Lillian Dickson was so overwhelmed with need in post war Formosa, now Taiwan, that Mustard Seed Mission sprang into existence as a result of her response.
What a treat for our North American Mustard Seed team to host a delegation from Mustard Seed Taiwan who was tracing its founder’s footsteps. Lillian Dickson. “Typhoon Lil,” was known for her passion and tireless energy that led to the eventual registration of The Mustard Seed Mission as a charity in Taiwan in 1962.
Born in the United States, James and Lillian Dickson were married in 1927 and immediately headed to Formosa, (Taiwan), where James was commissioned as a missionary under the Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church in Canada.
The delegates were welcomed at Knox Presbyterian in Toronto where support for James grew to include Lillian’s Mustard Seed. In 1967 Knox formalized the “Mustard Seed Mission Canada” to become a sister charity to “The Mustard Seed,” which started in California in 1954 after Lillian began her ministries in Taiwan. As Mustard Seed expanded to other countries it has become known as Mustard Seed International.
It was great getting reacquainted and hearing about Taiwan’s ongoing work caring for children and youth. They send their thanks for the warm welcome given by the congregations of the Formosan and Knox Presbyterian churches in Toronto, the Evangelical Formosan and Mandarin Baptist congregations in Los Angeles and the Formosan and Taiwanese Community Church in Chicago.
