Greetings from the Band of Followers

Dear fellow followers of the Lord Jesus Christ,

Last December saw the Band of Followers in South-East Asia for 3 weeks. At times it felt as if we were in the Amazing Race as we moved from one "pitstop" to the next in a matter of days! For some of us, it could well have been "Fear Factor" when faced with exotic Asian cuisine (like century eggs!!) and having close encounters of Kakerlake (the ubiquitous cockcroaches!). For Ben, it was his first time in Asia and we are proud to say that he and Pat did very well.

It was also an especially significant bonding time for Ju who finally joined us after finishing her commitment at the New Zealand centre. And we can finally present to you the complete Band of Followers group photo! \o/

All in all, we had a blessed time of ministering and of being ministered to, of giving teachings and being taught by young and old alike, of encouraging others and being very much encouraged ourselves, of growing in our identity as a ministry and in our personal relationships within the team.

In this update, we would like to share with you our reflections on some of those precious moments, so that you too may join us in giving thanks to the glory of God!

Youth weekend retreat - Johor Bahru, Malaysia

Pat: The retreat we did for the young people in Johor Bahru showed me the deep thirst that the young people of Asia have for Christ. It was also beautifull to see that there were more men than women attending the retreat. On our part, we allowed ourselves to be the hands and the voice of Jesus as we gave teachings and led worship and ministry times. The Holy Spirit moved in a very powerful way over the 3 days and many of them testified to experiencing God's love and power for the first time in their lives.

Worship and Fellowship Evening - Ju's house, Singapore

Ju: When I responded to God's call to be a fulltime missionary in 2003, one of my prayers was that He would continue to provide for my family and to lead them to deeper faith. Over the past 3 years, God has shown Himself to be faithful in so many ways but the greatest miracle has been for me to be able to share my faith and my spiritual journey with my brother Jem. Thus, the worship evening at my house was a special night for me, not only because it was packed with friends who have been our fellow pilgrims of faith, but even more so because Jem had agreed to open our house to host the evening and also joined us for worship.

Someone said, "Faith is believing in advance what can only be understood in reverse." That worship evening was a precious moment of grace for me to look back so that I could understand more of the great things God has done for me and my family. And I stand in awe of His faithfulness! My prayer then is for courage to forge ahead in faith, trusting that though I cannot see the overall design of my life as it is being moulded in the Potter's hand, He knows and He is faithful to transform the clay of my life into something perfect and good to Him. Glory be to Him whose power working in us can do infinitely more than we can ever ask or imagine! \o/

Planetshakers Conference - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Derek:
It was my joy to see 4,000 youth from Malaysia loving Jesus with so much energy and surrendering to Him for His Kingdom. The Planetshakers team was truly inspiring. Over the 3-day conference, we had worship service in the evening, teachings in the morning and workshops in the afternoon. The strength of Planetshakers is in ministering to youths and we have been blessed by their enthusiasm, courage and encouragement to go for more! Check out the exuberance of the Planetshakers team as they abandon themselves in worship!

ICPE Mission Centre - Manila, Philippines

Angie: Derek and I shared with the community some technical aspects of worship leading and also gave practical sessions with the musicians. I had met several of the brothers and sisters currently undergoing staff formation on previous occasions. So what edified me very much was to witness how much they have grown in their faith and also in their music and worship leading skills since then.

Pat: It was an experience for me to visit some families living close by to one of the rubbish sites in Manila and to also touch their poverty. Through the visits, I also came to a greater appreciation of the work that our ICPE Mission is doing among the poor people in Manila.

Chris: One of my happiest moments was to attend the Christmas party that our Manila centre held for the children of Montalban. Over a hundred kids turned up and filled the little house with joyful singing and excited chattering. I was deeply moved by the evident love that my fellow missionaries had for these little ones as they prepared the presents, decorations and bakings for them; at the party, they were generous with their hugs and smiles and attention and care for all the kids, treating them with dignity as befitting princes and princesses. For these children who have so little in life, that afternoon must have felt like being at a party in their heavenly Father's house!

Pat shared, "I definitely experienced His goodness during my time in Asia and I am very grateful for this and also for the brothers and sisters that accompanied me on this mission." We couldn't agree more with you sis! :-)

New Year's Eve - Allerheiligen

We returned to Allerheiligen in time to join the community in hosting the New Year's Eve experience for our guests. We transitioned into the New Year with a time of worship and thanksgiving. What we found very encouraging that evening was the active participation of our own youth during the worship time. As our ministry's motivation is to see the future generation of Catholics express heartfelt worship of the Lord Jesus, we praise God that we could witness this happening in our own community and pray that He continues to mould the hearts of these young worshippers!


What's Up?

School of Mission - Allerheiligen

The School begins on Monday, 5th February and we are expecting 15 participants from all over the world! Already there is a new buzz and hum in Allerheiligen as the participants started arriving a few days ago.

The Band of Followers will serve the School through worship-leading at Mass and other worship and ministry times. We will also put our culinary skills to use (or, to the test, for one of us at least!) to prepare community meals. In addition, Ju will serve as a staff of the school, journeying with sharing partners and participating in cell groups.

At the same time, we will work on the basic needs of the worship ministry such as having regular band practices and honing our respective skills in music, worship-leading, singing and sound. There are also plans to do a first recording.

Final Note

It has almost been 5 months since we embarked on this year-long project and we are aware of the need to to discern and concretise the future direction of the ministry after the year is over. We would also need to start planning for the School of Missions in September 2007 which will have a focus on worship ministry. So, please do lift up a prayer for us when you read this!

The heart is rich when it is content, and it is always content when its desires are fixed on God. Nothing can bring greater happiness than doing God's will for the love of God. St. Miguel Febres Cordero (1854-1910)

May the treasure of this happiness always be the desire of your heart, dear brothers and sisters!