Hello Friends,

Our spring weather will wane to winter weather. Friday's forecast predicts possibilities of  severe weather. Be prepared. We have a saying here that March comes in like a lion it goes out like a lamb. It looks like this saying might hold true.

Get ready for March Madness! Indiana is a basketball state. Hoosiers love their hoops! Join us as we make our sporting picks and see if your bracket can hold through the tournament. You can sign in and set your picks at CBS Sports. This makes the event so much more fun.

And speaking of sports, one of the biggest races in motor sports is this weekend. The NASCAR Daytona 500 sets the stage for the upcoming racing season. If you can't be there, you can enjoy the competition on TV or on your smart phone.

International Bible Study: Tuesdays, 9:30-10:30, room 100

Our International Friends Bible Study class is a wonderful opportunity to study God's Word and ask questions about things you would like to discuss. This week we began Acts chapter 12, but we didn't get past the first few verses, because we had so many burning questions about how the Holy Spirit works to spread faith in Jesus to the world. What is the believer's role in this work? We must resist the temptation of thinking that it is "our job" to bring others to faith. We cannot know what is in another person's heart, and we cannot work faith in another person's heart, but God can! We can be loving and supportive of others who are seeking the truth about God. We can pray, and we can express the joy we have that comes from our faith in God and tell others that we want them to have that same joy. The Holy Spirit will do the work! - Jan Heimann

February 14: Please join us on Tuesday as we read about Peter's miraculous escape from prison and the continued growth of the early Christian church. 


International Friends: Tuesdays, 10:30-12:00, room 100
Thank you Hadeel for teaching us to make Arabic kabsa. This is a delicious rice dish. Check our Facebook page for pictures.


Kabsa recipe:
One small onion, chopped
4 Cloves of garlic
2T corn oil
Sauté onion first then add garlic.

Add and stir constantly:
Spice mix (kabsa), dry lemon and heil (whole cardamom)  to the pan and toast.

Add cook until carrots are mushy:
6 chicken bouillon cubes
1 C chopped carrots

Add and stir until rice is coated with seasoning:
3 T tomato sauce
3 C Jasmine rice

Add hot water to cover the rice. Cover and reduce heat to low and cook 20 or until rice is cooked.

February 28: Tuesday is Fat Tuesday (the last day to feast before Lent: the 40 days before Easter). Let's celebrate Mardi Gras! Meet at the church at 10:30 and we will head to Mudbugs Cajun Café at 20 West Main Street, Carmel for some authentic Cajun.

Conversation: Wednesdays, 4:30-6:00, room 201
We had an amazing, ranging discussion tonight. We talked about the weather. We told about ourselves. We talked about languages and poetry. What language do you dream in? Do you ever dream in English? Shaheen told us that he dreams in English after reading poetry! Try it. Did it work for you?

March 1: Click here to read and listen to The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost. See if you can dream in English. We will talk about the poem next week (and your dreams).

Don't stop there! 

Pick another poem to share.

English Classes: Thursdays, 9:30-12:00, upstairs classrooms
What amazing and ranging discussions this week. Conversation shared wedding albums and stories. Level 2 talked about future tense and if/then statements. Level 1 had a great and far ranging philosophical discussion that included a complete Bible history but they did not solve world peace (this week). American Accent Training adjourned to Caplingers. Level 3 worked out some proverbs.

March 2: Join the fray! What interesting people. What interesting times!

hoops: basketball
picks: when you pick the winner of each game
bracket: your total choices for which teams will win each game
tournament: sporting competition between teams

hold true: be accurate
get past: move

opportunity: a situation or condition favorable for attainment of a goal

burning question: an urgent or crucial issue

resist the temptation: to withstand, strive against, or oppose something that tempts, entices, or allures

far ranging: following many paths, covering many topics

solve world peace: we use this phrase when we have weighty discussions involving philosophy

proverbs: sayings and stories that offer truth and advice for living

Four seasons in one week!

Hello Friends,

A new season of programs has hit the networks. What kind of television programs do you enjoy? Action? Drama? Comedy? Mystery and detective? Did you notice that many of the programs in the United States occur in Los Angeles, California? That is because our major movie studios are located in and around Hollywood.

Do you use Netflix, Amazon Prime or other on demand pay per view options? Do you go to network webpages and watch? You can download videos on your smart devices and watch them whenever you have time. How do you watch? Do you listen in English and turn on subtitles (interpretation)? Do you listen in English and turn on Closed Captions? This is a great way to experience your English study in a very enjoyable way. You can watch a movie (experience), hear the language (aural), and see the language (visual).  Count this as working and not recreating. 😊

Water and Ink Club: the Third Saturday, 2:30-4:30
Our painting club delivered our paintings to the Nature Center at Cool Creek Park. This is our second year participating in this show. This year five of our painters are participating with nine paintings. The show opens February 18 and runs through March 5.

February 18: Join us as we paint. Bring your favorite paints or come and try Chinese Brush Painting.

International Bible Study: Tuesdays, 9:30-10:30, room 100.
Last week we read in Acts 10 the story of Cornelius, a devout Gentile seeking God, and also of Peter's vision of common and unclean animals being let down from heaven on a sheet. This week we read more in chapter 11 about why God gave the vision to Peter. He knew that others, such as the Jewish believers in Jerusalem, would doubt and question, and He gave Peter, through the Holy Spirit, the ability to connect the two events together for the glory of God, so that others would continue to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles. In Messanic Publications Robert Roy explains how the story in Acts 10 was practiced and how Peter used this vision to teach:

So God, then, used Peter’s Vision to break down a barrier (a dividing wall) that the Jewish traditions of the day had erected – a barrier that severely hindered the spread of the gospel to the nations.

And this is what believers continue to do today. Because God loved us so much, He sent His Son Jesus to die for our sins. In gratitude we also share God's love with others, with our words and with our actions, and so the Church continues to grow. ~Jan Heimmann

February 21: Next week join us as we finish reading chapter 11 in Acts.

International Friends: Tuesdays, 10:30-12:00, room 100.
What a delicious experience! We shared our customs and rules of dinner etiquette. We talked about the standard Western table setting. A crowded round table can be confusing, but simple rules apply: use your utensils from the outside of the plate, your bread plate is on the left, your beverages are on the upper right. leave your plates on the table when eating. Your napkin goes on your lap. If you leave the table for the restroom, loosely fold your napkin and put it to the left of your plate. When finished, crumple the napkin to the left. Never wipe your nose or spit food into your napkin. Do not leave your napkin on your chair when you leave the table and will return. In the United States, it is customary to eat using the fork in your right hand (when you cut your food with your knife in your right hand, place the knife down on the plate and pass the fork back to your right hand to take food to your mouth). In Europe the fork always stays in your left hand and your knife in your right hand. You can find more details here. Dishes are served from the left and cleared from the right. You can pick up ribs, fried chicken and bread with your fingers. Crudités can also be picked up and eaten. Do not pick up your plates to eat.

Japanese etiquette allows you to pick up your bowls to eat. Do not stand your chopsticks (or hashi) in your food. You are allowed to eat sushi and rolls with your fingers. Mix your wasabi in your soy sauce for a dip for your rolls. Use the pickled ginger to wipe off excess sauce. Dip either the fish or rice side of your sushi in the sauce.

We tasted delicious Mexican tostadas and tacos dorados de pollo. Usually you are offered a variety of fresh toppings and sauces to prepare as you like. With both of these dishes you begin eating with your fingers, but then you use your fork to pick up the pieces that fall to your plate. You can and should hold your plate to catch anything that falls to enjoy!

Korean etiquette does not allow for picking up dishes. Each side is in a separate dish. The rice is served on the right. Chinese etiquette allows you to pick up your dishes to eat.

Noodles are slurped in Asia, but not in Western countries.

February 21: Join us as Hadeel teaches us to cook Arabic kabsa.

Conversation: Wednesdays, 4:30-6:00, room 201.
We enjoyed talking about so many wonderful topics. We talked about constituents, birds like peregrine falcon, February holidays...

February 22: Join us as we continue the conversation.

English Classes: Thursdays, 9:30-12:30, Upstairs classrooms.
Do you want to have some mad skills when it comes to improving your vocabulary? Fluent Forever by Gabriel Wyner has five principles that can help:
1. make memories memorable-use pictures and sounds as well memories you already have to hook the new word into your brain and being
2. maximize laziness=study something until you can repeat it one time
3. don't review, recall=testing yourself on short intervals sparks you to remember because you have made a reason to remember.
4. nearly forget...does that sound counterintuitive? If you can catch a word just before it is extinguished from your memory, you will better cement it in your brain.
Using an app like Memrise or Duolingo can make repetitive learning interesting and fun. They take the guesswork out of trying to memorize and apply these rules.

February 23: Our classes are continuing through May.

hit: started

A new season of programs has hit the networks.: be careful that your subject (a season) agrees with your verb (has) both are singular...of programs is just extra stuff!

networks: American television "free" tv that is paid for by commercials; networks: ABC, CBS, NBC and PBS
on demand: watch what you want, when you want
pay for view: pay to watch something for a fixed amount or time

recreating: resting
runs through: is available as performance
Closed Captions: the exact spoken text of video or television and can include other sound elements
Last week (referring to February 7), This week (referring to February 14) Next week (referring to Febuary 21)

doubt: to be uncertain about; consider questionable or unlikely

severely hindered: strongly delayed, interrupted, stopped

indented paragraph quote: when you are quoting someone else and the quote is long a few lines long, highlight it by setting it apart from the rest of the text (writing)
gratitude: feeling grateful or thankful

etiquette: manners, polite behavior
utensils: forks, knives, spoons, etc.
beverages: drinks
crumple: loosely crush
customary: usual
crudities: raw vegetables use as an appetizer
wasabi: green paste made from Japanese horseradish
does not allow for: should not happen
mad skills: slang for being able to do something
Fluent Forever: in formal writing underline the name of a book
does that sound: when sound is used when someone is asking your opinion; does that look is another way of saying this
counterintuitive: not what you would normally want to do
extinguished: erased
cement: settle or fix as in remember!
app: (pronounced like cap with out the c=ap) a small, specific computer program developed for smart phones and tablets
repetitive: do over and over; practicing with flash cards is repetitive
apply: use

Please Help!

Hello Friends,

Have you had trouble with your technology?  Boy did I ever. I was updating our Things to Do page here on our site using my iPad. I have to tell you that this isn't the best tool for this kind of work, but it was convenient. Well, somehow I touched the wrong thing (and I don't know what I did which is usual when you make this kind of mistake) and wiped out the whole page!

So, give me a hand rebuilding the page. Do you know a great place to go? Do you have a favorite thing to do? Email me at indyintlfriends@gmail.com. Please include links to webpages (copy and paste the link into your e-mail). Better yet, go to our Things To Do and scroll to the bottom and enter your thing to do in the comments!

Thank you for your help!

The above request is conversational. Now, to formally make this same request:

Dear Friends,

Unfortunately I wiped out our Things To Do Page. I am sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you. Help me rebuild the page by contributing things that you like to do and places you like to visit. Include any links to web pages to help our readers. You can also directly add your Things To Do  (click on this link), scroll to the bottom of the page and type in your suggestion in the comments.

Thank you!

International Bible Study: Tuesdays, 9:30-10:30, room 100.
In Acts 10, we read the story about Peter having a vision of a sheet filled with all sorts of animals, reptiles and birds being let down to earth while a voice told him, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat." Peter's response? "Surely not, Lord!" In his entire life as a devout Jew, Peter had never eaten anything impure or unclean. Why would God tell him to do such a thing THREE TIMES?  What was the message God was trying to drive home to Peter? It had very little to do with food. It had everything to do with accepting non-Jewish (Gentile) people as worthy recipients of the Gospel. God was showing Peter that he was about to cleanse the hearts of people whom Jews considered unclean. Messengers arrived and asked Peter to visit the home of Cornelius, a devout, God-fearing centurion, who prayed to God regularly and helped others who were in need. And Peter went! He entered this Gentile's house and preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ to Cornelius, along with his family and friends, and baptized them. Thank God that He is able to cleanse all of us from our sins, through the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus! Thank Him also for sending His Holy Spirit to live in our hearts!

February 14: Please join us as we study the eleventh chapter of Acts.

International Friends: Tuesdays, 10:30-12:00, room 100.
We had wonderful day making namayatuhashi. This delicious dessert is made with mochiko (sweet rice flour) and filled with sweet red bean paste. You can flavor the mochi wrapper with macha (green tea powder). This beautiful dessert would be lovely for Valentine's Day.

February 14: Join us as we celebrate Valentine's Day sharing dining etiquette from our home countries. Please bring a dish to share and be prepared to teach us how to eat with good manners in your home country.

Conversation: Wednesdays, 4:30-6:00, room 201.

As usually we found many topics to talk about. It is so nice to have casual conversation.

February 15: Bring your newspapers. Are you getting hung up by slang and idioms? Let's talk about it! Bring some slang.

English Classes: Thursdays, 9:30-12:00, upstairs classrooms.
We are continuing to welcome people to our classes. Would you like to invite a friend? Please do.


boy did I ever: I definitely did something
I have to tell you: this is a conversational phrase that usually isn't used in writing but is used to emphasize what follows
that: a conversational filler word; you can often leave that out of formal writing, but it always makes your English sound smooth and casual
give me a hand: please help
the above: referring to the previous writing
the below: referring to the writing following

devout: devoted to divine worship or service; pious; religious
to drive home (a point): to make (a point) clearly understood
recipient: a person or thing that receives; receiver
centurion: (in the ancient Roman army) the commander of a company of approximately 100 men
eleventh chapter: most numbers beyond three have a -th at the end of it when coming before a noun (first, second, third, fourth, fifth...twenty-first, twenty second,...twenty-fifth)

beautiful/lovely: usually these two words mean pleasing to the eye or pretty, but in this case the word lovely means perfect for a particular situation
dining etiquette: proper or tasteful eating manners

hung up: getting stuck, unable to understand and move on
please do: Your action is perfectly fine.

Six more weeks of Winter? Six weeks until Spring?

Hello, Friends!

This weekend is Super Bowl Sunday. Super Bowl has the greatest viewership any other annual program. The Patriots and the Falcons are playing. The Falcons are favored to win. Tom Brady is the quarterback for the Patriots.

The Super Bowl isn't just about football. Many people watch to see the commercials. It is very competitive to have your product aired during the game. The average cost for a 30 second commercial is $5 million. The commercials are spectacular.

Another draw is the halftime show. This year Lady Gaga is performing. You can be guaranteed that every Super Bowl halftime show will top the show the previous years.

Super Bowl is about the food. There are articles and special editions about the snacks for game day. People most often offer finger food and other snacks and dishes that don't require much clean-up. Do you want to know what the most searched for recipe by state is? Want to know the top foods? Just search Super Bowl Food. Top snacks are pizza, chili, sliders, pulled pork, spinach artichoke dip, brownies, cookies, nachos, chips and dip, popcorn, cake balls...and now we all want okonomiyaki.

Finally, there are the parties! People may meet at each other's homes, they may meet at a sports bar. Some people stay home and enjoy the evening with their family. No matter how you decide to enjoy Sunday, it will be a super one.

International Bible Study: Tuesdays, 9:30-10:30, Room 100
We met this week to celebrate Saori's birthday and Lupita's birthday. Too bad Saori was asleep! We had fun eating cake and trying to Skype. Saori had already fallen asleep. Time differences are such a struggle. Trying to meet and talk to our friends around the world take so much planning.

We read Acts 9:32-43. Read this story about Peter and his travels. How many miracles can you find? There are two obvious ones: Aeneas can walk and Dorcas was raised from the dead. There are two evident ones: Peter can perform these acts. These healings/raising from the dead happen immediately. at the request of the people. Many people believe in the Lord.

February 7: Join us as we continue to learn about the early life of the Christian church.

International Friends: Tuesdays, 10:30-12:00, Room 100
We met to talk about swearing or bad language. We compared our home language words and accents which cause us to be misunderstood. Sometimes our charming accents sound like swear words to English ears (Spanish speakers pronounce the English word beach with a short i . In this case, pronunciation is important. Sometimes words in our home languages sound like English swear words (dame-stop it right now! in Japanese or fuk-luck, happiness, blessing in Cantonese)

February 7: Join us as Sayuri teaches us to make a delicious Japanese dessert

Conversation: Tuesdays, 9:30-10:30, Upstairs Classrooms
We talked about car ownership. We talked about laws and practices of having multiple wives. We talked about the executive order regarding immigration. Wow! There are so many things to talk about in an hour and a half. We find that some or our ideas are difficult to express in our home language and in English.

February 8: Join us. We will talk about many topics. We will also talk about the Easy English News articles.

English Classes: Thursdays, 9:30-12:00, Upstairs Classrooms
We welcomed five new friends this Thursday. There was so many interesting class discussions to listen in on. Here is an excerpt from our American Accent class follow-up:

Groundhog Day and so we learned everything about groundhogs and how they predict the weather.  We heard the news that Punxsutawney Phil (the groundhog) saw his shadow and so that means we will have 6 more weeks of winter weather. Take a look at this short video and see the official ceremony that happened early [Thursday]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dS-tzJiXl90

A groundhog is also called a woodchuck and so we practiced a famous American tongue twister about woodchucks.  Watch this cute little girl teach you how to say the woodchuck tongue twister: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-1pBLchKKg

February 10: Join us for classes on Thursday.

International Church Services: The first Thursday of the month, 12:15-12:45, Hasse Chapel
We met this week in the choir room since there was a funeral in the Chapel. This week we sang two beautiful hymns: Jesus Loves Me This I Know (here is a Gospel version) and Amazing Grace. Both of these We followed a brief service that included confession and absolution. We listened to the message that God loves us, He forgives us, and He forgets our sins. We listened to the message that when we admit to our sins, God will always forgive us and that this applies to our past, current and future sins. We prayed the Lord's Prayer.

Remember that you are welcome to sit in even if you are not Christian or do not attend this church.

March 2: Join us for church services. We will sing Amazing Grace again and listen to

aired: shown on tv
$5 million: $5,000,000
performing: presenting an act to an audience
sports bar: a pub or tavern that serves food, alcohol and features tvs everywhere airing the games
game day: a day set aside for a sporting event. Saturday is the college football game day. Sunday and Monday are professional football days. Game Day can be any day of an important game for you.
finger food: food eaten with your fingers; no utensils needed
super: great
perform: carry out, do
acts: something that is done
obvious: clear or easily seen or understood
evident: clear or easily understood
Lord: in the Bible, when the word lord is capitalized it refers to God and is the translation of Adonai. When all the letters are all capitalized (LORD) it refers to the Hebrew name YHWY. These words/names are words for God.
to listen in on: to listen without necessarily participating
excerpt: quoted paragraphs from another writing
[Thursday]: when you see brackets around a word it means that an appropriate word has been substituted for the original text, In this case I substituted "Thursday" for "this morning."
funeral: ceremony honoring a dead person
hymns: songs or poems
remember: recall; bring to mind something that was told before
sins: offences against God and other people
sit in: attend and observe

International Church Services

International Church Services 
Cornerstone Lutheran Church
The First Thursday of the Month at 12:15 pm in the Chapel

Join us for Christian worship in English the February 2. These services are geared for people learning English. Learn how to pray and worship in English. We will have question and answer time to help  understand ideas, beliefs and vocabulary. You don't have to be Christian to come. All people are welcome.

Future service dates:
March 2
April  6
May 4

Gong Xi Fa Cai or Gong Hey Fat Choi, Friends.

Welcome to the new lunar year. It is the year of the chicken or rooster. In China (and other Asian countries) this is the important Spring festival that lasts until the 15th of the month. This time of year we are very happy to be thinking about and celebrating anything that has to do with spring!

This is not a usual celebration across the U.S., but we are happy to absorb this holiday and incorporate it into our repertoire of things to celebrate! Did you notice that in the United States we usually celebrate on one specific day? I love that in many other countries holidays are more like festivals: they last for days or weeks. Here in the States we use the word "festival" loosely to include all kinds of opportunities: there are music festivals, art festivals, international festivals, community festivals... None of these events are specific to a particular holiday or event; they can just be a reason for people to get together and celebrate or shop or eat or dance or ride rides. Churches, schools and communities will hold "summer fests" as a fundraiser for their organization or for a specific charity. In Indiana there are 640 festivals in January and February. There is no excuse to have the winter blues! You can always find something to do and something to celebrate. Check out the Indiana State Festival Guide.

International Bible Study: Tuesdays, 9:30-10:30, room 100

The conversion of Saul (later known as Paul), who had been consumed with zeal to rid the world of the despicable followers of Jesus, is proof that God can change people! Our group enjoyed reading and discussing this astonishing story in Acts chapter 9. 

Saul was on his way to Damascus to arrest Christians, when suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around him, and a voice asked, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?" It was Jesus, saying in essence that anyone who persecutes His people, persecutes Him. He gave Saul orders to go to Damascus, where a man named Ananias, following the Holy Spirit's leading, healed Saul's blindness and baptized him. Saul immediately began to proclaim that Jesus was indeed the risen Savior, the Messiah who had been sent to redeem us from our sins. 

He did a 180! From passionate persecutor to inspired preacher! From hateful hunter of Christians to humble servant of Jesus! Even today God continues to call sinners to turn from their state of blindness and despair to a new life in Christ. He sends his Holy Spirit to those who believe and are baptized. The transforming effect of Saul's conversion gives us hope that God can and does change hearts. He uses us as witnesses to spread the message that God loves us!

January 31: Join us as we continue to read how the news of Jesus spreads through the world and the struggles of the people who spread the word.

International Friends: Tuesdays, 10:30-12:00, room 100
We were treated to okonomiyaki. What a delicious snack or dinner. These savory pancakes are so delicious and healthy. They are a wonderful way to serve your family vegetables! We made Osaka style okonomiyaki, where the ingredients are stirred into the batter. We learned that the Hiroshima style has the ingredients layered and includes soba noodles. The finished product is dressed with okonomiyaki sauce mayonnaise and dried fish flakes.

January 31: Join us as we wish Saori Davis Happy Birthday, talk about bad language and swearing (because you need to know what people are saying and what not to say) and Super Bowl.

Conversation: Wednesdays, 4:30-6:00, upstairs classroom
We met and explored Popsockets. Do you know about this new product? You can attach this product to the back of your phone and it is a handle that pops out to prop up your phone or to help you hold it. This is the trendy craze that is cool and functional.  

February 1: Let's talk about...Super Bowl at least!

chicken: delicious barnyard bird
rooster: male delicious barnyard bird
holiday: a day set aside by custom or law where normal business is suspended or reduced
festival: a community event that includes food and entertainment
States: capitalized this word is short for United States of America
loosely: not formally, flexibly
(...): three dots or periods are called an ellipsis. When you see this punctuation it means that the list continues in that manner
fundraiser: an event or product that raises money for particular cause
charity: a cause or organization that is funded by money the is given
winter blues: feeling lonely and depressed due to the cold weather and gray days
across: across the US means nationwide or everyone in the country
has to do with: related to
absorb: take in or include, assimilate
incorporate into our repertoire: include in our list of regularly performed events or activities

conversion: a change from one religion, political belief, viewpoint, etc., to another
zeal: fervor for a person, cause, or object; eager desire or endeavor; enthusiastic diligence
despicable: deserving to be despised, or regarded with distaste, disgust, or disdain; contemptible
to persecute: harass usually used as a result of religious or political beliefs
to do a 180:  to turn in the opposite direction

finished product: the final result
dressed: when sauce is added to finish a dish or food

trendy: fashional
craze: popular

January Thaw

Hello Friends,

Saturday is a beautiful, warm day. This is what is known as a January Thaw. In Indiana (and the Midwest) we see a couple of warm days. You may be tempted to think that it is spring, but don't put away your coat and mittens, yet.

You can combat the winter blahs with activities and events. You can go to museums, and the zoo is particularly fun in the winter. Many animals love the cold and are active. You can also enjoy the indoor exhibits. The desert biome is like taking a quick vacation.

Don't forget about Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. Your children can join the fun any time. Find a troop near you.

Boy Scouts

Girl Scouts

It isn't too early start looking for summer camps for your children. Many of the summer programs are announcing their openings. Popular camps fill early. Click this link for Summer Camps in the Indianapolis Area to find a list along with links to each program.

International Bible Study: Tuesdays, 9:30-10:30, room 100
Our story this week from Acts 8: 26-40 tells about the wonderful work of the Holy Spirit as he guided Philip to meet up with an Ethiopian eunuch who was an important official in charge of the treasury of the Ethiopian queen. He was in a chariot on his way home from worshiping in Jerusalem, and he was reading the prophesies of Isaiah. When Philip caught up with him, the eunuch invited Philip to explain the Scriptures to him.

Philip met this man where he was, answered his questions, and told him the Good News that Jesus had fulfilled the Old Testament prophesies by suffering and dying for our sins and by rising again. What an example for us!

Immediately, when the chariot came to some water, the eunuch asked Philip, "Why shouldn't I be baptized?" He couldn't wait! And Philip didn't get in his way! He baptized the man and then was transported by the Spirit to another town, while the Ethiopian went on his way rejoicing!

We learned so much from this story about how the Holy Spirit uses believers to share the Good News with others. He will supplies the right words and He uses His Word to work faith in new believers. All we need to do is NOT get in the way!

January 24: Please join us for some great discussion of Acts chapter 9 with the block-buster story of the conversion of Saul (later called St. Paul) on the road to Damascus.

International Friends: Tuesdays, 10:30-12:00, room 100
This week we learned to make paper Valentine gifts out of paper. It was fun to compare how all the different combinations

January 24: Join us as we learn to make (and eat) okonomiyaki and talk about the Super Bowl.

Conversation: Wednesdays, 4:30-6:00
English Classes: Thursdays, 9:30-12:00
We are continuing to study English in our various classes. Join us!

put away: store
biome: similar habitat or environment and animals across different areas (for example a desert biome would include a variety of plants and animals that live in the desert)
eunuch: a castrated man, especially one formerly employed by rulers in the Middle East and Asia as a harem guard or palace official
transported: taken or carried from one place to another
get in the way: stop from happening
conversion: spiritual change or turnaround from a state of unbelief to belief or from sinfulness to righteousness
block-buster:  a motion picture, novel, story, etc., that has or is expected to have wide popular appeal
Super Bowl: professional football play offs