Please pray for
Richmond Chinese
EFC
– our LPD Church of the Week
Planted by “founding members,” sent from Vancouver Chinese EFC in 1983, Richmond Chinese EFC is located on Number Five Road.
“Number Five Road” is also known as the “Highway to Heaven,” as one can find places of worship for all of the “world religions”along this road. While we acknowledge that we live in a pluralistic society, where many religions might share similar moral values, there is only one faith that addresses mankind’s sin and provides a way of salvation, provided and paid in full by God Himself. This is Good News!
We are thankful for the faithful witness of Richmond Chinese EFC through the years, and for their ministry in both Cantonese and English. Pray for them as they minister to the community of Richmond, in which more than 50% of the population is of Chinese descent. As there are more than 300,000 Canadian Citizens living in Hong Kong, we are anticipating many will choose to return to Canada in the months ahead. This trend has been growing as Hong Kong has been facing a limitation of freedoms.
We are thankful that Rev. Dr. Wong Tin Yat and his wife, Dr. Kim Lai Ng have joined the church as senior pastor in November. They join the pastoral team of Edmond (Grace) Fong, Kwok Yin (Joey) Ho and Will (Christine) Burgess.
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Bloom Where You are Planted – part 1
Have you ever wished that you could minister and live somewhere else? If we are honest, no doubt we have all have had these feelings at one time or another, especially in this season – this prolonged season of COVID. Wouldn’t it be nice to just go somewhere far away?
We are all weary. We are all tired of changing and restrictive Provincial Health Orders as we enter the third year of this pandemic, however necessary they may be. I feel it, and I know that you do too. Ministry can feel like wading through mud up to our knees – we can make progress, but it takes so much more effort than walking on solid ground.
In reading, “My Utmost for His Highest” early on Wednesday AM, I was encouraged and challenged by the reminder of my need to simply abide in and trust Christ. Oswald Chambers writes, “Consider the lilies of the field…” (Matthew 6:28). They grow where they are planted. Many of us refuse to grow where God plants us. Therefore, we don’t take root anywhere. Jesus said if we would obey the life of God within us, He would look after all other things.” (Here is the link to the whole reading: ( https://utmost.org/look-again-and-consecrate/ ).
As I have pondered this simple (and familiar) analogy of lilies, I recognize that they need to grow wherever they are planted – by humans, by wind, by animals or by water. Plants do not choose where they are planted, and they must grow, bear fruit and reproduce wherever they find themselves, and in whatever beneficial or hostile environmental circumstances they face. So like us – wherever God has planted us.
In recent weeks, I have experienced a lot of people who are weary, “grumpy” or disengaged. Some of these are pastors and leaders, and some seem to have gone AWOL, reclusive, working from home in isolation. I get it. I wrestle with the same emotions, and sometimes wish that I could simply “fix” COVID and get on with life. I can’t, and so must turn to our Lord, just as He has invited me to freely do. In this I find both freedom and hope.
Christ’s invitation is to simply come to Him, to lean on Him and to trust Him (Matt. 11:27,28) – and He will take care of the rest. As simplistic as this sounds, it is true.
Neither you nor I have the abilities, gifts or methodologies to flourish through this season of COVID. If we attempt this ourselves, we will fail. We will just mirror what others around us are doing, and in this we have nothing unique to offer.
C.S. Lewis, in his book, “Mere Christianity,” writes of the Christian witness, “The Christian is in a different position from other people who are trying to be good. They hope, by being good, to please God if there is one; or — if they think there is not — at least they hope to deserve approval from good men. But the Christian thinks any good he does comes from the Christ-life inside him. He does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us; just as the roof of a greenhouse does not attract the sun because it is bright, but becomes bright because the sun shines on it.”
The mission of our LPD is, “By God’s grace, to encourage and resource our growing family of churches to reflect Jesus Christ.”
My prayer for myself, for you, and for your church is that in this season of COVID, we might learn to rest in and trust Christ, and that because of this, we will reflect Christ to our congregations and our communities. In a world so disconnected and isolated, we have the opportunity to practice the “one anothers” of loving one another, encouraging one another, bearing with one another… in the Name and in the power of Christ.
Rather than turning to surfing our smartphones and computers, looking for distractions, let’s look to Christ. As the writer to Hebrew states: Surrounded then as we are by these serried ranks of witnesses, let us strip off everything that hinders us, as well as the sin which dogs our feet, and let us run the race that we have to run with patience, our eyes fixed on Jesus the source and the goal of our faith. For he himself endured a cross and thought nothing of its shame because of the joy he knew would follow his suffering; and he is now seated at the right hand of God’s throne. Think constantly of him enduring all that sinful men could say against him and you will not lose your purpose or your courage. (Hebrews 12:1-3 – J.B. Phillips).
Pastors and leaders, let’s accept Christ’s invitation to abide in Him, and before all else, guard our hearts. Let’s bloom where God has planted us, and bear fruit as He empowers us and ministers through us. Our churches will go no further than we can lead them, so let’s focus on our Lord and His call and live for Him where He has planted us. As go we, so will go our churches.
A psychologist recently spoke of our collective loss of community during COVID. ZOOM facilitates “conducting business and meetings,” but does not allow for the causal and more intimate conversations and interactions over coffee, in the foyer or through hospitality. While we can conduct the “business” of the church online, we cannot effectively build and function as a team or build a sense of community and unified vision while working in isolation.
Your church is discouraged and weary. Your team is discouraged and weary. Your community is discouraged and weary. They look to you as their leaders for both hope and direction. Let’s point them to Jesus – better yet, let’s invite them to follow us towards rest in Him, or as Paul puts it, “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.”
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COVID UPDATE
There are no new mandates for churches this week. Please see the ongoing policies for worship services : covid-19/info/restrictions#new
Mask Mandate: Masks are required for all indoor settings including faith services. The mask is required for everyone 5 years of age and older, and includes choirs. Masks can be removed to speak or pray up front if social distancing is maintained, or for communion.
Gathering and Events: Faith Services must now limit capacity to 50% of seating capacity unless the church decides to require everyone in attendance to provide proof of vaccine. In calculating seating capacity it would be wise to use the load occupancy of the facility in which the service will be held. (This number is the seating capacity, as determined by the Fire Marshal, and posted in your church). This number will in most cases be higher than the number of seats you have set up in your church.
Here is the information from the BC Centre for Disease Control: bccdc.ca/health-info/faith-based-spiritual-and-worship-practices
Here is a link to the Provincial Health Orders on Masks, as updated on Monday, December 6: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/covid-19/info/restrictions#masks
Please check our LPD Website to keep up to date with the latest regulations and protocols: https://www.lpd-efcc.ca/covid-19/
For personal assistance regarding COVID Policy and the Canadian Recovery Hiring Program (CHRP) and COVID Protocols, please contact Josephine at our district office.
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Upcoming LPD Events:
Missions Central Serve
January 28-30
Discovery Bible Study
Bible Studies that Transform and Multiply
Allen Chang (The Steveston Project) will be leading this seminar, and we encourage you to attend. This approach to evangelism and discipleship is being used in both church plants and local churches. Please also pray for Allen as he presents!
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LPD Annual Conference
Saturday, March 5, 2022, 9:30AM- 2:00PM
at
Grace Hanin Community Church.
We will be meeting in person and following all COVID Protocols in effect at that time.
This will be a time of farewell for Karen and me as your District Superintendent and the opportunity for you to meet and elect Evans Hundermark as our new Superintendent. Here is a letter of introduction from our LPD Chair, Randy Lemke:
Please register at:
https://forms.gle/BXqD5eT57URbHtmPA
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The Trinity and Why It Matters
EFCC Theological Symposium
February 24,25
–plan to join with others throughout the EFCC for this two-day online symposium.
for details and registration information, please see the link below:
https://www.efccm.ca/wordpress/2021-theology-conference/
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EFCC Annual Report for Credentialed Pastors and Ministry Workers
If you have not done so already, it is urgent that you do so today.
Here is the link to complete this online:
