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April 2013

Greetings! We hope this update finds you doing well and experiencing the full joy that is produced through knowing Christ.

The Shumate

Ministry at Grace
Our lives have been full and busy since graduation last May. In September I was chosen to serve as the pastoral intern at Grace Evangelical Free Church in Jefferson City, MO, so we moved out here at the end of September and dove into our new life as a young family serving in pastoral ministry. Grace is a very healthy church and a pastor who exemplifies what it means to be godly, humble, and hard working. The internship has provided me with many opportunities to minister through teaching, preaching, discipleship, and evangelism. I am responsible for all adult education, including Sunday School and small groups, and the youth ministry. In addition, I helped Kathleen start a Moms Group that had community outreach at its heart, and I am teaching an Essential New Testament Greek class. I am also re -doing their website because using technology to engage the culture with the Gospel is a particular interest of mine. So far everything has gone really well and we feel very blessed to have been provided this opportunity. One of the best parts about being here is that it has afforded us some time to rest, which in turn has given us the ability to think long-term about where we feel called and to be open to taking some risks. After seminary we were so exhausted and drained that we werent in a place to make big changes immediatelywe needed some time to rest and recuperate, and Grace has been the perfect place to do that.

Update

Our Calling
During our time here we have been talking and praying and thinking about our long-term calling, and have decided to pursue overseas missions through Mission to the World. In particular, we are hoping to go to Taiwan and serve at Christs College, a Christian liberal arts college that offers Chinese Christians living in Taiwan and the mainland an opportunity to attend a Christian school. It is the only Christian liberal arts college in Taiwan or the mainland, so it has a pivotal role in teaching and training Christians as they prepare to serve God in their various vocations. The school also provides the faculty with an enormous opportunity to evangelize. Only about 1/3 of the students who are admitted to the school are Christians; only about 2% of Taiwanese are Christian, the rest a mix of Buddhists, Taoists, and agnostics. However, by the time the students graduate, about 2/3 are Christian. Evangelizing and discipling students is a primary mission of the college and a significant part of the facultys job. Christs College was accredited under Taiwans Education Dept. last year, which means their enrollment should be expanding greatly over the next few years. This was a major answer to prayer because the school has tried for

years to be accredited but Taiwan had no category for a Christian college, so their application kept being rejected. They have been accredited under

the U.S. Christian School Association, but that doesnt help Taiwanese and mainland students who need the accreditation of Taiwan for their degree to be recognized by other schools. With this change, the school will have a sure footing to continue its mission, and is expecting a significant increase in the number of students. Because of this the President of the college has been praying for more faculty and is thrilled to see God answer that prayer by stirring in us a desire to go serve. Not only would I be serving on the faculty of the college, I would also be able to serve alongside the local church in evangelism and church planting.

Profound Joy
For me, this decision has brought a wonderful sense of relief, joy, and purpose. After a year of searching for a call that feels right and that aligns with Gods will for us, this feels like the perfect fit. I have a strong background in the language and culture of China, as well as ministering to Chinese students through Bridges, and Kathleen and I both thrive in a cross -cultural missions environment. We would like to ask you to praise God on our behalf because it seems clear He has been leading us down this path for years and it feels like the perfect calling for our family. We are greatly excited and deeply humbled by how the Lord has lead us through these past five years which have been so difficult and lacked any concrete calling. Now that we are pursuing this call to serve in Taiwan at Christs College, everything feels like it is clicking in place and we can see how God has been working everything toward this purpose. We are still in the early phases of the application process, so we appreciate your prayers that everything would move along, and that God would continue to open doors toward this call. We will be attending a week-long conference with MTW in June for new missionaries. That will be the final step of official approval before we can begin raising support. If everything goes well, wed like to begin raising support this summer and go to Taiwan by sometime next summer.

Calvin is Born!

More Photos

Calvin when he was firstborn!


Proud Papa!

ve Cute o

rload!

Calvin and Hobbes!

Girls night out.

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