You are Invited to

 Melanie Baggao’s

Commissioning for Service in the Middle East

With American Baptist International Ministries

Sunday October 4th, 2015 at 11AM

at Epic Church in Fullerton

212 E. Wilshire Ave., Fullerton, CA 92832

Please RSVP at http://bit.ly/1TY5w13

or to Mel at 714.381.6263

On Praying For Mel… Thoughts from her Pastoral Advocate, Paul Honge-Lange…

There is a beautiful exchange between Jesus and his disciples recorded in John 15:15. Jesus has just finished teaching his followers about how he is the vine and they are the branches, a metaphor depicting the interdependent relationship between Christ and his followers.  Without the vine and branches connected, there will be no fruit.  He wraps this teaching up with “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.”   In prayer, we foster this friendship and interconnectedness with Jesus.

Prayer is relational and therefore will always be about people.  When we pray for Melanie’s ministry in Lebanon, there are four people to keep in mind.  First, prayer is about God and what he is doing. God is already at work in Melanie’s life and in the lives of the people to whom she will minister in Beirut.  He invites us to participate in this exciting work through prayer.  When you pray, take some time to listen to what God may be sharing about his work.  You may hear an encouraging word to pass along to Mel.  Second, Melanie is the one God has chosen to serve in Lebanon at this time.  For those of us who know Mel well, we see this call as an obvious fulfillment of the work God has been doing in her life up to this point.  Nonetheless, for Melanie to effectively come alongside people in need she will need the power of the Holy Spirit working both in her and through her.  Even Paul the Apostle required prayer support for his ministry (Eph 6:18-20).  Third, our prayers effect change in the lives of those whom Melanie will meet and minister to on the field.  In prayer, overwhelming statistics are reframed when God’s Spirit opens our eyes to see them as individuals whom He loves.  Finally, when we pray we not only become a catalyst of change but we are changed.  Richard Foster writes in his book Prayer “To pray is to change.”  Prayer moves us from concern, worry or pity to a loving compassionate response that is formed in us by our loving and compassionate friend, Jesus.

_{HELP MEL TRANSITION WELL…}

MEL’S MPT IS COLLECTING LETTERS, ENCOURAGING NOTES, PICTURES, PRAYERS, FAVORITE VERSES, QUOTES, JOKES, ETC. TO SEND WITH HER TO LEBANON.MEL PROMISES NOT TO READ THEM UNTIL SHE IS IN LEBANON. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PARTICIPATE, PLEASE PLACE YOUR HANDWRITTEN NOTES IN A SEALED ENVELOPE AND SEND TO MARY NGUYEN. YOU MAY ALSO EMAIL THEM TO MARY AND SHE WILL SEAL IN AN ENVELOPE FOR YOU. EMAIL MARY FOR MAILING ADDRESS: MARYS.NGUYEN@GMAIL.COM.