The following is an addaptation of a sermon that I gave a few weeks ago. I chose not to post the recording of this message because some specific names of people were mentioned, and I didn’t want to broadcast their names and their stories online without their consent.

Over the past 4 months my family and I have had the opportunity to meet many amazing young people from around the world.

Most of these young people, as I have mentioned before, are not Christians.

Every once in a while I get to spend some time ‘one on one’ with some of these students and when I do I try to find out about their spiritual and religious history.

Two Thursdays ago, I had the opportunity to bring a Chinese girl named —– to the airport.

—– is a senior at Canyonville Christian Academy and is very bright- the world is hers for the taking. So she has many important decisions to make in the next few months:

Where will she go to college?

What career does she want to pursue?

What country does she want to live in after graduating college?

And most importantly, what god will she serve? What religion or way-of-life will she adhere to?

She began to tell me of her time as an exchange student in Oklahoma last year.

She told me how she chose to leave her first host mother, a young single Christian mother, because she had been treated poorly.

She then told me of her second host family who she bonded with, Catholics who were “great people but never went to church”.

We talked about how Catholics, in general, are Christians. So it was time to ask her the big question,” So —–, are you a Christian?”

She proceed to tell me that she was thinking about becoming a Christian after hearing so much about it at school.

To her, it was as if Christianity was simply some information that she had been learning and she had to decide whether or not she would accept this “information”.

She didn’t see Christianity as being saved by an all-loving God and following His Son who died to set her free from sin and death. She saw it as information that she would either embrace or reject.

I’ve found this same type of response from many of the other students I’ve talked to so far this year.

For some reason, most of these unsaved foreign students do not understand the concepts of a real god, of redemption, of grace, of judgment…of salvation.

I get a strong impression that most of these kids don’t even agree with the concept that they are sinners…

And that’s when she said it,” Well Christians are really no different from everyone else, so as long as you’re a good person and believe in something, then you’ll be alright!”

To her, growing up in Communist China and only ‘knowing of’ one single Christian her entire life, and then coming to America and meeting many supposed Christians, her observation is that Christians are no different than everyone else!

And if Christians, to her, don’t offer anything new for her life; then why on earth would she want to become one?

And who’s to blame for this poor girl’s perception of Christians? Her and her lack of insight? Or someone else?

This week we will be celebrating the arrival of a New Year.

And the popular thing to do around this time of year is to make New Year’s Resolutions.

So may we, starting this instant, begin to search our souls to find out if we offer anything different than that of the world?

And if not, then let us question our devotion to Christ and make a firm commitment to Him today; and let us change our ways so that people all over the world like —–can see the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ through us.

In 1 John 3, John- the closest dispiple to Jesus- tells the reader what it means to be a Christian. He tells the reader what it looks like to be a Christian, how being a Follower of Jesus makes you look different. He explains that a Chrsitian is someone who: puts their trust in Jesus; Loves their brother and their neighbor as Christ loves the Church, does what is right, helps their brother in need, and someone who the Holy Spirit confirms to them that they are saved and that they are different.

So who will you be this year? Someone who looks like the rest of the world? Or someone who is different- not on a creepy way- than the rest of the world? Because there’s a world full of people just like —– who are dying to find someone who is different…who are willing to live their life differently through the power of a loving, saving, empowering god, if they could only find someone who could actually show them that it’s possible- someone like you!

I’ve been very neglectant of my blog as of late, but my New Year’s Resolution is to change that. I’m going to be changing my personal schedule up a bit to be more accountable to things in life that are important to me.

So what have I been up to?

Well it’s been an exciting couple of months. I’ve gotten to meet some wonderful students from all over the globe. I saw the ‘last boy on campus that I expected to become a Christian’ become one! I’ve had my fill of cafeteria food. I’ve learned the joys and difficulties of being around your wife and kids basically 24 hours a day. I’ve had the opportunity to speak the Word of God to young people who know nothing of it- and have found it challenging. I’ve figured out what some of my passions are, and what they are not. I’ve rediscovered some of my strengths, and have had my weaknesses redefined. I’ve learned to trust more in an Almighty-Everliving-God. I’ve driven to Eugene, Medford, and Portland a few more times than I would have liked to drop kids off at the airport. I’ve had to say goodbye to some students who made horrible choices in life. I’ve found the most respectful-delightful-polite-loving teenage boy that I have ever met- and he is a Muslim. I’ve learned to rely on the hospitallity and generosity of others. I have grown to love my close friends and family more than ever before. Etc….Etc….Etc…

One thing that has surprised me more than anything is my love of the Church. Here at CCA I attend church every week on Sunday when I am working, but it’s not really attending church, it’s supervising young people who because of their non-existant relationship with Christ- can be quite disrespectful during church. I have learned how powerful it is to worship the Lord Jesus Christ with a group of Believers and how meaningful it is to absorb the Word of God with your brothers and sisters in Christ. I have learned how much it means to have fellow followers of Christ around you to constantly encourage you, hold you accountable, and study the Bible with you.

I came here over 4 months ago with my desire and focus on changing the lives of young people from every corner of the globe-and I think I have- but I belive now that God brought my family and I here for ‘us’. I know that sounds very selfish and it’s normally something that I would not say, but I honestly believe it with all my heart because here we are being tested, refined, and challenged in ways we never have been before. This is a spiritual and mental training ground for the next stage in our life….a transitioning place and time….and I’m excited, and scared to see what’s next.

Grace and Peace,

Anthony Trask

Living and working here at Canyonville Christian Academy has been a complete and utter culture shock.

When we first moved here, before the students arrived, it was a culture shock getting used to living in an extremely small town after living in a big town our entire lives. There is only one grocery store, and it is VERY small and has an EXTREMELY limited selection. There is only a handful of restaurants; one of them is an Italian restaurant/paintball store (?!), and there is only one chain restaurant- Burger King. The craziest thing to get used to is that there are no stoplights and we walk almost everywhere- I went 12 days without ever being in a car!

The other big cultural shock/adjustment we are having is that we are living and interacting with students from all over the planet! I mentioned this before, but it is such an interesting situation, that it’s worth mentioning again. We have boys from Rwanda, China, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Japan Kazakhstan, Russian, Ukraine, Israel, Belgium, Bolivia, Mexico, Vermont, California, Washington State, and even Salem!

It’s strange to see all of the different cultures interacting together.

The most interesting thing is watching all of the Asian cultures. You would think that the cultures of Asian nations that are very close geographically would be very close culturally, but that is not the case at all!

For example, Koreans: Koreans are very interesting people.  They are extraordinarily nice and respectful. The way the younger Koreans look up to and respect the older Koreans is amazing. But the way that the older Koreans take care of the younger Koreans is equally as remarkable.

Most of the Koreans I have met are very serious in nature and extremely serious about studying. It seems, to many of them, that going to a highly ranked High School, getting an excellent score on their SATs, getting into a prestigious American college, and then getting a respectable job means everything: including spending most of their free time studying.

Probably the most unique thing about their culture is their unhindered ability to show affection to one another without Western gender barriers coming into play. These great Korean boys that I have the privilege of working with are very affectionate towards each other: holding hands (with younger boys), lots of hugs, arms around each other, grooming, running fingers through hair, even practically cuddling together while sleeping. And none of it is sexual. It is harmless, and very interesting.

Then on the opposite end of the Asian spectrum are the Taiwanese: These are great kids too! They are much more laid back than the Koreans and are extremely goofy and sarcastic. They laugh all of the time and are always playing weird games with each other.

They also are very affectionate with each other- almost like the Koreans. There is not as much elder respect, but much more so than Americans. The bond between the Taiwanese seems to be a little stronger than that of the Koreans though- I don’t know why, they just seem to stick closer together and segregate themselves a little more.

Now Taiwan is technically part of China, but Mainland Chinese students tend to be very different from the Taiwanese. They tend to be more serious and a little more polite. Taiwanese are not impolite, but the mainland Chinese students are a little more polite. Another oddity is that the Taiwanese tend to not associate with the mainland Chinese. And while writing this I just discovered from a group Taiwanese students that the reason they tend to not associate with the mainland Chinese students has to do with what political party the mainland Chinese student represents and their views on Taiwan.

I have a few students from Hong Kong and they are really great kids! They tend to be the most Westernized of all the Asian students: in dress, in mannerisms, in humor, in gender roles, etc….

There are a handful of Vietnamese kids in my dorm as well. These students, like the Taiwanese, seem to be very laid back. They are also very polite and personable- while retaining a respect for adults almost equal to the Koreans.

I have two boys that are Koreans living in Tokyo Japan. The only thing that separates them from the other Korean students is that they, like the Hong Kong’ers, are more Western in their mannerisms, communication, and humor.

Russians: The Russians are a unique bunch. They hang out with the Ukrainians, just as I have witnessed them doing in Salem- for obvious reasons, they speak the same language. But their culture appears t o be the same as well. They’re a fun group of students to be around. They are very loud and boisterous; always challenging the status quo and pushing the limits of the rules on campus. My speculation is that with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russians and the Ukrainians did everything to avoid the structure of the old communist regime.

I have a great young man from Kazakhstan who I thoroughly enjoy. He is nice, respectful, and extremely helpful. I have no idea what Kazakhs are like though because all three of them here at CCA are very unique and different. But, they also speak Russian and I am very interested to learn more about their nation and their culture.

Just like the Kazakhstani boy, I have several other students who are the lone representatives from their country: Bolivia, Belgium, and Israel.  So I cannot determine what their cultures are like from them alone, but I can determine what great guys they are individually.

One interesting culture adjustment that I am experiencing is interacting with a different kind of Mexican. I come from Salem, Oregon and we have a very large number of Mexicans living and working in our community. The Mexicans that I have known and loved all of my life have been, for the most part, very hard working, family oriented, and loving. However, most Mexicans working in the Willamette Valley in Oregon are very poor because they are grotesquely underpaid by their employers.

The Mexicans I have come to know here at CCA are also very nice and family oriented people, but are not poor like most Mexicans I have known. They tend to be well-off financially and it shows in the way that they dress, talk, and carry themselves. After some talk with them, there almost seems to be some ridicule from them towards the Mexicans that have moved to America to live and work.

These last several paragraphs are in no way supposed to be an exhaustive description of these cultures- just general observations that I have made since being here. And they certainly don’t apply to everyone. There are some kids from certain cultures here that act completely different from the others in their nation, and that is just fine.

I look forward to continuing my thoughts and observations about my experience here in Canyonville on my blog as this year progresses.

So I just finished a whirl-wind of a month:

Salem Art Fair, packing our stuff to move, preparing for youth camp, moving all of our stuff to Canyonville, running youth camp, settling in at our new place, and beginning a new and exciting ministry!!!!! Needless to say, we are exhausted.

I put in two weeks of very hard physical labor preparing the dorms here at CCA for the student’s arrival. Then on Friday, August 30^th the students began to pour in. It was amazing to say the least!

We have 53 boys in our dorm. They come from South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Japan, Bolivia, Mexico, Belgium, Russia, The Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Israel, Rwanda, California, Vermont, Washington State, and even one boy from Salem! I thought I understood culture before arriving here, but boy was I wrong. Compared to America, these kids seem like they are from another planet. What a great learning experience this will be for our family.

I was looking at all of my new student’s files yesterday and hands-down the majority of them are not Christian. Please pray with us that God will use our family and the wonderful staff here at CCA to win these lost souls for Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. 

Hopefully within the next two weeks we will get into somewhat of a routine. I have been working long inconsistent hours and have not been able to keep in touch will all of you as I hope to do. That should be changing soon though and I will be calling all of you more and more and hope to visit all of you when we return to Salem on my days off.

Please be in prayer with us so that Zion and Kylie will continue to adjust well to our new living arrangements. 

I am making a commitmnet to all of you and to myself to blog everyday for the next 7 days so stay tuned.