Remembering My Father（A）

Children of Slaves Are Still Slaves

Ever since I can remember, father often went to countryside to serve. No matter how remotely we lived, there were always even more rural places that needed visiting, to care for. So there were always several days of the week he didn’t come home, or came back very late. He was always willing to go serve the impoverished regions where travel was inconvenient. I suppose this is probably the call he got from the Lord. When we lived in Yilian City, he did rounds in small villages like Lotung, Suao, Beifangao, Chiaohsi; when we lived in Yuanlin, he did rounds in Yunlin; when we lived in Gangshan city, he served Yanchao, Qiaotou; when we lived in Hsinchu, he went to care for Miaoli; when we lived in Changhua City, I forgot where he went to serve. Lastly in Hualien, he served the entire Eastern Taiwan island region, including Fenglin, and Shoufong. In these early days, transportation was not as advanced as it is now, such that often times one trip would take the whole day, including riding a bike, taking the train, and walking a stretch of remote mountain road. Some places often rained, some places could get very windy, some places were especially prone to earthquakes and typhoons (Eastern Taiwan is). I never heard him complain, not even once. He truly did this out of willingness in his heart.

Hoping That We Children All

Become Full-Time Serving Ones

He not only willingly served, he also wished that his own children would all do as he did. I clearly remember that he once said in a meeting, “the saying goes that if you work one profession, they complain about this profession. I, on the other hand, hope that my children would all become full-timers.” If he did not consider that being a full-time serving one is glorious and worthwhile, he wouldn’t say that publicly. Regrettably, he never had the chance to see with his own eyes that his wish came true. Today, Chen-Shi, Li-Shi and my husband Keh-Shin, are all co-workers that serve the Lord full time. I believe that my father went to see the Lord by his faith. His attitude towards serving the Lord was this—-I am a slave. He didn’t say he was a servant. A servant can leave, can quit their job. A slave doesn’t even have decision-making powers of their own, even their life belongs to the master. The master can give the slave a wife and children, but the wife and children all belong to the master. I also recall that he often said, “Children of a slave are still slaves.” Thus, it goes without saying that our family should love and serve the Lord for generation unto generation

Due to Moving Often, I went to Two Kindergartens,

Four Elementary Schools,

Two Middle Schools and Two High Schools

My mother said that father always said amen to the arrangements in coordination from the leading co-workers. Sometimes our family hadn’t even been in a place for one year, and he already accepted the burden and was getting ready to move again. Though we were a family of six, everything our family owned could fit in four big bamboo baskets along with a few simple personal things. We rode the slow train and went on our way. Our family truly lived a life of the altar and tent! Everywhere there were pure-hearted brothers and sisters that loved the Lord and that coordinated and cared for us, so our spiritual living was very rich. Materially, because everyone back then was not particularly wealthy, I never felt wanting for anything. Due to the frequent moves, I went to two kindergartens, four elementary schools, two middle schools, and two high schools. Not every school welcomed transfer students. There was a teacher that purposely gave out hard questions that made me fail the transfer student qualification exam, so I could only borrow other students’ textbooks to study. There was another teacher that ranted while walking away, “Why is there another transfer student!?” I don’t know why our moving dates always conflicted with school semesters. There was a time my father seemingly decided at the last moment to move to a new locality. As a result, I, a junior high student, took the train alone at night in order to take a transfer exam next morning. The air horn that cut across the night sky still seems to reverberate by my ear. When morning came, I arrived and went to stay at a saint’s home. The sister there was really nice to me so my weary soul was comforted. Another time we moved to a new place and the school was not taking any new transfer students, so my younger brothers and I could only go to another county to take their transfer student qualification exam, resulting in all of us getting into the best school in Central Taiwan. That time as a student, running to catch up with the train let us strengthen our body and became a wonderful experience. Other than the frequent moves, I had to learn to get used to the new environment and to make new friends. But the miraculous thing is, in every graduation exam (elementary to middle school, middle school to high school), I might have been a transfer student that came in half way through the semester, but in the whole student body of several hundred people, I was always the one that tested best. To my father and mother this was a sign from the Lord, to know that the Lord is the One that was ultimately responsible for our family. As for me, I also thank the Lord for giving me the chance to practice to live out this all-inclusive life since I was little. This made a huge beneficial impact for my future family life, my service in the church, and successes in my career. The Lord truly doesn’t mistreat His people.