This morning's team devotional was a sweet and intimate time. God's word from Psalm 37 touched us deeply. We were reminded to look to God in all circumstances, especially when we could not see immediate results.

We were also reminded by the power of God's salvation and his loving care to us all. Just as the hymns say:

God's Love touches the depth of my soul!
Changes my spiritual life so completely!
His Love o’er-flows my heart;
Restrains my soul and makes me whole!
God's love touches the depth of my soul!

The 7/11 store has become one of our best friends this past few days. Our seasoned COCM missionary Kaifong introduced it to us. As an itinerant missionary for the European field, Kaifong has traveled all over Europe to help local Christians and support churches in their beginning stage. Everywhere she went, there was always a 7/11 store nearby. She told us that it was easy to find, open till late at night, and it was often the most inexpensive place to buy food and other daily household items in odd hours, for emergency needs. It was definitely the place for folks living on a budget.

The STM team quickly found out that this secret also applied in Copenhagen. In fact the 7/11 store in Copenhagen airport was probably the cheapest place to buy nicely made Danish bread everywhere.

We had our "last supper" in the Copenhagen airport enjoying all kinds of inexpensive goodies from the 7/11 store. Although it was not fancy, the team shared sweet fellowship together. We could hardly let a few sentences go by without mentioning the word "7/11". It has become a running joke among us "insiders". Through all this we discovered that being a missionary is not just hard working, miserable and no fun.

As missionary Paul said in Philippians 4: 11-13, "... for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength." This time we had the opportunity to taste the truth of what Paul described above. When we were in a joint partnership in the gospel, being one in spirit and purpose, then we could enjoy sweet fellowship among us no matter what the circumstance was.

A missionary must learn to deal with various situations, the good, the bad, and the unexpected. His job is to cultivate the soil, to plant the seeds, and to do the necessary work to encourage spiritual grow. Regardless of the place God puts him in, he must give himself fully to the work of the Lord and at the same time believing that his labor will not be in vain. He must remember to leave the final outcome to God. For it is God who makes things grow. (I Corinthians 3:6)

The mighty power of God is evident through the stories of COCM missionaries who labor in harsh spiritual conditions with quiet strength and persistence. The development of Chinese Christian Churches in Scandinavian countries is a good case study. Elder Jay Lam who joined the 2nd COCM STM to Sweden in the early 80s recounted a story where he preached to only one gospel seeker and even she left halfway through the message during one evangelistic meeting. Imaging the unimaginable difficulties in those years of early missionary work! Yet today the Scandinavian Chinese Churches association has 3 churches, and 2 more bible study groups in Sweden and Norway. They just held a joint retreat where a few hundred people came together to worship the Lord. God is faithful!

"If we endure, we will also reign with him." (2 Timothy 2:11-13)

A postlude:

Our airplane from Copenhagen to London was delayed one and a half hours. By the time we passed through the customs in London's Stansted airport, it was about 1 AM in the morning of Tuesday. Pastor Ho had been waiting patiently to pick us up with the COCM mini-bus. However, soon after we got on the highway, the muffler broke and half of it fell to the ground. Pastor Ho got under the mini-bus and fixed it with one of the luggage ropes. It fell again and he had to re-attach it twice. The muffler was literally hinging by the rope for the entire trip back to COCM mission center. More over, the major highway was closed due to road repairs and we had to drive into unfamiliar territories. And so while everyone on the STM team was sleeping on the way, Pastor Ho drove the rumbling muffler-less mini-bus through the winding roads in the deep of the night with missionary Kaifong holding the flash light as the navigator. By the time we arrived at the center, it was already 4:10 on Tuesday morning...

Such was the rather typical life of a traveling missionary. Never easy, never dull, always an adventure with God at the helm. "Those who sow in tears, will reap with songs of joy." Psalm 126:5

Signing off on Tuesday morning in COCM mission center, Milton Keynes, UK.

The missionaries in training...

COCM STM Copenhagen 2006 Team


The past Prayer Letters

8/8/06 prayer letter

8/10/06 prayer letter

8/11/06 prayer letter

8/12/06 prayer letter

8/13/06 prayer letter