He makes beautiful things...

From the desk of Chris...

Every few days Allie and I see something here that just completely humbles us and breaks our hearts. I think we have a tendency to keep some of this stuff off of the blog, since its more fun to post videos about exciting adventures and funny stories. But, for the sake of trying to make the blog as "real" as possible, here's a glimpse at some of the reality here... some of the things that break our hearts.

- I noticed that once of my students always seemes to stare at me with a confused look on his face. He never seems to participate much and I haven't been able to pull him out of his shell. Finally, I decided to press him until he gave me some legitimate participation in class. Turns out that he can't read the board from where he sits, and doesn't have any glasses. I also noticed that there are 3 girls who sit in the back row of one of my classes-- one of them has a pair of glasses that they all pass around and share. Maybe they all just lost their glasses, but maybe they can't afford to buy any for themselves.

- Two weeks ago I took a friend to the "best hospital in Hengyang" after he hurt is ankle. I insisted that he went because after doing a basic physical exam on him, it was pretty obvious that he tore something. At the hospital all they did were 2 (instead of the normal 3) ankle x-rays, told him nothing was broken, and sent him on his way. No MRI, no splint... they didn't even give him any medicine for pain or inflammation. It made me realize that the "best" hospital in our city is like the worst hospital in our old city in America.

- A few days ago I saw my friend Wong Yeh again. We haven't been able to hang out much because he works in another city and only comes to school on the weekends. We only got to talk for a few minutes, but after he left I realized that he was wearing the same clothes that he had on last time we hung out-- the same clothes he has on EVERY time we hang out. He has told me before that he is on his own and very poor, but never before have I realized that maybe he can't afford to buy any other clothes.

I wish that there was more that we could do to help our friends and students here! Sadly, the culture here doesn't allow you to do something for someone that they can never repay. If you bought something for someone that they couldn't afford, they would feel overwhelming shame that they could never repay you. It is at times like this that I am thankful that Father has power over all things, that He can provide the things that we need. I am often reminded of the song Beautiful Things, the chorus saying "He makes beautiful things, He makes beautiful things out of the dust. He makes beautiful things, He makes beautiful things out of us." It is easy to look at my students and forget that I need changing as well. It is comforting to know that Father looks at me and sees the desperation which I ignore!