Christian Hakka Seminary

Class at Christian Hakka Seminary

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Shalom from the Far East

By Ivy and Emerson Wu,   March 28, 2020

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Greetings from Taiwan!

In early January, while we were still in Hong Kong, we learned from the media that coronavirus had begun. As it spread, we continually sent out related information and resources to friends and churches around the world to warn everyone and urge them to pay attention and comply with proper prevention and preparation procedures. In Asia, since many countries/areas had the unfortunate experiences of SARS and have a dense population in a small area, people learned to wear a mask and use hand sanitizer. PREVENTION with personal hygiene is one of the keys to stop the coronavirus spreading.

Yes, the Pandemic puts us all in the same boat, but it also gives Christians time to reflect and rethink our relationship with God, the Creator of the universe, with others and how we should harmoniously live with each other near and far. We give thanks for a time like this when all Christ-followers should use the opportunity to be good witnesses and do good works to influence unbelievers. May the name of the All Mighty be glorified forever and ever!

Thanks to you for your many prayers and concern for our safety. We are fine. Due to a pre-arranged work trip in Taiwan, we left Hong Kong to fly to Taiwan on 2/2/2020. On 2/7 Taiwan government announced the restricted entry for people from Hong Kong, Macau and China. We are so glad that we were able to enter before that date. As the coronavirus situation worsened in Hong Kong, and increased the risk of traveling by air, a month ago we were approved by IM to stay in Taiwan until the end of April. At that time, we’ll evaluate the situation and decide where to stay. Taiwan has done a good job of controlling the coronavirus. Mask distribution is under quota policy. For now, each adult is able to buy 3 masks every 7 days. Children receive 5 masks every 7 days.

As before, we keep our ministry work going with our partners in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and the States by communicating and monitoring through emails and phone calls. As the Apostle Paul taught that neither death nor life…neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, would be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord, in this age of technology, distance does not separate us from our partners. Here are some ministry highlights from the past couple of months.

Ivy has fully recovered from her surgery last December and has resumed a normal schedule. Our ministry in Taiwan focuses on helping the Christian Hakka Seminary, Hakka churches and related outreach ministry to the aboriginals. At Seminary, we have attended two week-long intensive classes. One of them was the first class for the DMIN students in the new program in 2020. There were three students who are pastors. We stayed at the seminary’s dorm for about a month. Day and night, we were blessed to fellowship with the principal, faculty, staff, students and visitors who came to attend the events held there.

We also visited an Aboriginal Victory Alcoholics Anonymous Care Center in the mountains of central Taiwan and made our third visit (two of them were in 2019) to a potential church planting site in southern Taiwan. Praise the Lord, a new church located at that site will be founded and will start in July 2020. Its ministry will include a college campus with many aboriginal Christians who have less access to attend Sunday worship service outside the college, elderly people, school-age children and unbelievers in the community.

We are thankful that the rate of Coronavirus spreading is slowing in some parts of the world.  IM has had the privilege of partnering with other ministries to provide thousands of masks and other items for Hong Kong, Wuhan and other needy locations. God is good.

For you we sincerely pray that our Lord will shower you with protection, peace, love and joy since our hope and trust are solely in Him.