreign country is a blast. Experiencing the different culture I would not trade and have thoroughly enjoyed. However, it does wear me out after a while. 

Today we hope to visit the Lama Temple and Temple of Heaven before the softball.

Big Day in Beijing

Today was our busiest day of the trip. We purchased tickets to Tuesday night's games at the Bird's Nest (National Stadium) on Monday night at the official web site. We had heard that they allot a few everyday for purchase for people from a few nations. So our day started early having to locate somewhere to print out our receipt and find our way over to their office to pick the tickets up in person. From there, we hoped to find a cab driver who spoke some English for a hour ride to the Great Wall (Badaling). We devised a plan to catch a cab to the Forbidden City where many English speaking students ask you to pay them to give you a tour. However, our first cab's driver was fun and spoke some English pretty well. He agreed to take us and we were on our way to the "country side" (a word we taught him). I am going to post a photo (maybe a video of us talking later). Beautiful scenery heading up to the steep mountains in Badaling where tourists usually see the GW. With the Olympics here, there were a large number of foreigners as well as Chinese on the Wall. Walking on the Wall is very steep as it matches the terrain of the top of the mountains. It was also very hot and humid which was exhausting. In a matter of moments I was soaked in sweat. It was exciting to be there and we took some good shots as well as candid ones.

From the GW, we returned to the room to eat and shower before heading to the National Stadium, affectionately called Bird's Nest, and to take in the Olympic Green which also has the National Aquatics Center (the Cube) and the National Indoor Stadium (Basketball, etc). This huge area is secured from the visitors such that to enter you had to have a ticket to an event for that day. On the same property is the athletes quarters. Security is tight. 

The actual grounds and facilities are incredible. I wold love to see the plans for the property and facilities and shapshots of how it all came together. The vastness of size, the ability to handle the crowd securely considering all who would want to visit, all of it was well planned and is a source of much pride among the people. We were able to go into our games (Athletics or Track and Field) in the Bird's Nest. We were able to see USA athletes receive their Gold, Silver and Bronze medals in a sweep and see the flags raised to the National Anthem. We saw many events as well. Incredibly exciting night was had by all. Seeing the Olympic flame and realizing that we saw the opening ceremony from home while sharing a cook out meal with my discipleship group a week and a half ago was really cool.

More later but now to a softball semi-final...USA vs Japan.  GO USA!! 

Let the Games Begin

Well actually, the games began a number of days ago but we're here now having seen 2 softball games where the USA dominated. Monica Abbott pitched a perfect game last night against the Netherlands. A perfect game is when the opposing team had no one reach base, no hits, no errors, no walks, and obviously no runs. It may sound boring but it was anything else. Today we saw the USA dominate China 9-0 with all 9 runs being scored in the first inning. Cat Osterman pitched the first 3 innings and was relieved by Jennie Finch for the last 2. Normally softball games last 7 innings but they have a 7 runs mercy rule after 5 innings so both were cut short. We didn;t mind today because it was scorching hot!!

Last night's trip to the ball park was a "cultural experience" in that we rode the subway to the game. The trip took about an hour and a half from our apartment. China has "volunteers" everywhere and some speak English. They were very helpful for the most part in getting us there. The bus from the subway stop was no where to be found by many of us so we did have to complete the last leg by cab. Today we skipped the experience completely and took the cab from McDonalds near our apartment. The cost was 63 RMB (yuan) or about $10. That's an hour cab ride! Not bad pricing by any standard. 

Our new apartment is small but nice in a gated neighborhood occupied mostly by ex-patriots. We feel very safe. They also have a convenience store and laundry on the property. Very nice for snacks since we are avoiding most of the "local fare". There is a place we might try before leaving but not yet. 

We have been practicing prayer opportunities that I learned from Mal B. Since we came here 4 years ago I have prayed for China, for the people of China and their leadership. Riding the subway I remembered Mal saying something like "its one thing to pray for a group but another to look at a person and ask the Lord to reveal Himself to them in a personal way, to cause them to seek Him and to save them eternally. You may very well be the only person who has ever prayed for that someone in their entire life". As we travel, tour, attend events, we have been practicing that discipline. It occurred to me today that it works the same way at home!!

Much has changed since we were here 4 years ago. Jesse said then that the place needed a pressure washing Guess what? Most of it got one!! The venues and people have been shined and readied for this "coming out" party. One look past the glitz and the same poverty that most of the people face is still there. The people are very proud for this moment. They also are enjoying the commerce it has brought and I suppose when life is scratched out, that's fair. However, the lostness of people will not be changed by commerce or pressure washing. The people on the street are mostly still shocked to see us (westerners) on their streets. They stare, not rudely, but as if to say "what in the world..". 

We were able to use Skype yesterday and make a phone call home. Even cooler, Caroline's Macbook has a camera and she was able to vido message with a few friends and see each other as they talked.

Too long for now. Until tomorrow GO USA!!

 

Ni Hao (Hello) from Beijing

Greetings from my internet connection (yeah) from Beijing. We arrived yesterday afternoon for our "cultural experience" in an apartment Pat found online that belongs to a Chinese guy who lives most of the year in San Francisco but is a Canadian resident. Our first events take place today in seeing the US Softball team. I told Caroline now that she's here, the team is complete!!

We do have to move around noon today to another apartment but I would be glad to just stay here. The bad news we have received (but will surely test) is that tickets are scarce and expensive and that its illegal to sell them at the venues. I made a decision to not purchase more at home since they were outrageous...actually ridiculous in price. We'll just have to see. We will see the other venues today, at least from the outside. 

We will have our own church service here today and hope your's tomorrow am will be a time where God speaks to your heart. 

Last Day Hong Kong..Headed to China

In case you're reading the headline and thinking "Isn't HK in China?" Well, unfortunately it now is a part of China (Great Britain gave it back in 1999). It operates for visitor purposes as a separate country (like you don't need a visa to enter and many people own private property), however; China now controls HK and limits freedoms. 

Anyway, yesterday was a huge day for us visiting HK Disneyland. The weather was hot and humid as it has been all week. However, HK Disney is small in comparison to Orlando. It's easily doable in 4-5 hours and much fun. I wondered if Mickey would peak English or Chinese. He speaks both! The funniest thing was the castle. Typically, Disney names the imposing castle for one of the princesses (like Cinderella's Castle in Orlando). This one must be the dwarf's castle since it was short and anything but imposing. 

Last night we also took in the musical Around the World in 80 Days at the HK Center for Performing Arts. Decent performance but Caroline and I were tired. 

Closing images and thoughts before heading to Beijing this am(Sat):

1. They show churches in print ads but I have only seen 1. Numerous shrines but 1 church. Several are advertised. However we do have a Chinese New Testament provided in the room.

2. Saw a multi-tier golf driving range yesterday.

3. More hot cars.

4. Beautiful harbour city, bustling, hurried, but they do know how to stand in line.

5. Still getting used to right side driving cars driving on the left side of the road.

We are headed to Beijing shortly. I don' know if we will have internet or email access since we are staying in an apartment instead of a hotel and they have a highly monitored system called the Great Firewall....