2023.05.13/14
From the Pastor’s Desk: Rev. Mark Liu
Dear brothers and sisters of RCAC,
It is by God’s Grace that I can use this space to share with you the latest about the Mandarin Ministries.
Before the Lord Jesus returned to heaven, He gave His disciples, including us, a command:
Matthew 28:19-20 “19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations...”
Our Lord commanded us to go and share the gospel. There are many ways to do so. Besides the ministry at Tsawwassen, we have also started a monthly worship at Rosewood Manor, a nursing home, since the end of April this year.
At the end of last year, we contacted the person in charge of the nursing home to explore whether we could conduct worship there once a month. Praise the Lord that we received very positive response. Since the COVID-19 pandemic was still serious at the time, we decided to wait until the spring to start this ministry.
Besides the brothers and sisters from the Mandarin ministry, some brothers and sisters from different Cantonese Congregation also participate in this ministry. On April 30th, a group of 12 people (including two elders, Katherine Yeo and Joe Tong) came to serve in this nursing home.
I am very grateful to the nursing home for providing a staff who is dedicated for coordinating with us. Before the worship started, we witnessed the staff of the nursing home, working hard to bring those who are in wheelchairs or resting in beds to us. There are also some who come on their own. Before the worship started, there were 28 people who live in this nursing home joining us. Praise the Lord.
We chose two hymns, “Give Thanks” and “Great is Thy Faithfulness” as the first worship hymn. After that, I used John 3:16-17 to share the message. Since most of the participants are English-speaking, I shared the message in English. After sharing, the Holy Spirit inspired me to make a calling. Several people raised their hands, accepting Christ as their own Savior. For those who could not raise their hands, I encouraged them to say “yes”. I remember a resting-in-bed lady who kept saying “yes”. I was touched. Thank God, ten friends accepted the salvation. Afterwards, I invited co-workers to go to these people and pray for them. At the end of service, I also got to know a couple who had been missionaries in Haiti. They are now living in this nursing home. Praise the Lord for allowing us to serve, not only to those who have not heard of the Gospel but also those who used to serve the Lord elsewhere.
On the way home, I kept humming “Give thanks” in my heart. Thank God for enabling us to serve, bringing the Gospel to those who live in the nursing home. The Gospel should not stay in church building. The Gospel should reach to different places so that people can hear.
May God bless you all. May God bless RCAC.
His servant,
Rev. Mark Liu