November 07 Newsletter
November was a particularly busy month for us both. Suzanne’s classes, now two small groups of three students vying for two positions at Oxford University next year, are in full swing with Suzanne conducting half the classes during the day and half at night. This is because some of the medical students attending are currently undergoing internship training during the day. Suzanne has also found an excellent teacher to continue her Chinese language training. Her teacher is a post-graduate student who is currently studying Teaching Chinese to Foreigners. Suzanne is now making good progress with her Chinese, but there is a lot of homework and study to try and fit in with her current workload and lesson preparation.
Ray continues to feel humbled at having the privilege to tutor students of the calibre he has had the pleasure to teach. His three current students are no exception and comprise two medical students (both girls) currently doing their internship; one planning to be a paediatrician and the other specialising in obstetrics and gynaecology. They will attend short term study at Oxford University for six weeks next March. His third student is a Doctor of Radiography who, following her major in Medical Imaging, conducted research in the field of Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy. She is preparing for three years at the University of Nottingham in the UK beginning early next year. Also this semester Ray has been teaching Haematology and Pathology to two classes of 3rd year medical students totalling around 150.
Our Saturday Bible Study at church and our Sunday classes at home continue to bear much fruit, with the Saturday class of around fifteen recently being led through a prayer of commitment. Several of those attending on Sunday are also close to making a commitment.
A friend of Suzanne’s, Margaret, came to stay with us for three weeks at fairly short notice during the month and there was much talking and shopping associated with her visit. We also arranged through our local travel agent (a member of our Sunday Bible Study) for Margaret to do a six day tour to Beijing which she thoroughly enjoyed. Margaret is the younger sister of Dot, who Suzanne has known since the age of three, and they all grew up together in Suzanne’s hometown of Mullumbimby, NSW.
Deborah turned 16 this month on 20 November. Our proposed adoption of her has reached a sensitive stage with the Chinese Government so we are not in a position to elaborate further at this point in time. We have, however, received a visa to take her to Hong Kong for the first weekend in December to attend the wedding of a friend of ours from our church in Hong Kong. We will also show her some of the sights of Hong Kong which she missed seeing during her visit to Disneyland for her fifteenth birthday last year. Our visit to Hong Kong will also coincide with a rally by world-renowned evangelist Rev. Dr. Franklin Graham, son of the late Billy Graham. We plan to attend the Franklin Graham Festival over the weekend.
Praise Points:
Praise for safe travel.
Praise for our friend, Margaret, that she has seen our work here and will share with her church back home.
Praise for the peace and love that we are given as we struggle through our daily trials in a foreign land.
Prayer Points:
Pray for Ray as he recovers from a procedure to help with his sleep apnea.
Pray for our families in the lead up to Christmas; we miss them very much.
Pray for our walk with Him.
