+and+Emily+(13+months).JPG)
Here's a cute picture of Lily and Emily together, taken September 15. Lily is 3 years 3 months in this picture, and Emily is 1 year, 1 month.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Monday, August 10, 2009
Prayer letter - August 10, 2009
Monday, August 10, 2009
Dear friends,
The past month has been super full! We have conducted our annual training for Servant Partners here in Los Angeles, bought a home and moved in (!), and celebrated Emily’s first birthday. Read on for more details!
Servant Partners GUTS training
In my last prayer letter I asked you to pray for our GUTS training, July 18 to 25. That first week went fabulously well. The candidates have now gone to Manila, Philippines for five more weeks of training among the poor in the slums. Please keep praying for them in Manila!
I facilitated the training throughout the week, and did about 15 hours of the teaching (there were other trainers as well). I am very excited about this group of new missionaries, and the eagerness with which they are giving themselves to the training and to the work ahead. We had a fabulous time getting to know each other and building our relationships. By the end of the first week of the training, they were enjoying their new friendships so much that they were already talking about how great it would be if they could all be on the same team on the field. I told them with a smile, that’s why the training is six weeks long instead of one – long enough to start to get on each others’ nerves! :^) They are a wonderful group of people and I’m so glad each of them is part of our Servant Partners’ staff team.
I would also appreciate your prayers as I have four more speaking engagements / teachings in the coming month – two for Servant Partners, one for our church here in Long Beach, and one for a supporting church. Thank you for praying for my preparation, and that God would bless and use each teaching for his purposes.
We bought a house!
For the first time in our lives we bought a home. We got a great deal on a foreclosure right here in North Long Beach, less than two miles from our church. Our mortgage is cheaper than our rent was at the apartment, so financially it works well. We moved in a week ago, and we really like it!
Please leave a comment if you would like our new address, and do not have it yet.
One reason why we are excited about the home is to have a greater degree of stability with our neighbors. Homeowners move too, but there is even more turnover in apartments. It was sometimes frustrating, in our apartment, to begin to get to know our neighbors, only to have them move on after a couple of months. We hope to build many long term relationships with our neighbors at our house, Lord willing for years to come. In this first week we have started getting to know a few of our new neighbors. We also plan to begin leading a small group Bible study in the Fall based out of our home, and are very excited about being able to invite our neighbors to it, and to our church, as we get to know them. PLEASE PRAY for us as we settle into this home and neighborhood, that we would be a light and the presence of God’s kingdom in this community.
God is also at work in our real estate agent who helped us get the house. She is a Buddhist Vietnamese American. As we have told her about our life, she expressed interest in learning more about Jesus. We gave her a Bible and she has started reading it and asking us questions. We explained the kind of work we do in Servant Partners, and she told us that we should send Servant Partners people to Vietnam because people there are becoming Christians! So it seems that she is very open to the gospel. Please pray for her to come to faith.
Family Update
Emily turned one on July 28! She’s just starting to walk.
Thank you so much for your prayers for our family and our ministry. We are grateful to be able to share our pilgrimage with you, and are always happy to hear from you!
For the joy set before us,
Dave, Mini, Lily, and Emily
Dear friends,
The past month has been super full! We have conducted our annual training for Servant Partners here in Los Angeles, bought a home and moved in (!), and celebrated Emily’s first birthday. Read on for more details!
Servant Partners GUTS training
In my last prayer letter I asked you to pray for our GUTS training, July 18 to 25. That first week went fabulously well. The candidates have now gone to Manila, Philippines for five more weeks of training among the poor in the slums. Please keep praying for them in Manila!
I facilitated the training throughout the week, and did about 15 hours of the teaching (there were other trainers as well). I am very excited about this group of new missionaries, and the eagerness with which they are giving themselves to the training and to the work ahead. We had a fabulous time getting to know each other and building our relationships. By the end of the first week of the training, they were enjoying their new friendships so much that they were already talking about how great it would be if they could all be on the same team on the field. I told them with a smile, that’s why the training is six weeks long instead of one – long enough to start to get on each others’ nerves! :^) They are a wonderful group of people and I’m so glad each of them is part of our Servant Partners’ staff team.
I would also appreciate your prayers as I have four more speaking engagements / teachings in the coming month – two for Servant Partners, one for our church here in Long Beach, and one for a supporting church. Thank you for praying for my preparation, and that God would bless and use each teaching for his purposes.
We bought a house!
For the first time in our lives we bought a home. We got a great deal on a foreclosure right here in North Long Beach, less than two miles from our church. Our mortgage is cheaper than our rent was at the apartment, so financially it works well. We moved in a week ago, and we really like it!
Please leave a comment if you would like our new address, and do not have it yet.
One reason why we are excited about the home is to have a greater degree of stability with our neighbors. Homeowners move too, but there is even more turnover in apartments. It was sometimes frustrating, in our apartment, to begin to get to know our neighbors, only to have them move on after a couple of months. We hope to build many long term relationships with our neighbors at our house, Lord willing for years to come. In this first week we have started getting to know a few of our new neighbors. We also plan to begin leading a small group Bible study in the Fall based out of our home, and are very excited about being able to invite our neighbors to it, and to our church, as we get to know them. PLEASE PRAY for us as we settle into this home and neighborhood, that we would be a light and the presence of God’s kingdom in this community.
God is also at work in our real estate agent who helped us get the house. She is a Buddhist Vietnamese American. As we have told her about our life, she expressed interest in learning more about Jesus. We gave her a Bible and she has started reading it and asking us questions. We explained the kind of work we do in Servant Partners, and she told us that we should send Servant Partners people to Vietnam because people there are becoming Christians! So it seems that she is very open to the gospel. Please pray for her to come to faith.
Family Update
Emily turned one on July 28! She’s just starting to walk.
Thank you so much for your prayers for our family and our ministry. We are grateful to be able to share our pilgrimage with you, and are always happy to hear from you!
For the joy set before us,
Dave, Mini, Lily, and Emily
Emily's first birthday party
Emily Faith turned one on July 28! Happy birthday Emily!! Here are some pictures of the birthday girl, her big sister, and mommy and daddy at her birthday party. Her favorite gift was this little wagon in which she sits, and it is so adorable when her big sister pulls her around in it!
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Prayer letter - June 27, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Dear friends,
Grace and peace to you in Jesus! Here’s an update from the Palmers…
Fountain of Life Covenant church update
Our church plant in Long Beach is experiencing a big milestone this weekend, as we are inducted into the Evangelical Covenant denomination as an official member church at the Covenant’s annual meeting. We’re transitioning out of “church plant” status as the church has become established and strong. Praise God for causing this planting to grow and thrive! We are a multi-ethnic, multi-class fellowship in the midst of the city, reaching many new unchurched people from all sorts of different backgrounds. It is a very exciting place to be and I am so grateful we can be a part of this ministry.
As I mentioned in my last letter, our church’s camp was June 5-7. It was a very inspiring and powerful time as we studied Luke 10 together. Luke 10 begins with Jesus sending out the 70 to be laborers in God’s harvest (verses 1-24), and ends with the passage about Mary and Martha (verses 38-42). Martha is distracted and troubled by all her serving, and Mary sits at Jesus’ feet and listens to his teaching. We talked about deepening in our intimacy with Jesus, sitting at his feet and listening to his teaching, and having that be the thing that directs and fuels us as “Kingdom workers” and laborers in God’s harvest. We talked about how easy it is to go to one extreme or another – either the extreme of burning out like Martha because all we do is work, work, work in service and ministry, to the detriment of being with and receiving from Jesus (John Piper has a great quote that it is not temptation that hinders his life of prayer, but service); or the extreme of only contemplating, praying, and worshipping God, to the exclusion of actually getting out there to love, serve, and speak of Jesus with our neighbors. So, as a church our goal is to hold action and contemplation, service and worship in the proper tension, so that we are all personally experiencing deeper and deeper intimacy and life in Jesus, and then allowing that life to overflow to those around us who need the gospel.
Sandwiched between these opening and closing sections of Luke 10 is the famous parable of the Good Samaritan (verses 25-37) – a person who actively loves his neighbor, at personal risk and cost, across barriers of race and cultural prejudice. We talked about how direct the application of that parable can be in our ethnically and culturally diverse city. We saw how the traveler was robbed and abused in the streets, but cared for at the inn. We pray that our church would be such an inn – a place where the wounded may come and receive compassion and care until they are whole. God is definitely doing that in these first years of our church’s existence, and we pray it may continue and increase. PLEASE PRAY for us, that God’s Kingdom would flourish in us and through us for the blessing of our city and beyond.
Servant Partners update
Our annual training for new Servant Partners’ staff, the Global Urban Training School (GUTS) starts in just three weeks, on July 18. PLEASE KEEP PRAYING for my teachings and preparations, as well as for our eight new staff members who will attend the training: Jed, Mel, Tim, Philippa, Amy, Laura, Andrew, and Nate.
They will put some of you to death . . . yet not a hair of your heads shall perish (Luke 21:16, 18)
You may have heard about the murder of an American missionary in Africa this past week. Attackers tried to kidnap him by forcing him into a car, and when he resisted, they shot him in the head. He was a personal friend of some of us in SP. He had devoted his life to serving the poor and vulnerable, and sharing about Jesus. He leaves behind a wife and 4 children. Please join us in prayer for his family, for the poor to whom he ministered who no longer have his compassionate presence, and for the ones who murdered him, that God in his grace would open their eyes and call them to repentance and life, just as he did the Apostle Paul.
I have often thought about the verses from Luke 21 in the heading above. Immediately after telling his disciples that they will be hated by everyone because of his name, and that some of them will even be put to death, Jesus reassures them by saying not a hair of your heads shall perish. By referring to each individual hair of their heads, Jesus hearkens back to his earlier teachings (recorded in Matthew 10:30-31 and Luke 12:7) where he says the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Therefore fear not, you are of more value than many sparrows. If God does not forget one sparrow (Luke 12:6), and no sparrow can fall dead apart from our Father (Matthew 10:29), and we are of much more value to God than they; if we are so known and cared for by God that he keeps track of how many hairs remain on our heads at any given moment, then we can have confidence that no harm may befall us but that which God sees and superintends, and we truly can live our lives free of the fear of death and in joyful anticipation of entering the presence of a great and loving Father. I am grieved that this man was murdered. I am also inspired by his faithful example, and reminded that all that truly matters and will endure is blessedness in God’s eternal Kingdom. May we all devote ourselves in our own ways to those things that will endure eternally!
Financial update
I thought I would share a mid-year update with you all concerning our financial support. With the economic downturn we have lost over $600 per month because of donors who have had to suspend or stop their giving. We have recouped some of that lost support with new donors who have come on board this year as well, but we are still encountering a shortfall each month. Our situation is not remotely as difficult as that of many who have lost their jobs entirely – including some of our former donors – so we do recognize and are grateful for how blessed and provided for we are even now. And, of course we totally understand if any of our donors need or choose to stop giving at any time. But we do need to work on some additional fundraising this summer in order to sustain our work. So, I want to request your prayers for that. And, if you are interested in hearing more about our ministry, or joining our financial support team, please let us know. That would be a great blessing to us!
Lisa B. update
In previous prayer letters I told you about Lisa B., a Servant Partners intern who suffered spinal inflammation and paralysis in March. She is still paralyzed, slowly improving, and expected to recover in 2 to 3 years. She can move her head, and has some movement in her shoulder, wrists, and hands. She has a voice activated wheelchair and a voice operated computer that she can work on. She is holding onto the goodness of God in the midst of her suffering and trusting that he has a purpose in it. Please keep praying for Lisa.
Family Update
We celebrated Lily’s third birthday on June 11. Emily will be a year old on July 28. You can see pictures of them on our blog.
Thank you so much for your prayers for our family and our ministry. We are grateful to be able to share our pilgrimage with you, and are always happy to hear from you!
For the joy set before us,
Dave, Mini, Lily, and Emily
A quote to ponder:
I slept and dreamed that life was joy.
I awoke and saw that life was service.
I acted, and behold, service was joy. -- Rabindranath Tagore
Dear friends,
Grace and peace to you in Jesus! Here’s an update from the Palmers…
Fountain of Life Covenant church update
Our church plant in Long Beach is experiencing a big milestone this weekend, as we are inducted into the Evangelical Covenant denomination as an official member church at the Covenant’s annual meeting. We’re transitioning out of “church plant” status as the church has become established and strong. Praise God for causing this planting to grow and thrive! We are a multi-ethnic, multi-class fellowship in the midst of the city, reaching many new unchurched people from all sorts of different backgrounds. It is a very exciting place to be and I am so grateful we can be a part of this ministry.
As I mentioned in my last letter, our church’s camp was June 5-7. It was a very inspiring and powerful time as we studied Luke 10 together. Luke 10 begins with Jesus sending out the 70 to be laborers in God’s harvest (verses 1-24), and ends with the passage about Mary and Martha (verses 38-42). Martha is distracted and troubled by all her serving, and Mary sits at Jesus’ feet and listens to his teaching. We talked about deepening in our intimacy with Jesus, sitting at his feet and listening to his teaching, and having that be the thing that directs and fuels us as “Kingdom workers” and laborers in God’s harvest. We talked about how easy it is to go to one extreme or another – either the extreme of burning out like Martha because all we do is work, work, work in service and ministry, to the detriment of being with and receiving from Jesus (John Piper has a great quote that it is not temptation that hinders his life of prayer, but service); or the extreme of only contemplating, praying, and worshipping God, to the exclusion of actually getting out there to love, serve, and speak of Jesus with our neighbors. So, as a church our goal is to hold action and contemplation, service and worship in the proper tension, so that we are all personally experiencing deeper and deeper intimacy and life in Jesus, and then allowing that life to overflow to those around us who need the gospel.
Sandwiched between these opening and closing sections of Luke 10 is the famous parable of the Good Samaritan (verses 25-37) – a person who actively loves his neighbor, at personal risk and cost, across barriers of race and cultural prejudice. We talked about how direct the application of that parable can be in our ethnically and culturally diverse city. We saw how the traveler was robbed and abused in the streets, but cared for at the inn. We pray that our church would be such an inn – a place where the wounded may come and receive compassion and care until they are whole. God is definitely doing that in these first years of our church’s existence, and we pray it may continue and increase. PLEASE PRAY for us, that God’s Kingdom would flourish in us and through us for the blessing of our city and beyond.
Servant Partners update
Our annual training for new Servant Partners’ staff, the Global Urban Training School (GUTS) starts in just three weeks, on July 18. PLEASE KEEP PRAYING for my teachings and preparations, as well as for our eight new staff members who will attend the training: Jed, Mel, Tim, Philippa, Amy, Laura, Andrew, and Nate.
They will put some of you to death . . . yet not a hair of your heads shall perish (Luke 21:16, 18)
You may have heard about the murder of an American missionary in Africa this past week. Attackers tried to kidnap him by forcing him into a car, and when he resisted, they shot him in the head. He was a personal friend of some of us in SP. He had devoted his life to serving the poor and vulnerable, and sharing about Jesus. He leaves behind a wife and 4 children. Please join us in prayer for his family, for the poor to whom he ministered who no longer have his compassionate presence, and for the ones who murdered him, that God in his grace would open their eyes and call them to repentance and life, just as he did the Apostle Paul.
I have often thought about the verses from Luke 21 in the heading above. Immediately after telling his disciples that they will be hated by everyone because of his name, and that some of them will even be put to death, Jesus reassures them by saying not a hair of your heads shall perish. By referring to each individual hair of their heads, Jesus hearkens back to his earlier teachings (recorded in Matthew 10:30-31 and Luke 12:7) where he says the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Therefore fear not, you are of more value than many sparrows. If God does not forget one sparrow (Luke 12:6), and no sparrow can fall dead apart from our Father (Matthew 10:29), and we are of much more value to God than they; if we are so known and cared for by God that he keeps track of how many hairs remain on our heads at any given moment, then we can have confidence that no harm may befall us but that which God sees and superintends, and we truly can live our lives free of the fear of death and in joyful anticipation of entering the presence of a great and loving Father. I am grieved that this man was murdered. I am also inspired by his faithful example, and reminded that all that truly matters and will endure is blessedness in God’s eternal Kingdom. May we all devote ourselves in our own ways to those things that will endure eternally!
Financial update
I thought I would share a mid-year update with you all concerning our financial support. With the economic downturn we have lost over $600 per month because of donors who have had to suspend or stop their giving. We have recouped some of that lost support with new donors who have come on board this year as well, but we are still encountering a shortfall each month. Our situation is not remotely as difficult as that of many who have lost their jobs entirely – including some of our former donors – so we do recognize and are grateful for how blessed and provided for we are even now. And, of course we totally understand if any of our donors need or choose to stop giving at any time. But we do need to work on some additional fundraising this summer in order to sustain our work. So, I want to request your prayers for that. And, if you are interested in hearing more about our ministry, or joining our financial support team, please let us know. That would be a great blessing to us!
Lisa B. update
In previous prayer letters I told you about Lisa B., a Servant Partners intern who suffered spinal inflammation and paralysis in March. She is still paralyzed, slowly improving, and expected to recover in 2 to 3 years. She can move her head, and has some movement in her shoulder, wrists, and hands. She has a voice activated wheelchair and a voice operated computer that she can work on. She is holding onto the goodness of God in the midst of her suffering and trusting that he has a purpose in it. Please keep praying for Lisa.
Family Update
We celebrated Lily’s third birthday on June 11. Emily will be a year old on July 28. You can see pictures of them on our blog.
Thank you so much for your prayers for our family and our ministry. We are grateful to be able to share our pilgrimage with you, and are always happy to hear from you!
For the joy set before us,
Dave, Mini, Lily, and Emily
A quote to ponder:
I slept and dreamed that life was joy.
I awoke and saw that life was service.
I acted, and behold, service was joy. -- Rabindranath Tagore
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Lily rides a pony
We took the kids to Griffith Park and the LA Zoo last weekend. The highlight was Lily riding a pony -- only $3 at Griffith Park1 We also rode the miniature train. Here are some pics:
Emily on the train...
Friday, June 19, 2009
Emily, a chair and a laundry basket
Here are cute pictures of Emily exploring under a chair, and posing in a laundry basket...
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