Review

Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain. We give thanks to our Heavenly Father for leading us to launch the "Do-This" Million-Hour All Nations Prayer Movement on 31 March 2001 at the Hong Kong Coliseum. We were greatly encouraged by the presence and support of leaders from the society, pastors from various denominations and intercessors as they witnessed the moments when the citizens of the Lord responded with "Amen" to God. The "Do-This" Million-Hour All Nations Prayer Movement progressed according to different phases until 60 million brothers and sisters are recruited to participate together. In addition to the daily prayers, the intercessors around the globe will plead to God in unison in a designated minute. In the past we have completed three million-hour prayers. The first million-hour prayer lasted for 24 months and the second lasted for 20 months. The third million-hour prayer was originally expected to last for 14 months. However, this was completed by the end of 2003 due to the onslaught of SARS. As we looked back the past year, we were amazed at the Lord's guidance and support. Below is our review of the past year.

January
"Rebuilding the City" Prayer Conference

On 16 January 2003, the "Rebuilding the City" Prayer Conference of the "Do This" Million-Hour All Nations Prayer Movement was held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. This was our third million-hour prayer. The theme verse of the conference was from Nehemiah 2:17, "Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace." At the same time, we published 12 prayer handbooks aimed at praying for the church, family and various professions in conjunction with the prayer movement. At the time, the economy and social living of Hong Kong were facing severe difficulties. We believe that the only way out was to call upon God in unity and keep watch for our own profession and city. We plead the Lord to bestow His grace and mercy and rebuild our city!

February
"Proclaiming the Name of the Lord" 40-day Fasting and Prayer Handbook

Jireh Fund was invited by Missions to New Arrivals to publish a 40-day fasting and prayer handbook. We would like to thank God for revealing "Proclaiming the Name of the Lord" as the theme and method of prayer. Each day we introduced the various attributes or names of God. Next, we invited everyone to proclaim the character and names of God at the individual, church and world level. We encouraged not only the brothers and sisters to join the 40-day fasting and praying event, but also encouraged those without fasting to use this prayer handbook and proclaim the name of God in one heart. As I prayed how to go about writing the prayer handbook, I felt intense spiritual warfare. During the days when I experienced a fever, I learned that we needed to proclaim the name or character of God at different levels. This prayer handbook has been translated into English. It will be translated into other languages in the future. I believe that God will use this prayer handbook and enable His people to proclaim the name of God in different places.

March
"O Father! We will never be silent day or night." Prayer Chain

Around midnight on March 7, as I was writing the preface for the "Proclaiming the Name of the Lord" 40-day Fasting and Prayer Handbook, I thought about the difficult economy that Hong Kong was facing and I felt saddened. At this moment, God moved me to pray day and night for Hong Kong. He gave me Isaiah 62:6-7, "I have posted watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth." We therefore decided to recruit brothers and sisters to participate in the 24-hour prayer chain, and the prayer chain was named as "O Father! We will never be silent day or night."

In order to enable everyone to better focus and pray in unity, we published two "Pray to God in Unity" prayer handbooks with particular focus on SARS, US-Iraq war, economy and social living at the time. We thanked God for teaching us how to pray for SARS, and God gave His word from Malachi 4:2, "But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings." We encourage brothers and sisters to hold onto the word of God and say, "Thank you Lord for enabling me to revere your name. I believe the sun of righteousness will appear and it will rise with healing in its wings. I also thank the Lord for enabling me to become a light for the world to shine upon those around me, so that they may also receive healing." I thanked God that sunny day finally came out after a time of prayer. It was reported that a warm weather can weaken the spread of the virus. We thanked God for His grace and protection.

On the evening of March 31, we held the "O Father! We will never be silent day or night." Prayer Chain Vision Sharing Meeting for church pastors. Many church and social events have been canceled because of SARS. It caught us by surprise when there were over 400 pastors, elders and organization representatives attending the meeting, occupying 36 tables. During the evening we encouraged churches and organizations to sign up for prayer hours and led believers to pray for the epidemic, medical workers and the economy. They are encouraged to use prayer handbooks such as "Proclaiming the Name of the Lord", "Pray to God in Unity" and the "Rebuilding the City" series to pray for the various professions day or night. The prayer campaign began at midnight on April 22 and lasted for half a year. March 31 was an important day as it recorded the most SARS cases in a single day. 81 individuals were infected and it was also the first day for the "O Father! We will never be silent day or night." Prayer Chain. In the evening before the meeting, something happened that almost forced us to cancel the prayer meeting...

He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
For the Mighty One has done great things for me - holy is his name. (Lk. 1:51, 49)

During the evening we were preparing for the vision sharing meeting the following night, one of our staff suddenly became ill at around 9:45pm. I touched her forehead and let her rest in the sofa in the prayer room. She fell into a deep sleep. I told the committee members that she had a fever. We were then on our knees and held one another's hands, and eagerly prayed for her. We asked the Lord to heal her from the fever and the threats. We prayed using Luke 1:51 and 1:49, "He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud (SARS) in their inmost thoughts. For the Mighty One has done great things for me - holy is his name." We prayed that the Lord would enable her to wake up at 10:30pm. We kept our eyes on the clock. At 10:25pm nothing had happened yet. At 10:30pm she woke up and the fever left. We thank the Lord for enabling us to witness the sovereignty of God. SARS was not able to threaten us; otherwise we would need to be quarantined that would prevent us from attending the vision sharing meeting.

April
Every Morning at Eight O'clock, Bless Hong Kong for Five Minutes

Faced with such economic hardships, the citizens became disgruntled and complained bitterly about the government. At the same time, SARS led us to pray for the needs of the epidemic, patients, medical workers and society. We therefore launched the "Every Morning at Eight O'clock, Bless Hong Kong for Five Minutes" prayer campaign. From April 7 to May 28, we placed a prayer ad to bless Hong Kong for a 52-day period on a local newspaper and the All Nations Prayer Movement website. On the one hand we hoped that unbelievers would learn more about our work as Christians in order that they would be hopeful. On the other hand, we encouraged the citizens of Hong Kong, regardless of whether they were believers or not to take part in blessing Hong Kong. We thanked the Lord for launching this prayer and evangelism ministry that went alongside one another.

Does everyone still remember the purpose of the All Nations Prayer Movement? In addition to praying half an hour, the believers are asked to pray in one heart for one minute during a designated time period. We thanked the Lord for His guidance for opening up a way to praying in unity in a designated time period through participation of "Every Morning at Eight O'clock, Bless Hong Kong for Five Minutes". In October 2003, the Lord revealed to me the need to place prayer ad on the newspaper again beginning November 1 to thwart the attack of SARS. It was our hope that more brothers and sisters would participate and bless our city, thereby experiencing the grace of God.

May
Return to School

During the onslaught of SARS, the children were unable to attend school and stayed home. Before they returned to school, God moved us to write the "Victory in Jesus" - Prayer Handbook on Returning to School. This helped the children to use different languages to pray to the Heavenly Father when school began again. When schools started, many principals, teachers and students used this prayer handbook everyday and prayed to the Heavenly Father. We thanked the Lord that none of the students was infected with SARS when school began.

June
"May Your Kingdom Come" Overnight Prayer Meeting

"May Your Kingdom Come" Overnight Prayer Meeting was held from 7pm on June 30 to 7pm on July 1. We prayed for God's kingdom to come upon the economy and social living of the city. Our original plan was not to organize an overnight prayer meeting. However, on June 10, God told me, "if you decide not to organize this prayer meeting, you will regret because of the severity of the situation." At that time, I was already aware that there would be a large-scale march on July 1. My first thought was to pray for no trampling so that the march would be held peacefully. It was risky when large crowds gathered together. In the end the number of participants was more than half a million, exceeding all the estimations made prior to the march. Not only was the demonstration in good order, but Hong Kong also won the praise of other countries and was elected by the "Political and Economic Risk Consultancy" as "the safest area in Asia Pacific". This was truly a divine miracle. We truly experienced the meaning of "in quietness and trust is your strength". The One who created heaven and earth gave such grace and peace to the people of Hong Kong. We truly gave thanks to the Lord who bestowed grace.

July
"Come! Tell our Heavenly Father" Prayer Handbook and "Rainbow after the Rain" Citywide Evangelistic Meeting

On July 10, a tragic car accident caused 21 deaths and 20 injuries in Tuen Mun. 14 teaching staff from schools in Kowloon were affected in the accident. It was beyond words of description concerning the fear of these young children as they heard about the deaths of their teachers. It was helpless even for adults to deal with the sudden fear arising from the event, let alone the children. Their language expression was limited which prevented them from expressing their inner feelings. How could we help them? Jireh Fund therefore published "Come! Tell our Heavenly Father" prayer handbook. Through the illustration of four fairy tales and seven prayers, this prayer handbook aimed to help the young children to pray to the Heavenly Father for wisdom in their difficulties. The children were thus encouraged to not doubt God's creditability. On the contrary, this prayer handbook aimed to restore hope of individuals toward God as they learned to put their trust in Him, so that in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, they could present their requests to God. We thanked the Lord for using this prayer handbook, enabling both teachers and students to receive love from the Heavenly Father, thereby experiencing the peace that transcends all understanding, as well as His healing and deliverance.

"Rainbow after the Rain" Citywide Evangelistic Meeting

I tell you the truth,
unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed.
But if it dies, it produces many seeds. (Jn. 12:24)

Dr. Joanna Tse was an imitator of Christ and demonstrated selfless love of Christ when she lost her life to SARS in attempting to save others. A total of 15 "Rainbow after the Rain" citywide evangelistic meetings were held from July 14 to July 20 to introduce the Christian faith through the testimonies of Dr. Joanna Tse.

We thanked God for the opportunity to coordinate the prayer ministry during the evangelistic meeting. We served with both fear and joy as we made preparations. 10 days before the evangelistic meeting, we published the "Gospel to All Nations" Prayer Handbook. We also organized two prayer training sessions for our intercessors to lay out the focus and direction in praying for the evangelistic meeting and unbelievers. On the average there were 50 to 60 intercessors taking part in the prayer ministry during the 15 evangelistic meetings. Over the seven-day period we had over 500 intercessors from different nationalities, churches of different denominations and Christian organizations gathering together and pleading to God for His salvation in one heart. The prayers offered by the intercessors resembled the sound of battle of the Lord's army that stirred up the hearts of the people. We were filled with gratitude for God's guidance and teaching. May all glory be to God!

2nd Half Year
His Name is called Wonderful Counselor and Mighty God

My Passion for Life

During the onslaught of SARS, the people of Hong Kong were like children with great fear of death, leaving them with a sense of helplessness and futility to look for a way out. God moved us to produce a short video to encourage the citizens of Hong Kong. At the same time, the "Heart to Heart Campaign against SARS" also planned to make a similar video to encourage the people to fight against SARS. Since our ideas and theme matched, in the end we were able to make five short videos called "Heart to Heart". This was broadcast in the television stations during SARS. We thanked the Lord for bringing forth the message on blessing Hong Kong through the media. Once again we saw the amazing work of the One who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were - the word of God and His blessings continued to resound throughout the media..

Then will I purify the lips of the peoples, that all of them may call on the name of the Lord and serve him shoulder to shoulder. (Zep. 3:9)

The long-awaited "Creation TV", a Christian television station, began its broadcast on March 7. It provided various programs for the audience. Among the many programs was a family program called "Family Joy". The theme of the program included interpersonal skills, money management, parent-child communication, etc. At the end of each program a prayer was offered. We were invited to supply the 12 prayers with each prayer carrying a different theme. We brought the hearts of people before the presence of the Lord.

We gave thanks to God for pioneering new paths in the media. We would continue to contact different television and radio stations in the hope of partnering with them in the sharing of God's blessings, His word and prayer to the city. This seemed to be something great and difficult, but God said, "See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut." We believe that in the last days God will purify the lips of the peoples; that all of them may call on the name of the Lord and serve Him shoulder to shoulder, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

Wonderful Strategies

We thank God for His creative power and wonderful strategies in sustaining us. Although Hong Kong's economy was in difficulties in the past with scarce natural resources, the Lord moved us to pray for changes in the industrial and commercial sectors in the prayer handbooks published in October 1999. In June 2003, the Lord moved the Chinese government to lend a hand to Hong Kong by signing the CEPA agreement between Mainland China and Hong Kong on June 29. With the implementation of the CEPA on the first day of 2004, it attracted many high value-added industries to develop in Hong Kong, which benefitted the city in its potential for long-term development. It also unleashed a host of opportunities for Hong Kong's manufacturing industry. The Individual Travel Scheme was introduced by the Chinese government after the July 1 demonstration, and this scheme had created opportunities for the retail, catering, airline and hotel sectors. The third quarter of the economy rebounded with a 4% increase which was uncommon in the past few years. In addition, according to a survey made by the University of Hong Kong, over 70% of the people expressed optimism about 2004. We were filled with gratitude for the grace and protection of the Lord as we witnessed the amazing changes that took place in Hong Kong. The impossible was now made possible by our God who wanted us to clearly see that there is nothing too hard for Him. May all glory and praises be to our triune Living God forever!

Over the past year, we held 11 "Man can Pray to God" evangelistic meetings through different testimonies. Almost 3,900 people accepted Jesus as their Savior. These people came from different walks of life, including the elderly and the youth. Every new believer was given a suitable version of "Prayer Handbook for New Believers" that helped nurture them in their spiritual walk with God. We hope that they will be rooted in the Lord and experience a wonderful spiritual growth. Thank you Lord.

Mrs. Fan Chan
General Secretary, Jireh Fund
Chairperson, Central Decisions Committee, "Do This" Million-Hour All Nations Prayer Net