敬爱的以便以谢家人
你真伟大：十周年反思
当我坐下来回顾和记录上帝在我们教会中的作为时，我忍不住唱“我灵歌唱，赞美救主我神你真伟大！何等伟大”。我们教会 年长者比年青人多，人力和财力也缺乏， 我们面临了吸引年青人到教会来的挑战。虽然有诸多的不利因素，然而今天，当我们在欢庆教会成立 10 周年时， 虽然 处在这场肆虐的新冠病毒中， 戴着不舒服的囗罩，我们的心依然要感谢上帝的良善和信实。您已观看或将要观看的视频记录了我们教会发展的一些里程碑。我们无需为过去感到遗憾或满足。展望未来，我用首字母缩略词“耶稣JESUS”勉励各位一起参与以下实践：
喜乐Joy：圣经中的喜乐不仅仅是“有好处”的指令。事实是，没有人能免于痛苦和苦难，即使是看似最“快乐”或最积极的人。保罗劝勉我们“要常常喜乐”，作为基督徒，我们必须训练自己的心思意念，以遵守上帝，知道我们的盼望是基于基督的。我们的生命不必由我们的疾病、挣扎或痛苦所支配。作为一个教会，我们寻求以上帝的喜乐迎接我们的挑战，因为圣经说：“主的喜乐是我的力量”。
传福音Evangelism：如果我们不传福音，教会就会慢慢 失去作用。让我们竭尽全力传扬福音，并履行神托付给我们的神圣的使命。
服事 Serve： 我们透过上帝以爱彼此服事。使徒保罗称赞帖撒罗尼迦信徒如何离弃偶像归向神，服事这位又真又活的神。服事可以采取多种形式，让我们互相激励，以喜乐，自豪和不埋怨的心彼此服事。
合一Unity：在基督里合一的教会是荣耀神的。我们必须尊重他人，并时刻提醒我们将教会的利益摆在我们前面，因为我们知道，虽然基督以不同的性情和恩赐创造了你我，但我希望让我们的合一是建立在基督的根基上，永远不可做出任何伤害基督身体-教会的事。
祈求Supplication：祷告的教会是有能力的教会， 从来不会有 “过度祷告”的时候，神赋予弟兄姊妹彼此代祷是一个特权，
就像腓立比教会是以祷告开始而诞生的。在你的小组中寻找你可以依靠的祷告伙伴。
在以便以谢十周年之际，让我们在家，职场，学校所做的 一切事上拥抱耶稣，并愿我们在接下来的 10 年里重新委身于耶稣，让我们兴起建立一间充满信心，盼望，爱心，荣神益人的以便以谢。 将一切荣耀归于神！
刘世丰牧师敬上
主任牧师，
以便以谢播道会
—-
Dear Ebenezerians
How Great Thou Art: A 10th Anniversary Reflection
I do not wish to paint a rosy picture yet as I sit to recall and record God’s presence in our Church, I cannot help but sing ‘Then sings my soul My Saviour, God to Thee, How great thou Art”. We have a large proportion of seniors in our congregation, manpower and financial resources are highly stretched, and there is the difficulty of attracting the next generation. Many odds are stacked against us. Yet today as we celebrate our 10th anniversary in Church, with the discomfort of masks on our faces amidst this raging covid pandemic, our hearts are grateful to God’s goodness and faithfulness. The video you have watched or going to watch captures some milestones of our Church developments. There is no room to wallow in our regrets, neither should we rest on our laurels for the things we have done well. Moving forward, may I exhort everyone to participate in the following practices using the acronym Jesus:
Joy: Biblical joy is a command not merely a “good to have” instruction. The truth is no one is immune to pain and suffering, not even the most seemingly “joyful” or positive people. Paul exhorts us to “rejoice always” and as Christians, we must discipline our hearts and minds to tune in to God knowing our hope is anchored in Christ. Our lives do not have to be dictated by our sicknesses, struggles, or sufferings. As a church, we seek to embrace our challenges with God’s joy in our heart for the Bible says, ‘the joy of the Lord is my strength’.
Evangelism: if we do not reach out to people with the gospel, the Church will die a slow death and we may even be “barking up the wrong tree”. Let us be intentional in embracing evangelism and seek to touch lives with the gospel that is entrusted to us.
Serve: We seek to serve one another with love, and by doing so we serve God. The Apostle Paul praised the Thessalonians for turning to God from idols to serve the living and true God. Serving can take many forms and shapes, and we inspire one another to serve with joy, with pride, and without grumbling.
Unity: A church that stays united in Christ glorifies God. We must esteem others and always be reminded to put the Church’s interest before us, knowing that while God creates each of us with different temperaments and gifts, we desire to keep our unity rooted in Christ, never to indulge in words or actions that will cause harm to the body of Christ.
Supplication: A church that prays is a powerful church, there will never be a time when we “over-prayed” and we count it a privilege that God has enabled us to pray for fellow brethren, just as the church at Philippi was born out of prayers. Find prayer partners in your cell
group where you know he/she can be counted on whenever you need some prayers.
On this 10th anniversary of Ebenezer, let us embrace JESUS in all that we do, in our home, marketplace, school and may we re-dedicate ourselves as we arise to Jesus for the next 10 years, when we rise to build Ebenezer that is filled with Faith, Hope and Love; Glorifying God and Touching Lives. Soli Deo Gloria!
Rev Sherman Low,
Lead Pastor
Ebenezer Evangelical Free Church