In just a few hours, we will be
marking the end to the year 2006. Looking back at the past year, I am sure that
everyone has a good sense of the many graces God has bestowed on our church.
The writer wishes at this time to recall with you all the things that have
happened this year, so as to inspire your thanksgiving and praises to God.
1.
The
building of the church completed in a debt-free state ¡V Thank God! After many
years of planning and a whole year of construction, we were finally able to
move in March into this elegant and spacious assembly hall for our gatherings.
On March 5, we held a ¡§Church Dedication and 11th Anniversary
Thanksgiving Assembly¡¨. At the
beginning of the year, the church still owed $630,000 in building fees. But in
April, God converted our debt into a surplus through the help of a member in
Christ. It is truly the miraculous work of God.
2. Change of meeting schedule ¡V Beginning from the move into the new assembly building, some new changes were implemented for our meeting schedule on Sunday. After months of observation, we see that these changes have indeed brought benefits to us that allowed the church as a whole to develop spiritually.
3.
The
coordination of the caring and nurturing ministries ¡V Because of the changes in
the assembly venue and schedule, the brothers and sisters were glad to submit
to the leadership of the pastoral staff by fulfilling their responsibilities at
various Sunday duty positions, complementing each other and serving faithfully.
Thank God! He continues to entrust precious souls to us. Through the caring of
new visitors, and the New Believers¡¦ and Faith Seekers¡¦ Classes and Truth
Development Classes for both Mandarin and Cantonese speakers, we see the grace
of the Lord at work in increasing the attendance numbers.
4.
Breakthroughs
in adult and children¡¦s Sunday School ¡V Another matter that deserves our
thanksgiving is the development of the Sunday School ministry. Because of the
lack of space and undesirable time allocation, the attendance at adult Sunday
School in the beginning of the year was low. Thank God! After moving into the
new building, space, time and human will all came together. We even established
the Mandarin and English Sunday Schools and there has been an increase in
overall numbers.
5.
The
establishment of the Caleb Fellowship ¡V Since the church created this seniors¡¦
fellowship in April, God worked in the hearts of the elderly members. They have
a wonderful fellowship, and the members are willing to learn to intercede in
prayer and care for each other.
6.
Spreading
the Gospel all over Richmond ¡V From April to June, around 30 members of the
church joined in the ¡§Spreading the Gospel all over Richmond¡¨ event conducted
by the Short Term Missionary Centre. From July to September, there were
follow-through visits. Thank God! We had an opportunity to connect with over
700 people and testify to them about the Gospel of the Heavenly Kingdom. Some
converted or re-asserted their willingness to follow the Lord because of this,
and joined our church¡¦s meetings.
7.
Members
dedicating their service ¡V This year, God moved several members amongst us to
dedicate themselves to be equipped by enrolling full time into the seminary or
Short Term Missionary Centre. Please continue to intercede for brother Alfa Pau
and sisters Josephine Hung, Amy Li and Rosita Chow.
8.
Eight
members were baptized into the church ¡V The church conducted a Baptism Ceremony
on July 2. We are thankful for the advancement of these members in their
spiritual journey.
9.
English
Summer Camp ¡V The church held its first English Summer Camp in August. May God
continue to bestow His grace on our youth and teens.
10.
The
members served as one ¡V Thank God! In the past year, the brothers and sisters
all loved the House of the Lord very much, and served with one heart, whether
it was in the Church-building Committee, the process of moving, production of
the church-building commemorative booklet and ¡§100 Reasons for Thanksgiving in
our Church-building¡¨, the Commissioning and Preaching Network, the Letters of
Recommendation of Salvation, each month¡¦s Gospel outreach, support for prayers
of intercession, church finances, charitable care and support, the children¡¦s
ministry, the English and Mandarin ministries, outreach for the Short Term
Missionary Centre, the fellowship ministries, administration and property
management, or telecommunications and audio/video etc.
Finally, the writer would like to encourage everyone and
praise God for His presence and blessings in the past year together with you
through a Psalm. ¡§Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my
inmost being, praise His holy name. Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not
all His benefits.¡¨
(Psalm 103:1-2)
By: Daniel
To