I'm alive and back from our 5 days ACNA and AMiA Bishops' Retreat!
This is perhaps the most difficult, painful but the most joyful and fruitful retreat of my life!
Thanks for the powerful prayers and fasting of you guys that everyone in the retreat came back healthy, renewed and united with a David and Jonathan brotherly love! Lots of time in the camp I felt a very strong sense of your prayers supporting me and I can't stop from tears suddenly. I felt that most strongly in the hours from 12p.m. to 2p.m.. Do you guys use your lunch time to pray for me? If so, please tell me so that I know that is true. There are at least three days at that time I felt like floating by your prayers.
I had a kind of feeling on Monday night when I was at the hotel in Denver that I need to buy two pack on Advil and one pack of Cold and Flu pill after I took two Advil on Tuesday night(June 19)when I got cold that night. And so I really got cold on Friday and Monday(two days ago) and cold and flu Sunday night!!! I think it must be your prayers that I was OK all four times, no fever or anything painful feeling after having those pills. But that's four times! God is good! All the time! And thank you for your prayers! Your prayers save my life and do something miraculously to this retreat!
There are three key moments in this retreat:
1. Reconciliation - David and Jonathan's love
Paul says, " if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"
The power of the Holy Spirit is so intense all through the past seven days. There was a holy "moment" that Bishop Trevor Walters and me say sorry to each others and asked forgiveness to each others. Since 2004 after we separated from ACiNW when Trevor was then the Chairman and we established ACiC, Trevor and I had some major misunderstanding, hurts, pains and separation. Every curse was broken at that time when we reconciled in the bus to white water rafting. I was so moved that Trevor said to me, "Silas, from now on I am your Defender, I will defend you, your integrity and your everything!" As said by all bishops and helpers in this retreat that this is one of the most important "moment" as a sign of God to give to us as the sign and fruit of this camp as a sign to revive this David and Jonathan's love between ACNA and AMiA!
2. Moment, Momentum and Movement
God has given the Anglican Communion especially AMiA and ACNA a movement in North America. But because we stepped into Satan's cunning plan in several confusing "moments" causing major misunderstanding, pain and separation that the momentum is being dragged and stuck, the Movement is being pulled back. We need from now on to catch that holy "moment" to reconcile, revive and renew so that we can create wave after wave of momentum that this Godly Movement can come at last. This is His Kingdom plan and as said by Mark(the professional counsellor that each of the bishops have two sessions with), "It's not the Brand, it's the Bride!" God planned this retreat more than a year ago, half a year before the Rwanda crisis came out. So, this retreat is beyond ACNA or AMiA business, it is God's Kingdom plan!
3. Emmanuel
Emmanuel means "God with us". Through these past seven days we all feel the strong presence of God that we can throw away all our past misunderstanding and everything dragging us to let this Emmanuel experience to carry on blessing ACNA and AMiA. We all agree that we need ACNA and AMiA for this Godly Movement in North America.
So, let's pray and fast that from now on we can catch God's holy "moments" to let the momentum and the movement happens in His Kingdom plan!!!
God is good! All the time!
**Some one told me I somewhat look like President Obama and Bishop Folly Beach and me were given a lama "Oblama" to take care of for the past five days! See the first fish I caught first time of my life! Wonderful! I caught two, they are trout, very tasty!
Please click this link for the official announcement from AMiAs of the recent transition:
Please click this link to my second blog-Discipler123:http://discipler123.blogspot.com/
You can also listen to my daily podcast in English and Cantonese through this new site.
**1000 DAYS of prayers now!!!
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**NEW link for the 9th 100 days 24 hours prayer campaign (from May 17 to August 24, 2012).
Today's Reading: Jeremiah 37
Please read Jeremiah 37 and listen to what the Lord Jesus Christ would like to tell you before reading my Spiritual Journal below. If you would like to learn a simple and good way of Daily Devotion method please read my “Count Down 5” from this blog. You may click this link directly for the method: Subject Shifting Devotion.pdf. (You may begin with a song to praise the Lord and complete you devotion by singing another praise song.)
Please click this link to worship with us -
Chinese praise song -
Please click the links below to Jeremiah 37:
Zedekiah son of Josiah was made king of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; he reigned in place of Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim. Neither he nor his attendants nor the people of the land paid any attention to the words the Lord had spoken through Jeremiah the prophet.
Jeremiah 37: 1-2
Wow! When you are reading this today I have finished my eight days 14,000 mountain hiking retreat with 5 ACNA and 4 AMiA bishops! I will give you an update of what we have experienced in tomorrow's blog.
It is really not easy to listen to the words of prophets. Because we are never sure who are the prophets or is it really from the Lord.
I still remember what John Stott said to me in July 2009 when I brought our son Ignatius to visit him in his retired home for Anglican clergy in London. He said, "Silas, you are right on. Daily devotion is the key! I have here my new book is on daily devotion for 365 days." Since then my Micro Discipleship theory has been accepted by lots of important Christian leaders all over the world and many people. I have now people from 87 countries visiting or visited my two blogs and two podcast daily. But, there are not a lot of Christians around me including clergy and leaders believe that this is from the Lord. This is so sad!
Destruction has come to churches and Christians who claim to be Christians but do not have a true intimate personal relationship with Jesus! Come back to Jesus before it is too late!
Dear Lord Jesus,
Help us to repent and come back to you. Tell us yourself that we have lots of things to repent. Change our hearts from stubborn and unfaithful to being teachable and faithful. In Jesus Name we pray. Amen.
Wow! At last I finished all blogs and podcast now and it's now 12: 16p.m. Denver time. We will be leaving at 3p.m. for the retreat up into the mountain to meet God and enrich our fellowship! I did not sleep Monday night trying to finish everything and got cold, flu yesterday. I had two tablets of Advil yesterday before I went to bed and seems well now. See you again on June 28 through my blogs and podcasts.
Please click this link to worship with us - Lord, Reign in Me
Chinese praise song -
Pray for our AMiA bishops:
The Rt. Rev. Sandy Greene (Gigi)
The Rt. Rev. TJ Johnston, Jr. (Rees)