Weekly Newsletter of MARANATHA MESSENGER Private Circulation Only MARANATHA BIBLE-PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 7 April 2019 Present every man perfect in Christ Jesus (Colossians 1:28) Address: 63 Cranwell Road, Singapore 509851 E-mail: maranatha.bpc@pacific.net.sg Sunday School: 10 am Sunday English / Chinese Worship Service: 10.45 am Sunday Chinese Worship Service: 7.30 pm Wednesday Prayer Meeting: 8.00 pm Rev Colin Wong (HP : 9665 8160); Elder Daniel Tau (HP : 9761 5415); Elder Peter Ong (HP : 9626 7045) By Elder Daniel Tau Reflections of Mission Trip This is my first overseas mission trip. My objective of this mission trip is to see first-hand and experience the lives of our missionaries in the mission fields. To understand their labour, their challenges and their concerns. To be, perhaps, an encouragement to our two missionaries in their respective whitened harvest fields which the Lord has called them to. Now before I share the missionaries labour unto God, their ministry challenges and their concerns, I would like to share how the Lord has preserved, protected and provided for us. During this mission trip, the Lord has also graciously let me see His hand of protection and His ever presence with us six adults and one child. I saw the hand of protection the Lord had on our sister Puay Hong during one of the evenings when we were taking taxis to the Students Street Night Market. The taxi driver drove off without waiting for our sister to get onto the taxi. As a result, she fell backward, and, thanks be to our God that she did not sustain any scratches or injuries. How is it possible? It is almost impossible. God was certainly with her. The unseen hand of God preserved her and spared us the mission team the anguish should she suffered injuries and danger to her life. Our brother Ron Chua also shared how the Lord protected him while walking down the steps after visiting the home of Watchman Nee, which was converted to a small-scale museum of the early missionaries who went to Kuliang. He too could have suffered abrasion when he lost his footing or worst still other injuries. Again, the Lord was merciful. Truly, we serve the living God, the Great Shepherd of our souls, who watches over His sheep in their going out and coming in, preserving them always (Psalm 121:7-8). The Lord also showed us His mercy in preserving and sending medical help to our Dn Che Hwee when he caught an infection which took quite a toil on him physically. God sent His people to administer the antibiotics when we had to leave for another place. God raised him up to be able preached the sermon which was placed in his heart. And His people received much blessing from the truth preached. God also sees to it that none of us lost anything during our travelling from one city to another. 1
He also granted us travelling mercy whether we travel by planes or trains or taxis or private hires or mini-bus or crossing the roads which had many motorised riders and drivers who thought they had more rights than pedestrians. All praise to our Lord Jesus Christ! Most all, we thank our God for the chance to fellowship with our missionaries, their families, their parents, and the brothers and sisters in Christ. Despite our being from different countries and background, we were able to knit our hearts together because we are all His people, redeemed of God, of one God and Father, one Lord and Saviour, one baptism, one faith, one hope, one body and one Spirit (Ephesians 4:4-6). Praise and thank the Lord for the wonderful fellowship we had together from 8 to 18 March 2019. Our Missionaries Labour Unto God Both our missionaries have laboured faithfully unto the Lord. They have preached the Gospel of Christ in season and out of season. They proclaim the truth without fear of man, but in obedience to God s calling in their lives. They taught the word of God to the saints in their respective congregation, encouraging them in their many struggles to look to God and hope in Him alone. Both the missionaries serve not for filthy lucre or position or recognition. They serve heartily, willingly, without compulsion but only for the glory of God. They serve unceasingly and tirelessly and without a single murmur. Both missionaries are young and could have choose to do other works. They have chosen to avail themselves to the high calling of God the Great Commission of the Lord Jesus Christ - which cannot be done with human wisdom and strength. I can see they are trusting and relying on our God and their Lord to help them accomplish the task of the Great Commission. Let us remember to pray for them that the Lord s will and purpose be done in their lives in their callings and that they would remain faithful till the end. Pray for them always committing them unto the Lord. Pray that through their mission works, the seed of the Gospel is scattered far and wide, and that in God s good timing, many souls can come to know the Lord Jesus Christ and, many will be established in their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Our Missionaries Ministry Challenges and Concerns The challenge is their relatively young age one of them is his late twenties and the other just turns thirty. They are like Timothy in the Epistles to Timothy. They are young. However, their ambition is godly to serve God and His people. Their sincere love for the Lord and His people can be seen by all who interact with them. We can be part of this gospel work by constantly encouraging them and supporting them whenever there are new needs. We pray that they would be strong in the Lord and are able to weather all trials and tribulations with God s grace. Both have this concern - they must constantly watch over their back when they do the work of the Lord because of the society they are living in which is not so agreeable to the Way the Truth and the Life. Fear at time can prevent them from serving their best or hinder their labour unto the Lord. We must lift them daily before the throne of mercy. They would have to find a suitable place for worship and fellowship every other few years. My understanding from this trip is that every other few years, they would have to find another place and relocate. They do so partly due to the cost of rental and for security reason. People around them will notice their weekly gathering for worship and may report to the local authority. This can affect the fellowship already built up. 2
Transportation is another challenge. People may miss the worship service or fellowship because of distance and the weather. As such, our preacher in Dongbei needs to fetch them weekly to the service and back home after the service. Finally, there is a need for more local co-labourers who can be trusted on, who will co-labour together with them unto the Lord and not for self-gain or personal benefit. Much prayer is needed here. MBPC can help them by our support in prayer and in our love gift to them. Conclusion Despite the challenges in their service unto God, I can see faithfulness and perseverance in both our missionaries and others who are serving there. They have put their lives on the altar of sacrifice for the Kingdom of God, let us kneel before God and pray for them without ceasing. They have given up riches and wealth of this world for the gospel sake, let us bless them with the providence and blessing God has bestowed on us. Together, let us put our hands to the plough and pray that God will accomplish His works in and through our brothers in the mission field and here in Maranatha Bible-Presbyterian Church. Amen. By Dn Hong Che Hwee *********************************** A team of five members from our church led by Elder Daniel Tau departed for China on 8 March 2019 (Friday) for a mission trip. Our first stop was to visit Preacher Barnabas and his family. Upon arrival, Pr Barnabas and his co-labourer Preacher Chen greeted us warmly. The same night we attended a night fellowship and Deacon Che Hwee screened and briefly expounded on a video regarding the errors of evolution. On the second day (Saturday), the team visited the home of a young girl in the morning. She has since stopped attending the church for some months and we encouraged her to return to worship the Lord. In the afternoon, the team visited a brother s minimart. His shop is situated in a technical institute. In the canteen adjourning the minimart, we had a time of Bible study led by sister Mui Leng. Pr Barnabas expressed his wish to hold regular Bible studies there every Saturday and God willing share the gospel widely to the students of the technical institute. On the fourth day (Sunday), we had Sabbath worship service early at 9.30am. Pr Barnabas chaired and Elder Daniel Tau preached on the Holy Spirit Strengthening with Dn Che Hwee acting as translator. During the service, brother Ron Chua and sister Puay Hong testified about their conversion. Sunday school followed after service. Dn Che Hwee again screened and expounded the video on evolution. That night, the team gathered back at the house church for a sumptuous dinner prepared by Pr Barnabas motherin-law, and this was followed by a time of Bible fellowship led by Elder Daniel Tau and translated by sister Mui Leng. A distressed sister shared about the spiritual woes her middle-aged son experienced since his teens and we were all much distraught. The following two days were mostly a pleasant time of sightseeing as Pr Barnabas showed us around and brought us to places of great eats. The team hosted a buffet dinner on the last night to thank and encourage the missionaries and their families. We gave them a token of financial support. Our next stop was to visit Preacher Timothy and his family. Upon arrival on 13 March 2019 3
(Wednesday), the team was warmly greeted by Pr Timothy and Reverend and Mrs Dong at the airport. We visited Rev Dong s Bible training school and then adjourned for dinner. The next day (Thursday) was one of sightseeing, and that night we took a high speed rail to another city. On Friday we toured that city, and visited the church of a Rev Lee whom we were to meet the following morning (Saturday). Then it was another train ride to Pr Timothy s residence city. That evening at 5.30pm we attended a worship service at his church. Pr Timothy chaired and Elder Daniel Tau shared on the message Do you have a Friend?, being ably translated by sister Hazel Hong who also shared her testimony. After the service, we were treated to a wonderful dinner hosted by Pr Timothy, his wife and parents-in-law. Sabbath day quickly followed. In the morning the team visited the home of a disabled sister in a village. We were invited to homecooked dinner in the evening, and then at 6.30pm we attended the Sabbath worship service. Again Pr Timothy chaired, and this time Dn Che Hwee preached the message Jesus of Nazareth, why should I believe in Him?. Immediately after the service ended, the team took a 3-hour bus ride back to the city which we arrived on Wednesday. There we stayed overnight in an airport hotel, and on following morning took a return flight back to Singapore. We thank God for His protection for everyone throughout this trip, and also for a blessed time of fellowship and encouragement for our brethren in China. We pray that God will greatly aid and flourish the gospel work of our two zealous missionaries, Pr Barnabas and Timothy. By Hazel Hong *********************************** Thank God for the opportunity to participate in the second half of the mission trip. James and me actually decided to join the team at the last minute and due to the trip clashing with James' school term. We are really grateful that the school approved James application for leave from school really fast. Although we were only able to join for the last five days of the trip, we enjoyed the warm fellowship with brethren in the different cities in the region who serve in different areas e.g. training pastors and preachers, establishing a church that serves villagers and people living in urban areas. The most memorable part of the trip for me was the chance to visit one of the sister s home in the village, where she lives with her husband and disabled daughter (a neurological condition with nerve damage, so she s unable to walk). Although her daughter lives with a physical disability and is unable to read the Bible (did not have the chance to go to school due to her disability), the Lord has blessed her a good mind and faith in the Lord. She understands God s Word through listening the audio Bible and through the sharing by her mother and in church. Despite not having much financially, (they live near the waste dumping land, and her husband is a used metals waste collector) we see the simple faith and godly wisdom in this sister. She shared with us that she has been waking up early in the morning (at 4am, to pray for more than 1 hour) to pray earnestly for God to guide the church as it is finding a suitable worship venue. During that visit, Elder Daniel Tau shared from Matthew 5:3-16 to encourage this sister and her daughter on God s blessings. We continue to pray for this sister, her family and the brethren for the strengthening of their faith and joy in the Lord no matter what circumstances they may face. I also want to specially thank God for helping Che Hwee to recover from a serious bacteria 4
infection during the trip. We were really blessed to have the care of our teammates - sisters Mui Leng, Puay Hong, brother Ron Chua, Elder Daniel Tau, who offered all their medicine, herbal remedies, taking care of James, prayers, care and love, while I focused on looking after a very feverish Che Hwee for 4 days, bringing him to the hospital twice for antibiotics drip. By the grace of God, Che Hwee could share the Word on Sunday as planned, and also helped prepared the translation of Elder Daniel Tau s sharing so that I just needed to step in and read the translation! (I would not have been able to translate properly any other way!) Thank God that all things work together for His glory. ++++++++++ Theme for the Quarter : THE MINISTRY OF ONE ANOTHER English Worship Service Rev Colin Wong speaks on Accept One Another (Scripture Text : Romans 15:7; Responsive Text : Psalm 133) [End of MM] 5