November 2017
Dear Presence Supporters,
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)
I recently had the opportunity to teach the course “Counseling of Children and Adolescents” for Logos Evangelical Seminary’s Family Ministry. Through my interaction with students, I sensed the pressure and helplessness they feel as they serve and their desire for hope in God. I was grateful that God spoke to me through Romans 15:13 and gave me the opportunity to share the message of “Tenacity in the Family” with seminary teachers and students during their morning meeting. That day, I referenced my article from the second issue of Presence Family Magazine and shared a message of encouragement on how families can recover and become more resilient while undergoing suffering. The stories from my own life and from the lives I have encountered through my clinical background provided encouragement to these fellow ministry co-workers who also serve in Family Ministry.
This year, Presence Possibilities is offering two professional assessments: (1) Learning Styles and Multiple Intelligences and (2) College Major and Career Exploration. Not only do we serve Southern California clients but also clients residing in Northern California and Hong Kong. We have received many positive reviews. Our Monthly Parents Prayer Meeting has become a place for parents and volunteers who support family ministries to gather and support one another. Our blog articles also supply spiritual encouragement to our readers. We are very grateful for the fruits of these ministries.
During the past fourteen years of our ministry, we have faced numerous difficulties, but we thank God for guiding us through the years to our current ministry focus: integrating all that we have learned into the “Presence Life Planning Curriculum,” a holistic life education course. In 2018, we will partner with Logos Evangelical Seminary and Hong Kong Baptist Theological Seminary to provide certified leaders training courses to believers. In addition, arrangements will be made to teach Presence Life Planning Curriculum at Christian colleges as well as public high schools in Hong Kong.
For a long time, believers from different cities have also reached out for us to help meet their ministry needs. As a result, we are heading in a new direction of developing online courses to expand our trainings to achieve statewide and even global impact. The first series we will launch will be “Healthy Dialogue between Youth, Parents and Youth Workers” which is based on the topics introduced earlier this year at RE:NEW’s Intergenerational Mentorship Conference .
By trusting in the hope and promises of God, we look forward to continue expanding our ministry team and increasing our video production projects in order to meet the needs of our future educational programs. Next year, Presence will be celebrating its 15th anniversary in Northern California (2/25/18) and Southern California (9/16/18). However, we continue to face financial challenges through monthly deficits. Up until the end of October, our income was $183,185, but our expenditure was $213,000, with an outstanding payable of $34,561. If God moves you to support Presence’s family ministry and our focus on bridging the generational and cultural gaps, we ask you to please consider praying for and supporting us financially (donation checks can be made payable to “Presence”). May God bless you and your family!
In Christ,
Agnes Ip, PhD, LMFT
Founder and CEO of Presence
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
Doctor of Philosophy in Clinical Psychology