Grow FAITH + Give Hope + Share Love...this Christmas

Read on and find out how! :-)

Our God Is Greater! Final Worship Night of 2010

26 November, Friday, 7.30pm

Choose to follow Jesus!

Last night we were at St Joseph's Church, Upper Hutt, to run a prayer meeting for the youth. It was really good to see them again, after our parish mission there in June.  It was also the first outreach for those who have returned for their Community Experience with us, namely, Albert, Valerie and Helena.

Val shared her journey of becoming a disciple of Jesus. "Slowly but surely through these little decisions to turn my life around and my commitment to spend time with God in prayer and reading the scriptures, God was changing me.  I began to understand more the heart of Jesus and His call for me to be His disciple."

Following Jesus requires a daily commitment. To choose to spend time with Him. To trust Him.

 Petrus bringing home the message of choosing to follow Jesus, in whom there is everlasting joy and fulfillment.

James Bond, watermelon and elephant. What do these have in common? 

 

The answer from us: A great time for ICPE and our friends from Upper Hutt!

We welcome new members into our community

World Mission Sunday, 24 October, marked the beginning of a year of Community Experience for Christine, Albert and Valerie who are exploring the missionary calling with the Mission. 

We look forward to having Susan, Susilo, Helena and Maizy join us as well. All of them are fellow participants of this year’s School of Mission which ended in July.

Here are their personal testimonies....read on and be encouraged and inspired in your own walk with the Lord!

I am joining Community Experience because I believed it is God’s will. As I prayed, God showed me an image of Him trimming a tree. The tree is me. He wants to trim me to use me. And I got a scripture from Genesis 12:1: “ Leave your country, your relatives, and your father’s home, and go to a land that I am going to show you.” This took away my fear about living overseas. Through this time of discernment, I experienced God’s love and grace and understood His strong will. I’m truly sure that there are many blessings and teachings and love and joy in store for me. Please pray for me. I really want to be God’s humble servant.- Helena, Korea

 Val, Albert, Christine

Throughout my discernment, I have been very fixed on choosing to be where I can bring greater glory to God with my gifts and talents.  One day, as I reflected on the parable of stewardship, Luke 16:2 "Prepare a full account of your stewardship, because you can no longer be my steward" struck a chord. As Job (1:21) lamented, “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away", I started to ponder - what is my role in the Kingdom of God if He decides to take back everything I have, my possessions, family, my community, my gifts and talents, and I am no longer His steward? I received the revelation that on top of glorifying God, any decision I make has to lead me to be more in union with Him.

In this new light, I chose to return to the ICPE community for another year to grow deeper in love with Jesus of whom I am a disciple, so “that (I) might be with him” (Mark 3:14). I want to be able to say, like Job, "Blessed be His Name!" when He chooses to take my stewardship away. - Valerie, Singapore

 

During my college years, the Lord placed on my heart this great desire to serve Him. I knew that whatever I did with my life, I wanted to devote it all to building His kingdom. In the School of Mission, I experienced the blessing of living in community, the grace to overcome hardships, and the great joy of reaching out to others. As a result of the school, I can truly say that God has placed in me a great passion to spread the Good News. In discerning about Community Experience, I had never heard God's voice speaking stronger into my life. He especially spoke to me through a quote by St John Vianney, “vocation is: when a need in the world meets a deep joy in me.” Serving in the Mission and with a mission, I had never felt so fulfilled in my life, I knew this joy was from the Lord, and the joy that I had experienced in the 5 months of the school was proof, to me, that with the ICPE Mission was where God intended me to be during this next year. I see the year ahead as a great opportunity to discern what area of mission the Lord calls me to, while at the same time, exploring and growing in this passion that He has given me.  - Christine, New Zealand

I was searching for direction and purpose in life when I attended the School of Mission. After the School, I had to decide between the working world and coming back for Community Experience. I wasn't sure and couldn't make up my mind. I still remember very clearly going to the chapel and debating with God, wishing that things were more straight forward. I was prompted to pray the divine office and the scripture reading for that day was Jeremiah 6:16 – “stand at the crossroads and look and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way lies and walk in it and find rest for your souls.” God spoke to me very clearly through this scripture. I realized the one thing that always made me joyful and gave me meaning and purpose was serving Him. I knew instantly that this was the answer to my prayer and my response was “YES, I am coming back for CE.” God doesn't hold back. How can I refuse such boundless love? How can I hold back from such divine eagerness?  - Albert, Malaysia

 When I decided to join CE, God promised to me that He will open all the doors and He will provide all my needs. I am seeing how faithful He is even when I am not faithful. I really thank God I can experienced this kind of life style. It is really making me grow in faith and surrender to God. - Susan, Indonesia

Susilo, Indonesia

We thank God for Jess, Jo and Marilyn...

On World Mission Sunday, we celebrated the conclusion of a year of Community Experience for Jess, Jolene and Marilyn. Here are their testimonies. We join them to give thanks to God for His faithfulness and for blessing their Yes with His fruitfulness.

 

I thank God for my wonderful year with ICPE. I’ve enjoyed community life and formed many precious friendships with the missionaries. It is amazing how God has also used me to reach out to others He had put in my path. I have learnt to be more patient, to experience joy in suffering and to have more trust in Him and also learnt to be more generous to myself and to others. When my parents visited me, they were very impressed by the faith and love of the ICPE community. We prayed for them and they experienced healing and felt spiritually recharged. As I return to Singapore, I pray that I will hear God’s voice and follow Him as I continue to discern His will for my life. I thank all the ICPE missionaries who have blessed me with their love and care. May the Lord continue to shower them abundantly with his blessings! Praise the Lord! - Marilyn, Singapore

This past year as a necessary step in my faith journey.  I have received much healing as I experienced the love of Christ through the constant love and affirmation of the community.  Through much guidance and support I am learning to combat the negative self-talk that used to bombard my mind, replacing it with God’s truths. Living in community has helped me in the formation of my character as I become more aware of the things that are not of Christ and let Jesus transform me layer by layer. I am also grateful for my sharing partner who is always calling me forward to step up to new challenges and encouraging me to grow in ways I never imagined possible. One of the greatest blessings I have received was the conversion of my ex boyfriend. Looking back at the fruits of my time here, I have discerned to continue with ICPE. For now, I will return home to re-establish and deepen relationships with my family and friends. I pray to be a positive witness of God’s transforming love at work in my life. We can all impact the world for Christ by loving as He calls us to, in making a gift of ourselves.

- Jess Fowler, New Zealand

 

This has been a year of breaking down walls and learning to reach out to God and the people around me, in faith and humility. Life in community has given me opportunities to grow in faith and as a person. I thank God for the progress that I have made by His grace and love. I especially thank Him for the people of the ICPE – my teachers, my dear friends, my examples of lives lived in Christ. I thank God for the privilege of seeing Him work in the lives of others. So much healing! Most dear to my heart is the healing that has taken place in the heart and life of my Dad. I praise Jesus for how He has touched the lives of my family! …Going forward I plan to re-enter the workforce, bringing Jesus with me :) - the office is full of chances to evangelise. I hope to remain close to the community and all the people I've grown to love, who have helped me deepen my love for Christ. I pray that the Lord will continue to deepen my faith and trust in His unconditional love. May He strengthen, grow and renew the ICPE mission and all its members, blessing them in abundance. What God has given us, let us return it to Him as praise and thanksgiving! Jolene, New Zealand

 

 We bless you Jess, Jo and Marilyn! Go and continue to make Jesus visible!