ADVENT Taiwan Character English Camp
A different short-term mission team
Joint interview/Wu Xinhui, Liao Meihui
Image source/ADVENT website
Pastor Zhang Yuming and Mrs. Zhang Lishaofeng, who live in Southern California, are the founders of Nehemiah Ministry International. Since 2004, he has led his four children and other young students on short-term missionary trips across Taiwan in the form of character English camps. In the summer of 2012, Pastor Zhang, his wife and his team of staff visited 62 schools in Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Changhua, and Taitung to hold English camps for three weeks. The total number of participants exceeded 8,000. This unique short-term mission was The team has also begun to attract the attention of Taiwanese society.
Q1 請張牧師談談八年來帶領品格英語營短宣隊的感想？
I was surprised that I had the strength to go through eight years. Over the past eight years, I have seen that God is really willing to use young people. I have seen countless young lives changed. Nothing is more gratifying than the transformation of young people's lives. This ministry not only helps children in Taiwan have the opportunity to know the gospel, but also creates opportunities for Chinese young people in the United States to serve by teaching English, and also allows young people to experience God personally through service.
Q2 這幾年面臨的挑戰為何？現在英語營的規模如何？為何特別選擇彰化縣作為起點？
Recruiting co-workers is probably the most important and difficult challenge. Taking 2012 as an example, only 30 to 40 co-workers signed up from March to April, but surprisingly, at the end of June, more than 100 co-workers suddenly signed up to participate.
When holding a camp, the teacher-student ratio is an important key to success or failure. There should not be too many students and too few teachers, nor too many teachers and too few students. In the past eight years, the number of students participating in the character camp has increased from more than 100 students in the first year to 8,000 in 2012; the number of teachers has grown from 20 in the first year to 180 in 2012. It’s just right, so we can’t help but praise God’s deeds as exceeding what people can ask or think.
As for why we chose Changhua County, it starts with the local church. Because the churches in the Changhua area have established good interactions with the schools on weekdays, we can connect the local churches to cooperate with us to achieve the greatest effect, so that we can continue and expand the event every year. Another important factor is the full support of the Changhua County Government, which recruits students under the auspices of the school. The Character English Camp held every summer has become an event that Changhua County, schools, students, and even parents look forward to.
Character English Camp has now spread to all counties and cities in Taiwan. Taking 2012 as an example, there were three camps divided into thirty teams. From Taitung in the east to Taoyuan County, Hsinchu County, Changhua County and other places in the north.
Q3 Please further explain how you recruited these more than 100 co-workers? What are the requirements for co-workers?
Co-workers mainly come from churches across the United States, including Canada, Brazil in South America, and even bilingual schools in Taiwan. Some co-workers are from the same church, and some work alone. Every year through preaching visits, I go to different churches to explain and recruit co-workers. In fact, the best way is to rely on word of mouth. The so-called "word of mouth" means that members who have participated in the ADVENT short-term mission team introduce other members to participate. At present, most of the churches are from California and Canada, and other churches such as New Jersey in the eastern United States, Georgia, and Texas in the southern United States have people joining.
Regarding the requirements for young co-workers, we require that they be Christians and be willing to abide by strict discipline. During the short-term mission, you are not allowed to surf the Internet and do not make friends of the opposite sex. Your clothing, words and deeds must be a role model for students and learn from the likeness of Jesus Christ.
▲Young teachers carefully rehearse the drama in order to give the students the best presentation.
▲Schools that have received ADVENT Taiwan Character English Camp services have expressed their deepest gratitude.
ADVENT Taiwan Character English Camp
ADVENT, the full name of Americans Dedicated for Voluntary English Teaching In Taiwan, was initiated by Pastor Zhang Yuming. Its main purpose is to lead the second generation of North American Chinese to return to Taiwan to teach English, give back to the community, and share the love of Jesus Christ. ADVENT cooperates with various public junior high schools, high schools or elementary schools in Taiwan to organize a week-long character English camp in two stages during the summer vacation. Registration for ADVENT 2013 has begun. For details, please check online at www.adventtaiwan.org Tel: (949)600-7781
Q4 未來的計畫與期許？
As long as the door is open and not closed, we should do our best. The short-term mission team is a good opportunity to sow seeds, but there are not many such opportunities, so we must seize it carefully so that we can work fully for God during our lifetime. As long as we are willing to do it, God will fulfill it.
In the future, we need to recruit more “Team Pastors”, just like an army, we need spiritual leaders. During the short-term missionary period, there may be various emergencies in the camp, which require the elders to cover the young people, pray for them, shepherd them, and support the entire short-term missionary team members.