Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground…”
Exodus 14:31
And when the Israelites saw the great power the LORD displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and put their trust in Him and in Moses His servant.
God gives us the easy yoke in His kingdom is to raise our prayer like Moses raised his staff and stretched out his hand. And then God will do the big wonder to redeem us and destroy our enemies like He divided the Red Sea for His people to escape from the enemies and showed His glory.
Consequently, we shall fear God and trust in Him when we see our prayers gain victory by the power of the Holy Spirit. When God answers our prayers, He desires to reveal His attributes to the people who pray and affirm our identities as His beloved children and connect Himself with us in an intimate relationship.
Therefore, take our authority in Jesus Christ’s name to pray and move on, then give all the glory and thanksgiving with reverence to God.
May God give all the saints in our church the understanding of our need for the power of the Holy Spirit so that we can seek to be filled by the Holy Spirit and live in spirit, not in flesh as victorious prayer warriors. In Jesus Christ’s name. Amen.
芝加哥市將在26日進入第四階段經濟重啟，除了餐廳可開放堂食外，已經關閉好幾個月的各大動物園、博物館的開放情況最受民眾關切。根據規定，芝城動物園和博物館將比照餐廳，入園人數限制為整個來客容量的的25%，參觀團體則不能超過50人，而市區的林肯公園動物園(Lincoln Park Zoo)將在26日先對會員開放，29日則開放給一般民眾。
一名住在伊利諾州卡盧梅特市(Calumet City)的婦女蒙哥馬利(Vicki Montgomery)，從來沒有申請過失業金，但最近收到州府通知已核發1200元失業金的信函，信中提到，將會把該款項匯到其美國銀行帳號，信中還附上銀行卡，當時她不認為會真的有錢匯入銀行，所以也未舉報，幾周後，她又收到伊州就業安全廳(Illinois Department of Employment Security，簡稱IDES)的另一份通知，告知該筆金額溢領而要求她全額退還。
A lifetime is not too long to live as friends on earth.
A friend is a friend forever if the Lord is the Lord of them.
It means a lot to me, a sojourner in this country when Ann called me “friend”, just as Jesus accepts who I am and calls me “friend”.
***
Ann was a fighter of life and kept doing good to others while battling with the brain tumor for years.
Her spirit inspires me to be brave for ignoring the temporary trials.
Therefore, besides Jesus, I know I will look eagerly for Ann in heaven.
Ann gave me two small rocks of cross, written “Courage” and “Believe” respectively.
I seem to hear she is speaking to me: Do not be afraid. Just believe.
Ann often prayed for me to write without fear.
The first time I met Ann was in 2017 BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) class.
Her paper folder with Korean characters drew my eyes.
I curiously talked with Ann after her very first BSF class.
She told me that she had been to Japan and Korea with her husband to work overseas.
Leah, our class leader, said she felt this group was hand picked by God.
I am convinced that God indeed hand picked this group for me to meet Ann and Lori.
We three have been praying for one another and went through many storms of life together.
The first fellowship for our BSF class was in Ann’s sister’s house.
I asked Ann how she felt with God recently after the class prayed for her health.
Ann softly said it was very good, smiling with tears in her big beautiful eyes.
I thanked God for drawing her close to Him as He guided me to pray for restoring her relationship with Jesus Christ foremost.
Ann reached out to me for coffee a few times in Dogwood coffee shop in St. Paul on her way to teach kids ballet dancing, even in a snowy winter.
I shared with Ann whatever God taught me from the sermons I heard at that time.
Ann was always patient and humble to listen and told me it was helpful for her spiritual growth.
“God, will you heal Ann?” I asked in my prayer after knowing Ann for many months.
“Do not be afraid. Just believe.” I heard in my heart.
We were happy to know that Ann’s condition was good to go to Vietnam in 2018 to meet with her husband at work.
Ann said she felt peace that God healed her for going to Vietnam, where she cared for the orphans as her own children.
During one short visit back to Minnesota, Ann, Lori and I sat at the coffee table in the Centennial Lake Park.
The lightning struck above the nearby lake while we prayed and worshiped God without feeling intimidated by the explosion of thunder.
The summer storm whipped strong wind and poured down heavy rain.
And three of us were empowered by God’s promises as victorious warriors.
The night before she went back to Abba Father’s house, the gratitude overwhelmed me to know that only God can give me such love to love a friend like Ann.
I thank God for connecting me with Ann, whom I came across with only for three years.
However, I have been blessed with the sweet gift of her kindness since the first day we met.
Therefore, I will live a life having Ann in my heart until I see her again.
Before I tried to write down this article, the devil frustrated me to give up. At that time, God reminded Lori to call me and she encouraged me not to fear of being rejected. So, I proclaim that God has accepted me as His child and the evil hindrance was gone like a puff. I got to write down at once from my heart. Praise God!
“Violence is the only lever big enough to move the world.”–written by the Pulitzer-Prize winning author, Colson Whitehead in his novel <The Nickel Boys> based on true story.
The Nickel Boys and the White House Boys share similar stories—though the former exist in the world of fiction, and the latter in reality.
Can The Nickel Boys help the White House Boys gain justice, or future abuse from happening?
Whitehead said he’s doubtful.
“The kind of abuse that we’re talking about speaks to a great flaw in human character, and that’s not going away,”
Whitehead said. “I think the people who actually are in charge of things aren’t big readers of novels. I don’t think they’ll pick up The Nickel Boys and extract any lessons from history.
“I don’t think that people who need to read a book like this, will read a book like this.”
What Whitehead said is sad but true to my experience. When I worked in a private school, I was a minority there. The school sponsored me to go to the people of color conference. But once I got there, I was surprised. I thought more white teachers may like to learn about how to work with colored students or staff.
On the contrary, I only saw most of the attendees were people of color. I was confused. Isn’t the conference supposed to share with people more about working with people of color? I was wrong. It’s for the people of color to find a place and feel supported in their own group.
