Sorry Again

I am looking for something very happily.

Happy Together

With Paul at his birthday BBQ.

With a group of explorers in a cave.

The lovely Mike Chu, hamming it up as always (he and his wife Kathy left us about a month ago sniff sniff)

It has been a long time. I don't know why other than that Facebook has sort of taken over the role of this blog. The pics you see here are some of the recent happenings in our life. These are us with some of the people at church. Some are gone and some are still here. I feel sad as I see these people coming and going. I don't want to say goodbye. I want to hold on to them and keep them with us. I guess they need to move with their lives but it does make our life a little less bright.
I never know what to say here. I guess a run down of what has been happening is good. I have just finished my 8th course in my Master's course. It went well but not as well as I hoped. I did not do well on one paper ( I still think it was the teacher's fault). My wonderful 4.0 GPA is now gone and I see it with the silver lining that at least I don't have to worry about that anymore. Pray I will put the effort needed in the last few courses. I have grown weary of studying and feel like the writer of Ecclesiates when he said too much study is tiring (not sure where it is but it's in there somewhere).
We just had a church retreat and I had to deal with some difficult issues which came to my attention. PTL the people took the criticism well and that God gave me the ability to present it with love.
Leanne is excited as the Taiwan bookstore Eslite is planning to put her on display in their stores. They will be presented as they are, one of a kind gift items and not mass produced journals. Pray this goes well.
We are planning a trip with our air miles to go to Bangkok to visit some friends there. right now we are on a waiting list for tickets so pray that we are able to get them and go to Bangkok. We haven't seen these people for about 7 years.
Our church will hold its Thanksgiving dinner this Sunday. Pray that we can have a good time and some of the divisions in the church can be healed at this time.
We are still looking for a pastor. The candidate we have will visit in January. Pray God will make it clear to him and us what should happen here.
I will sign off there.
Let me know if you read this. I like to see people are looking in. Just leave a short comment like Hi.
Thanks

Typhoon Saturday

We sat in the house all day today because Typhoon Sepat hit us this morning. This morning it was still calm although this thing had been approaching for about four days. It was crawling along. It hit on the weekend which sucks. It means no time off work and you have to stay in on your free day. But at least we are safe in our house. Pray for those in less sheltered areas as they are getting slammed. This is a Super Typhoon which means it will do alot of damage.
I have uploaded two pictures. One is the sattelite view of the typhoon. You can't see Taiwan in the picture because it is covered by the typhoon.
The second picture is what I might look like if I were a Simpsons' character. Leanne says I got the hair and nose right but that I am not that fat. I tend to disagree. What do you think? Did I capture myself?
I am the proud uncle of a beautiful boy named Milo Davin Pierce Hildebrand. You can see him and the rest of the family above. I got to see him on the Skype the other day and he actually opened his eyes for me. What a handsome young man! I think I will have treat him extra because he is a fellow second oldest brother in the family. We gots to stick together!
It's been a busy summer but it is drawing to a close. I will finish up my summer session at the junior high next week and then will start up the new school year a week later. Pray for a good relationship with the new classes.
I start another of my Masters courses in two weeks. I am so ready to finish my masters. I still have 5 courses to go but at least I am on the downward side now.
Leanne has a couple of her pictures in a show next weekend. Pray they sell. She will also display some of her books for sale as well.
God bless

Seven Years and no itch

I am pleased to announce that Leanne and I will have been married for 7 years on this coming Sunday in God's eyes (I will explain if you ask). I have been looking back at my life and cannot imagiine what I would be now if I had not come to Taiwan and met Leanne. She has been the single biggest blessing God has given me in my life. I know that I would not be in Taiwan now if it had not been for her. I would not be going for my Master's. I wouldn't be leading worship. I would be a loner living in some hole somewhere. I thank God everyday for giving me a helpmate who knows me as well as anyone and even better I know myself. Thank You Lord.
Happy Anniversary Leanne

A question: Please Respond!!

Is it sacriligeous to talk about Dr Pepper and God in the same blog? Thoughts?

Dr Pepper

I am sitting here drinking a Dr Pepper and thinking how good God is to us. it is such a small thing to have a certain treat like a soda available to you but it makes my day when I can have one at the end of the day. Being in Taiwan these things are sometimes hard to find but here I am drinking one. Praise the Lord for He is good.

Long Time No See

Blame it on Facebook. I have gotten on facebook recently and that coupled with doing my Master's thesis proposal for the last two months has made it hard for me to update here.
To catch up then:
1. Leanne just completed a successful exhibition of her hand made books at a book store. See her blog on the right for details.
2. I did complete my proposal for my thesis. 85 pages later I am very happy to report getting high praise from my instructor. Pray the evaluation comes back as good.
3. Leanne and I took a trip to Taipei for the Dragon Boat long weekend (four days!!!). We started the trip off right by going up on the new high speed train. You can see some of the pics (one outside one inside). It was underwhelming as it never felt you were actually going close to 300 km/h. So cool!
4. We went to see some of the famous Terra Cotta soldiers at a museum in Taipei. They were imported from Mainland China. Very interesting.
5. Went to the area around Taipei 101. This is the tallest building in the world.
6. We are having a very hot summer. Pray it will be a little cooler as I start my busy schedule.
7. The church is still waiting to hear from our pastoral candidate. Pray we can find out God's will for this. We need to find someone soon as we are losing some key leaders this summer.
8. I am getting fat. I have been sitting at the computer alot doing my Master's. Pray for determination to brave the heat and get some exercise.
9. Leanne had some pain in her leg last night but it seems to have gone away Praise the Lord.

That's the best I can do for an update. Please let me know if you read this.

Stephen and Elizabeth's Wedding/Anniversary

What was it? A wedding banquet? An anniversary celebration? Whatever it was we had a great time. Stephen sang a lovely song for Elizabeth (Was that 'catch a kangaroo'?) And Elizabeth sang a beautiful love song to God. A moving night. They shared stories about each other including all the blood and gore.
Stephen and Elizabeth have been a huge blessing to our church. In the absence of a pastor they have stepped up very well to lead a group of immature church members. God Bless you guys as you find your path.

Men's Retreat- The Aftermath

We got through the weekend and the time was well spent. God taught us alot through Robert Branch and the guys got a great chance to bond and get to know some guys that they don't usually hang out with. I just threw in the last pic to let you know I was there too. Pray the things learned this weekend will stick and grow in the guys hearts.

Men's Retreat

I have spent the last couple of months preparing for this next weekend. The Men for our church will be going on a retreat this weekend. The theme will be "Being a Godly Husband". Please pray the theme rings true for our church. We have about 40% married guys at the retreat and the rest are single. One guy is engaged as well.
Please pray the weekend can bring us together as men.
Thanks

Check Out Leanne's Blog

That's right. To the right you will see a link to Leanne's Paper Wonder. Check it out. It has some of her latest creations and a link to our flickr account to see the rest of them.
Post a comment when you go there to say hi and let her know what you think.

We Remember

Dad went home one year ago. We remember him.
A man who loved us and whom we loved.
A man who worked hard to give to us whom we seldom really appreciated.
A man who talked to us and hoped for us to talk back.
A man who helped people whenever he could and left us a great example.
A man who sometimes complained but never refused.
A man who always had a plan about how to do it.
A man who I would love to ask for advice but can't anymore.
A man who is missed more than we can understand.
A man who we thank God for bringing into our lives even if only for a short time.
Henry David Peter Hildebrand 1947-2006

Some Fun Pics Of Me

I never get to be in the pictures. So here are some of me and various things and people. Enjoy

It's been a while

I always hate it when I check blogs regularly but find no new posts time after time. I usually give up looking at them. I hope you have not given up looking at mine (Although if you are reading this I guess you haven't:). The pics you see are from the Chinese new year holiday we had in February. One is my nephew Charlie. He is finishing up junior high which means tonnes of studying as he gets ready for his exams to go into Senior high. Pray for him as he gets ready for these tests.
Another pic is of us in Taipei. We were on the bus and playing around with the camera. It was a good trip. We went to the National Palace Museum which has just been renovated. We also just hung out and shopped.
The other pics you see are some signs I saw while in Taipei. These were near the Shihlin night market. I thought they were cute.
As for news there is very little to tell. I have been working hard to get a Men's retreat organized for our church.That will be on April 20-22. Pray it goes well. I am also doing an open house for my school on April 21st. That's right! The same day as the retreat. That burned me up a bit but there was nothing I could do about it. Pray I get through that weekend.
Leanne has been workign on her books and cards. She is trying to arrange some new business contacts in Canada. Pray that will work out.
My brother Kenny and his wife Jo are going to have another baby. I can't wait to see the new one. Pray that everything will go well so that we can maybe go home for a trip to see my family not too long from now. I miss them so much.

Ah sweet rest!!!

Next week is Chinese New year and so that means a week off. Yeah!!!! I need a break. I am finishing up my latest course in my Master's and feel ready to kick back a bit. We will mainly hangout here and may do some traveling up to Taipei for a few days. I need the time to recover. I feel I have been go go go for the last two months. Last week I started coming down and immmediatly got sick which tells me I was too long in hyper mode. I am feeling better now and am looking forward to the time.
Leanne has been busymaking books and cards but has been troubled by a hurting hand. Pray it will get better very soon. She really needs her hand to feel good in order to do the work with enjoyment. She continues doing her paper painting and the latest ones look amazing. She is getting out of flowers and is moving into landscapes. It is really nice.
While up in Taipei we hope to go to the National palace museum. Leanne wants to get inspiration for her cards while there. I hope to see some cool old Chinese artifacts. We will also go to a paper museum wher Leanne hopes to buy some paper for her work. Pray we can find it and that we can get good deals on the supplies.
In the pictures you see my family. My younger called me last week and told me they are going to have another child. Yeah!!!! Pray that Jolene will remain strong and healthy throughout.
Enjoy the pics.

Taitung, Tainan, Kenting and Head Surgery

What a whirlwind vacation my family had here. We saw beautiful places. The coast meeting the mountains near Taitung. The old forts and markets in Tainan. The lighthouse and rocks near Ouluanbi. The fire circle near Henchun. The emergency room of the Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taitung. We also met a lovely neurosurgeon in Kaohsiung.
As you can see in the picture my mother got some lovely headgear while she was here. It was not as bad as it looks. She got cut on the head in Taitung and so had to have some stitches. She was fine but just looked a little silly.
Overall it was a good time with my family here. We spent a lot of quality time together getting to know each other again.
Now it is back to normalcy with a tear in my eye. Sniff sniff.
Thanks guys for coming out.