The One Where I Move To China
Shalom, ya’ll –
I’m packing my
bags, catching a one-way flight on August 14 and moving to China! I’m going to
be teaching English at Chenggong College for the next year. All forms of
social media (Facebook, Twitter, Blogger, etc.) are blocked in China, so click here to discover how to follow all my Asian Invasion adventures until I return to
the good ‘ole US of A.
This spring I took
the Perspectives Bible Class and decided to (shockingly) be obnoxious
one evening after class and pick up all the brochures laid out on the table
outside. One of the brochures was for Academics in Asia, a program that
recruits native English speakers/teachers and connects them to partner schools
in China. Living abroad has been on my list of things to do before I get old
and boring and/or marry Tim Tebow, so teaching English in China it is! I hope
Timmy is cool with adopting a couple little Chinese babies, because my carry-on
is a perfect size for a sibling set of two, possibly three.
I suppose I
unknowingly asked for this globe-trotting adventure when I graduated college as a
licensed teacher but said I would NEVER EVER be an English teacher. God laughed
and then opened the CRAY doors I am currently walking through in this season of
life. My pale, six-foot frame is about to loom like Gandalf over thousands of
tiny Asian hobbit frames. Exciting stuff, this following Jesus thing.
As August 14
draws closer, the illusion created by time is slowing disappearing – it has
forced me to daily to sit under the weighty reality of all the unknowns on the other side of obedience. Will there be a nice Chinese man holding
a sign with my name gloriously misspelled when I land in Zhengzhou? I sure hope
so. If not, I will need to learn Mandarin, (a language without an alphabet), and learn it fast. Ching-Chong-Bing-Bong-Can-You-Speeaaakk-Engiishh?
I'm a HUGE feeler, which means if you are having a bad day, I will be right by your side, ice cream and empathy in hand until we eat ourselves into diabetes and/or life swings upward. It also means I'm the most ridiculous/best/entertaining dancer at your wedding reception. But being a feeler also means my emotions talk the loudest and are easiest to listen to, even if what they are saying isn't true. So, you can imagine how all over the place my FEELINGS are right now. THEY CAN'T BE TRUSTED. I repeat: WOLVES IN SHEEP CLOTHING. The rational part of my DNA (small, but mighty) is working overtime to KEEP CALM and KEEP HERDING THE CATS THAT ARE MY EMOTIONS.
I am steady, excited - but I am having to preach to myself more often about what I already believe to be true, but have temporarily forgot: God has called me to China, God is already in China, and God will be with me in China.
I have to remind
myself that God empowers the obedience He commands. I have to remind myself
that God is who He says He is, that my confidence is in the calling, that this
life is an adventure, not an errand.
A few months
ago, I was listening to a sermon by Matt Chandler as I put clean dishes away
and began to ugly cry alone in my kitchen because the Holy Spirit slapped me
upside the head with some serious Scripture. The sermon was from the Village
Church’s series on the book of Acts and it seemed as though everything I had
been trying to process finally unscrambled itself and shifted into focus. Matt
Chandler talks about ‘Gospel Goodbyes’ in this sermon and explains that when
the Lord leads us in a different
direction, we sometimes have to say goodbye, and it hurts, but it is right and
good because Jesus said, “Seek first the kingdom of God, and these things will
be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33).
There are no
guarantees China will be a good experience. It could go poorly, but just the
same, it could be the most wonderful year to date and I could adopt ten little
Chinese girls who call me Mama La-Sarah and I could stay in China until I am
old and gray. I want to be joyfully obedient through whatever awaits me on the
other side of this world – I want to be so focused on Christ and the beauty of
the Cross so that any difficult circumstance I encounter in China will grow strangely
dim.
And I want to be
obedient, regardless of the outcome, because this is what I am convinced of:
the Lord has said this is the way to more of Him. So whether this goes well or
this goes badly, the promise remains the same – more of Jesus is the guarantee.
More of Him is the goal. God knows more than I know. He sees what I can’t and I
am choosing to believe He is weaving a future I can’t even imagine from where I
sit this morning.
I believe God
stirs our affections for Him in different ways and calls us to live different
lives for His glory. And the beautiful
thing about God’s grace is that it does not leave us where it found us. So
whether you find yourself in a cubicle, in the classroom, on the corporate
ladder, in the states, in the Amazon, or in your parent’s basement – choose to
believe God has determined the boundaries of our dwelling place so that we may
seek Him and find Him even though He is not far from any of us (Acts 17:26-28).
I have been
asked by numerous people if I am going to China as a missionary – the answer is
no, I am not. I am going to China as myself – a Christ-follower, a teacher, a
travel-junkie, a donut-lover, an embarrassingly big Justin Timberlake fan. But I
believe that the day-to-day life of a Believer should be mission focused. Every
day is a mission opportunity regardless of location.
Currently, China
has one of the largest underground church movements in the world. This is
because the government heavily monitors religious movement above ground. It
isn’t necessarily illegal to be a Christian in China, (as there are many other
religions there anyway), you just can’t walk around and hand out Bibles and ask
people if Jesus lives in their heart. Yet, if a native approached me and
inquired about my beliefs, I could tell them. But open evangelism is a definite
no-no.
So, when I write
e-mails or Skype I won’t say “God” or “Jesus” or “Holy Spirit” – because the
Chinese government monitors everything. Thus, I have to give the Trinity a
nickname. THIS IS THE DREAM, PEOPLE. I haven’t fully committed to any
particular names quite yet, but I think if Jesus goes by a really elderly name
like Eugene or Chauncey, I’ll be in the clear. So Eugene (Jesus), Eugene’s
Father (God), and Eugene’s Imaginary Friend (The Holy Spirit).
I am also giving
my social media passwords to friends who can post updates on the blog, as most
forms of social media are blocked – Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Blogger. I even
had to make a new email account, as Google is blocked. So my email while I am
in China is sarahewyckoff@yahoo.com.
Lastly, but most
importantly, I deeply covet your prayers. Please pray for God’s grace for the
transition into a new culture, a new job, and a new way of life – please ask
for me to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s leading and guidance. Please pray
God will provide a best friend who is a Believer at my school, a good support
system within the college, and opportunities to share my faith. Pray the Holy
Spirit will help me rejoice always – no matter what. Pray for health and the ability
to focus on Christ.
There will be
difficult times ahead, as China may be big, but they are not big on my two
major food groups: coffee and donuts. I’m gonna need LOTS of prayer, ya’ll.
One thing I’ve
learned: this moving to a different country thing is not as easy as just
getting on a plane. From man-handling the eye doctor to hand over twelve months
of contacts to Japanese encephalitis shots a couple days early; from having to
open a new bank account that accepts international wires to organizing
everything in my finances so an accountant can file my taxes half a world away –
this leg work ain’t for pansies, ya’ll. This uprooting and relocating on the
other side of the globe isn't easy – but I wholeheartedly believe it will be
worth it.
Life is a
radical, unexpected, beautiful opportunity. I want to live it joyfully, obediently,
unashamedly. I want to hold fast to the truth I have found and not go away from
the life I have been led to; even if it is miles from the life I thought I
wanted –
Until next July,
‘MURICKA!
About the Author
4 comments
I can't wait to see pictures, hear updates and watch videos. Above all, I await for the crisp colorado air morning when I sit across from you with coffee in hand and listen to stories of how Eugene's father turned your world upside down and thrusted you deeper in love with him. luff u miss la-sariah
ReplyDeleteYES AND AMEN TO COLORADO MORNINGS AND COFFEE. Love you bunches my YESSICA
DeleteWe want to know if you can get mail over there? If it's anything like Mexico, we'll need to mail you something last week for you to get it by the time you leave in a year..... but seriously, let us know! We have been (and will be) praying for you!
ReplyDeleteI should be able to get mail no problem, but I am not 100% sure what my mailing address is. I am waiting to get there to confirm! That snail mail is the real deal, Am I Right?!?! So awesome!! Thank you a mill for the prayers - love you all so much!!! I have so thrived on and have been encouraged by your excitement about this journey! Give Grady cousin kisses for me!!!!
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