‘The environment brings us more to the Lord. Morning revival is a must; we have more prayer and treasure the word of the Lord more.’
At the end of August 2014, my whole family moved to Israel. I started a post-doctoral position in the Weizmann Institute. The Institute is situated in the city of Rehovot in the central part of Israel. The Institute is different from other universities in Israel in that it only provides postgraduate degrees (Master, PhD and Postdoc). All courses are taught in English, hence there is no Hebrew language requirement.
The Weizmann Institute provides an excellent research environment. In 2011, the Scientist magazine ranked it as the best place to work in academia outside of U.S. In 2015, it was ranked 10th around the world in terms of quality of research, the only non-US institute made it to the top ten list. There is a science park adjacent to the campus; outcomes and patents from research are often applied to industrial use quickly. The Institute also provides sufficient scholarship to students so that they do not have to worry about their living. In addition, the campus is very green and beautiful, filled with various types of plants. The Institute has a special unit to assist overseas students to adapt to the environment so that they can focus on their research as soon as possible. The assistance ranges from finding accommodation, getting to know the environment, visa application to other help in practical daily living.
I decided to come to Israel to do research because of the recommendations of saints who have been here; it was also my consecration before God and His preparation in the environment. When we were preparing for our departure, the conflict between Israel and the Hamas were still going on and our family was worried. I was also worried about how our two children could adapt to the new environment, and many other unforeseen challenges. Thank for Lord and the petition of the saints, we took the step of faith and moved on. On the first day of our arrival, the saints who picked us up informed us, “There was a ceasefire!” In fact, after living here for some time, we discover that it is very safe and people are very willing to help. This is very different from our concept of the Middle East which is strived with wars and conflicts. The Weizmann Institute also arranged a very suitable accommodation for us and we settled down very quickly. In Israel public kindergarten is free for children aged three and above. The Institute helped our daughter get admittance into the local kindergarten. After one month of adjustment, our daughter begins to enjoy living here, make new friends and even start to listen and speak Hebrew.
Although the prices of some items in Israel can be double or triple those in Taiwan, vegetables and fruits are very fresh and cheap, and they are exported to different parts of Europe. When we cook by ourselves and eat less outside, we can keep our living expenses low. Transportation is convenient here, and the cost of renting cars is reasonable. We can drive from our city Rehovot to Tel Aviv or Jerusalem within one hour. In gist, it is a good place for studying, doing research and living. Of course there are also many inconveniences. The environment brings us more to the Lord. Morning revival is a must; we have more prayer and treasure the word of the Lord more. Although our outer man is decaying, our inner man is being renewed day by day. Through our coming here, ourselves, our family, friends and saints start to pay more attention to this land, start to know more about this country and the people, and start to pray more for this country.
(CY, 2015)
At the end of August 2014, my whole family moved to Israel. I started a post-doctoral position in the Weizmann Institute. The Institute is situated in the city of Rehovot in the central part of Israel. The Institute is different from other universities in Israel in that it only provides postgraduate degrees (Master, PhD and Postdoc). All courses are taught in English, hence there is no Hebrew language requirement.
The Weizmann Institute provides an excellent research environment. In 2011, the Scientist magazine ranked it as the best place to work in academia outside of U.S. In 2015, it was ranked 10th around the world in terms of quality of research, the only non-US institute made it to the top ten list. There is a science park adjacent to the campus; outcomes and patents from research are often applied to industrial use quickly. The Institute also provides sufficient scholarship to students so that they do not have to worry about their living. In addition, the campus is very green and beautiful, filled with various types of plants. The Institute has a special unit to assist overseas students to adapt to the environment so that they can focus on their research as soon as possible. The assistance ranges from finding accommodation, getting to know the environment, visa application to other help in practical daily living.
I decided to come to Israel to do research because of the recommendations of saints who have been here; it was also my consecration before God and His preparation in the environment. When we were preparing for our departure, the conflict between Israel and the Hamas were still going on and our family was worried. I was also worried about how our two children could adapt to the new environment, and many other unforeseen challenges. Thank for Lord and the petition of the saints, we took the step of faith and moved on. On the first day of our arrival, the saints who picked us up informed us, “There was a ceasefire!” In fact, after living here for some time, we discover that it is very safe and people are very willing to help. This is very different from our concept of the Middle East which is strived with wars and conflicts. The Weizmann Institute also arranged a very suitable accommodation for us and we settled down very quickly. In Israel public kindergarten is free for children aged three and above. The Institute helped our daughter get admittance into the local kindergarten. After one month of adjustment, our daughter begins to enjoy living here, make new friends and even start to listen and speak Hebrew.
Although the prices of some items in Israel can be double or triple those in Taiwan, vegetables and fruits are very fresh and cheap, and they are exported to different parts of Europe. When we cook by ourselves and eat less outside, we can keep our living expenses low. Transportation is convenient here, and the cost of renting cars is reasonable. We can drive from our city Rehovot to Tel Aviv or Jerusalem within one hour. In gist, it is a good place for studying, doing research and living. Of course there are also many inconveniences. The environment brings us more to the Lord. Morning revival is a must; we have more prayer and treasure the word of the Lord more. Although our outer man is decaying, our inner man is being renewed day by day. Through our coming here, ourselves, our family, friends and saints start to pay more attention to this land, start to know more about this country and the people, and start to pray more for this country.
(CY, 2015)