Dear Brothers and Sisters, Peace to you in the Lord!
On September 17, the last September mission teams have returned home safely which concluded the busy ministry for the summer. At this point, all the planned meetings for the first part of the year: the June Holy Land study tour, August Bible Camp, August & September Discipleship Training, and the August & September ten-day short-term missions have finally come to an end. We give thanks to God that we have experienced His blessings and protection every day in every step of the way. Starting on September 18, I have been focusing on the preparation for the three Winter meetings. Please pay close attention to our meeting information on our website. In addition to setting aside your time to attend, please also invite gospel friends to attend the Winter Conference, and encourage brothers and sisters in your church to participate the Discipleship Training and Bible Camp with you.
This year, “Church Reorganization after the Pandemic” has been the theme for our monthly prayer letter. In this issue, we specially asked Brother Robert Kao, one of our board members, to share: “The Impact of the Pandemic on the Church and Reminders”.
The Impact of the Pandemic on the Church and Reminders
Brother Robert Kao
During the period of the COVID-19 pandemic, the gatherings of the children of God in all churches have been changed and reshaped in many scenes, resulting in different effects and adjustments. As for the positive and negative impact of this perilous pestilence on the churches in the U.S. Midwest, we can learn from the following perspectives.
Changing Participation Patterns in Church Worship
During the epidemic, under the requirements of government policy, many public gatherings, including church gatherings, were stopped. Online gatherings have become the main platform, and on-site gatherings have therefore ceased or become an option. However, the epidemic has been isolated for more than three years, and it is time to resume face-to-face gatherings, including Sunday worship and breaking bread, as well as weekly gatherings, visits, etc. During this time, many families lost some family members and relatives, and suffered a lot of pain and loneliness. Church giving and some provisioning have also been affected by reduced member participation. Many people who meet online are not focused on the content of the meeting, but are doing or thinking about other things.
But on the positive side, the online format of meeting may help some people with health problems or limitations of the elderly, so that they can also attend the meeting and hear the message. Some church members who come from other places or travel abroad can also continue to participate in worship and Bible study. Large gatherings, cross-regional or international gatherings online are still helpful. But the flip side of the negative is that online gatherings have lost their interactivity and sensitivity, fellowship and caring have been reduced to the lowest possible point, and while the format of gatherings remains similar to face-to-face gatherings, the encouragement of inspiration and spiritual interaction has been dry and lack of flavor.
Worship in the church from God’s original intention
However, the Lord still wants us to come to the meeting in person to join the fellowship and build up the relationship between the body of Christ. Online platforms are limited to sound and vision. The personal participation of the saints is essential to the life of the Church, just as Jesus Himself came into the world, He Himself went to the cross for us, suffered death for our sins and, through his personal presence, suffered the punishment of our sins, through humiliation. If worship songs are pre-recorded songs, and we do not actually praise with our hearts and from our mouths, we cannot truly experience His presence and physical intimacy, and the recorded message cannot match the live response and comparison.
In the New Testament, we look at 1 John 4:9-10, “9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” Because of God’s love, He sent His only begotten Son to the world to make propitiation for our sins as a sacrifice. The whole process is a physical fulfillment, so that we can hear his words and at the same time accept his redemption, which he personally experienced and accomplished through the cross. And the Lord Jesus came to the world to call his disciples, walked with them, ate with them, taught them to preach the gospel, fed the hungry, and healed the diseases of the body, all done with His present. He also sent the Holy Spirit to live with us. He wants us to have face-to-face, authentic relationships with Christ and other bodies, and to share the gospel with unbelievers.
To remind and reveal the saints’ faith in the Lord
God is using this pandemic to remind us that He wants to use this purification process and to let us know of His great love and mercy. He reveals the process by which we repent and return to Him, making us more mature in His spirituality and making us more like our Father’s Son, Jesus Christ. He wants us to live in or with him, and He wants to live in or with us. The most important thing is that Jesus is the true vine, and the Father is the husbandman, “He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John 15:2) He wants us to bear more fruit to glorify, and the faith of the saints can grow more.
The Lord Jesus wants us to know more about the heart and will of our Heavenly Father. The words of the Father have been heard through His Son Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit has strengthened and given us a greater understanding of His will. He is calling us to repent and return to Him, our spiritual life can be more mature and reflect His grace and love for us. His love will never leave us and separate us.
In conclusion, God urges us to prepare for Christ’s return. We need to get ready for the second coming of Christ and give all glory to the Lamb who died for our sins, praise and glory be his name. Let us take encouragement from Hebrews 10:35-37, “35 So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. 36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. 37 For, “In just a little while, He who is coming will come and will not delay.” And from Revelation 22:12-14, we receive the message that “12 “Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. 14 “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.” Amen!
Future Meetings:
(1) December Winter Conference (12/22 to 12/26 noon)
Still to be held at Sheraton Kansas City Hotel at Crown Center in Kansas City, Missouri. Speakers are: Pastor Tsukung Chuang, Pastor Johann Lai, Mrs. Esther Lai, Elder Eric Wu, Brother Balex Sit, Mrs. Serena Wang, etc. Meeting contents include: Spiritual Revival Messages, Expositional Bible Study, Gospel Messages and various Workshops. The registration hard copy form can be browsed online in mid-October. As in previous years, the online registration will not be open until around mid-November (we encourage you all to register online). Please start setting aside time and inviting brothers and sisters in your church and nonbelievers friends to attend.
(2) December Discipleship Training (12/26 to 12/31noon)
Speakers are: Pastor Larry Wong, Brother Balex Sit. The registration form has been posted online. Usually, December Discipleship Training will be the largest number of participants, so please register as early as possible, the deadline for registration is December 17.
(3) January Bible Camp (12/31 to 1/6/2024)
We will continue to study the Books of History – “The History of the Exile and the Return of Israel” Application form and the syllabus have been posted online. The deadline is November 15. There are only four months in preparation for the camp. So for those who wish to attend this camp, please register as soon as possible so that you can start preparing your homework earlier. Please also attend the Sunday evening Bible Study & Prayer Meeting. The coworkers of the CWC will help you step by step to prepare for the homework.
August and September Short-term Mission in Review (8/18-27, 9/8-17)
In the summer of 2020 when all were shrouded in the fear of the pandemic, and Pastor Ko had just diagnosed with cancer, yet we still fearlessly sent out short-term mission teams to share the gospel in different places. Since then, the number of short-term mission teams and members coming to the Midwest has increased. I, with little faith, have speculated: Perhaps because of the pandemic, many long-term missionaries around the world have retrieved from the field, also because of the restrictions that made churches dare not to send short-term mission teams out, these have made CWC’s short-term mission program in the Midwest stand out. When reflecting that difficult time, I thank God for constantly strengthening us with His Word: ” For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline. ” (2 Tim. 1:7), ” Reach the word; be ready in season and out of season.” (2 Tim. 4:2). This year, the number of mission teams and number of team members have reached the peak: twelve teams (August 6 teams, September 6 teams), 85 people participated. In addition to the California and New Jersey, five teams were from Texas. As the pandemic is nearing the end, more and more students have returned to campus. These short-term mission teams have brought great encouragement to us! May the Lord help us to take up the gospel baton and light the fire of revival everywhere.
Sunday Online Bible Study & Prayer Meeting:
During the pandemic, many churches’ meetings were held online, that was why Pastor Ko started this Sunday evening Bible study and prayer meeting to lead brothers and sisters continue to have a life of Bible reading, prayer, and spiritual sharing. After the August Bible Camp, CWC coworkers have decided to utilize this platform, not only to help brothers and sisters to prepare for the next Bible Camp (we will teach how to study the Bible, how to do the outlines, and how to write the assigned topic reports), but also spend some time to pray for the need of CWC ministry. We will shorten the meeting to one hour (7:00-8:00PM CT) so that it will not affect your next day schedule. We will study “The History of the Exile and the Return of Israel”. Zoom account number is: 8110999917, passcode: 737903. Please come and study the Bible together that we will be equipped in the Lord.
Prayer Requests:
- Thanksgiving: Thank the Lord that the August and September short-term mission teams went out to the field safely and came back richly with abundant harvest. Pray that the follow-up work will continue, and that the Lord place the burden of evangelism on the co-workers’ hears in every place.
- Pray for the three meetings in the Winter: Please pray for the preparations of all meetings, especially for the new registration computer program for the Winter Conference that it would be available on the CWC website in-time. And also pray for the speakers’ preparation of messages, for the brothers and sisters’ hearts to participate; for the nonbelievers are willing to come and accepting the salvation; for the preparation of short-term mission teams from different churches, and for the cooperation from the staffs of the Sheraton Hotel, and so on.
- For co-workers:
- Sylvia Ko: Mrs. Ko’s house was damaged by hail at the end of March, and she needs to negotiate with the insurance and roofing company. May the Lord bless Mrs. Ko with peace and joy and that all repairs could be completed by winter. Please continue to pray for her grandson’s health and operation date which was delayed again and no new date has been set yet.
- Sister Cindy Chiang: (a) Thank all the brothers and sisters for praying for the healing of her foot that was injured at the end of July so that she could join the two short-term missions teams in August and September. Although she still feels uncomfortable while walking, it is in recovery. (b) After returning from September mission, she is now intensively preparing for the three winter meetings. Please pray that God may grant her with more wisdom and be obedient to His will.
- Brother Leong Qinglong: May the Lord help him to look at people and things around with eyes of faith; and ask the Lord to give his wife Spirit of wisdom to raise their three children to follow the Lord from early age. Pray that the Lord leads his trip of October 19-23 visiting the East Coast churches.
- Pastor Charles Huang: Please pray for his trip from October 5 to 15 visiting churches in Northern California who have been supporting CWC ministry, and ask the Lord to bless the relationship of all churches with the Center. Pray also that the Lord will give him His Wisdom and Words to feed the Champaign Chinese Christian Church, as well as leading a group of students to have spiritual appetite so that the church will be drawn to God’s Word. Please remember his wife Judy in your prayers for the healing from the Lord on her cervical and lumbar vertebrae that have nerve compression. Also pray for the growth of his three children, especially for Faith, his eldest daughter, for her first year study in the Moody Bible Institute.
- American coworker Scott Jerome: Please pray for his wife Becci who needs to have a six-week physical therapy for her injured shoulder; and pray for their daughter Chiara’s discomfort during pregnancy. Please also continue to pray for the spiritual life and ministry of their families, and the growth of their children in the Lord.
- Please Pray for the CWC monthly financial need (General fund, Building fund, Training fund, etc.) asking the Lord to manifest His abundant provision and allow more brothers and sisters to experience the blessings of giving.
- For CWC: Pray that the Lord will bring more co-workers to the CWC ministry for the furtherance of the gospel ministry in the Midwest.
Emmanuel
In the Lord,
Sister Cindy Chiang