Grounded in What?

It’s been a week since Jeff and I arrived in Taiwan. We’ve been in quarantine for six days because Jeff tested positive for COVID the day we arrived 😢 (Don’t worry, his symptoms were mild and recovered quickly!) Being stuck in a room is “mind numbing”, as Jeff kept repeating. We didn’t know what to do with ourselves, haha. So naturally, we were thrilled to be let out of our room! Like a bird flapping its wings out of its cage, we scurried out of my parents’ house right away.

The first place we went was Seven Eleven downstairs to get a snack. I had forgotten how much variety of food they have! Just snacks and ramen, there are a million choices! Not even getting to the frozen section, drinks, they even have hotpot ingredients! Just a mundane small convenience store was food heaven 😍😋. Dangerous!

The excitement from the newness and unfamiliarity is real. The fear and isolation from the unfamiliarity is also real.

We got around to running some errands. The first task we decided to take on was getting some computer equipment to set up Jeff’s work desk. And it suddenly dawned on me that I had no idea where to go for the best value and trustworthy sales (whether it is a physical store or online). Jeff doesn’t read or speak any Chinese and my parents are too old to be with the times with anything tech related. My cousins who might know better are all far away in the city. Jeff did all the research he could on his end, and I felt the rest was up to me.

We found a shop on google maps and decided to drive there to check it out. Pulling up at the address, the building looked like a residential building, not a commercial one. So, we asked the guard at the desk, “Do you know where this store is located?” Showing him the name and address of the shop on our phone. He looked at the phone and then looked at me, looked at Jeff, furrowing his brows, he asked, “Why... do you want to know?” 

Caught off guard, I didn’t know how to respond, “um… I thought we could look at their computer stuff…?”

“oh, it’s a holiday, everything is closed” (waving his hands in the air as he speaks). “They’re upstairs I’m pretty sure, but everything is online now.” He replied shortly with an unfriendly chuckle.

(All this was in Chinese, the above translation was what I understood him to say). So Jeff and I left quickly in fear that we’d offended the man somehow. (Please note that I am not bashing on the guard in any way. I am simply describing this one experience and my perception of it. For those who are unfamiliar with Taiwan, most people in Taiwan are actually very friendly and helpful!😊).

 

That night I (still jetlagged) woke up in the middle of the night, around 3 or 4 am or so, feeling isolated and missing home. If I was back at NC (North Carolina) home, I would know a million places to get computer equipment. I would know who to ask for inquiries. I would have people who love and care about me ready to help me find what I needed. I have a home in NC. I have family, friends and communities whom I love and who love me. I have connections. I understand the language, culture and place. There in NC, I am grounded and rooted. But what am I here?

I am like a plant taken out of its pot, lacking water and nutrients, feeling helpless.

 

Laying awake, I thought of all the tasks we need to do. We need to get more equipment to set up Jeff’s work desk, we need to get a sim card and a Taiwan phone number, we need to set up a bank account, we need to register our marriage in Taiwan and get Jeff a Visa to stay long term, we need to get health insurance, we need to find a gym and sign up for a membership, etc. etc. etc.

Overwhelmed with home sickness, I prayed. 

And God the Spirit comforted.

For I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. 

– Philippians 4:11-13

Apostle Paul was in prison when he wrote this letter. Obviously, my suffering is not even close to his, but I, too, am learning what it means to be content in all situations. It doesn’t mean finding happiness only when my situation changes or when my surroundings are to my desires and likings. It means accepting that there will be times when I am rejected by society, days when I am looked down upon, times when I lose a loved one, times when I feel like a part of my identity in this world is robbed from me due to whatever loss life throws at me.

It means to accept that everything in this world will come to pass one day. My home, my connections, my friends, family, my comforts. Does that mean I just live like a nomad? Does that mean I become careless like Joy in Everything Everywhere All at Once (IYKYK)? 

Not at all. But only when I accept that everything will pass, do I begin to live openly, freely, and deeply. Only when I surrender and accept my humanness and God’s infinity, power and grace, will I live with everlasting joy amidst all life’s sufferings.

The joy is knowing Jesus, the “Emmanuel”, which means God with us, through the ups and downs, joys and sufferings. He is the one who suffered and conquered death in exchange for us to have a life in deep satisfaction with our Creator. 

“I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.” - John 11:25

I believe we were created to be grounded and flourish, but grounded in what? 

Certainly it's not wrong to be grounded in family, community, love, place, but there is one foundation on which all these goods can be built upon. A firm foundation. 

Before I left NC home, I believed God was calling me out of comfort (out of being too comfortable), into the wilderness and unknown, to trust and lean on God. I am not alone, never alone. I am being uprooted only to be replanted into a better soil, a more lasting soil, in which all parts of my life can flourish and grow. My life is being built on the solid Rock, the Cornerstone, Jesus. No storms or any circumstance can take away true contentment and joy. My Lord’s promise to me is this, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I (Jesus) have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” – John 10:10