January 2012
2 posts
“The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him,
and he makes known to...”
– We may be too quick to separate our fear of Him from our friendship with Him.
I'm so bad at this...
So much has happened over the past few weeks, but I never know when to update and when to keep silent… I’m still trying to understand the balance between leading by example and serving in private.
At any rate, I wanted you all to know of a new ministry that I’ve been working with in starting a school to train people to reach the unreached people groups around the world.
...
December 2011
1 post
November 2011
1 post
I’m Finally Obeying, and I Love It!
This is really sad… Many years ago I was deeply convicted while preaching through the book of Luke. When I got to Luke 14:12-14, I knew what I was supposed to do. I planned on doing it. I just never got around it. Sound familiar?
In this passage, Jesus is speaking to the man who was hosting Him for a banquet…
He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a...
October 2011
3 posts
EXCITING TIMES!
After a great time of searching, learning, experimenting… I’m excited to begin a new phase in my life. While I’ve been ministering in a lot of different places and will continue to do so, I am now helping to launch a new local ministry here in San Francisco. I have throughly enjoyed the past couple of weeks, participating in a ministry that makes me feel alive and at peace....
September 2011
1 post
August 2011
4 posts
On a bit of a high right now.
I spent the past couple of days participating and speaking at the City Impact conference in San Francisco. 700 of us (sorry to the hundreds turned away- we ran out of space) walked around the streets of the Tenderloin district passing out hot meals, clothes, groceries, cutting hair, visiting apartments, washing feet, and various other acts of love. Mainly, we sat and listened to the stories...
Francis on FACEBOOK or TWITTER?
FYI- I don’t facebook or twitter, so any Francis Chan tweets or facebook pages didn’t come from me. I’ll be sure to let everyone know from this website when I choose to do so.
I have nothing against those who make pages or tweets in my name, but just want you to know that none of them are from me.
“Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the...”
– John 11:40
I gave up on unity.
Over the years, I’ve been convicted by passages that describe the unity Christ wants in His church (John 17, 1 John 4, 1 Corinthians 12, Philippians 2, Acts 2…). But whenever I’ve made efforts toward bringing believers together, I run into seemingly insurmountable barriers. I don’t know how to overcome the differences in theology, convictions, and personalities. So I...
July 2011
2 posts
It was a pretty emotional morning for me. My wife and I dropped off our oldest daughter at the airport this morning. She’s 15 and flying to Thailand by herself to work at a rescue home for the next month. It’s something she has begged me to let her do since our visit to Thailand last fall.
All of the expected fears filled my mind occasionally, but they were overcome by other...
What are you doing?
This seems to be the first question everyone asks when they see me, so I’m posting the ministries I am currently involved with…
1) I’m working with my friends David Platt and Mark Beuving in developing a discipleship tool that will help equip believers to make disciples. I am very excited about this, as I believe the greatest need in the American church is for all who call themselves...
June 2011
5 posts
“2:1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked,...”
– Just in case you didn’t have your Bible handy…
BUT GOD...
Had an amazing time this morning memorizing Ephesians 2:1-10. I was in tears as I meditated on the words of verse 4 “but God, rich in mercy…”
So much I want to say about this passage. I wish I could preach it right now, but rather than writing a sermon for you to read, I encourage you to meditate on it yourself. God is the Hero, the Saviour, and all attention should be given...
Focusing on Scripture
I’ve been convicted about my lack of scripture memorization over the past few years, so I decided to make it a competition. That always seems to motivate me… I’m racing my oldest daughter to see who can memorize Ephesians first. It has been SO GOOD to be so focused on scripture throughout the day. One section of chapter 1 stands out above the rest at this point of my life. ...
May 2011
15 posts
Claire Love Chan
Our family welcomed our newest addition, Claire Love Chan, at 7:44 pm last night (5/30/11) weighing in at 7 lbs. 8 oz. and 19 inches long. Lisa and baby are doing great!
keep praying for our brothers and sisters in Iran! →
Our baby should be born any day now. Pray for Lisa. I love her so much. Sometimes I get so caught up in my “mission” that I forget about the pressures placed on her. Not easy being a mother of four and moving to a new place while carrying a baby in your belly!
Crazy and wonderful times for the Chan family.
April Update
(Post from April 12, 2011)
Do Not Forget Them
I woke up today at 3am, burdened for our brothers and sisters imprisoned in Iran. Please continue praying for them. If you go to www.elam.com, there are good thoughts on what to pray. Let’s pray for them the way we would want others to pray for us if the tables were turned.
God’s Prompting
I don’t know how to explain it, but I believe strongly that...
“Oh God, you are my God; earnestly, I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh...”
– Psalm 63:1
Deserving Attention (Part 2)
(Post from March 14, 2011)
Our friends in Iran are still in prison, so please keep praying for them… Some have been released but others are still suffering. Much of their time is spent in solitary confinement. Please Pray. Here’s a link to read more:
http://www.elam.com
As far as my life, things continue to go supernaturally well. God has been showing me His grace and love...
Deserving Attention
(Post from February of 2011)
Please take the time to read and pray about the following articles. We need to be outspoken about these events and encourage everyone to be praying.
http://www.elam.com/articles/70-Christians-Arrested/
http://www.elam.com/articles/202-arrests,-33-still-in-prison/
I have plenty going on in my life, but until my brothers and sisters are released, I feel silly writing...
Constant Change
(Post from January of 2012)
Well, we moved to San Francisco last week… I believe this is where God wants my family and me at this time. We will spend the next few weeks learning about the various ministries in this area. I want to be an encouragement to the different ministers out here. Sometimes, we can too quickly start ministries and hurt existing ministries. Due to our consumer mindset,...
“Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think,...”
– Ephesians 3:20
Beyond Expectations
(Post from December of 2010)
It has been an amazing couple of months as you probably saw from Lisa’s updates. I don’t even know where to start. Once again, God far exceeded my expectations. He has a way of doing that…
Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us… Ephesians 3:20
There is far too much to say. I won’t...
Still in Thailand (update from Lisa)
(Post from November of 2010)
Obviously…I am not meant to blog. I allow far too much time to pass, and too many things happen in the space of that time! I cannot believe December is here and we have been gone for six weeks now.
Our time with the children at Life Impact and in Thailand in general has been a true trip favorite for the whole family. Watching my older girls work so hard to help...
In Thailand (update from Lisa)
(Post in November of 2010)
We have been here at the children’s home now for 5 or 6 days (I’m losing track) and we are just LOVING it. What a blessing to love and serve these kids! Each child has a unique and tragic story, but to see them giggle and run around, you would never know it. Some were rescued moments before their mothers sold them to sex traffickers from Bangkok, some were...
Still in India (update from Lisa)
(Post from October of 2010)
I guess I should write something every day so I don’t feel like I need to write a novel to fill you all in. But alas, that does not seem feasible so I will try to hit the “highlights”. First off, you can be praying for Francis and Rachel and Mercy. They left at 3:00 this morning for a LONG journey to the persecuted believers gathering (they are...
In India (update from Lisa)
(Post from October of 2010)
This is just a short update to let you all know we are alive and well. I can’t thank God enough for the journey over here… it was SO much easier than I expected. The little kids were awesome, traveling for well over thirty hours (lay-overs included).
The people of India are so happy to have visitors, especially little children. Zeke and Ellie are a...
Living the Dream!!!
(Post from Sept. of 2010)
I woke up this morning realizing that I am living the dream! In other words, I do not know how my life could be any better. I am leaving for Asia with my family of six. We love God, love each other, and are excited to minister to people in need. We are free to go anywhere His Spirit leads and for as long as His Spirit leads. What more can a guy ask for? I know it...