30 August 2006

To: Prayer Partners

Fm: Phil Bennett

As I write this prayer letter, Harry and Nancy are in the US saying their final farewell to Nancy’s Mom who went to meet her Lord this past weekend after an extended illness. The grief of Nancy and her family is real, but there is also gratefulness that her mother is no longer suffering. Nancy has been strong and courageous, spending much of the past year in the states caring for her mother. Harry and Nancy thank you for all of your prayers during this time. You will want to continue to prayer for her, her brother and all of their families as they take care of all of those important details that must cared for at the end of a parent’s life.

Richard Foster in his book, PRAYER: Finding the Heart’s True Home, says “To pray is to change.” Richard points out to us that praying is more about changing us than it is about getting God’s attention about our needs. The great thing that comes to us as we pray is God’s grace. It is only though grace provided by God through prayer that we be taken over by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

The above truth was really brought home to me last Sunday as I preached at the 11^th Anniversary Celebration of the Filipino Chapel at Tsim Sha Tsui. The theme for the celebration was “Unity in Christ.” I was preaching from Ephesians 4:1-6. I made the point that true unity comes from our character development (those virtues I just listed above) not from outward circumstances. Pray for KIBC’s two Filipino Chapels and their development into unified believers. Their outward circumstances are not easy, yet they are striving to develop into churches that will a witness to God’s grace.

This is the first week of a new Kindergarten year. We have a new principal, new teachers, an new students with parents who are pre-believers. Pray for God’s grace to be present in there lives. Many of our church family both teachers and students are also going back to school this week. We have university and graduate students who are leaving or have already left Hong Kong to go to school. Both parents and students need God’s grace during this time of absence.

This Sunday is promotion Sunday at KIBC. Preschoolers, children, and Youth will be going into new classes with new teachers. They will be adjusting to one another. We need to pray for God’s grace in the student’s and teacher’s lives. Pray that the learning takes place their lives makes a difference.

This Sunday because of Harry being in the states, I will have my first opportunity to preach at KIBC. My sermon is “Never Stop Learning.” We will also be observing the Lord’s Supper in both worship services. Pray that the words I speak will be the words that God wishes to be spoken not just my on.

Pray for Maik as he continues to settle in to leading the youth and students and the leader who work with them. This week and next will be a busy time for him as he has several opportunities to attend events where he will meet many new incoming university students.

Thank you for your continued prayers and wonderful spirit. Unity does come from character. It is obvious that God’s grace is at work in the character traits or virtues in the lives of the believers of KIBC. It is a wonderful gift to me to be serving among you.