22 ^nd January 2007

Dear Lord,

We had the problem of SARS here in Hong Kong some time ago. Now we are worried about the possibility of the bird flu. It has been found in Japan recently and, although the two birds found here in Hong Kong only had H5, not H5N1which may lead to human infection, the newspaper reports made it sound frightening.

Lord, please protect us from fear. Please help us to understand that at the moment we are not at risk. Help us to remember to wash our hands before eating, and to stay away from wild birds and live poultry like chickens and ducks. These are commonsense actions at all times.

Please help people in poor countries who may not have the understanding to keep clean, and who do not have good doctors and hospitals to go to when they are sick. Help us to understand how fortunate we are, and open our hearts to help those in need.