We are grateful for everyone who lifts up this ministry before the Lord and contributes their resources so students can be impacted. Recently we have seen the power of prayer in some key areas. Our colleague Ron was able to lead Alex, a newly arrived student from South Korea, to Christ within weeks of his arrival. Their relationship started with an early morning airport pickup and coffee that led to their first spiritual conversation. Also, Lisa has been able to minister to Grace, an older student experiencing some adjustment difficulties. After a week of intense prayer for her, it seemed that some of her depression had lifted and we saw joy in her expression. Praise the Lord! You also might remember Ting, a student from Taiwan who came to Christ earlier this year. We have learned that he is now studying in Australia, and our friends the Phillips’ have been able to connect him to a church in that country.
Continue to pray as we juggle ever-increasing family responsibilities with daily ministry realities. Now that Roy is helping a lot with the TCU ministry, we sometimes feel our time is divided between 2 campuses. On October 31, we were able to combine the two groups and help with a fall festival at a church in Fort Worth. Regarding TCU, praise God for bringing Cassie on staff as an ISI intern there now that the Willis’ are leaving. She is also getting married in January, so has a lot of transitions to look forward to.
Please pray for Lisa as she ministers to Grace and also to Carol, a new believer and young mother from Taiwan, married to a UTA professor. Also keep Charlotte in your prayers. She and husband Canon have returned to Taiwan for an extended visit and for Charlotte to get some medical testing. Though she isn’t yet a believer, she is trusting God for answers to some perplexing problems. Pray that He reveals Himself mightily in her situation. We are also excited about a young student couple from Iran who have been coming to Bible study. Pray that God would soften their hearts to the gospel.
Lastly we covet your prayers for our family. We are adjusting to teaching J-12 (7th grade) at home this year through a virtual academy. Though we have had some struggles, it seems that things are starting to smooth out. Pray that we’ll have patience with him and that he’ll have a good attitude. He has also transitioned into the youth ministry at our church. T-8 (3rd grade) finished a season of kid-pitch baseball this fall that was challenging for him, but we’re proud of him for sticking with it and seeing his skills improve. He also got baptized in October. It was a special day because Roy got to baptize him. Pray for him as he learns to live out his faith, especially with difficult kids at school. C-5 is doing well in kindergarten and has made some new friends. It’s exciting to see her learning how to read and write. Sometimes she struggles with thinking we love her less than her brothers. Pray that she will know that we love all of our children equally, and especially that she will know she is loved by God.
The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind of preparing for school, both with international students but also with OUR new students (J-12, & C5 are going to new schools & T-8 is going to 3rd grade).
It has been incredibly fun to meet new students at the various different campuses. This year I had the privilege of helping out on three different campuses with welcome events. The fun of it is meeting all these different types of students. On one campus I met a Chinese student who was so excited to see that there was a Christian group on campus for international students. He became a Christian in China and is really wanting to grow and seemed very excited about his walk with God.
On another campus, I met another Chinese student who said that while he wasn’t a Christian, he enjoyed getting to know Christians at his previous campus in Florida and so he was very interested in learning more about what we do. That reminded me how often God takes students through a process of bringing them to himself through a journey of studying around the country. At each stop, the student gets a different but consistent (hopefully) perspective of just who Christ is and His affect on people’s lives.
Here is one other observation. In the past ISI worked very closely with the international student offices in directly being a part of the orientation, sharing about friendship partner programs etc. But it seems today, things are different. Several years ago, it seemed the international offices were more reluctant to allow that having concern that they be identified with a Christian group. Instead they have allowed us to have a table at activities fairs, etc. At first this was a difficult change for many of us. But recently as ISM (International Students Ministries) have adapted, we have found that the table could be even more effective in reaching students. There is more time to “personally” interact which is more important in this generation of students rather than interacting in an official capacity. The result is not relationships not built on external motivation but internal motivation. It has been awesome! At TCU, it was cool to see almost every international student at a reception last week having our bright pink flyer and likely they all had direct connection with a student or ministry partner at the table we had set up. I saw the same sort of thing at UTA and UTD as our team really touched almost every new student in a personal way. No matter what… most students were able to see a loving personal response from some believer.
Kudos to our whole team who are doing a great job of adapting and touching many more students because of it!
Our oldest son, J-11 turned 12 in August. We all celebrated with a trip to the fun center and a party with his best friend Jacob. He also completed his first class rank for scouts at his Court of Honor and we featured in his summer camp video. Good job son!
On Thursday I had the special privilege of taking my son T-8 to watch the Forth Worth Minor League team, the Cats for scouts night.
We had general admission tickets and at first, I thought that was a bummer. I was wrong. We had a blast and because we had general admission, we had freedom to move to several different places in the stadium. At first we watched the game from the first row in front of the opposing team’s (Wichita Wingnuts) bullpen but we moved to some chaise lounges behind the right field foul pole(See video below). I never enjoyed watching a game in such comfort. We also got a couple of BP (Batting Practice) balls and ate some great food. T-8 got one of the balls autographed by 8 people including the team mascot (Dodger the cat… the Cats were a Dodger affiliate when it started and have retired numbers of some of the be best players from my favorite team, the Dodgers, including Maury Wills, Duke Snider, etc. ). He had no idea who the people were (I don’t either) but he ran up to the Cat’s bullpen, ran to the locker room door, etc, just like a long time fan.
He also lit up the radar gun as some pitching display at 35 mph… He thinks he can be a Major league pitcher some day. Finally, we watched the movie “Angels in the Outfield” on the “Jumbotron” while sitting in center field after the game (part of scout night) until around 12 AM. T-8 was actually throwing his “non-autograph” ball around the field most of that time with another kid. To me this felt like one of those movie father-son evenings. I know he will never forget this and I really enjoyed watching him develop an interest in baseball.
This summer has been really good for re-connecting with all my kids… The neat thing too is that this re-connecting is affecting their spiritual life too. Incidentally, the Cats lost the game in 11 innings 0-1.
One of the hardest things about being a parent is allowing your kids to make decisions and do things on their own, allowing them more freedom to make choices and live with their consequences. Sometimes you see wisdom and maturity beyond your expectations, sometimes you aren’t sure… but trust the Lord anyway. This week there were two examples of this in our family revolving around our son J-11. J-11 is an amazing kid with amazing gifts and talents (all our kids are like that… ) that he is just learning about.
Yesterday I sat in on a gathering of 70 somethings where Jonathan and the rest of the Amaraillo kids shared about their experiences on the mission trip. The videos and the sharing were incredible and really brought out how amazingly God used these 11 and 12 years old. I was so proud of Lisa and Jonathan. J-11 was so touched by the neediness of the kids they served. He also had the opportunity to share about leading his best friend to Christ the day after the mission trip at church and how it was the training for the mission trip that made it possible. I remember tha day so well… he was running late in rendezvousing with us and I was getting irritated and sent T-8 to the library to see what was going on… When T-8 told us, asking for further instruction, I couldn’t believe it… I was really humbled… and yet J-11… our quiet J-11 was doing this amazing thing… My prayer throughout the trip was that God will show J-11 his power through an experience like this and he did it right in front of our eyes. Back at the banquet for sexagenarians, one of the ladies said she was specifically praying for Jonathan(they passed out wristband before the trip as reminders) and how touched she was by what he shared… Wow!! God was using my Son… I was so proud of J-11 but more reminded of God’s faithfulness. Our son is growing up.
Earlier in the week, I was reminded of the same things in a different way. J-11 has been a Boy Scout for the last year and a half. He learned a lot about himself and what it takes to be a proactive leader through this experience. It was fun watching him grow after almost every camping trip. He also seemed to have a good time with the guys in the troop… He also had the privilege of leading some of his peers in his first few months of scouting. The only thing he consistently voiced was that he really disliked camping and the monthly camping was difficult for him and he wanted to leave the scouts.
The Boy Scouts rank system is built into two major sections. The first three ranks teach the boys the basics of scouting. The latter three ranks teach the boys more advanced skills and how to lead. I told Jonathan that it was important to at least finish the first half to get the basics. So, if once he finished this first class rank, he still felt the same way he had the freedom to leave, provided he found some other similar activities to replace it.
J-11 completed his First Class Rank this week. According to J-11, Monday marked the last meeting he planned on being a part of. (may we can convince him to go to the awards ceremony to get his badge) I was saddened some… I was really enjoying the experience and loved seeing his growth through the experience and the friends he was making. Still, I respect and feel like I need to honor his decision and his right to choose. This really marks an important time in our relationship as he seems to be making the first steps toward the independence of manhood and adulthood. Wow!
(check out pictures) J-11 and I (Lisa) had a great week in Amarillo with 25 6th grade graduates from Fielder Road Baptist Church. Our church has a program to prepare kids from 3rd to 6th grade to go on this mission trip when they finish the 6th grade. To be honest, I wasn’t sure when Jonathan was a 3rd grader that he would be ready for this, but he was! In fact, all of our kids really stepped up and learned how to seize the day and not let opportunities go by that God puts in front of us to do things for him. I like what our children’s pastor says, that we aren’t building the church of tomorrow; it’s the church today.
Our kids helped Citychurch prepare 1400 sack lunches each day, which included a hot item, fresh popcorn, cookies, and fresh fruit. I can proudly say that I learned how to run a popcorn machine! Our kids ran a 4-day VBS which included music, games, a puppet show and Bible story. We also participated in going on bus routes to hand out lunches to the needy kids of Amarillo. For me, it was heartbreaking when we visited one really run-down apartment complex and ran out of lunches for all the kids that wanted one. A lot of our kids were shocked at how special it was when we included a toothbrush one day in the lunch sacks. You would have thought they won the lottery!
During the week we saw 15 kids led to Christ by the 6th graders. Even though J-11 didn’t lead someone to Christ on the trip, he was motivated to share with his best friend from school the next Sunday, and his friend prayed to receive Christ! It was exciting to see him have that kind of boldness. All in all, it was an eye-opening and very exhausting week, but well worth it.
J-11 (left) recently took an after-school photography class. He shot this great spring photo (right) in the courtyard at his school. Jon would appreciate prayer as he prepares to go on a missions trip to Amarillo this summer where he and other 6th graders from our church will be leading a Vacation Bible School for inner-city kids.
T-6′s season started up again after many rain cancellations and he went out and scored a run!! Good job T-6. (Check out Pics) The same weekend, J-10 went on his second camping trip with his scout troop, this time with dad. They went canoeing. It was windy but really fun!!! (Check out pics)
You can help by ordering from Amazon.com through this link. A percentage of your purchase goes to the ministry of the Yabukis' through ISI.
Who are the Yabukis
When Lisa and Roy were married, they shared a common commitment to serving God crossculturally through their family. They currently both serve international students through ISI and live in Arlington, Texas with their three children.
We are grateful for everyone who lifts up this ministry before the Lord and contributes their resources so students can be impacted. Recently we have seen the power of prayer in some key areas. Our colleague Ron was able to lead Alex, a newly arrived student from South Korea, to Christ within weeks of his arrival. Their relationship started with an early morning airport pickup and coffee that led to their first spiritual conversation. Also, Lisa has been able to minister to Grace, an older student experiencing some adjustment difficulties. After a week of intense prayer for her, it seemed that some of her depression had lifted and we saw joy in her expression. Praise the Lord! You also might remember Ting, a student from Taiwan who came to Christ earlier this year. We have learned that he is now studying in Australia, and our friends the Phillips’ have been able to connect him to a church in that country.
Continue to pray as we juggle ever-increasing family responsibilities with daily ministry realities. Now that Roy is helping a lot with the TCU ministry, we sometimes feel our time is divided between 2 campuses. On October 31, we were able to combine the two groups and help with a fall festival at a church in Fort Worth. Regarding TCU, praise God for bringing Cassie on staff as an ISI intern there now that the Willis’ are leaving. She is also getting married in January, so has a lot of transitions to look forward to.
Please pray for Lisa as she ministers to Grace and also to Carol, a new believer and young mother from Taiwan, married to a UTA professor. Also keep Charlotte in your prayers. She and husband Canon have returned to Taiwan for an extended visit and for Charlotte to get some medical testing. Though she isn’t yet a believer, she is trusting God for answers to some perplexing problems. Pray that He reveals Himself mightily in her situation. We are also excited about a young student couple from Iran who have been coming to Bible study. Pray that God would soften their hearts to the gospel.
Lastly we covet your prayers for our family. We are adjusting to teaching J-12 (7th grade) at home this year through a virtual academy. Though we have had some struggles, it seems that things are starting to smooth out. Pray that we’ll have patience with him and that he’ll have a good attitude. He has also transitioned into the youth ministry at our church. T-8 (3rd grade) finished a season of kid-pitch baseball this fall that was challenging for him, but we’re proud of him for sticking with it and seeing his skills improve. He also got baptized in October. It was a special day because Roy got to baptize him. Pray for him as he learns to live out his faith, especially with difficult kids at school. C-5 is doing well in kindergarten and has made some new friends. It’s exciting to see her learning how to read and write. Sometimes she struggles with thinking we love her less than her brothers. Pray that she will know that we love all of our children equally, and especially that she will know she is loved by God.
Here is one other observation. In the past ISI worked very closely with the international student offices in directly being a part of the orientation, sharing about friendship partner programs etc. But it seems today, things are different. Several years ago, it seemed the international offices were more reluctant to allow that having concern that they be identified with a Christian group. Instead they have allowed us to have a table at activities fairs, etc. At first this was a difficult change for many of us. But recently as ISM (International Students Ministries) have adapted, we have found that the table could be even more effective in reaching students. There is more time to “personally” interact which is more important in this generation of students rather than interacting in an official capacity. The result is not relationships not built on external motivation but internal motivation. It has been awesome! At TCU, it was cool to see almost every international student at a reception last week having our bright pink flyer and likely they all had direct connection with a student or ministry partner at the table we had set up. I saw the same sort of thing at UTA and UTD as our team really touched almost every new student in a personal way. No matter what… most students were able to see a loving personal response from some believer.
Our oldest son, J-11 turned 12 in August. We all celebrated with a trip to the fun center and a party with his best friend Jacob. He also completed his first class rank for scouts at his Court of Honor and we featured in his 
) that he is just learning about.
shot this great spring photo (right) in the courtyard at his school. Jon would appreciate prayer as he prepares to go on a missions trip to Amarillo this summer where he and other 6th graders from our church will be leading a Vacation Bible School for inner-city kids.
Powered by FireStats