First Partnership Newsletter- February 2013

Dear my Partners,

Worship music and lyric is coming from the prayer room near where I am studying now. These lines penetrate my quiet reading and the beautiful words literally urge me to share with you: “Amazing love I know it's true. Its my joy to honor you. In all I do. I honor you. I'm forgiven because you were forsaken...” (From Amazing Love (You Are My King) Lyrics). I really hope we can sing and live these wonderful expressions together even at this very moment as we were in heaven. Amen?

Thanksgiving:

Again and again, I am overflowed with LOVE because, “He First Loves Us”, it is very true! I hope this first newsletter can help us to echo and resonate the love that Christ has for us, from wherever we are, to the throne of God, in prayer, the highest speed connection in God’s network. Praise the Lord!

News:

            It has been a busy Fall Semester and January Intensive course. Praise God, I weathered through my first four courses with humbling experience, faithful lessons, and worshipful heart:

1st. Adolescent Counseling (most enjoyable class, taken with Eva, both earned “A” encouragement to help youth and family)

2^nd. Systematic Theology 1 (taught by the Dean, good intro & solid foundation, more to cud from this “buffet” course)

3^rd. Greek 1 (most challenging class, took me many late nights to finish the practices and still unsatisfied, important for exegesis)

4^th. Christ in Old Testament (the professor is a scholarly pastor from Park St. Church, now I understand OT with Promise-Plan)

Prayer Request:

This Spring Semester I have three courses, please pray that I am pressing forward with full speed:

1^st Greek 2; 2^nd Interpreting the New Testament, and 3^rd Spiritual Formation (with Ken Lee). It is a nice balanced and enjoyable semester for me. Hope to share more news with you next month.

            Eva would like to thank you for your support to our family because as she is pursuing her counseling degree there is no scholarship available to her program. Your donation has greatly lightened our finical burden. Would you please pray for her full time studies as we are growing together?

            Please also pray for God’s salvation, protection, and health for both of our families in New York. 

            From now on, I want to end every newsletter with some timely words from the Letter to Philippians.

“Paul and Timothy, servants1 of Christ Jesus,

To all the asaints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the boverseers2 and cdeacons:3” (1:1)

I hope that we, as partners in Christ’s dominion, find Joy in the Lord, because of our privileged identities as servants as well as saints, chosen and called by His Amazing Love!

            Happy Chinese NEW YEAR!

            May you have happy body and healthy spirit!

Blessing,

Tom Chow

                                                                    (Chinese Fellowship New Year Celebration at GCTS Apartment)

p.s. Please reply me if you wish, I hope hear any news and prayer request from you too!

Second Partnership Newsletter- March 2013

Dear my Partners,               

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

 “Welcoming Spring welcoming blessings!”   祝愿大家：迎春接福！

That was the greeting I brought to GCAC Spring Banquet last Sunday. Please pardon me if I haven’t had a chance to wish blessings to you for the New Year in person. This year I’ve thought about the rationality of blessing for a little bit. Jesus has blessed the food and fed many, blessed the bread broken for us, and blessed His disciples before He left… I learned that when we are blessing each other we become more aware of the blessings God is pouring upon us day in and day out: health & wealth, family & friends, love & joy, warmth & food, and so many to count. God smiles when we thank for His blessings!  

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

(GCAC Spring Banquet 2013)

Thanksgivings:

I keep thanking God for your partnership. Truly I feel that your faithful prayers and supports to Eva and I meant much deeper to us than the “red envelops”. Yes, this is the first year for us, a young couple, to giveaway those traditional treats to the little ones; it is fun to give. I am also overwhelmed with the love and generosity that my aged grandma and mother-in-law have blessed us. They are just like the women who supported Jesus’ ministry! May God graciously save them and remember their hearts and deeds.   

                        

News:

            I had great time during the reading week, last Monday to Friday. Time spent with family, drank tea with grandparents and relatives, joined GCAC banquet, and skied a few hours with Eva’s mom and sister at Boston. Eva and I also went on to a Soul Sabbath Day (read my reflection if interested) with my spiritual formation class. All these, plus reading and reviewing my Greek produced a very fruitful week. Thanks God, now I get back to full speed of studies. Praise God, I received another A for Jesus in the January term for Christ in Old Testament. (Please feel free to ask if you would like to see the materials or papers of my learning)

                        

Prayers Request:

This semester is pretty intense for us, would you pray that we can press forward with higher speed?

Eva’s: Theology Survey 2; New Testament Survey; Ministering Women in Pain, and Life of Jesus (semlink, online studies). She really need your prayer support, please lift her up in prayers whenever you remember her.

For me: Greek 2; Interpreting the New Testament, and Spiritual Formation (with Ken Lee).

Please continue to pray for God’s salvation, protection, and health for both of our families in New York. 

                        

Timely words from the Letter to Philippians:

Grace (favor and blessing) to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah). (1:2 Amplified Bible)

I hope that we, as partners in Christ’s province, receive grace from the Lord, because He delights when we welcome His presence and presents thankfully and continuously!

                                                                                                                                             

            HAVE A BLESSED CHINESE NEW YEAR!

Blessing,

Tom Chow   

p.s. Please kindly reply if you wish, I hope hear any news and prayer request from you too!