III. The Journey of Sight rather than by Faith.
Chapter 4: Learning Without Knowing It
In the 10 years that we were in Portland, Oregon, we served at Chinese Baptist Church. At my time at Multnomah Bible School, I was involved in the English-speaking ministry. We decided to attend that church because of our dear friends John and Beverly. We knew Beverly through our youth-college group in San Francisco. She married John and moved to Portland, Oregon.
In the Southeast side of Portland, three families joined together for prayer meeting each Wednesday. It was with the Hwees and the Sakaguchi’s. We rotated homes. We ate dinner together and then had a short Bible study and prayer time. They looked to me to lead the Bible study and prayer time since I was a Bible school graduate. I was learning to share in a relaxed manner without having to be perfect in everything. I felt comfortable leading that prayer meeting. I was learning to converse with people. The fellowship was sweet and fun.
At church, I was learning to stand before a classroom and teach a Bible lesson. I was preparing materials week by week, making sure the classroom was ready and having the printed material for each Sunday. Using my Christian Education materials, I was learning practical theology. Pastor Bruce Fong was the pastor and occasionally he would ask me to step in to fill the pulpit. At times, I would help in the Children’s Ministry. I was being exposed to the various aspects of the ministry.
Being a homeowner there were repairs on the house that needed to be done. It is seeing what needs to be done, visualizing when it is done, gathering the materials to get it done, and finally getting it done. One of our first projects was paneling the den after a few years Lenard decided to stay in Seaside. We tied the panels on top of our car, measured it and cut it. I learned to use the jig saw, circular saw, hammer and glue. What I didn’t realize was that the floor sloped at an angle! I had to go and buy more panels. We were very proud after it was finished. That was our first real home project that Ramona and I worked on together.
God allowed us to take on a bigger project. We want to expand the kitchen by building it out and adding a third bedroom and master bathroom to the house. Our friend John drew plans for us. We found a contractor who laid the foundation, put up the two-story walls, the exterior siding, windows, and the roof. We hired a plumber to do the rough plumbing for us.
We installed the electrical outlets and boxes, insulated the exterior wall, sheetrock, installed the doors, trims, bathroom tiles, and even laid down the linoleum floors. It was a major renovation. For months we had to pour the kitchen sink water into the toilet. To bathe, we put up black tarp to keep the bathroom warmer and to minimize the dust in the house.
I didn’t realize it then, but God was teaching me to take the lead and to do things I’ve never done before. It was taking the initiative instead of being passive and just waiting for things to happen. The house wasn’t going to be finished unless I took steps to complete it. After a year, the house finally seemed finished and we were able to enjoy our brand-new extended kitchen, remodeled main bath, a master bedroom and master bathroom. Now, each of our children had their own bedrooms. God in His own way was teaching me and developing my skill sets. The things that I learned from remodeling our first home would be the same principles that would apply to equipping and ministering to God’s people. I was becoming a competent worker with my hands. The Lord was building up my self-esteem. It was time to learn to be a competent spiritual worker with my hands.