Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Tacy #3
After class this afternoon, we headed over to Manhattan to see if wecould find Tacy. And sure enough there she was sitting in the park. Her face and eyes lit up when she saw us. Tacy has lived in the same apartment for 47 years! Her air conditioner is not working well and the landlord wants her to replace it but it came with the apartment. She said they had been trying to get rid of her for quite some time. Please pray that they would put in a new air conditioner for her. We found out that Tacy only has 2 relatives living; cousins both inTennessee which she does not see. So, indeed she is all alone in NewYork City but she has 2 cats, Pumpkin and Precious, her 2 P's. She is such a lively elderly lady, and I found myself hoping that I could be that full of joy when I reach her age. She was sitting in the park because it was cooler than her apartment. She is a night owl and so she sits there until about 12:30 at night and is not afraid. I did ask her if she knew where she would go when she died and she quickly smiled and said of course I do. Tacy taught 4th grade Sunday School for many years at Central Presbyterian Church in NYC. She still reads her Bible but needs a cataract operation on both eyes. She said it is getting a bit fuzzy. I asked her if she needed anything and she told me that she had everything she needed and thanked us for loving her. She also knew and stated that we only had 10 days left. So, I asked her if she could eat sweets and she said yes, and told me she loves Whitman chocolates. So Steven and I will try to find Tacy some chocolate. And she loves the tram that comes over to Roosevelt Island where we live. I asked her if it had an elevator and she said it did. I then asked her if she would like to ride it and she said "YES, but it has to be dark cause I want to see the lights". So, we promised to take her for a ride on the Tram. Tacy warms my heart at each visit. She is so full of life and yet her body keeps her from living life as she once did. She laughs and jokes and is just a delight to visit with. When we climbed the steps to the Tram, I went to the edge to wave and blow her a kiss and she was right there watching for me with a huge smile. I left thinking of how much I will miss my Tacy visits but was reminded that I will see her in Heaven and we will be able to visit for longer periods of time! We have been the ones to be blessed by our Tacy encounters!
Marilyn
One of our assignments is to interview 1 person each week from a different culture. I thought this interview might give you some insight into the Filipino culture.
Marilyn has been in the USA for 4 years. She is from Mindanao and while she was meeting her niece for dinner she was very welcoming and open to share with me about the culture in the Philippines. She told me that the biggest difference she notices is that the Filipino culture is much more religious and conservative. Marilyn also stated that the USA is much more materialistic than the Philippines. The Filipinos are more focused on planting and eating than things. Marilyn is a Catholic. Her sisters and brothers are still in the Philippines and she is here in the USA in order to help send her nieces and nephews to college. She goes home once a year. I asked Marilyn about her favorite tradition which she misses most and she told me Christmas with tears in her eyes. She indicated that Christmas in the Philippines is family oriented. It's all about getting together and that the gifts aren't important. The most important thing is to just be there and to be together. If you can bring a small gift it's fine but if not just come. The traditional food is roasted pig and everyone brings whatever food they can, they share their blessings, and if you don't have anything to bring, still come and eat. I was able to clarify some traditions, which I didn't understand in the Philippines. All Saints day is to celebrate and remember the good that those members in their church have done. The candle outside the window was placed there to give light to souls, and shine a path for them to Heaven. I had always heard that it was a light to show them back home. All Souls Day is the day where all the family meets at the cemetery and brings food and celebrates memories of their loved ones. It's like a picnic at the cemetery and some even build houses there in which to celebrate. Of course this is only those that have money. Filipino's believe that Good Friday is the day that Jesus Christ passed and so they stay home that day and pray. They don't go out except to go to church and to participate in the Stations of the Cross. Saturday they also stay in and go to the church to participate in the Stations of the Cross. Easter Sunday is a time of celebration of family. They prepare a feast and go to the beach to wash themselves. (I wish I would have asked more questions about this.) She indicated that Christmas, Good Friday, Easter Sunday and New Years are all days in which the Filipinos celebrate family. Marilyn has an 8-year-old girl. She helped to raise her sister's children and so her sisters are giving back to her and raising her daughter. Marilyn doesn't want her daughter to come to America because she wants her to learn Filipino values. She indicated that their values are more than money but also to respect elders and love family. It's all about family ties. Marilyn confirmed that Filipinos do spank their children but they also feed them to hush them as well. And the placing an Elder's hand on my forehead is a show of respect for the Elderly person. And as is always the Filipino culture, she asked me to join them for dinner; and insisted that I taste a dish, which I had never had before. My interview with Marilyn was delightful and I look forward to many more in the Philippines!
Marilyn has been in the USA for 4 years. She is from Mindanao and while she was meeting her niece for dinner she was very welcoming and open to share with me about the culture in the Philippines. She told me that the biggest difference she notices is that the Filipino culture is much more religious and conservative. Marilyn also stated that the USA is much more materialistic than the Philippines. The Filipinos are more focused on planting and eating than things. Marilyn is a Catholic. Her sisters and brothers are still in the Philippines and she is here in the USA in order to help send her nieces and nephews to college. She goes home once a year. I asked Marilyn about her favorite tradition which she misses most and she told me Christmas with tears in her eyes. She indicated that Christmas in the Philippines is family oriented. It's all about getting together and that the gifts aren't important. The most important thing is to just be there and to be together. If you can bring a small gift it's fine but if not just come. The traditional food is roasted pig and everyone brings whatever food they can, they share their blessings, and if you don't have anything to bring, still come and eat. I was able to clarify some traditions, which I didn't understand in the Philippines. All Saints day is to celebrate and remember the good that those members in their church have done. The candle outside the window was placed there to give light to souls, and shine a path for them to Heaven. I had always heard that it was a light to show them back home. All Souls Day is the day where all the family meets at the cemetery and brings food and celebrates memories of their loved ones. It's like a picnic at the cemetery and some even build houses there in which to celebrate. Of course this is only those that have money. Filipino's believe that Good Friday is the day that Jesus Christ passed and so they stay home that day and pray. They don't go out except to go to church and to participate in the Stations of the Cross. Saturday they also stay in and go to the church to participate in the Stations of the Cross. Easter Sunday is a time of celebration of family. They prepare a feast and go to the beach to wash themselves. (I wish I would have asked more questions about this.) She indicated that Christmas, Good Friday, Easter Sunday and New Years are all days in which the Filipinos celebrate family. Marilyn has an 8-year-old girl. She helped to raise her sister's children and so her sisters are giving back to her and raising her daughter. Marilyn doesn't want her daughter to come to America because she wants her to learn Filipino values. She indicated that their values are more than money but also to respect elders and love family. It's all about family ties. Marilyn confirmed that Filipinos do spank their children but they also feed them to hush them as well. And the placing an Elder's hand on my forehead is a show of respect for the Elderly person. And as is always the Filipino culture, she asked me to join them for dinner; and insisted that I taste a dish, which I had never had before. My interview with Marilyn was delightful and I look forward to many more in the Philippines!
NYC Day 2 Day
What are we doing in New York City?
It has dawned on us that some of you might be wondering what our days look like in New York City. We have been assigned to Living in Faith Christian Church (LFCC) to worship and serve. The churches make up is of young Korean and Chinese Christians. LFCC is in Flushing, NY, so we take the 'F' subway from our island to Jackson Heights where we get on the 7 subway. The 7 subway is a beautiful ride above the ground and it goes right by Shea Stadium, the old stadium and the new one. Then we catch a bus ride to Beth Sholom Temple where LFCC meets on Sundays. This is a Redeemer church plant and they don't yet have their own building. Pastor Stephen Ro indicated it would take $300,000 to purchase a building in their area. The trip takes us about 1.5 hours and we love the worship at this church. During the week we are helping in the morning to teach English as a Second Language to 3 elderly Chinese women. As Steven and I have never taught ESL, this has been a great experience, another addition to our tool box and one that I think I would like to use with the Street Children in the Philippines. But it has been amazing to see how God prepared us to teach this class. He just amazes us the way He goes before us. Our last 3 days of language learning with Mr. Gradin was great training because we can just reverse what he taught us. In the afternoon we have class from 2:00 until 5:30 and then it's home to work on"homework". We deeply appreciate your willingness to journey with us; thank you for your prayers as we have felt God's presence all along the way. Our heart's continue to be full of praise at how He continues to be our Rock and our Guide.
It has dawned on us that some of you might be wondering what our days look like in New York City. We have been assigned to Living in Faith Christian Church (LFCC) to worship and serve. The churches make up is of young Korean and Chinese Christians. LFCC is in Flushing, NY, so we take the 'F' subway from our island to Jackson Heights where we get on the 7 subway. The 7 subway is a beautiful ride above the ground and it goes right by Shea Stadium, the old stadium and the new one. Then we catch a bus ride to Beth Sholom Temple where LFCC meets on Sundays. This is a Redeemer church plant and they don't yet have their own building. Pastor Stephen Ro indicated it would take $300,000 to purchase a building in their area. The trip takes us about 1.5 hours and we love the worship at this church. During the week we are helping in the morning to teach English as a Second Language to 3 elderly Chinese women. As Steven and I have never taught ESL, this has been a great experience, another addition to our tool box and one that I think I would like to use with the Street Children in the Philippines. But it has been amazing to see how God prepared us to teach this class. He just amazes us the way He goes before us. Our last 3 days of language learning with Mr. Gradin was great training because we can just reverse what he taught us. In the afternoon we have class from 2:00 until 5:30 and then it's home to work on"homework". We deeply appreciate your willingness to journey with us; thank you for your prayers as we have felt God's presence all along the way. Our heart's continue to be full of praise at how He continues to be our Rock and our Guide.
Family Clutch & Release
I am realizing one of the main reasons that God brought me to New York was to pry my hands from around my family. He showed me that I had previously dug my heels in, hoping that something would keep us closer to those precious babies. I have always seen myself as a big part of my grandkids' lives; as my own Grandparents lived in Iowa andTexas, which only seemed far away as I grew up in Tennessee. Funny, that was Steven's position before we went our first term to the Philippines. The Lord has heard just about all the excuses we could come up "well, we've got to do this and that before we can go".... God has ever so gently (I just adore how gentle He is with me) reminded me of how Jesus Christ left the comforts of Heaven and the fellowship of the Trinity to come to earth to save me from myself and my sins. God continues to show me that He really does have it all under control as Lindsey with Chad's help made decisions without us there. It's as if He is saying to me...."Deborah, look, see, I can handle Lindsey and her affairs even better than you; just rest in me, trust me and believe." Once again, I have found myself wondering why can't I easily trust and believe God? Why is it so hard for me to throw myself at His feet in total dependence and to leave my family there too? I praise Him for moving my feet closer to the GO line and for teaching me that His strength, grace and sovereign hand are more than sufficient in every area of my life.
John Leonard Teaching Info.
For more information on John Leonard's teachings on evangelism go to www.cvcpca.org and jleonard@wts.edu, for special sermons, and pastoring people.
Tacy #2
On the way back from meeting our mentor, Debbie Kanavel, we saw Tacy sitting in a park by the tram. She loves sitting there looking at the Queensbourough Bridge (with all the lights) and the Tram. It was 8:15 at night and there she was sitting all by herself. She was so glad to see us and while she seems very content, I found myself wondering if she is lonely and where her family lives. She is originally fromTennessee like us but has been in New York City for over 30 years. Tacy talked about the Lord and her not always obeying Him. I asked her if she knew that God loved her even when she didn't always obey Him and her eyes lit up like the bridge as she nodded her head. I decided to develop the friendship more as John Leonard suggested instead of just jumping further in about religious things. John mentioned that he tells people in his introduction, "Hi, my name is John and I am your Pastor." so that they know our goal. If we don't tell them and enter a friendship without them knowing our goal, they will wonder our true motives. Tacy was so glad to see us and when we told her we had been looking for her , her face lit up. She told us she would be watching for us again and so I can't wait to see her and ask more. As I thought about our leaving this big city, I realized that our Tacy encounter will always be a sweet, sweet encounter in this huge city.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Love from the Scotts
We miss you all and thank you for your prayers, encouragement and support! It is priceless to us! We could not have made it here without your prayers on our behalf!
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