“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.....And from His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.” (John 1: 14 & 16) This was the sermon text in church this evening. But, I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s start at the beginning of Christmas Day.
Christmas Day in Guangzhou brought a few presents to the Lindquist family. The biggest gift was that Gus and Jake arrived safely on an early morning flight from Hong Kong. They were full of stories about their travels and their week together at home. It was so good to see their faces, laugh at their stories, and share in the goodness of a great God!! He was so good to us in answering so many prayers for their health, safety and protection while they were away from us.
We spent the rest of the day showing them all the wonderful things to do around the hotel. The festivities continued today with all the food booths and sights to see. We sampled more wonderful fruit and something called cheese balls, which were fantastic. There were more photo opportunities as we walked around. Another gift came in the form of how quickly Elsa took to her brothers. Before we had made it to lunch time you could hear her calling “gue, gue” , which means big brother!
Elsa, it appears, is becoming more comfortable as a Lindquist. This is such a gift from God and really a miracle. She had so many smiles and giggles today. Her babbling is so adorable! I call it that because we have no idea, most of the time, if she is speaking words or not. Oh, how I wish we knew Chinese!!
After a long day of wandering around here, we went to the “medical clinic” to have our spines analyzed. This is a euphemism for getting a back massage. They had room for us all together, so Elsa and Annika colored while we groaned. It was a stitch! After dinner we went back to the church and hoped that the line would not be too long so that we could be a part of the evening service. What a complete blessing and gift it was to be there with our Chinese brothers and sisters. They seated the crowd about an hour before the service was scheduled to start. We were packed into the pews like sardines! Since we had so much time before the service actually began, we got to know the people sitting near us. Clearly, we were an oddity in the congregation being the only foreigners in the whole chapel. We met a sweet older gentleman who just shined with the love of Jesus. He gave us his card and a DVD of his testimony that he carries with him to give to anyone who wants to know more about the gospel. We also met three college students who sat near us. They translated the written program for us and talked about their studies. One boldly asked Todd if we believe all the gospel message. What an opportunity! We talked until the service began and exchanged emails.
We really are overwhelmed at the grace and mercy of our great God. His love is what compels us to live each day for His glory and for His fame. All of this is because of Him!
Meeting the boys at the airport!
Family pictures.
Wearing their Christmas dresses!
Can't get enough of that smile!
Eating dinner!
Line outside of church for the Christmas service.
We were packed into the pews!
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