TIF BBQ - Saturday, October 3rd

Tenth International Fellowship would like to invite you to join us on Saturday, October 3, 2009 from 1pm – 5pm for our Annual Welcome BBQ! If you are an international student studying in Philadelphia or surrounding area, this is a great opportunity to make some new friends and learn about more opportunities to get connected.

We’ll provide the main dishes, and request guests to bring a side dish or dessert. Carpooling will be available, however you must RSVP by September 28, 2009 in order to be accommodated. The event will take place at 36 Silver Birch Road, Turnersville, NJ 08012.

Please RSVP by September 28, 2009 to Shanna Houston at tif@tenth.org

Shanna Houston
TIF Administrative Assistant
215.735.7688x239
tif@tenth.org
tif.tenth.org

On Tuesday, I remember that God is my Judge.

8"And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: 'The words of(A) the first and the last,(B) who died and came to life.

9"'I know your tribulation and(C) your poverty ((D) but you are rich) and the slander[a] of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison,(E) that you may be tested, and for(F) ten days(G) you will have tribulation.(H) Be faithful(I) unto death, and I will give you(J) the crown of life. 11(K) He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.(L) The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.'” (Revelation 2:8-11)

Here Jesus is speaking directly to some of the churches in John’s time. To some, Jesus offers strong warnings of judgment unless they repent. To others, like this church, he has no warning, only compassion and encouragement. Here are some characteristics of this commendable group of Christians:

1. They are very poor.

2. They go through hard trials and slander.

3. They are going to go through even harder trials: arrests, torture, and death.

I can’t fathom this. I don’t know anything like this in America. But we know of churches in other places where this is true. But notice Jesus’ response to them. He judges them faithful and needing encouragement. God our Judge does not always condemn us. He notices our faithfulness, if we have it. He encourages where we need it. He is compassionate when we need it. That’s what these Christians needed, and Jesus had only good things to say to them.

Be encouraged today as you go through your trials and discouragements. God your Judge sees you and will encourage your faithfulness if you bear up and do not sin.

-- Charlie

Prayer Update - Lani Borgman Shade

Dear Friends,

It is with a heart full of thankfulness that we bring this ministry update to you. God has indeed been good to us and we are excited to share with you the many ways God has provided for us this summer and also share with you important things to be bringing before the Lord in prayer.

We Are Praising God:

1. Steve and I have both been officially accepted to serve with InterFACE Ministries; I as full time staff and Steve as associate staff. We are very excited about the mission and vision of this organization and its commitment to working through the local church to reach international students.

2. We now have a greater opportunity to get involved with our local church’s international student ministry called Tenth International Fellowship (TIF). Already we have been able to invite some of our international friends to events which they really enjoyed.

Please Pray With Us:

1. As a very important next step in our partnership with InterFACE Ministries, we must put together a committee of 5-8 local people who will serve as our Personal Accountability Committee (PAC) for ministry here in Philadelphia. We will meet once a month for reporting purposes, have an opportunity to pray for ministry needs, and receive counsel and input for future ministry endeavors. We already have a list of people drawn up who we would like to serve. Please pray that God would lead us in putting together this committee and that it could be in place by the first week in October.

2. I will be starting up a Bible study Monday evenings which will meet at the Charis House. A few international students have already expressed interest in attending. All of our Charis House students have been invited. Please pray that some of them will come.

3. The ESL (English as a Second Language) ministry at our church will be starting up this Friday. I have been asked to teach. Please pray that we will make some good connections with international students in the area and that as we help meet some of their practical needs, opportunities will open to help meet some of their spiritual needs.

IMPORTANT REMINDER:

This month will be our last month of ministry transition as we seek to finalize logistical details with InterFACE Ministries. As those details finalize, we will send out a prayer letter informing all of our donors how and where to continue sending donations. For this month, please continue to send your donations to: Black Rock Congregational Church, 3685 Black Rock Turnpike, Fairfield, CT 06825. Please attach a separate note with the check indicating that it is for the Charis House ministry. All donations will be recorded and forwarded to us at the end of the month. In this way, we will continue to receive a salary which will help us meet our financial obligations.

For God’s International Kingdom!

Lani Borgman Shade
www.charishouse.org
4441 Spruce St.
Philadelphia, PA 19104

"Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass...it's about learning how to dance in the rain."