Chapter 17

TAIWAN, 1956-1978

Our China colleagues, Uri Chandler and Mildred Rice, were on the dock in Keelung, Taiwan, waving us in. Our family now was Gordon, 10 months; Sheryl, almost 6; Gery, 9; Sandra, soon to be 16; Christine, 40; and me, 42. With China mainland and India in our back-grounds we were supposed to be "seasoned" missionaries, yet we felt like babes in a new culture. Although Mandarin is the official language in Taiwan, the Republic of China, we had been away from China long enough to have forgotten much of what we'd learned in that first war-interrupted term. Certainly we were far from fluent.

The prospect of staying very long in Taiwan was uncertain at best. Mao Tse Tung's troops were clearly preparing for an invasion of the island. All of us were urged to locate near a bomb shelter and required to have one suitcase packed for immediate evacuation. As our ship approached Taiwan we could hear the booming of the big guns on the mainland as they shelled the tiny island of Quemoy, a thorn in the side of the Peking regime. I remember going next door to the U.S. M.A.A.G. (Military Advisory and Assistance Group) compound to attend "evacuation strategy sessions." From our position in central Taiwan, U.S. Army officers agreed that the best means of evacuation would be by helicopter. Lists of U.S. citizens were drawn up indicating those who would leave first in the event of an emergency. Would we have one month, one year, to work? No one dared guess.

Taiwan was the Chinese provincial designation adopted after World War II because the former name, Formosa (Island Beautiful), had colonial overtones. Taiwan means "terraced bay" and is descriptive of the island's landscape. It's a tropical island, 90 miles off the coast of China, with a land area about the size of Maryland. The anticipated invasion never took place and the Lord permitted us to have 22 years of service in Taiwan. Here we saw all four of our children receive their high school diplomas from Morrison Christian Academy. Over these years the island moved from a poor "agricultural economy to a strong industrial state, with the same environmental problems which plague Western nations. Huge developments of textiles, electronic components, petroleum, plastics, fertilizer, export processing zones and auto assembly plants changed the whole landscape. Many large U.S. corporations had sub-divisions in Taiwan, thus taking advantage of the cheaper labor market.

From the outset, OMS had a three-fold policy evangelism, leadership training, and the planting of indigenous, self-supporting churches. In the early years (1927) Pastor Abbi came from the Japan OMS work and did a commendable job of evangelization in Taiwan. A number of churches were built and thrived until forced to close their doors during the difficult World War II years. When we arrived in 1956, nine churches were in the OMS association and they were struggling. Parishioners depended greatly on the distribution of relief clothing, cheese and powdered milk.

Lowell Williamson joined the OMS Every Creature Crusade in the early '50s, and with a team of Taiwanese evangelists held a series of tent meetings largely in Pingtung and surrounding areas. As a result additional churches were started. Ed Erny came in '58, delaying his wedding for two years, and with a team steadily did Every Creature Evangelism in Yuanlin, Touliu, Hualien and Wufeng. He saw new churches established. Ed made our home his home base when not out in meetings, and fellowship was most enjoyable, particularly on occasional evenings of Scrabble.

Under the free enterprise system, the economy of Taiwan aided by the Lend-Lease program began to improve — so much so that it had the rare distinction of being a nation which has paid off all indebtedness to the U.S. incurred during the Lend-Lease era.

The one facet of the OMS strategy which most gripped our imagination was the training of young men and women for the ministry. An earlier Bible school, in the northern city of Hsinchu, established by Reverend John Wang and Mr. Peter Keene, now merged with the school in Taichung. The Taiwan Holiness Church, working in cooperation with OMS, designated the newly built campus their official training center.

Elmer Kilbourne, first principal, became acquainted with the mayor of Taichung and on occasion played tennis with him. The mayor made a seven-acre former Japanese property available to OMS for a price far below market value, about $5000 U.S. In the four years prior to our arrival, the campus had been developed with spacious lawns, flowering shrubbery, an administration building with classroom/office space, and dormitories for students. Four homes for missionary families and two apartments for single teachers were constructed. Ample housing for Taiwanese staff was provided. The faculty, largely transplanted from Peking, included the Woods, Chandlers, Rices, Miss Annie Kartozian, Wesleys and Helsbys.

In time, the Elmer Kilbournes were reassigned to Korea, and Harry Woods was named Taiwan field director. In China he had been our mentor, and we had not forgotten those initiation days in Peking (1940-1943). Though Harry could at times be rigid, to us he was a father figure with whom we could always talk over our problems. We will always remember his sense of humor and his contagious laugh at a pleasantry or wry pun. We also enjoyed good fellowship with Uri and Edna Chandler. Uri was the organizer, the business manager and treasurer. He spoke fluent Mandarin and both taught and preached in Chinese. Much of the responsibility for funding and developing the first Morrison Christian Academy campus, just north of the Taichung city limits, was on Uri's shoulders. One of my early experiences was wading around in the waist-high weeds and driving stakes for the first building (the girl's dorm) on the land which became known as the No. 100 Morrison Road campus.

In the early years of the Bible College few students were high school graduates, academic requirements were lower, and diplomas were given at the end of a three-year course. Soon we realized the curriculum needed to be upgraded. A three-year preparatory course was initiated to give young people high school equivalency, and also a four-year "upper course." The school's name was changed to the Central Taiwan Theological College, and the curriculum broadened to include more college subjects. The quality of our faculty gradually improved and by the 1970s students were graduated with a B.Th. degree. The student body was not large, usually between 30 and 40, and yet these became key pastors and church workers. We always tried to view the classroom as a workshop for molding character and developing leaders who would be the means of bringing living water to their people.

Next a program of extension study was devised for early graduates. By attending a series of seminars these Christian workers could earn 32 hours of further credit, upgrading their diplomas to the B.Th. degree. Outstanding professors from abroad came and gave freely of their time. Among them there were Dr. John Keith, Dr. John Cho, Dr. Hattori, Dr. Charles Carter, Dr. Everett Cattell, and others. This continuing education gave our workers greater credibility among the people to whom they ministered.

Upon our arrival in Taiwan leadership changes were imminent. In 1959, the Chandler family was due for furlough and returned to the U.S. Uri, who had a back-ground in construction, took the assignment of helping develop the Greenwood, Indiana, OMS headquarters property. The main office of the mission was now to be moved from Los Angeles to a more central location. Due to overwork, Uri came down with flu which was complicated by kidney failure. What a great sense of loss came to us when in September 1965, we learned that he had passed through heaven's portals. Shortly thereafter, the furlough of the Rolland Rice family arrived. While itinerating in the midwest, Rolland suffered a severe heart attack. Though he recovered and returned to California for recuperation, two years later a second attack took his life.

Since the Harry Woods family had retired earlier, our Taiwan field faced a desperate need for leadership. I was asked to take the position of principal of our seminary, which office I filled until our retirement in 1978. In 1972 the Seminary campus was redeveloped under the Reverend Lowell Williamson's supervision. Just over one acre of the property was sold, and nine new more functional buildings constructed.

The OMS principle of developing young pastors and evangelists for important positions remains valid. In 1978 we bade farewell to Taiwan with many tears. The baton was passed to Dr. John Su (Shao Hsing) who was elected president of Central Taiwan Theological College.

Though we are now retired from the work in Taiwan, the ministry goes on and young people continue to be trained for the building of His Kingdom until He returns.

So we were back in the States, but there was something different "in the feeling." For the first time since becoming part of OMS in '39, I (Christine) was not shopping for the next five years. The mission office booked us in deputation meetings for 18 months which finished out 40 years of service. But as we traveled and spoke, meeting old friends, I had to constantly remind myself that I didn't need to be always on the lookout for sales, shopping for supplies for another term. We weren't going anywhere. What a sobering thought.

But our loving Lord always has a way of smoothing the bumps ahead as He leads His children. And He didn't have to remind me of a promise He'd given me some two years earlier while in Taiwan and praying about that huge difficult word, retirement, which seemed to bring the future so near. His word to me in both I Corinthians 17:10 and I Kings 2:24 was He would "build a house" for us. I'm so grateful that over the years when the Lord has given me a definite promise I can accept it and hold on to it as "very truth" When I shared this promise with friends, however, not all seemed to rejoice with me. I could see from their facial expressions that they were thinking, "How can poor missionaries with hardly a dollar to their name expect to build a house? Christine's really gone off the deep end this time." But still I knew and so we began looking for property.

We felt led to start our search in North Carolina, though we were acquainted with only six people in the whole state. In between meetings in New York, Pennsylvania and other states we'd get back to seeking that "just-right" spot which He had chosen for us. He had seen our four children through college, but now we simply had no money. Still I held tightly to His Word. When we inquired about a housing loan at the banks, the reply was very blunt, "You just don't qualify."

However they didn't know what we knew, that it's far better to qualify in His sight. We were able to borrow a few dollars from friends, and Christian builder, Jim Hicks, agreed to start the foundation. So when the foundation got about three feet above ground level I began asking for a name for this, His house — one which would elicit questions and thus give opportunity to testify to His provision. Ten days later the name came clearly to me during my morning quiet time. "I will build him a `Sure House' " (I Samuel 2:35).

Then perhaps He wanted us to be sure, sure that He was really able to do what He had promised. All funds exhausted, work on the house stopped for six months. When He wants to bless us there are always periods of testing. I needed and made more time in the Word, with Him. As if to rebuke any rising doubts He gave the verse, "What is the thing the Lord has said unto thee?" And the Word filled my heart with fresh assurance. In August 1980, Sure House was completed. So if any of you are traveling in this direction, come, rejoice with us over His handiwork.

My thoughts often return to the promise He gave us as we entered prison camp, "When He puts forth His own sheep He goes before them" (John 10:4). That precious word continues to hold true. God never revokes His promises.

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