2023.07.08/09

列宣家的弟兄姊妹大家好。感謝神，能夠在這裡和你們分享在這一段日子中所經歷的。

大家可能知道，在過去的兩個星期，我們一家五口回到台灣探望師母的父母。而在這一段旅程中，師母和我也順便探望在當地服事的宣教士。（不好意思，由於特殊的原因，我不能在這裡分享他們的名字）

宣道會嘉義堂剛剛開始在一個新的地方聚會。師母和我來到當中，非常高興看見列宣家所支持的宣教士。我很好奇為什麼會選擇在嘉義呢？原來，在嘉義設立宣道會的目的，就是希望能夠接觸到一班當地的農戶和一些在社會上比較貧窮的人，讓這些人都能夠聽聞福音。我對這個異象非常感動，因為要做到這一點，必須先要成為當地的人的鄰舍，也就是說，宣教士的生活是非常簡單的。除了生活條件不是太好，我們的宣教士還要學習使用當地的詞彙。雖然他（她）們會講國語，但是，用的詞彙就要重新學習。除了要重新學習詞彙和過一個非常簡單的生活之外，我們的宣教士還要學習使用摩托車代步。他（她）們所擺上的，不是一點，而是全部，包括孩子們也需要重新適應。但是，他（她）們卻是喜樂的。為什麼呢？因為知道服事的目的是什麼。

在當天的崇拜中，其中一位宣教士的分享就見證了這一點，那就是他（她）們所做的是要把好消息分享給當地的人。這個好消息就是耶穌基督的救恩。如果是好消息的話，就不要太計較現在所面對的。無論環境有多困難，他（她）們一家還是義無反顧擺上一切，願意用生命來與當地的人交流，把好消息分享。

當我們詢問他（她）們需要什麼的時候，他（她）們所想的就是如何能夠讓教會提供更多的設施來與當地的人聯繫。譬如說，希望能夠有一個地方讓小朋友可以學習聖經。所想的不是自己的需要，而是如何用不同的方法來分享福音。

我們如何看待福音呢？對我們來說，福音是好消息嗎？我們如何回應這個好消息呢？我們都是因為這個好消息而成為神的兒女。我們有想過如何把這個好消息傳遞出去嗎？在我們的宣教士的心中，不是如何讓孩子生活好一點或者是有好的教育，而是要讓宣道會嘉義堂成為福音的渠道。師母和我很願意成為他（她）們的夥伴，用各種方法來支援和鼓勵他（她）們的服事。我期盼你也會有同樣的感動。如果想知道如何協助在嘉義的福音事工，請和我或師母聯繫。

願神祝福你們，願神祝福列宣家。

主僕，
劉展權牧師

2023.07.01/02

from the pastor’s desk :Rev. Francis Chan

Dear brothers and sisters of RCAC,

God promised Abram: “I will make you a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing to the others.” God then instructed him to follow his lead. The Bible does not reveal what Abram was thinking at that time. He, who was apparently obedient and trusting, took his wife Sarai, nephew Lot, servants and livestock, and left Haran for the Promised Land. He was then 75 years old.

Upon arrival, there was a famine. Without asking God, Abram took his people to Egypt, where there was still food. Because he was afraid that the Egyptians would kill him for coveting Sarai’s beauty, he asked his wife to tell outsiders that she was his sister. Because of his selfishness, cowardice, stupidity, and little faith in God, Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, had almost slept with Sarai. Yet God revealed the truth to Pharaoh, and Pharaoh sent Sarai back to Abram. After returning to Canaan, God promised Abram that He would give to his descendants the land from the river of Egypt to the river Euphrates. After 10 years, Sarai still bore him no child. Abram’s problem of little faith broke out again. Without asking God and listening only to Sarai’s advice, he slept with her maidservant Hagar, who gave birth to Ishmael. He was then 86 years old.

God appeared to Abram again when he was 99 years old and asked him to change his name to Abraham, meaning that he would become the father of all nations, and Sarai also changed his name to Sarah. Through circumcision, God made an eternal covenant with Abraham and his descendants, giving them the land of Canaan as their eternal inheritance, and the LORD God would be their eternal God. However, the descendants of Abraham who were entitled to this covenant could only come from Sarah, his legal wife. When Abraham was 100 years old, the God’s promise came to pass, and Sarah gave birth to Isaac. When Abraham lived in Gerar, he also told the locals that Sarah was his sister. Before long, King Abimelek of Gerar brought Sarah to the palace. God again intervened and protected Sarah’s innocence.

All these things tell us that Abraham was not an extraordinary person with the strongest faith at all times but an ordinary person whose faith could become weak from time to time. However, when he experienced God’s salvation and fulfillment of God’s promises time after time, his faith in God grew stronger and stronger. In the ultimate test, because he believed that God could raise the dead, he obeyed God’s command and offered Isaac as a sacrifice. Of course, God was only testing his faith and obedience. In the end, the angel prevented him from killing Isaac; God prepared a lamb for him as a sacrifice; and he was even called in the Bible father of the faith and a friend of God.

Dear brothers and sisters, are you struggling in your journey of faith? Do you have doubts about God’s leading in your life? Are you hesitant to place your life entirely in God’s hands? Please do not feel guilty or afraid. Accept the fact that you are only an ordinary person, firmly believe that God’s grace is always sufficient, continually follow God’s leading, and continually experience God’s presence… and you will be just fine.

Thanksgiving Sharing: After more than 20 years of prayers, my father-in-law/Winnie’s dad accepted the Lord in Hong Kong at around 1:30 pm on June 30. Winnie and I would like to express our gratitude to all brothers and sisters who have interceded for us in the past. May all glory and praise be to the loving and faithful God.

His Servant
Pastor Francis Chan

2023.07.01/02

親愛的列宣家弟兄姊妹：

耶和華上帝應許亞伯蘭：“我必使你成為大國，賜福給你，使你的名為大，你也必使別人得福。”上帝要他離開本地、本族、父家，到祂指示的地方去。聖經未有描述亞伯蘭當時的心情，表面上順服、信靠的他，就帶着妻子撒萊，姪兒羅得，僕婢和牲畜，浩浩蕩蕩離開哈蘭，向應許之地進發。當時他75歲。

到達後遇上饑荒，未有求問上帝，亞伯蘭決定帶領族人到埃及，因為那裏仍然有糧。由於他害怕埃及人因垂涎撒萊的美色而殺害自己，就要求妻子告訴外人自己是他的妹子。因為他的自私、懦弱、愚蠢和對上帝的小信，埃及王法老險些與撒萊同房。就在千鈞一髮之際，上帝啟示法老王，法老王就將撒萊送回亞伯蘭身邊。回到迦南地之後，上帝應許亞伯蘭，要把從埃及河直到幼發拉底河之地賜給他的後裔。等候10年，撒萊仍未有所出。亞伯蘭的小信再次發作，未有求問上帝，只聽從妻子的主意，就與婢女夏甲同房，生了以實瑪利。當時他86歲。

上帝在亞伯蘭99歲時再向他顯現，叫他改名亞伯拉罕，意思就是要他作萬國之父，撒萊也改名撒拉。上帝透過割禮與亞伯拉罕和他的後裔立永遠的約，把迦南全地賜給他們作永遠的產業，上帝要作他們永遠的神。只是，亞伯拉罕的後裔只能從元配所出。就在亞伯拉罕100歲時，按着上帝的應許，撒拉為他生了以撒。亞伯拉罕居住在基拉耳的時候，同樣告訴別人撒拉是他的妹子。未幾，當地的王亞比米勒就把撒拉帶到皇宮。上帝再次出手阻止，保護了撒拉的清白。

這些事都告訴我們，亞伯拉罕並不是一位徹頭徹尾、無時無刻都充滿信心的偉人，而是一位信心久不久就會出現軟弱的凡人。只是，當他經歷一次又一次上帝的拯救和上帝的應許得著成就，他對上帝的信心就越來越大。甚至最後，他因為相信上帝可以叫死人復活，就服從上帝的吩咐，把以撒獻作祭物。當然，上帝只是試驗他的信心和服從。最後，天使阻止他殺以撒，上帝為他預備了羊羔作祭物，而他也因此被稱為信心之父、上帝的朋友。

親愛的弟兄姊妹，你是否在信心的路上搖晃不定？你是否對上帝在你生命中的帶領產生疑惑？你是否掙扎應否將自己的生命完全放在上帝手中？請你不要內疚，也不要懼怕。接納自己不過是凡人，堅定相信上帝的恩典夠用，繼續跟從上帝的帶領，繼續經歷上帝的同在，那就夠了。

感恩分享：經過20多年的禱告，我的外父大人，Winnie的父親終於在6月30日下午1:30左右在香港決志信主。特此感謝多年以來同心為此禱告的弟兄姊妹。願一切榮耀頌讚歸於既慈愛又信實的上帝。

主僕,
陳榮基牧師

June 17/18, 2023

From the Pastors’ Desk: Pastor Karen Quan

Dear brothers and sisters of RCAC,

Psalm 103: 13 (NiRv) A father is tender and kind to his children. In the same way, the Lord is tender and kind to those who have respect for him.

Did you know that the origin of Father’s Day for North America began during a sermon just across the BC border? In 1909, Sonora Smart Dodd was in worship, listening to the preacher teaching regarding the newly established holiday called “Mother’s Day” in Spokane, Washington. Sadly, Sonora’s mother passed away during childbirth when she was only 16 years old. As the eldest child and only girl, she helped her father to raise her 5 younger brothers. The more she listened to the sermon, the more she thought about her father, who served as both Mother and Father to all the children.

Sonora greatly respected her earthly father and felt strongly that fathers should also be recognized with a special day. She spoke to the Spokane Ministerial Alliance and suggested her father’s birthday, June 5 but finally the group decided on the 3rd Sunday of June. It would take until 1972 for President Nixon to establish the day as a permanent national holiday for the United States.

The psalmist begins Psalm 103 by praising God and then describes the many ways that God shows his love and forgiveness for his people. The kids in Bible Time have been memorizing Psalm 103: 8 which speaks for God’s mercy & compassion. How he’s slow to anger and full of love. So the kindness of God is compared to the kindness of human fathers who all desire the best for their children. What an amazing gift of love for us as humans, who are so undeserving of his faithfulness.

Whether we have the privilege of celebrating with our earthly fathers today or not, scripture reminds us that our Heavenly Father is always with us. His tenderness has been poured upon us through our earthly fathers. While for some of us, even though our earthly fathers have passed on, it is also important to remember and cherish those who serve as Father Figures in our lives. Let us praise our Perfect Heavenly Father for his tenderness & kindness. May we also make time to recognize those individuals who have loved us so generously.

Your servant in Christ,
Pastor Karen Quan

2023.06.17/18

親愛的列宣家弟兄姊妹：

詩篇103:13 (新譯本)「父親怎樣憐恤兒子，耶和華也照樣憐恤敬畏他的人；」

您知道北美「父親節」的起源是在卑斯省邊界南面的一次崇拜講道中開始的嗎？1909 年在華盛頓州斯波坎市(Spokane, Washington)，索諾拉·斯馬特·多德(Sonora Smart Dodd) 在崇拜中，聆聽牧者講述關於新設立的「母親節」的教導。令人遺憾的是，索諾拉的母親在她年僅16 歲時因難產去世。作為家中的長女和唯一的女兒，她需要協助父親撫養5個弟弟。她一邊聽道一邊想念著她的父親，他父親的角色既是所有孩子的父親，也是母親。

索諾拉非常尊重她地上的父親，並強烈認為也應該為父親設立一個特定的日子被得到認同。為此她與斯波坎的Spokane Ministerial Alliance進行了交談，並建議以她父親的生晨6 月 5 日為父親節，但該小組最終決定6 月的第三個星期日。直到1972 年，尼克遜總統才將這一天定為美國的永久法定假期。

詩篇103篇詩人以讚美上帝開始，然後描述上帝以不同的方式向祂的子民展示祂的愛和寬恕。列宣家的小孩子在聖經時間一直在背誦詩篇 103:8，第8節講述上帝的恩典和憐憫。祂不輕易發怒且有豐盛的慈愛。上帝的慈愛可比美地上父親的慈愛，都希望自己的兒子得到最好的。對我們這些不配得祂信實的人來說，這是一份何等奇妙的愛的禮物。

無論我們今天是否有幸與地上的父親一起慶祝，聖經都提醒我們天父永遠與我們同在。祂的溫柔已透過我們地上的父親傾倒在我們身上。對於我們其中的一些人來說，即使我們地上的父親已經離世，不要忘記和珍惜那些在我們的生活中扮演父親角色的人也很重要。讓我們同聲讚美我們完美的天父祂的溫柔和慈愛；同時願我們也同樣表彰那些如此慷慨地愛我們的人。

主僕
關潔玲傳道

June 3/4, 2023

From the Pastor’s Desk – Pastor Alex Poon

Dear brothers and sisters of RCAC,

Happy and joyful, joyful, and happy – we use these words interchangeably, don’t we?

But they’re not the same. Joy is something deeper than happiness. Happiness comes and goes with favorable happenings. Joy is deeper and does not depend on our happenings. Joy is a heart posture, rooted deeply beyond events and experiences, but felt in our soul.

Where does joy come from? “Rejoice in the Lord” (Philippians 3:1) the Apostle Paul writes from his jail cell in Rome. He’s writing his letter to the church of Philippi he helped start.

“Rejoice in the Lord”, Paul has exhorted the same message before, so he writes, “To write the same things to you is no trouble to me and is safe for you.”

We do need constant reminders to find our joy. To find our joy in Christ.

If I was to ask you, “Are you happy?” What would you want to tell me? Perhaps you would say, “No, I’m not! How could I be?”, “I am busy with work, the rise of prices is making me worry, my children aren’t listening, my parents are ill, and I’m not sure when my next day of rest will be.” These are all deeply upsetting circumstances. I pray for your comfort and peace to arrive soon. Know that Paul would resonate with all your feelings – he is after all, sitting in his jail cell, wrongly accused, waiting to see if he will live past this foreseeable future.

What is his pastoral exhortation then? It’s found in verse 8, “Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.”

Knowing Christ leads to joy, joy that is beyond happiness.

Knowing Christ Jesus deeply, in such a way that experiences him in our distressing times will lead to joy, a joy that binds up fear.

It seems like an impossible task – of knowing Christ this deeply – but it is not. For this is our invitation. This is the trajectory to which we strive. This is the aim, the goal of the long and possible journey.

Do you know Christ?

Do you know how he sees you? Do you know how he looks upon your life’s circumstances today? Do you know his compassion, his ever near presence, his ability to save you in all the ways you need to be saved? Do you know him as Redeemer that he would free you from any sin that we have let ourselves be bound to? Do you know Christ as the Son of God who adopted you into his family? Do you know you can trust and delight in the Father because you have Christ who restored your relationship? Do you know that Christ is light, who can drive out the dark? Do you know Christ is the one by whom all things were made, and he bothered making you? Did you know that you can come to him for his embrace when all seems to go wrong? Did you know you have Jesus who sees you with eyes of love and longs to show you the power of his resurrection life which puts death and sin and evil and Satan in their defeated places?

This is tangible and practical joy we gain from the surpassing worth of knowing Jesus Christ our Lord. A joy that helps us stand each day.

Your servant in Christ,
Pastor Alex Poon