HIM FAMILY NEWS
Hope Philippines Church Christmas Celebration
Sunday, December 25 was a memorable day as we celebrated Christmas together as a family. It was eagerly anticipated by many of us because this was a time for us to give thanks and praises to our King of Kings and Lord of Lords. The birth of Jesus Christ brings such joy to our family, remembering how God sent His Son to become a man, to redeem us from the penalty of our sins, moved us from kingdom of darkness into His Kingdom of Light and to reconcile us back to God.
This Christmas, many of us received amazing gifts from our families, friends, colleagues and friends. However, none could possibly surpass the gift that God the Father gave to us which is His Son Jesus Christ. Yes, the greatest gift is indeed Jesus Christ! This was the main theme of our Ps. Soradej Meesaengtham's message.
This Christmas Celebration was the first time that we had two services – an English service in the morning and a Tagalog service in the afternoon. In between the services, both congregations gathered to have our Christmas Feast. Many of us enjoyed the food and fellowshipping with one another as a family in Christ. We look forward to this year's Christmas Celebration and anticipate that God will bring more new things into our Hope Family. Praise Jesus!
Hope Penang - Children Christmas Party
“Sharing the Joy of Christmas” was our theme for Christmas 2011. As we wanted to share the love and joy of Christ with the people around us, we embarked on a fresh way of reaching out to our neighbourhood, friends and community.
The Christmas celebration kicked off with the BFF (Best Friend Forever) Children Christmas Party, our very first Children Christmas party, held on 17 December. Approximately 40 children turned up for the fun-filled event, some from the CPS (Children Protection Center, an NGO that protects and shelter unfortunate children), friends and some children from the neighbourhood. Some of the activities we had during the Christmas party were Kid’s praise, games, a short sketch echoing Christian values and a clown entertaining the children with a magic show and balloon sculpturing. The highlight of the day was Christmas gifts giving away time. All the children were so happy and eager to wait for their turn to receive the Christmas gift. We ended our of the day with lunch, together with all the children and parents. Each child received a McDonald’s lunchbox packed with a toy. “Hurray!” was the word I heard from many children when they received the lunchbox.
One week after the BFF Christmas Party, we celebrated our Christmas Sunday with 120 friends and family. It was a nice and cosy Sunday where many of the people came with personal gifts to give to their close friends. The highlight of the day, beside the Christmas message, was a short comedy talk show and a few beautiful Christmas carols presented by a choir. Praise God for this year's Christmas service as we had a friend who accepted Jesus into his heart during the alter call. After the service, each family brought home a box of Yule Log cake as their Christmas door gift. We look forward to many of these joyful Christmas celebrations, especially the part when our friends accept Jesus into their hearts; this is truly encouraging for us to go further for Jesus. All glory to God.
Written by Mak Pui Fern
Hope Kota Kinabalu, Christmas
On the 18 and Christmas Eve of 2011, Hope Kota Kinabalu hosted two joyous celebrations concerning the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!
With a different theme for both congregations (English/Chinese and BM), a crowd of 305 with 117 first time visitors received the Good News and a staggering number wanted to have a deeper knowledge of our Lord and Savior. “D’Arrival”, theme of the Eng/Chi congregation, boasts about the arrival of Jesus Christ, who humbled himself and became flesh, dwelling among us with full of Grace and Truth (John 1:14).
In addition to the celebrations, on 25 December 2011, the Eng/Chi congregation launched “Go Christmas”, an activity to bless our society through a visit to Hospital Mesra, a ward for the mentally challenged and disabled. Sounds of laughter and joy rang through the air as the patients heard the gospel through carols and lunch fellowship. It was definitely an unforgettable moment of sharing and caring.
“Permaidani Merah” (“Red Carpet”) was the main idea of the BM congregation this year. It was an auspicious occasion.
We believe that there is more to come in “The Year of The Holy Spirit” as the Spirit guides us towards the heartbeat and will of the Father. May we continue to strive towards fulfilling the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20) to raise vibrant, Christ-centered disciples to plant strong, biblical churches in Sabah, Malaysia and all over the world!
Hope Perth Christmas Service
“Simple Joy” was the theme as Hope Perth sought to embrace Christmas 2011. A congregation of around 50 people sat together within the warm atmosphere and homely decorated Hall of Manning. Our choir team led our church with joyful singing of Christmas carols. Soon after, we had a great time watching Kids Plus acting out the story of Grinchy, a lonely boy who found the love and hope of Jesus.
The short drama was a modern take on the joy of Christmas, amalgamating the stories of the three wise men, the coming of baby Jesus and the Grinch. It was a lighthearted performance, bringing humour into the topic of the sermon.
Speaker of the day, Dr PC Loo shared an inspiring message about the true joy of Christmas that is built on the foundation of the fruits of the Spirit: hope, peace and above all, love. The sermon touched on the coming of Christ in Luke 2:6. This verse captures the essence of humanity when Jesus was born in a manger to bring hope and true joy to the lives of people.
This scene marked the greatest event in the history of humankind. God had promised to send a Messiah, one who would save His people. It is through this scene that the passage of John 3:16 becomes very real to those who believe and receive Christ. In all our brokenness, we can come to know and seek forgiveness of our sins and truly understand the joy of redeemed love. It is only for one reason that he was sent into this corrupted world: to bring us hope and salvation. A true love and hope that is everlasting!
