parentals.

So I got to share the gospel with my parents (well, mostly my mom) again over winter break, and, as expected, it was hard. It's been a while (a few years now?), and after the last time, I think my sister and I had decided that in this season, we were just called to be witnesses to our parents through honoring them and showing them the love of Jesus through our actions and words (and of course to keep praying for them!). But for some reason, a few nights after I was up in Michigan, I was about to fall asleep when I was hit with the urge (from the Holy Spirit, I guess) to share the gospel again with my parents. I don't know where it came from, but the feeling of urgency was so strong that it was pretty unmistakable, and I couldn't really say no to it, either.

The next morning, after sharing with some friends and asking for their prayers, I kept thinking in my head about how to approach the subject during lunch or dinner. Even when I had decided, it was hard. We were sitting there eating lunch, and there was a clear lull/break in the conversation, which was pretty much my cue...and I still hesitated. I hadn't felt that nervous in a long time about saying anything to anyone, but my words felt like they were sliding back down my throat. Finally, I just started by asking my parents about where they thought all their recent blessings/good happenings had come from....which eventually got steered to a spiritual conversation, but in the end, it pretty much looked the same as before--me crying and my mom not really seeing the need for Jesus (and my dad had left; my tears probably made him uncomfortable, lol >.<). Seriously, I don't get emotional sharing the gospel with anyone else...I guess it just hits so close to home, seeing their clear contentment with where they are now, Jesus-less. It's just hard.

But I won't stop praying. And I'm not just praying for them, but also the non-believing parents/families of some of my close friends.


What's more awesome (and cheerful/encouraging, probably) is that in the past few days, God has really encouraged me with hope through testimonies of a couple of other Asian parents/families. A few days ago, one of our IV leaders shared about his winter break in Taiwan and how God really opened doors for him to share the gospel with both his dad and his older sister (both non-believers)--so amazing! I almost teared up hearing his story, haha. Going to keep praying for them to accept Jesus, too. And just last night, at a friend's house party dinner for Chinese New Year, we ended the night by sharing some testimonies. My friend's dad ended up taking most of the time (lol), but he shared his testimony in pretty great detail. Overall, it was really encouraging just seeing how he went from seeking knowledge in Buddhism to challenging Christianity to repenting and receiving Jesus as His Savior. God is constantly moving and at work--praise Him for that! :)