We cannot believe how fast the weeks are passing by, we only have nine days left in Vietnam.
Our schedule has been full for the past few weeks, so I apologize for our delinquency in posting. Today looked like an opportunity for catching up on posts. Then last night we heard that there is a call to prayer today for YWAM Ships. A month ago they lost the 86 ton yacht Hawaii Aloha and staff member, Aaron Bremner to a winter storm off the Big Island, today we will gather in prayer for this ministry.
Last weekend we headed out of Hanoi, to Sa Pa a community close by the northern border with China. Sa Pa is in the mountains and we had sleeping berths on a night train to get there, we came back to Hanoi by bus late on Sunday night. This was an interesting trip, we had a few hours of sunshine on Friday and almost saw the peaks of some mountains, but most of the time we were in the clouds, rain, fog, mist, it was the ‘hard-to-warm-up-chill-to-the-bone cold’, not the ‘dry cold’ of Alberta. The trip was filled with great joy though, as we were able to meet many H’Mong, a tribal people native to the area. The town of Sa Pa must hold the world record for most “the North Face” stores, I am sure I went in 27, they are interspersed with hotels, restaurants and massage places.
A little while ago we were asked if we would do it again, give up 5 months of our life to do a YWAM DTS. The short answer is “Yes, without a doubt, we would do it again.” We have done several short-term missions over the past 13 years, to Santiago, Chile, to Unitedville, Belize and in Tijuana, Mexico; these have varied from two weeks to five, each was centred around a construction project which we used in a variety of ways to build relationships. Some of the things we learned in short-term missions were helpful in preparing us for the outreach phase here in Viet Nam but the lecture phase at Kona was very different from any previous mission preparation activity. The teaching was intensive, very solidly Bible-based, challenging, provoking and practical; we would sit under that teaching again.
Our time in Vietnam has been quite different from all of our previous trips into the developing world which focused around a construction project as the tool to build relationships, have conversations and share cultural and worldview. While YWAM is not averse to practical assistance, often involving itself in mercy, relief and development aid around the world, it is not the focus of the Discipleship Training Schools outreach. Over the past few weeks in Vietnam it has been our
participation in english language clubs and our involvement in classrooms that has brought about the relationships needed to be able to share life. One of our purposes in coming to YWAM was because we were at a crossroads in life and we were hoping to discover a ministry opportunity
where we could serve together. While we have both been stretched and pushed out of our comfort zones by the tasks that God has given us here, especially the university classes, we have seen many people who desire to learn more than just the English language. Discussions always seem
to go beyond the topic at hand around life management, coping skills
and cultural differences. Both of us have enjoyed sharing through english classes and clubs. We have registered for TESL/TESOL/TEFL certification course at the University of Calgary in March and are thinking that we can start an english club in Okotoks.
5 months seems like a long time to be away but we have found modern technology Skype and FaceTime has narrowed the gap, enabling us to see and chat with children and grandchildren as often we are able with a 14 hour time difference. We have done so, weekly from Kona and two weekly from Viet Nam.
Until next time be blessed and be a blessing, A&G
As we celebrated our 39th wedding anniversary in Okotoks, Canada, this time last year it occurred to us that we had no idea where we would be celebrating our 40th. To be honest, Hanoi, Vietnam did not even cross our minds. We had applied to attend Crossroads Discipleship Training School at the University of the Nations in Kona, but that was all we knew. In fact, at that time YWAM Kona didn’t know. Vietnam is a new location for Kona, our outreach team is the first longer term team to visit Hanoi. In the past there have been a couple of teams from New Zealand and one from California that have been here for a couple of weeks. It looks like eight weeks is better for establishing relationships. With the help of some local contacts we have been exploring opportunities to make a difference. Vietnam is is
hungry. So far most of our time has been spent in the city of Hanoi, but we have made a couple of trips to a village in the countryside west of Hanoi, where we held English camps for some pre-teens and in-betweens. Last Saturday Marjo, one of our leaders, Glenda and I, headed out into the country to assist with a special English club, while there we spotted our first Vietnamese wildlife in a tree near the building we were in. I believe it is a 
Our anniversary dinner was shared with our team and hosts, 18 of us at 
Unfortunately, the Hanoi winter has kicked in and some inclement weather forced us to sit inside to avoid the rain and wind. The restaurant has a great balcony which we had reserved for the occasion, it overlooks Ho Tay Lake and the city skyline.
We have to say in all our riding buses and taxis and walking around, even walking across the
road between speeding motorcycles, we have never felt unsafe. We feel Hanoi is one of the safest places we have ever visited. To our western eyes activities like these young men riding a cement mixer down the street at about 50kph (30mph) with a front wheel that was very buckled, or the guy delivering rebar on his moped to the concrete workers cutting and installing it in flip flops would cause a safety inspector to have a heart attack.
schools, some of the classes have little English yet which is a bit challenging, but the more advanced classes are becoming a lot of fun as we develop relationships with the students and begin to exchange some of our different cultures and worldview. Of all the university students we have met so far, only one had parents that are not still together, it seems that the divorce rate is really low. On Christmas Eve we were blessed by a surprise delivery of cards and cake gifted to us by the staff and students of one university which we show off in the picture above.
Glenda and I found a Christian coffee shop a few days ago near where we have classes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday evenings. We arrived a few minutes before closing and bought 
came with a glass of green tea, not unusual, but we did say “Goodnight and God bless” to all the staff as they left except for the one who stayed late so we could enjoy our drinks. This is typical of the way we have been treated since being in Vietnam. Our new favourite dish 
Andy and Glenda Read 
