Prayer Update 7/21/08
TMF was a success! There were several adults registered for the week, but I had the privilege of working with 20 Middle School students and about 20 High School students. These students were fantastic. They had wonderful attitudes and I loved spending time with them throughout the week.
Then came Sports and English Camp. I didn’t really know what to expect for this week. Everything I heard about the week seemed great. I mean, I love sports and working with young people, so I figured it would be a good week. But this was easily the best week I’ve had since being here in Taiwan. There were 100 kids that came to Taichung from all over the island for this week of camp, all from very different backgrounds. Some came already having a relationship with Christ. Some had never been given the opportunity to make a decision. Some came from families who were supportive of their kids making a decision for Christ. Others were opposed. But all of them were great kids with good hearts, who seemed to really love being there for camp. I was responsible for organizing the basketball program for the week, which was 2 hours each morning. Kimberly also helped with this, along with 3 other staff. Then Kimberly and I each had our separate English classes that we taught in the afternoons for an hour. We also had a family group that we shared. You can look on my blog for pictures of our family and other pics of the week.
There were a lot of great moments during the week. Too many to share. But two different moments are sticking out. Wednesday night we had a talent show. Most of the talents were musical (piano, singing, etc). One student, male, stood on the stage next to Chad Edwards, who led worship for this week. Chad played guitar for him while this student sang Everlasting God in English. For the most part, he sang very much off key and even messed up a few times, but sitting there listening to him sing really pounded my heart. Here was a guy who didn’t care about what he sounded like or what anyone else thought of him. He simply wanted to sing this song to God.
The other moment was Friday night, the last night of the week when 13 students made the decision to accept Christ as their Lord and Savior. Two students from our family group made this decision, Minnie and Harry. Minnie’s parent’s are Christians and have been praying for her for a long time to make this decision. Harry’s parents are not Christians, but gave permission for him to be baptized. For me, it’s always a wonderful thing to see young people make this decision, but it was especially cool to see it happen here in Taiwan, where that just doesn’t happen very often. But I was extremely honored to baptize Harry. He was actually the first person I had baptized. Again, pictures will be on my blog soon : )
Sorry for the long update, but the last two weeks were pretty packed. This week we are having VBS at a local park, so keep us and the kids attending and their families in your prayers this week. See you soon
Prayer Update 7-8-08
Greetings Prayer Supporters!
We’re in the midst of a busy schedule right now. I apologize if these updates take a little longer than usual to get sent out. But we’re in the second day of TMF right now and it’s going really well. I was surprised to have 39 teenagers show up Monday night for the teen program. I was only expecting 25-30. It was a good thing that I overestimated and had 40 copies of the teen booklet printed off. Perhaps one day I’ll learn to overestimate just a tad more so that my adult helpers can have booklets too : )
Derik Devries is the youth pastor who came with the group from Monticello, IL. He’s speaking to our teens in the evenings. He did a fantastic job last night talking to them about building unity with one another. The topics for the next few evenings all revolve around the theme of “building” (A Future; Your Mind; The Kingdom). Pray for Derik as he continues to share with these young people.
You can also pray for me Wednesday night as I have the privilege of leading worship for the adult session. I have the opportunity to play guitar for all the worship sessions (morning and evening), and have really enjoyed doing so thus far. That’s something I’ve really missed being a part of back home, so this has been a big blessing.
Keep Kimberly in your prayers as well. She’s leading the kids program this week!
Dr. David Roadcup and Dr. Darrell Bock are the speakers for this week’s conference. Dr. Roadcup and his wife actually spent a few days with us in Taipei and Taichung before the conference started. It’s been great getting to know them. They are wonderful people! Pray for Dr. Bock and Dr. Roadcup as they speak with the adults this week and all the missionaries that are in attendance that they would be encouraged and blessed by everything they hear and the fellowship they are able to have with one another.
Prayer Update 6-23-08
We got back from the church camping trip Sunday afternoon and the College Heights group from Joplin, MO left early this morning to head back home after a two week stay here in Taiwan. We really enjoyed having them here with us in Taichung for a few days, and they seemed blessed by the fellowship they were able to have with our Chinese friends who attended the camping trip.
The camping trip was a good time. We went to Sun Moon Lake, which I believe is one of the largest, if not the largest, lake in Taiwan. It was really a great place for camping as it was surrounded by mountains, providing a not too shabby view. You can see pictures of the camping trip on my blog through my Flickr account.
This week will mostly be spent at language school and finishing up some final preparations for the gauntlet of events to follow. I really appreciate the support you have given me these past few months through your prayers. Thank you for lifting this ministry up regularly
Prayer Update 6-17-08
It’s hard to believe that I only have 5 1/2 weeks left before I come home. But it’s crazy to think about how much stuff we’re packing in throughout these next five weeks. Here’s a listing of things coming up that you can be praying about:
June 19th — Kimberly and I are going to Taipei to meet with fellow missionaries to work on worship sets for TMF and Sports and English Camp.
June 20th — A group from College Heights in Joplin, MO is coming to Taichung and will attend our church camping trip.
June 21-22 — Church camping trip
July 3 — We’re going to Taipei to meet with a couple groups coming to help with TMF. We’ll be there a few days and then come back to Taichung to prepare for TMF.
July 7-12 — Taiwan Missionary Fellowship. I am organizing the teen programs for the week and helping with worship.
July 14-19 — Sports and English Camp. This week I’m organizing the basketball program. Kimberly and I will also be leading a family group and teaching English.
July 21-25 — VBS
July 27 — Kimberly and I fly back to America. We’ll arrive Sunday evening around 6:00 in Champaign, IL.
Thank you so much for your commitment to pray regularly for the work being done here in Taichung!
Prayer Update 6-10-08
This past Saturday we attempted holding the young adult cell group at a church family’s home. We had three young people attend! They were understandably a little shy, but participated well as we discussed the creation story in Genesis. We have three more meetings scheduled before Kimberly and I head back to the states. The next one is this Saturday, June 14th.
I finished the first book for my language study last week and began book 2! I only have 3 weeks left of language school before the busy July hits. Speaking of which, some things are winding down and others are picking up steam as July approaches. This Wednesday is the last meeting for our kids mid-week program until the Fall. The Tuesday morning women’s cell group will also be taking a break for a few months after their last meeting next Tuesday. Pray for these two groups and those involved that they will hold on to the things they have learned and return for more fellowship when the cell groups resume.
There is going to be a lot of traveling going on as well throughout the next couple of months. There will be a few groups coming from America to help out with July activities, but we also have a group from Missouri coming in for a couple of weeks this month. Pray for protection as people travel to and from Taiwan, and those traveling within Taiwan to attending July events.
Next week I’ll send you a list of important dates so that you can pray for these events as they approach. Until then, keep this weekend’s Saturday cell in your prayers, that those that came this past week will return and that we might see some new faces!
Prayer Update 5-13-08
Great news! Dave and I went to get the extension for my visa yesterday and were able to do so with no problems whatsoever! So I’m legal through the day that I fly back to America.
Language school is still going well, although this week’s lesson is sizable. There is a lot more vocabulary than usual, with the addition of learning the characters and new grammar….there’s a slight hint of overwhelming feelings this week.
We have another young adult cell scheduled for this Saturday. We’re thinking about other options for this cell group to help make it more successful. Possibly relocating it. Pray for us that we would make wise decisions.
Some of you may have heard about the big earthquake in China. Although it didn’t affect us here in Taiwan at all, it was quite a devastating event for thousands of families in that region who I’m sure would appreciate your prayers. Also pray for the Team Expansion missionaries in China who might be a source of encouragement for the Chinese people during this time.
Prayer Update 4-28-08
Greetings everyone! I hope you all have had a great weekend!
Language school is about to increase the joy I currently feel in my heart as I will begin learning characters this week. Up to this point, I’ve just been learning vocabulary and grammar, and it’s been going fairly well. Starting next week, I’m going to increase my hours at language school to 8 (I’ve only been going 6 hours a week). Hopefully the added hours will help things sink that much better : )
This Saturday is another young adult cell meeting. I’ve had plenty of time to think about the group since the last time we met, and I spent some time talking with Dave about this a few times as well. It’s definitely a different challenge here, as I’m not experienced in starting with nothing and trying to turn it into something. Today we were discussing the importance of having long term vision and goals for some of these projects we’re trying to start. We continue to pray that God would put young people in our paths that we can begin building relationships with and invite to come to this Saturday evening cell group. And I continue to pray that I will have patience while this develops.
Dave and I took a road trip to Taipei today to look at some sound equipment. It was a fun trip and we think we found just about everything we were looking for. It was exciting to find equipment that will suffice our current needs, but also the needs we will have as we anticipate growth with this church plant.
Thank you all for lifting up this ministry as you pray, and for the support and encouragement that I receive from you!
Prayer Update 4-21-08
Happy Monday to you all! I hope everyone had a relaxing weekend. I heard about the earthquake most, if not all, of you experienced. And here I thought I was the one moving to a natural disaster hot zone. I haven’t heard of any injuries or substantial damages, so I trust that everyone is safe and homes intact.
Saturday was the first cell meeting for young adults. Not too many showed up for opening night. We had a mother come with her 8th grade daughter (Sandy and Lilly), and our next door neighbor (Linda). However, it was actually a pretty good time. We were able to sit and learn quite a bit about this family. Lilly was fairly shy so her mother did most of the talking. Linda was very helpful with translating for Kimberly and I, although Kimberly was doing well to understand most of what was being said on her own. After we talked and got to know each other better, we played a game for a while and then talked about what this cell group is designed for. Sandy seemed to think that it would be good for her daughter to come and work on her English and discuss some issues that young people deal with while learning about God and what it means to be a follower of Christ. We’re hoping that we’ll seem them again next time, which will be May 3rd. I wasn’t bummed at all by the lack of people. Instead, I was kind of excited about the potential positive affect that this group could have on young people’s lives.
It was also a pleasure to be able to spend some time with fellow Team Expansion missionaries from around the island. Many came into town to watch one family’s son perform in a musical at his school (Morrison Academy). Sunday morning we gathered a little early to worship together before our normal Chinese church service began. It was so nice to be able to sing in English, or at all really (since I can’t sing along with the Chinese songs yet). We sang together for about 25 minutes. Very refreshing!
Thank you all for your prayers!
The Long Awaited Scooter Photos
For those of you who do not receive my newsletter, I thought I would submit the following photos of my scooter for what I’m sure will be to your enjoyment at my expense, of course. I’ve actually grown to be quite proud of my scooter. Not only was it quite affordable to take off the lot, but it only costs less than $3.00 to fill it up every couple of weeks. Yes, it is purple, but it inconspicuously packs a hardy punch that satisfies the adventurous part of me. And as advertised, I also feel quite fashionable as I journey from here to there along the streets of Taiwan.
If you are interested in reading the story of how I wrecked Kimberly’s scooter into the wall, check out my newsletter, which you will find under the CATEGORY heading along the right side, somewhere down there. Click on the Newsletter link, and then the March Newsletter.
You might have to click on the March Newsletter heading again to be able to access the link for the newsletter. I shared this story with a good friend of mine who took it upon herself to try to capture the essence of what happened in comic form. Enjoy! (Thanks for all your hard work Moo!)
Prayer Update 4-7-08
It’s hard to believe that I’ve been here a month now. Some days it seems like the last month has flown by, but then there are moments where it seems like it should be May by now. But I’m excited about what this month may bring and the preparations for the rest of the summer that will begin to take place.
Pray for the English cell starting in two weeks. I’m still bouncing this around in my head on how I would like to go about doing this. But the important thing is that we have a few individuals who are interested in coming. This will definitely be a time to build relationships. And through these relationships, we’ll be able to share Christ with them. Begin praying for those individuals who might come and give this a try.
Language learning is still going okay. I started learning vocabulary and forming basic sentences. It’s quite a slow process for me. Please pray for my patience!
Kimberly finally returned late Wednesday night. Her tooth is still bothering her a little bit but has a dentist appointment this afternoon to continue working on that root canal : ) She’s not too excited about it. But pray for her that this procedure goes well.
Thank you so much for committing to pray for me! I’m enjoying my time here, but definitely missing seeing all of you every week.
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Welcome to LanceHampton.org!
My name is Lance Hampton and I've recently made the decision to pursue missions and begin the next chapter of my life. I knew I wanted to do something where I could work closely with people. But I also wanted to be able to do something where I could share my love for music as well.
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