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George Mason UBF

I. 2013 Annual Review

When I look back on this year, God led my life with Genesis Bible study and message. While I made every effort to survive in this difficult world, I had saved and established my house of flesh so deep, high and strong like a powerful Jericho wall from my young childhood. I kept gratifying my flesh desires and I lived as an enemy of the cross. But I did not know where I was as a blind sinner. Through Genesis Bible study and messages, God shone the gospel light upon my darkness and broke down my darkness in all aspects of life. I lost my job twice this year while I had three children. Through this discipline, God broke down my empty pride and taught me that I could not get any kind of job out of my own wisdom and strength. Finally, I could not but surrender myself to God confessing that I needed nothing but the grace of God. This was a turning point in my life. When God gave me His grace, I could work at the FBI HQ without even a job interview. When God gave me His grace, I could work at Boeing which was impossible for my clearance update. When God gave me His grace, I could work with 100 fellow workers more talented than me. God dropped me into a lion's dean so that my spirit became very poor to rely on God Almighty alone. In this way God crucified my flesh life and Christ Jesus was being made alive as spiritual reality in my practical daily life.

While I was living in my deep darkness, I made so many mistakes and left so many failures in my family life. I suffered endlessly with a sense of guilt and condemnation. By God's grace, I realized that I was in deep darkness to point my fingers at others according to my own standards. In reality, my own darkness was much greater than anyone else’s. I was just an enemy of the cross and spiritually blind not to see myself. However, the Sovereign God opened my spiritual eyes to see Missionary Hannah as a heavenly treasure and my three children as heavenly angels. I am the most blessed man and happy man because God is leading me to Christ Jesus very realistically and practically through my heavenly treasure and heavenly angels.

When I look at our ministry, I confess that God did it all. For quite a few years we served George Mason ministry as a single family. Last year, God brought Missionary Joshua Hwang's family with four children. As of July of this year, God brought Missionary Paul Zin’s family with two children. Missionary Paul came to us as a professor at George Mason University. For the sake of the gospel the Sovereign God allowed me to meet Missionary Joshua and Missionary Paul's family. The Sovereign God gave me a great privilege and honor to co-work with them. I was so happy to see that the gospel was planted very personally while they were going through hardships and trials. God granted a full time permanent job to Missionary Joshua at the patent law firm after two years of joblessness, hardship and trials. Missionary Paul survived the first semester which is well known to be the most difficult time as a post doctor. We have very different backgrounds, but I could see that God was helping us to be connected in Christ Jesus with one mind and one heart. We could share our sincere struggles through our personal fellowship. This fellowship built up a healthy spiritual environment and atmosphere. They are my brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus much closer than my own blood line brothers and sisters. By the gospel God himself was building his church little by little. This seems like a small beginning, but I believe that God is building our church on the Rock.

This year God blessed us to re-join as a campus student organization and reserve Sunday worship room and Bible study room. This created a wonderful spiritual environment for all GMU ministry.

God enabled William, Wendy, Zack, Indiana, and Mike Chamber to attend Sunday worship service as regular members. They are growing as disciples of Jesus through one to one Bible study and Sunday worship service. Quite a number of Bible students occasionally attended worship service from time to time.
God helped our ministry to co-work with College Park ministry for Easter conference, harvest festival and Christmas worship. God also helped us to attend the International Summer Bible Conference with six missionaries and three Bible students.
This year, one growing Bible student, Chamber left our ministry after five years. When I saw our Bible students, God planted faith in the Sovereign God himself. Christ Jesus is the Head of Church. He himself is bringing his sheep and feeding them with the words of God. My role is to continue to receive God's grace and share it with them as a witness of God's grace.

II. 2014 Vision and Strategy

1. 2014 Key Verse: For this new year God gave me a spiritual desire to know Christ based on Philippians 3:10-11: “I want to know Christ – yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.” In short, God wants me to love the way of the cross. I am convinced that the way of the cross is the way to be connected to the reality of the living Christ. I believe that God will surely shine the gospel light upon my darkness through his words. I pray that I may continue to bring it to Christ Jesus and meet the reality of Christ as the living God.
2. Bible study: We will continue to study Genesis.
3. Conference and Bible school plans: We will participate in Easter Conference and summer conference and harvest Festival and Christmas worship service with Washington chapter
4. Our chapter ministry strategy is to receive God's grace very personally. Then God will use us and reveal His glory as his witnesses. God will surely bless our one to one Bible study and discipleship ministry.

One word: “I want to know Christ”

by M. David Chung