Mosaic Mennonites

Missional - Intercultural - Formational

Alyssa Kerns

Reaching out across cultures in Souderton

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Souderton--Wendy & students
Wendy (far left) has been hosting a small group for Chinese exchange students since 2011.

by Alyssa Kerns, Souderton

When Wendy Wong came to the United States from Hong Kong 22 years ago, she was befriended by a Chinese woman who worked with Wendy’s husband Kim.

Fast forward to March 2011 when Wendy met Peter, a Chinese exchange student staying with Martin and Rebecca Reeser. “I wanted to provide a community for Peter and other Chinese students in the area, just as Kim’s coworker did for me,” Wendy said. She arranged to take Peter to a Chinese church in Bluebell. The Chinese church connected Wendy with other host families in the area and the International Chinese Student Outreach began to take shape.

Working with AnneMarie, who is from the church in Bluebell and speaks different Chinese dialects, Wendy developed a monthly Bible study for the students. Currently, about 16-20 Chinese exchange students from Christopher Dock Mennonite High School and Faith Christian Academy come to Souderton Mennonite Church once a month for an afternoon and evening of games, cooking, worship, Bible study, and discussion.

Wendy and the students have learned from each other in the meetings. “The students asked to have authentic Chinese food at our meetings,” said Wendy. “I grew up in Hong Kong, in the southern part of China and most of the students are from the northern part, which has different food. So I bought the ingredients and they offered to help cook and teach me.”

“Christianity is not taught in China and is a very different concept to the students,” Wendy explained. So she uses the Bible Study time to reinforce what the students are learning about Christianity at school and from their host families and to discuss what they are learning within the context of their cultural background.

In the fall of 2012, Wendy was looking for another adult fluent in Mandarin who could help with small group discussions. She met Jimmy and Lisa Kuo, a brother and sister studying at Biblical Seminary in Hatfield. “We heard from a seminary classmate that Wendy needed help from people who could communicate with the students in Mandarin. Since we are fluent in Mandarin and passionate about sharing the Good News with people, there was no reason why we would not get involved in helping the Chinese students experience the love of God in Jesus Christ through genuine relationships,” said Jimmy and Lisa.

Souderton--Chinese students cookingThe monthly meetings give Jimmy and Lisa an opportunity to connect with the students in several different ways. “We do things from cooking and Bible studies to just casual conversations with the students,” Jimmy and Lisa explained. “We make sure that everything we do is relational, incarnational, relevant, and intentional. The purpose of the outreach for us is to create an environment for the students to encounter God in every little thing we do as a community.”

“We enjoy building relationships with the students, and we appreciate that they continue to challenge us and move us outside our comfort zone,” Lisa and Jimmy added. “Although we were born in Taiwan, we were raised in New Zealand. Therefore, we have had to learn much from the Chinese students about their culture and worldview. Only when we value people by taking the time to listen to their stories do we know where God is already working in their lives and where God wants us to partner with Him to bring in the story of Christ to make their stories complete.”

Wendy is already looking ahead to fall 2013. “Jimmy and Lisa graduate in July and AnnaMarie won’t be able to help in the fall, so I am praying for God’s guidance in how to continue this ministry,” said Wendy.

The students also are encouraging Wendy in this ministry. “There are three seniors at Faith Academy who have accepted Jesus since the beginning of this outreach. Their faith is strong and they experience God in person. It is God’s grace that gives me the opportunity to witness His marvelous love through these students. They have even encouraged me to keep hosting this program so other Chinese students will come to Christ.”

Community children design mural for Plains Park

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Plains Mural Contest
Members of Plans and their community celebrate the mural submissions.

by Alyssa Kerns, Plains

Some blank walls just call out to be painted.

That’s what a group of members from Plains Mennonite Church (Hatfield, Pa.) decided in October 2010 as they walked through Plains Park, located next to the church, discussing how to enhance spirituality in the park. The blank wall of the kitchenette in the park was the perfect place for a mural. Since the wall faces the playground, the group chose the phrase “Jesus said, ‘Let the children come to me.’” to guide the design.

Since Plains Park is a “place of peace in the community,” it felt right to invite children from the community to have a hand in the mural. In January 2012, Plains used newspaper ads, posters, and the internet to invite students from Kindergarten through Grade 12 in the North Penn and Souderton School Districts to submit a painting of Jesus with children from around the world to reflect the diversity of our community. In addition to choosing a grand prize, $500 winner for the mural design, Plains offered 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place cash prizes in three age categories.

Not knowing what kind of response to expect, we were excited to receive 19 submissions – all very creative. Renee Di Domizio, an art teacher at Pennbrook Middle School (North Penn), had even turned our mural invitation into an assignment for one of her 9th grade classes.

Plains Mural Contest Winner
Pastor Dawn Ranck presents Ava Fletcher with a $500 Grand Prize check. (Photo by Heather Gingrich)

The artwork was judged by Pastor Dawn Ranck, Debbie McConnell, Joy Sawatzky, and Alyssa Kerns, all members at Plains, and by two art teachers, John Bratina from Penndale Middle School (North Penn) and Lisa Tinneny who lives in the North Penn School district and teaches at Wissahickon High School.

We announced the winners at an art show featuring all of the mural submissions on Saturday, April 28 at the church. One of the first artists to arrive was third grader Ava Fletcher. As she walked into the room with her family, she stopped suddenly, her face glowing with surprise, as she saw her painting with a Grand Prize Winner sign on it.

About 75 people, mostly from the community, enjoyed the art show.

We are looking forward to painting the mural later this summer and hope many of the artists who submitted paintings will join us.

People were bringing little children to [Jesus] in order that he might touch them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them. But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, ‘Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. . . . And he took them up in his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them. (Mark 10:13-14, 16)