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Dearest European UBF Mission Co-workers,

In the midst of intensive preparations for UBF’s 50th Anniversary and the Missionary Seminar, Bonn UBF and Mainz UBF held Spring Bible Conference 2011 in the city of Prüm, which is an hour away from Bonn. The conference was titled, “The Turning Point in Life” (Key verse Genesis 17:6) and we studied five lectures on Abraham. 102 attended the conference. From Mainz UBF, only few representative missionaries attended because they held the Rhein-Main Regional Conference the week before. I would like to share with you the grace we have received through the conference. I pray so that we may live up to the turning point and serve the disciple-making ministry through 1:1 Bible study sacrificially and challenge the spiritual revival of Europe.

First, Bonn UBF’s Spring Bible Conference 2011 was prepared through the intensive Genesis Bible study. Our mission co-workers have prayed together and did daily bread faithfully at 5am with the prayer topics of inviting students, serving 480 1:1 Bible studies a week, and raising 500 Bible teachers. For this conference, rather than preparing many various programs, we concentrated on training the messengers and preparing the testimony sharers. Therefore, during the preparation, God worked in the hearts of our mission co-workers to experience the turning point in their mission life and renewed their hearts to devote themselves to mission. It was the work of the Holy Spirit.

Second, intensive Genesis Bible study worked mightily in the hearts of next generation missionaries and national Bible students. The creation order was restored in their hearts and they began to have a biblical sense of history. Through studying Abraham’s life and faith, national shepherds and next generation missionaries repented of their petty life style and that they had lost their spiritual identity. Through this opportunity, they were able to renew their decision to live as men and women of mission according to God’s calling.

Already 20 and 31 years have passed by, since mission co-workers and next generation missionaries have been serving German and European campus mission. However, instead of challenging the spiritual revival of Europe by holding on to God’s calling and promise and by Isaac offering faith, they were satisfied with God’s blessing and lived an ordinary and a career-centered life.

Through this conference, God visited each one of us and helped us to get rid of Ishmael in our hearts and to offer our Isaac to God. National shepherds Peter Pilawa, Stefan Elsholz, Xenofon Grigoriadis and second Generation missionaries Stephan Park and Petrus Chang gave turning-point giving messages and through preparing these messages, they themselves decided to grow as excellent Bible teachers and global leaders to serve European and world mission.

Second Generation missionaries Sarah Eunjie Park and Peter Lee served the morning devotion messages with God’s word from Ephesians 2 and Romans 8. We could learn how we should live a new life of faith in Jesus and how we can practically live with God’s calling and promise. We learned that our new life in Jesus is neither an extension of our old life in sin nor a better life in this world, but a spiritual life with God’s mission and a new life as a source of blessing.

Second generation missionaries Johannes Chang and Holy Maria Park shared their victory reports. Their victories of faith, respectively in medical studies and voice studies by God’s grace and His word were of a great encouragement and a challenge for the next generation missionaries and young students. Second generation missionaries Peter Ryu and David Lee have graduated from high school and each of them made a decision to live as a fisher of men and a man after God’s own heart. We pray that God may raise them as excellent Bible teachers and humble shepherds for campus students. I thank God that the newcomers and 2nd generation missionaries shared graceful and meaningful testimonies on Saturday afternoon. They made a turning point in their lives to now live a God- and mission centered life of faith.

Total 22 newcomers attended the conference. Most of them were fruits of our national shepherds’ house churches such as Sh. Jochen’s and Sh. Stefan’s and their deep Genesis Bible study. In spite of working full-time, our national shepherds’ house churches faithfully prayed on campus and visited sheep in their dorms and wherever they were. When our national shepherds’ house churches co-worked with the missionaries wholeheartedly in order to build up a life-giving community of God’s word, God worked mightily and helped them to bear many fruit of life. Thank and praise God!

Third, we pray for carrying out 480 one-to-one Bible studies and 500 Sunday worship service attendants and for raising 10,000 bible teachers in Germany wholeheartedly. As a closing message, M. Samuel Peter Ryu, the Mainz UBF Director gave us Ezra 7:10. As Ezra devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the LORD and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel, a spiritual awakening and revival occurred among Israelites. When each one of us makes a decision to grow as an excellent Bible teacher and to be a disciple-maker who raises bible teachers, I believe that a spiritual awakening and revival will be achieved for sure in Europe. In Germany there are more than 400,000 doctors and 200,000 lawyers in Germany. Also, there are more than 35,000 sopranos in Germany who work professionally after graduating from a music school. Europe is waiting for Bible teachers who believe in the word of God and proclaim it. I pray that UBF may be a Bible teacher for Europe.

May God bless our fishing ministry this summer and help us serve 480 one-to-one Bible studies strengthened by Genesis Bible study. We pray for raising 500 excellent Bible teachers and sending out God- and mission- centered house churches to all campuses in Europe. May God change Europe into a missionary sending continent and use Germany as a shepherd nation.

One Word: A father of many nations