HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR FROM THE MCCURDYS!
Please rejoice with us this month:
Special Time With Rose—As you may know from our last McMemo, the Father recently led us to open our home and hearts to a precious four-year-old Chinese girl named Rose who came to live with us for three weeks (December 23-January 14) while her new foster family (another couple on our team) was in America. What a special blessing she was to us (and still is, as we get to see her quite often!). We can’t thank you enough for your pry’rs on our behalf during this time! We definitely saw the Father working in wonderful ways as a result of them! It was amazing to experience Him being made strong in our weakness (and tiredness!) and granting extra measures of energy, patience, and abounding love for this special child of His! Regarding specific requests we had mentioned, Rose’s transitions (both to our home and back to her foster family) went amazingly well! I guess you could say it was “beyond what we could ask or imagine.” Also, her ear infection/fever went away shortly after she came to us, she only had bad dreams for two nights of the three weeks she was with us, and she has been able to meet with a lady on our team twice a week who has a background in counseling (this has been extremely helpful for Rose). Praise Him for hearing and answering pry’r! Please continue to remember Rose with us as we pr’y that “the Father would watch over her and be her shade at her right hand, that He will keep her from all harm and watch over her life, and that He will watch over her coming and going both now and forevermore (Psalm 121:5-8).” We have attached a picture with this McMemo of us and Rose, but you can also click on the link below to view more pictures of our special time together!
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=2BZNmLds1YsJO
Dave’s Travel to America—Thank you for lifting up Dave’s travels to America these past two weeks. Although he will not return until this Thursday, Feb. 1, we thought we would share with you the answers to pry’r thusfar. His flight to America was great—on time and even an extra seat between him and the man next to him on the plane! That extra half a seat can make a big difference on a 13 hour flight! His tax conference in Dallas, meetings at our U.S. headquarters in Atlanta, and connecting with family and friends also went very well! Thank you again for your pry’rs! Please continue to remember him as his return flight to China departs from Dallas this Wednesday at 8:05 a.m. (your time). Kristen is very excited for his return! J
Please remember us this coming month:
Upcoming Decision—Please continue to remember us in the coming couple of weeks as we seek the Father’s leading in where He wants us for the future. Our contract with LDi officially ends this summer, and although we will be back in America either way at that time (to visit or to stay), we are considering what the bigger next step should be. Please continue to ask that His Word would be a lamp to our feet and a light to our path, that we would sense a clear leading one way or the other, and that we would have a united heart in the decision that is made. We would like to be able to make a firm decision by early Feb. once Dave returns from America. We will update you ASAP.
Chinese New Year, Feb. 18, 2007—It’s time to celebrate the Year of the Pig!! Legend has it that in ancient times, Buddha asked all the animals to come and meet him on Chinese New Year. Twelve animals came, and Buddha named a year after each one (so every twelve years, the cycle of animals starts over)! Chinese New Year is also called “Chun Jie” which literally means “Spring Festival,” and it is a festival celebrated by Chinese people all over the world! It is the longest and most important celebration in the Chinese lunar calendar and has the same level of importance and excitement for them as Christmas has for Americans. In China, people may take weeks of holiday from work to prepare for and celebrate the New Year. Because this festival marks the beginning of Spring according to the lunar calendar, many Chinese will clean their houses thoroughly to rid it of bad luck or evil in preparation for the New Year. Also, on New Year’s Eve (Feb. 17), many generations of family members will come together for a feast at the family home. They will work together to make “jiao zi,” meat and vegetable filled dumplings. At midnight they will set off fireworks in order to scare away any bad luck or evil spirits for the coming year. After the fireworks, they will all come inside and eat the dumplings. The children will receive small red envelopes with “lucky money” inside. Also, red paper cuts of the animal that governs that year (Oink! Oink!) will be posted on the doors of houses, along with red paper cuts of the Chinese character for blessing (the character is hung upside down to symbolize that blessing will be poured out on the family/home). The red color symbolizes fire, which according to legend can also drive away bad luck. Please ask that people will recognize our Elder Brother as the One from Whom true blessing is poured out; that people would trust only in Him as their source of protection and peace in the coming year; and that we may be a light to those we spend time with during this special Chinese holiday.
Chinese New Year Travels—Among the masses of Chinese people returning home for the holiday, we will also be traveling in Asia with four other people from our team to celebrate the Chinese New Year! We are looking forward to a good time of fellowship with our teammates, a time of refreshment, and seeing a new part of Asia! Please ask that we would have safe travel and as well as sensitivity to those opportunities He may give us to share with people we meet along the way!
Building Relationships—
Aaron: You may remember our neighbor, Aaron, a single guy in his late 30’s from Australia who moved into the apartment building across from us back in June. When we first had him over for dinner, he was interested to know about what we believed and was anxious to tell us about what he believed as well (we found out that his past experiences with Christn’s have not been very positive). We recently learned, through a conversation that Kristen had with Aaron, that he is very interested in becoming Budd’ist, and has been learning about Budd’ism by reading books and even visiting a few of the temples in town. He said that his “search for peace/security” has been brought on by the fact that he will turn 40 this year and wants to find some answers to what life is all about. Kristen was able to share the Truth of what our Elder Brother did for us and how much He loves us. When Kristen asked if he had a Good Book, Aaron said that he had one in Chinese that he is able to read if he wants (due to his Chinese studies, he really is that skilled in understanding the language). Just before Christmas, Kristen saw him outside again and invited him to the Christmas Eve service taking place at the international fellowship we attend on Sundays. He politely declined, and said he knew he was a “bad person” for not going. Again, Kristen had the opportunity to address this misconception he had. Please ask that Aaron’s heart would be softened to accept that “trying to be good” is not what life is all about, and that he would turn his life over to our Elder Brother.
JJust for Fun!J
During Dave’s stay at the hotel where his conference was held, he needed assistance from housekeeping for a fairly urgent matter in his room. When the front desk wasn’t sending anyone up, he noticed a housekeeping lady in the room next door to his. Being the smart man that he is, Dave was quick to figure out that she only spoke Spanish, but as he tried to communicate with her, the only foreign language he could produce was Chinese! After a bit of hand gesturing and some Spanglish here and there, he was able to get the matter taken care of! As the saying goes (or sort of goes): You can take a foreigner out of China, but you can’t take the China out of him!
As always, please let us know if there is anything we can be lifting up on your behalf, and we look forward to updating you again next month.
In His Love,
Dave and Kristen
Ps. 63:1-5
Please rejoice with us this month:
Special Time With Rose—As you may know from our last McMemo, the Father recently led us to open our home and hearts to a precious four-year-old Chinese girl named Rose who came to live with us for three weeks (December 23-January 14) while her new foster family (another couple on our team) was in America. What a special blessing she was to us (and still is, as we get to see her quite often!). We can’t thank you enough for your pry’rs on our behalf during this time! We definitely saw the Father working in wonderful ways as a result of them! It was amazing to experience Him being made strong in our weakness (and tiredness!) and granting extra measures of energy, patience, and abounding love for this special child of His! Regarding specific requests we had mentioned, Rose’s transitions (both to our home and back to her foster family) went amazingly well! I guess you could say it was “beyond what we could ask or imagine.” Also, her ear infection/fever went away shortly after she came to us, she only had bad dreams for two nights of the three weeks she was with us, and she has been able to meet with a lady on our team twice a week who has a background in counseling (this has been extremely helpful for Rose). Praise Him for hearing and answering pry’r! Please continue to remember Rose with us as we pr’y that “the Father would watch over her and be her shade at her right hand, that He will keep her from all harm and watch over her life, and that He will watch over her coming and going both now and forevermore (Psalm 121:5-8).” We have attached a picture with this McMemo of us and Rose, but you can also click on the link below to view more pictures of our special time together!
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=2BZNmLds1YsJO
Dave’s Travel to America—Thank you for lifting up Dave’s travels to America these past two weeks. Although he will not return until this Thursday, Feb. 1, we thought we would share with you the answers to pry’r thusfar. His flight to America was great—on time and even an extra seat between him and the man next to him on the plane! That extra half a seat can make a big difference on a 13 hour flight! His tax conference in Dallas, meetings at our U.S. headquarters in Atlanta, and connecting with family and friends also went very well! Thank you again for your pry’rs! Please continue to remember him as his return flight to China departs from Dallas this Wednesday at 8:05 a.m. (your time). Kristen is very excited for his return! J
Please remember us this coming month:
Upcoming Decision—Please continue to remember us in the coming couple of weeks as we seek the Father’s leading in where He wants us for the future. Our contract with LDi officially ends this summer, and although we will be back in America either way at that time (to visit or to stay), we are considering what the bigger next step should be. Please continue to ask that His Word would be a lamp to our feet and a light to our path, that we would sense a clear leading one way or the other, and that we would have a united heart in the decision that is made. We would like to be able to make a firm decision by early Feb. once Dave returns from America. We will update you ASAP.
Chinese New Year, Feb. 18, 2007—It’s time to celebrate the Year of the Pig!! Legend has it that in ancient times, Buddha asked all the animals to come and meet him on Chinese New Year. Twelve animals came, and Buddha named a year after each one (so every twelve years, the cycle of animals starts over)! Chinese New Year is also called “Chun Jie” which literally means “Spring Festival,” and it is a festival celebrated by Chinese people all over the world! It is the longest and most important celebration in the Chinese lunar calendar and has the same level of importance and excitement for them as Christmas has for Americans. In China, people may take weeks of holiday from work to prepare for and celebrate the New Year. Because this festival marks the beginning of Spring according to the lunar calendar, many Chinese will clean their houses thoroughly to rid it of bad luck or evil in preparation for the New Year. Also, on New Year’s Eve (Feb. 17), many generations of family members will come together for a feast at the family home. They will work together to make “jiao zi,” meat and vegetable filled dumplings. At midnight they will set off fireworks in order to scare away any bad luck or evil spirits for the coming year. After the fireworks, they will all come inside and eat the dumplings. The children will receive small red envelopes with “lucky money” inside. Also, red paper cuts of the animal that governs that year (Oink! Oink!) will be posted on the doors of houses, along with red paper cuts of the Chinese character for blessing (the character is hung upside down to symbolize that blessing will be poured out on the family/home). The red color symbolizes fire, which according to legend can also drive away bad luck. Please ask that people will recognize our Elder Brother as the One from Whom true blessing is poured out; that people would trust only in Him as their source of protection and peace in the coming year; and that we may be a light to those we spend time with during this special Chinese holiday.
Chinese New Year Travels—Among the masses of Chinese people returning home for the holiday, we will also be traveling in Asia with four other people from our team to celebrate the Chinese New Year! We are looking forward to a good time of fellowship with our teammates, a time of refreshment, and seeing a new part of Asia! Please ask that we would have safe travel and as well as sensitivity to those opportunities He may give us to share with people we meet along the way!
Building Relationships—
Aaron: You may remember our neighbor, Aaron, a single guy in his late 30’s from Australia who moved into the apartment building across from us back in June. When we first had him over for dinner, he was interested to know about what we believed and was anxious to tell us about what he believed as well (we found out that his past experiences with Christn’s have not been very positive). We recently learned, through a conversation that Kristen had with Aaron, that he is very interested in becoming Budd’ist, and has been learning about Budd’ism by reading books and even visiting a few of the temples in town. He said that his “search for peace/security” has been brought on by the fact that he will turn 40 this year and wants to find some answers to what life is all about. Kristen was able to share the Truth of what our Elder Brother did for us and how much He loves us. When Kristen asked if he had a Good Book, Aaron said that he had one in Chinese that he is able to read if he wants (due to his Chinese studies, he really is that skilled in understanding the language). Just before Christmas, Kristen saw him outside again and invited him to the Christmas Eve service taking place at the international fellowship we attend on Sundays. He politely declined, and said he knew he was a “bad person” for not going. Again, Kristen had the opportunity to address this misconception he had. Please ask that Aaron’s heart would be softened to accept that “trying to be good” is not what life is all about, and that he would turn his life over to our Elder Brother.
JJust for Fun!J
During Dave’s stay at the hotel where his conference was held, he needed assistance from housekeeping for a fairly urgent matter in his room. When the front desk wasn’t sending anyone up, he noticed a housekeeping lady in the room next door to his. Being the smart man that he is, Dave was quick to figure out that she only spoke Spanish, but as he tried to communicate with her, the only foreign language he could produce was Chinese! After a bit of hand gesturing and some Spanglish here and there, he was able to get the matter taken care of! As the saying goes (or sort of goes): You can take a foreigner out of China, but you can’t take the China out of him!
As always, please let us know if there is anything we can be lifting up on your behalf, and we look forward to updating you again next month.
In His Love,
Dave and Kristen
Ps. 63:1-5
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