Teaching English, Revealing God The Word Becomes Flesh


by (Name Withheld)


English is the global language right now. People from many coun- tries around the globe use English for business, academics, travel, and when building online friendships. Tis has produced a felt need to learn English in many countries. Educational systems in most of Asia are such that the teacher


is the king of the classroom. Great respect is expected and given in classrooms. If the teacher says that this is the best way to learn En- glish, then most students will comply and do their best to please the teacher. Tis has led to English language becoming an academ- ic course of study with little emphasis on communication. Most Asian countries have a family- and group-oriented iden-


tity. Tis makes networking with other people extremely import- ant. Te more connections you have, the more opportunities you can develop. Tis is where conversational English classes come in! Teachers of conversational English oſten inherit a position of


influence and impact. When lessons are taught, relationships are built. Relationships coupled with love, respect, and student suc- cess, oſten result in a soſtness of hearts and trusting relationships between the teacher and students. Te old educational saying of “Students don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care” is so appropriate to these classrooms. Students have privately told friends of mine, “I tell you every-


thing! You are like my mom, my sister, my best friend all rolled into one.” “I have never told anyone what I’m about to tell you. It is a secret that I have kept most of my life ….” “Tere is something so different about your class. I used to hate English class, and now it is my favorite class. I won’t miss it for anything.” Listen to “Pau” as he tells his story. I came to entrust my life to God five months ago. Let me tell


you a little bit of my background. I was born in a Buddhist family, but I studied in a Christian school for 13 years. I knew about God and what he had done from my Ethics classes in my school, so basically, I was a Buddhist who was familiar with Christianity. But the bad thing was that I lost my dad many times. Alcohol took him away from me. From a nice gentle guy, he became a rude trouble- maker. When I was 15, he was gone forever from liver cancer.


Since then, many things have happened in my life. Not only


good things but also bad things. Most of the time I didn’t under- stand why it had to be me — why all these bad things happened to me. What made it even worse was that I had to pretend to my mom that I was fine because I didn’t want to make her worried. Last year, I took an English course at Te Centre and got to


know a group of wonderful people. Tey’ve all been kind to me since the first time we met. Tey even kindly invited me to their house (what we call “House Church”) for dinner, and we spent a few hours aſter the meal sharing our stories. We gathered around a table in their living room and started sharing our own personal problems. Everybody listened and tried to understand what he or she had been through. So did I. It was the first time I had shared my personal story — and it was to people I had known for just a few days! I could tell them how stressed I was and how much of a burden was loaded on my shoulders. Even though we could not find solutions for all our problems, at least here were people glad to listen and willing to help. Once while I was sharing my story, I suddenly realized that


my good and bad experiences in the past were not just coincidenc- es, but that everything had been planned ahead. I could match the consequences of one situation to another. Tis made me see that God had been working in every second of my life. He had been with me and had been teaching me all the time throughout good and bad things and had made me become who I am. He then introduced me to this group of people, at Te Centre, the people of God. He revealed his love through his people to a lost person like me and allowed me to sense it. So, I opened my heart and said “Yes” to God. Suddenly, I felt loved and safe. I cannot even explain it in words, but it was just like when I was with my good father again. I can proudly say that I am not alone any more. My Heavenly Father will always be with me, keeping me safe and continue his plan for me until he calls me home. Tis is a true and common story. English can be an effective


tools to share love, acceptance, and the message of the Gospel with those who have never heard the Good News of the Savior.


Fellowship Focus, November/December 2018 13


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24