We are back, Healthy, Strong and Blessed

Praise the Lord! With the protection of His mighty hand, we have a safely completed our visit to Bocas del Toro (to be literally translated as ‘cow mouth province’). Although the road condition was very challenging, prayers of brothers and sisters and the protection of God were with us. We traveled without any worries.

Changuinola is a poor town. Most people work for the banana plantation and have a very low level of income. They usually live on credit with the store, only paying the debt after they receive their weekly salary. This means that the store owners are operating their business with higher risk and less profit. The location is remote, separated from David City by a four-hour’s journey of dangerous road. Supply is limited and more expensive. There are not many Chinese people. Life is bored and lonely. Working hours are long, same as in David City.

There is no Chinese church yet. A few Christians are starting gathering together regularly to study the Bible. Pastor Lily travels long hours to visit them bi-weekly to strengthen them and to visit other people. Recently they rent a house as their permanent meeting place. A church is forming. Praise the Lord!

We had wonderful experiences in Changuinola, the town we visited in Bocas del Toro. We visited many Chinese stores within and around the town. Simon and Frederick even crossed the border and visited a store in Costa Rica (and brought back some Costa Rica currency)!

We were welcomed by most of them and we had good chat with them. Though most of them are not ready to receive the Gospel yet, they thanked us for the gospel magazine and DVD we brought them.

A sister from the church in David City, who is signal mother with a 4-year old son, newly moved to Changuinola to start a new life. We spend half day simply to help her to clean up the store, tidy up the merchandises and mark the price. It was hot and dirty. But we sense what Jesus taught the disciples by washing their feet – in love we help each other.

God also did wonderful work there. By our invitation, a person who was still wondering outside the door of God’s salvation attended our meeting which was planned for believers. By God’s grace, the Spirit led Simon to have personal sharing with him and he was willing to accept Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord. Please pray God to strengthen his faith and help him to grow spiritually. Also pray the single-mom sister to have enough faith to follow God in these difficult days when starting her new life in Changuinola.

Brothers and sisters in Changuinola are thirsty in God’s Word but they do not have enough teacher. Please pray God to raise His servant who is willing to serve His people in this remote area.

Pray also for God’s mercy and grace on the people in their lives quality and their salvation.

Now we have returned to David City to continue our work for the next few days. May God’s grace be with us and bless our work to bring His good news to the people here. May God’s grace also be with Pastor Lily. She is very busy in shepherding the church, and helping us. Ask God to grant her enough strength and wisdom.

Thank you for your prayer. Without your prayer, we cannot enjoy our mission that much. Praise the Lord.

代禱事項 - 十月八日

• 請為我們到牛口省路程的平安代禱. 道路的狀況不定, 亦有人告訴我們當中有一定的危險. 願神引領我們.
  
• 請為我們的探訪代禱. 真的希望能把福音帶到每一個我們接觸的家庭.
  
• 請繼續記念我們各人的健康. 感謝神, 我們各人都健康; 但我們仍有疲乏的時候. 求神在我們漫長的日夜中加添我們力量, 尤其是晚上的聚會中.
  
• 請為我們的靈命代禱. 我們都有好的靈性, 都清楚明白聖靈在每一步上引領.
  
• 請記念劉牧師將要準備兩晚佈道會的信息
  
• 請記念劉師母. 在這裡, 她便儼如四位小孩的母親!
  
• 請記念吳韻 傳道. 她在這裡是一個好牧人,讓我們能多認識巴拿馬這個地方. 願神堅固她, 給她更多的力量和勇氣面對前路的各樣挑戰.
  
• 請記念三名朋友! 他們是陳秋雄, 杜舫, 及張正楠 (請用西班牙語口音讀出名字). 願神裝備,叫他們在艱難中奮勇抗敵!

十月七日星期天

大衞城是我們讚美及遇見主的地方. 我們已在星期六的時候得見及探望大衞城教會的每一個弟兄姊妹. 現在每一張都是熟悉的面孔. 我們去到那裡都感到神的同在. 當我們坐下傾談,耶穌也坐在我們中間, 與我們同唱,同笑及同哭.

假若我們認為我們能帶給大衞城任何改變時, 我們便是大錯特錯! 其實是這個地方漸漸地在改變我們, 聖靈微少但清淅的聲音在我們耳邊徘徊 - 我們務必向前進, 以祂的名,把人招聚在一起.

今天晚上, 我們被聖靈帶動去探望一位教會中迷失了的弟兄. 始於一次的閒談, 但很快的我們的心湧現一股無法按鈕的感動, 我們中的兩位成員便立刻去探望這位迷失了的弟兄.

在簡短的禱告後便出發, 但我們不知道這位弟兄的酒家正確的地點, 我們一路閒談著, 深信聖靈會引領我們. 不久, 我們其中一人便找到了方向.

我們進到他的酒家, 充滿神的愛在我們心中, 深信我們會為他和他的家人帶來好信息. 我們坐下, 便開始傾心吐意.

"任務完成" 我們手裡拿著新鮮美味的菠蘿飽的步出這酒家. 我們其中一位感受到重擔給卸下的安舒, 另一位因經歷聖靈的同在而被激勵.

這是我信息, 我的詩歌. 讚美我救主, 晝夜唱和 ..
***************************************

星期天早上我們有一極美好的崇拜時刻. 深信是聖靈的工作, 很柔和但實在的! 我們能在主裡合一. 我們為大衞城的弟兄姊妹獻上我們最好的, 聖靈亦同時在我們各人心中動工.

各人都是有學習的地方. 每一人都知道可改進的地方, 每人都知道自己作得好或不好的地方. 正因各人都有所學習的, 這一切便都並不重要. 我們可對自己所作的跨口嗎? 對我們又有什麼好處呢?

一切都是心態問題, 作工人的心態. 感謝讚美主, 我們都發現這一點並嘗試身體力行. 當我們感到哀傷, 我們求神體恤及遮蔽我們. 當我們感到滿足, 我們求神謙卑及使用我們. 雖然現在我們各人都有不同及混雜的感受, 但我們整體團隊是堅壯的.

真的不容易, 所以我們一篇的分享亦並非是最流暢及連貫的, 敬請見諒! 重要的是我們希望在當中有你們的關懷及支持. 這真是我們的恩典及責任在這一個重要的經歷中學習和進步.

願神賜福! 証道約克分堂短宣隊二零零七

Prayer Items, Oct 8th

Please pray for our trip to Changinola. The road condition varies and we are told that the trip is not without danger. Please pray that the Lord will guide us.

Please pray for our visitations. We really want to bring the Gospel to every family we visit.

Please pray for our health. We are all in good health, praise the Lord. However, we are not without fatigue. Please pray for us to have strength for long days and nights. Especially when our gatherings are at night.

Please pray for our spiritual health. We are in good spirit health! We know well that the Holy Spirit is guiding us every step of the way.

Please pray for Rev. Lau´s Gospel message in the next two nights.

Please pray for Fenny. She is like a mother to 4 children everyday here.

Please pray for Lily. She has been a great shepherd in this area and have shown us much about this place. We pray that we can give her more strength and courage for anything to come.

Please pray for the three Amigo! We are Simono, Fredericko and Pedro. We are well equipped and will fight our way through difficulties.

Sunday, October 7th

David City is a place where we meet and praise the Lord. By the time it is Saturday, we have met or visited almost everyone in the church. Every brothers and sisters are now familiar faces. Wherever we go, we feel the Lord walking among us. When we sat together, Jesus sat with us, sang with us, laugh with us and cried with us.

If we say we want to bring changes to David, we are most certainly wrong. This place is slowly changing us, the Holy Spirit wispering so quietly yet clearly. We must move forward and bring people together, in His name.

Tonight we were lead by the Holy Spirit to visit a long lost brother from the church. It started with a casual conversation, and soon turned into a burden we could not refuse. Two of us took off and visited this long lost brother of ours.

We took off after a short prayer. We weren´t sure where his restaurant is, and so we walked and chat along the way. We knew the Holy Spirit would guide us, and one of us soon found our way.

We went in, with Him in our Heart, knowing that we bring the good news once again to this good friend and his family of ours. We sat down, and started our heart-felt sharing.

Mission accomplished. We walked out of the restaurant with fresh baked buns (bo lor bau) in our hands. One of us felt refreshed, his burden lifted. The other felt encouraged, knowing well that the Spirit is with us.

This is our story, this is our song. Praising our Saviour, all the day long.

*****************************

We had a fabulous Sunday worship this morning. It must have been the Holy Spirit, because we felt the presence so gentle yet strongly. Our team has reached a unity in Christ. We bring to the Brothers and Sisters in the City of David our very best, and yes, the Holy Spirit is working in our hearts, too.

For each of us, there is a lesson to learn. Each of us know that there are ways to improve, each of us know that there are things that we did or did not do well. But those aren´t important, because yes, each of us has a lesson to learn. If we boost the work done in our own hand, what prize does it bring us?

It´s all about attitude. The attitude of a servant. I praise the Lord that we are aware of it. So now we are living it out. For those of us who are feeling sad, we ask the Lord to comfort and shelter us. For those of us who are feeling satisfied, we ask the Lord to humble ourselves and make better use. Nevertheless, we all have mixed feelings at the moment. But we most definitely are staying strong as a team.

It´s not easy. That´s why this piece of sharing is hardly coherent. We ask for your understanding, but more importantly we ask for your support and caring. It is our privilege and responsibility to grow and learn during this crucial time.

God bless. Panama Logos York Region STM 2007

十月四日星期四 Thurs, Oct 4

探訪和聚會的行程編排得密密麻麻，每天我們都是凌晨兩點以後才回到下榻的酒店．所以我們的分享可以會脫期，敬請弟兄姊妹原諒．

今天，我們分頭在大衛城中探訪，使我們可以親身認識這個城市，認識這裡的中國人，他們的生活，他們的掙扎，和當地居民生活的一斑．他們每天工作十幾個小時，從早上七點一直到晚上十一點，很多人下午三點才吃午飯，晚上十一點關鋪後才吃晚飯，一星期工作七天，唯一放假的時候就是回中國醫病．苦悶，辛勞，單調，徬徨的生活令人心痛．當地人的生活也也十分困苦，在雜貨店買東西總是一毛幾分的交易，連信封信紙也是一張一張的買．物價飛漲令到他們的購買力大減，也令到華人做生意的環境更加困難．他們不願放過每一個生意的機會，不願意禮拜天關門上教會．他們沒時間教養下一代，不是把孩子送回國內，就是要他們幫忙看鋪．和加拿大的情形一樣，下一代的孩子受中西文化差異的影響，兩代之間充滿張力．只是因為家長沒有時間和孩子們相處，這種衝突只有更大更嚴重．

代禱事項
1. 感謝主在大衛城的弟兄姊妹中所建立的一切．為大衛城的弟兄姊妹的成長，委身和付出感謝神．
2. 求主保守大衛城弟兄姊妹對神話語渴慕的心，在真道上繼續竭力追求．更可以將聖經的話語在生活中實踐出來，以實際的生命為神作見證．
3. 求主興起，差派更多的教師，在真道上堅固他們，使他們對神的話語有更深刻的體會和認識．
4. 求神興起更多的工人在牧養，關顧，探訪的事工中服事，將神的愛帶到人群中．
5. 求主顧念當地華人屬靈和身體的需要，開放他們的心，願意認識主．
6. 求主記念華人第二代子女成長的需要，記念兩代之間的溝通．求主興起第二代華人的工人，使華人教會成為當地人的祝福．
7. 求主記念大衛城教會建堂的事工，求主賜給教會顩領袖智慧，為教會長遠的發展有異象．
8. 求主保守短宣隊隊員的靈命和身體的健康．每天的探訪和聚會的行程令各人都十分疲倦．尤其是劉牧師．他每天要預備多篇信息，勞心勞力．求主保守他有充足的精神和智慧．

Our schedule is fully packed that we don’t get back to our hotel until 2am or so every day. Please pardon us for not able to share as promptly at times.

Today, we split in groups in our visitation in the David City so that we can all experience this city more closely, getting to know the Chinese here, their lives and struggles. Same to the locals, they have to work over 10 hours a day, from 7am till 11pm. Many of them don’t have lunch until 3pm and dinner at 11pm after their stores are closed. They work seven days a week, and their only vacation is when they need to take time off back to China to consult doctors or to recover from their illness. It is heart-aching to see their lives full of boredom, tiresome, simplicity, and worrisome. The living standard is very low in David City; every transaction is of the amount of several to tens of cents, envelops and paper are being sold individually (i.e. per page). Inflation has significantly decreased people’s purchasing power, and further increases the burden to Chinese family businesses. Store owners do not want to lose any opportunity of making money, do not want to close their store on Sundays for church. They do not even have the time to teach and develop the next generations. The next generations are either shipped back to China to be cared for by their grandparents or they have to help out in the stores. Similar to those in N. America, the second generation Chinese are living under tensions giving the huge differences between Chinese and Western cultures; conflicts between parents and children are seen everywhere. This is worse in Panama, as the parents do not have to the time to communicate with the children.

Prayer items:
1. Praise the Lord for building up brothers and sisters in David City. Give thanks for the growth, dedication, and sacrifices of these brothers and sisters.
2. Pray for the eagerness of brothers and sisters of David City to learn the truth, pray that they can truly understand the bible and live it out, so that they can be witnesses of God in all that they do.
3. May God build and send more teachers to strengthen them and to guide them in experiencing the power and the goodness of God and His word.
4. May God build and call more in the ministries of caring, pastoring, and counseling, so as to bring His love in the midst of the people in Panama.
5. May God have mercy on the spiritual and physical needs of the Chinese, open their hearts to know Him more.
6. May God remember the second generation here, to reconcile the two generations, to lessen their tensions. May He build more servants from the second generation that they can be blessings to all the people in David City.
7. Lift the church planting in the hands of the Lord, may He give church leaders the wisdom in the project and give vision to the leaders for growth of the church.
8. Pray for the spiritual and physical health of the short-term missionaries. Everyone is very tired from the packed schedule. Especially pray for Rev. Lau, he has to prepare many messages every day. May God protect him and give him strength and wisdom for the daily challenges.

十月三日星期三 Wed., Oct 3

在神的保守中，我們今天順利到達大衛城，一個平靜，舒適的城市．晚上，在教會有信徒祈禱會，有許多弟兄姊妹參加．我們和弟兄姊妹各自互相介紹，彼此認識． Simon弟兄兩年前探訪大衛城的情形，大家還記憶尤新，大家互道姓名，熱烈握手歡迎．這種親切的感情令我們十分感動．

我們簡短地與他們分享了研續約翰福音一章十八節的心得，鼓勵他們透過學習約翰福音更深刻地了解耶穌基督是神的兒子，是我們生命中的真光，凡信祂的，就得到權柄作神的兒女，透過認識神和主耶穌基督得到永生．短短十幾分鐘的分享，他們睜大了眼睛細心聆聽，從他們渴慕的眼神中可以看到他們是何等的饑渴，他們努力讀聖經，卻不明白．他們缺乏研經工具，缺乏教師，吳蘊賢要兼顧大衛城，牛口省，山上，山下一眾信徒的探訪，牧養，教導，講道，傳福音及教會一概的行政工作，相當吃力，很難提供更進一步的教導．

By the grace and protection of our God, we arrived David City safely. A quiet and comfortable city. At night, we have prayer meeting. Many brothers and sisters came. We each introduced ourselves and get to know each other. Brothers and sisters welcome us sincerely and ernestly, especially with brother Simon as he was here about two years ago. We were really touched by their warm welcome.

We briefly shared with them our insights on John 1:18, encouraged them to get to know Christ Jesus, the son of God, at a deeper level through careful study of the Gospel of John. Jesus Christ is the true light of our lives; whoever believes in him will be given the right to become children of God; through knowing God and our Lord Jesus Christ we have eternal life. IN this short sharing of a few minutes, their eyes and ears were widely opened. From their eagerness in their eyes we can tell how thirst they are of God's word. They study the bible hard, yet do not understand. They lack bible study tools and bible teachers. Pastor Lily Wu has heavy and tough work load. She has to minister, pastor, shepherd and teach brothers and sisters from Changuinola and David City, for both groups live on the mountain top and on the skirt of the mountain, in addition to giving sermons, visitation to those in need, and continuous spreading the gospel to many others. Given this workload, it is tremendously hard for her to further study the bible with brothers and sisters at a more advance level.