Dear Pastors and Praying Partners,
Season’s Greetings and Have a Blessed and Fruitful New Year! I pray that this letter will find each one of you in good cheer this Holiday season, as we look once again at the birth of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. What a great opportunity we have to honor the birth of Our Savior who loved us so much that He died to pay for our sins and come back to life. It is this message of hope, the Gospel that we are so excited to share to all the people here in Rattanakiri.
By God’s grace, this month has been very busy for us as your missionaries preparing a lot of things for our gift giving, thanksgiving and year-end service and even for our bonfire fellowship. Also, we have no illness that has affected us; this has helped us to continue faithful in teaching to the children, youths and adults in each ministry that we had implemented. As consequence of this, the spiritual growth has been reflected in better attitudes and personal behavior of many of our members in our mission church.
YEAR-END ACTIVITIES
Last Sunday, December 12, Bethany Baptist Mission gave out Christmas gifts to all our ever faithful members after the morning service. The members don’t know that there’s a gift giving that Sunday. But the attendance was so amazing and really a blessing because many came about 70 people. I did not told or discuss with them when will be the gift giving because I want them to know that going to church is not of gift giving but by listening to God’s Word, be saved, be baptized, be disciple, grow spiritually and be used by God in the ministry. I preached about God’s faithfulness to all of us and our faithfulness to God. Some of our members came forward for commitment to continue their faithfulness to God for the year 2011. And some came to pray to start serving the Lord in whatever ministry in the church for next year. There were some visitors and English students that came that Sunday. One of our students raises his hand for salvation. After the service, I dealt with him and he accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. But I still need to talk to him so he would really understand and would be very clear to him the plan of salvation. His name is Pro Chanda, please do pray for him that he will truly understand God’s plan of salvation for his life. After the service, we gave out some groceries (basic needs) like sardines, noodles, sugar, salt and coffee and even 10 kilos of rice. You could see those happy and excited faces after they received those gifts because of their faithfulness this year and for the past few years. Also, they got some used clothes that my wife bought from the market and kept it since January and some we got from the brethren from Phnom Penh for this year’s gift giving. Also, the church gave out some school supplies to each of our English students both members and non-members.
Last December 19, we had our successful Thanksgiving and Year-End service. Our guest speaker is no other than Pastor Nuth Pich, the first ordained pastor from one of our many mission churches of Bethany in Phnom Penh. He was half Khmer and tribal but God called him to be the Pastor of Bethany Baptist Church, Tuekhla. The first mission work of Bethany in Phnom Penh that was organized as a church. Again, God blessed us with a great number of people about 50 that Sunday. He taught and shared his personal testimony (teachimony) during our Sunday school. Then, he preached boldly about faithfulness and thanksgiving from many verses from the Bible. Most of them realize that in spite of their unfaithfulness, God is still faithful and true to all His promises to all of them. During our invitation, many of our members raise their hands to be more faithful in their service to God and for being grateful for all His faithfulness to them this year 2010. After the service, the church served lunch for everybody. As their Pastor, I’m so happy to see each family that in spite of the difficulties in their lives, they were able to prepare different varieties of Khmer and tribal food for our Thanksgiving Sunday. Also, the church prepared one kind of food that Sunday. Not only that we feasted a lot of spiritual food through God’s Word but we also feasted an abundant physical food as well. And also, it was such a blessing to see some of the members helping each other to serve food to our members, non-members and most especially to our guest speaker and to their own Pastor. Praise the Lord!!!
Last December 23, after our Prayer Meeting, we had our Bon Fire Fellowship specifically for members only. So, we could bond together as one family of Bethany Baptist Church-Mission. We had some singing, games, personal testimonies and most especially the sharing of God’s Word. I reminded them from many passages from the Bible that God has been so good and very faithful and true to all His Words all throughout this year 2010. In spite of our unfaithfulness sometimes, He’s always been there for us; providing our daily needs, protecting us from any kind of dangers both from outside and from our enemy, Satan and most of all for continually using us in reaching the people around us for His sakes. After the teaching of God’s Word, some of our adults most especially our old people shared an inspiring and encouraging testimony of how God showed His faithfulness to them and to their loved ones for the past few years. And their prayers that God would continually bless all the members and that the members would start praying for their loved ones and neighbors to be saved as well. Also, I asked each member to write in a piece of paper all the bad things or wrong doings and even their unfaithfulness to God that they’ve done this year. We prayed for it individually. Then, they made a commitment to God not to have these wrong doings or motives in their hearts that would affect their service to God for 2011. Then, we prayed as a family and burned together all those wrong doings/motives and unfaithfulness on the paper that was not pleasing to God. Hope and pray that they would not forget everything that they wrote but to fulfill their commitment to start the best for next year in their service to Our Great and Awesome God.
Pastors and brethren, we look forward to doing more as God may enable us in the days ahead and we realize that through you God has enabled us to come this far. We thank you for your regular prayers and your faithful financial support as well as special gifts. May God bless each of you gloriously to the praise of His grace!
Pray, please, for the Jamandron’s!
In the cause of God and truth,
JAMANDRON’S, KIT AND JANETH
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