A family day of worship, playing, and Italian food!

Sunday was family day for everyone here in Guangzhou. If there is one
thing I have to say about Chinese families is that at least one day a
week is set aside for families to be together for the entire day and
that day is typically Sunday. We Amercians could learn a lot from our
Chinese friends as our culture at home appears to be continuing its
downward spiral from pursuing selfish desires where Sunday is just
like any other day and family values are something that is mocked by
the popular culture. Leeya and I started out the day worshiping with
the Christ Church Shamian congregation just down the street from the
White Swan Hotel. They hold a dual language Mandarin & English service
at 11:00 AM every Sunday and about 90% of the congregation are Chinese
while only about 10% are foreigners staying on Shamian Island. I was
surprised by how evangelical the service was. The congregation sang
contemporary English and traditional Chinese hymns alternating in
Mandarin & English many with hands raised in the air giving praise to
God. The Chinese pastor gave a great message based on Philippians
3:13-14. We need to pray for our Chinese brothers and sisters in
Christ. While I'm sure this church is officially sanctioned by the
Chinese government we know there are many others who don't have the
freedom to gather and worship freely in other parts of the country.
After a quick lunch and nap it was time for a stroll around Shamian
Island just to watch all of the families enjoying themselves on a
beautiful day. Then in the evening all of the Holt families went out
to dinner at a local Italian restaurant for some good food and ice
cream (yummy!). Monday is our visa appointment at the US Consulate.
Please pray that all of our paperwork is in order. Leeya and I won't
need to go the US Consulate on Monday as a Holt staff member will drop
off our paperwork across town. On both Tuesday and Wednesday we will
be at the US Consulate for Leeya's Oath of Citizenship and to pick up
her visa before we take the train to Hong Kong on Wednesday night.
Enjoy the pictures from church this morning and our stroll around
Shamian Island on family day.