Prayer letter - June 3, 2009

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Dear friends,

Well, summer is pretty much upon us. We appreciate your prayers for us through the summer months, which will include our church camp this week, our major annual training in Servant Partners next month, and both of our daughters’ birthdays. Read on for more details!...


Global Urban Training School begins July 18

Our annual training for new Servant Partners’ staff, the Global Urban Training School (GUTS) begins July 18 – 26 here in the Los Angeles area, then continues in Manila, the Philippines for 5 more weeks. Preparations are well underway for this major training event. PLEASE PRAY for me as I am doing most of the preparations, as well as doing some of the teaching at GUTS. We plan to have eight new staff members in the training, plus six children. (Two married couples are among our new staff, with three children to each married couple.) PLEASE BE PRAYING for our eight new staff members who will attend GUTS next month: Jed, Mel, Tim, Philippa, Amy, Laura, Andrew, and Nate. They are all raising funds for the training this month, as well as doing some reading and writing assignments in preparation for GUTS, so PLEASE PRAY that God would provide for them financially in a challenging economy, and prepare them mentally and spiritually over these next six weeks until GUTS begins! I also appreciate your prayers for my own preparations, including the various teachings I am preparing for the training school.


Fountain of Life Church Camp

Our church in Long Beach has its annual camp this weekend, June 5-7. We will be focusing on Luke 10 and deepening in our church’s vision and life together as a family of faith. The two previous camps were very powerful times of deepening in relationships with one another and convictions and values from God’s word together as a community. PLEASE PRAY that God blesses us all this weekend!


The New Friars

In my last prayer letter, I asked you to pray for our trip to San Francisco last month for an annual gathering of the leaders of several ministries that focus on incarnational mission among the urban poor. Our whole family had such a fabulous time. It was refreshing to be among and strengthen our relationship with other like-minded friends. Mini got to participate in all the discussions because childcare was provided, which was so refreshing for Mini, and the childcare was so excellent that Lily asked if she could stay in San Francisco when it was all over! A major focus of the discussions was a writing project that all of our various ministries would collaborate on together. So, Lord willing, we hope to publish a book in 2010 that includes voices and stories from all of our various ministries of the things that God has done, and what God has taught us, as we have lived and ministered among the poor. We pray that it will be an encouragement to many in the Church whom God is calling into mission among the world’s most vulnerable, and I welcome your prayers as well for those who are working on this project. (I personally am not one of the authors – others in SP will contribute.)


Family Update

Lily is almost 3 years old! Her birthday is June 11. Emily is 10 months and on the verge of learning to walk. You can see updated pictures of them on our blog, if you like.

Thank you so much for your prayers for our family. We are grateful to be able to share our pilgrimage with you, and are always happy to hear from you! Every blessing to you this summer!

For the joy set before us,

Dave, Mini, Lily, and Emily

A quote to ponder:

Vulnerability means to be hurt over and over again without seeking to love less, but more. Divine love is sheer vulnerability—sheer openness to giving … Being vulnerable means loving one another as Christ loved us. If we did not have to forgive people, we would have no way of manifesting God’s forgiveness toward us. People who injure us are doing us a great favor because they are providing us with the opportunity of passing on the mercy that we have received. By showing mercy, we increase the mercy we receive. The best way to receive divine love is to give it away, and the more we pass on, the more we increase our capacity to receive. (Thomas Keating, The Heart of the World: An Introduction to Contemplative Christianity)