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Special Thanks: David Chan, Cheong Mee Ling and Tang Wei Qiang for the respective article submitted for this April 2013 issue.
Newsletter collated by Margaret Khoo, and edited by Gary Choong 1
Covenant CommunityCovenant CommunityCovenant CommunityCovenant Community Baptist Baptist Baptist Baptist ChurchChurchChurchChurch 1 Cambridge Road, Singapore 219677
Tel: 62995356, Fax : 62995453
Email: enquiry@ccbc.org.sg
Website: ccbc.org.sg
Be and Bring a Friend to Jesus: Building and Bringing Nehemiah 4:6: So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all
their heart.
Relating to the theme of building and bridging, the logo shows a structure of bricks
representing the church while each individual brick represents members of the
church. The various colours of each brick suggest the differences of each individual, and
through sharing their common identity in Christ, they come together to form support for
each other. The brick formation expands by reaching out to the 'lost' bricks beyond
the community. These 'lost' bricks have a void which only Christ can fill.
April 2013
=====================================================================================
Children Ministry by Cheong Mee Ling
The year 2012 was a year of ups and downs for
the Children Ministry, yet it was another year of
growing in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus
Christ for the students and the teachers at our
Sunday school classes.
The children joined the adult congregation
during the time of worship in song and praise
every first Sunday, while various teachers took
turns to lead the children in worship on other
Sundays. The children learned Bible lessons,
memory verses and activities provided in the
curriculum. We have changed from using
Gospel Light resources to LifeWay Christian
Resources and found the curriculum to be a
refreshing breather.
Yes, the teachers grew too, taking time to study
the lesson passage in its biblical context during
our preparation for Sunday school lesson
teaching. However, it is still a challenge
especially managing the boys’ focus in the
upper primary class.
We had two Kindergarten-age children from
pre-believing families who had been attending
the classes. However, due to parental objection,
they were not allowed to attend the second half
of the year. We were saddened, but continued
to pray that God will remove the obstacles for
them to know Him personally. All praise and
glory be to God – He works in the hearts of
these children even though they could not join
us.
On one occasion after Praise Sunday in October
where the children performed two action-song
items, the teachers were encouraged to know
that one of them learnt the song “Can’t Take
My Jesus Away” with the actions from her
cousin who is still with the Sunday school. The
little child had expressed her desire to return to
Sunday school, but was taught by the aunt to
respect and obey her parents. On another
recent occasion, a little child asked his mother
to pray for God’s help when the pre-believer
mother encountered problems. We thank God
that His Word taught during Sunday school
resides in the children’s heart, and they will
always remember the true God and love of our
Lord Jesus Christ for them.
In our efforts to encourage the children to read
the Bible regularly at home, we introduced the
Bible Quest for Kids in October. The objective
was to motivate them through the collection of
stamps to acquire badges of different ranks of
Knight-hood. The use of the booklet was
explained to the congregation as well as the
parents, so that there would be an environment
to support the children’s efforts. Other then
learning memory verses and reading of the
Bible, the children can also earn stamps for
memorising scripture verses, Bible reading,
personal quiet time, having family devotions
Special Thanks: David Chan, Cheong Mee Ling and Tang Wei Qiang for the respective article submitted for this April 2013 issue.
Newsletter collated by Margaret Khoo, and edited by Gary Choong 2
with their parents, good behavior at home or in
church based on feedback from parents or
Sunday School teachers, or sharing about Jesus
Christ with their friends, etc. We cannot say
that this effort is a complete success, but it is
part of our continued effort to encourage a
closer walk with God in spite of the many other
demands on the children’s time – school
homework, tuition, extra-curricular activities,
computer games, and television.
‘Help! My Mind Wanders When I Pray’by David
Chan
‘My mind tends to wander.’ I’m not sure if you
understand what I am saying or have shared
similar experiences. What I mean is, have you
experienced this strange situation that
whenever you pray, you end up either recalling
events of yesterday, planning your day’s
schedule, or daydream?
I have, and many times in fact. And if you’ve
been in this situation before, chances are that
you felt guilty and frustrated, apologized to God
countless times, and resolved without success
to do better tomorrow.
When we pray, I believe it is with good
intention that we want to seek the Lord’s face.
How, then, can we have a meaningful time of
prayer and stay focused each time we do so?
As I reflected, I’ve realized that one of my
struggles during prayer is when I remembered
unfinished tasks that I’m supposed to do. The
mind is such a powerful instrument that is able
to recollect and recall things even when we do
not consciously remind ourselves to do so.
Besides this, I’ve also realized that another
reason that my mind wanders is because I tend
to pray silently, on the ‘excuse’ that I should not
be disturbing others who are around me.
One simple thing I do these days is to keep a
sheet of paper beside me. When I suddenly
recall something that I’ve yet to do, I will write
it down and then get back to praying. This way,
I tell myself that I will revisit this matter later in
the day and I can get back to my time with the
Lord without feeling a sense of guilt. I’ve also
learnt in my own experience that it helps better
that I am able to hear my own voice as I
formulate my prayer thoughts into complete
sentences. As with any conversation with a
friend, it takes effort to think about what we
want to say and how to say it, so that our friend
can accurately receive the message. So it is with
our time of praying to God.
At times, I’ve also realized that instead of
fighting the wandering thoughts and disciplining
the body to get back to praying, I can also pray
to God about these wanderings. Some of these
thoughts can be useful aspects to bring before
God, as they could well be our personal
anxieties or concerns that have not been
verbalized to anyone else. They could also be
areas in our life that the Holy Spirit is
highlighting to us for our benefit.
Prayer is not a religious activity. It is a genuine
disclosure of ourselves- our thoughts, feelings,
desires, needs, our spirit man- to the One who
knows us even better than we do ourselves. He
delights in the genuine prayers of His children.
And I believe that the Holy Spirit is present to
help us pray. “The Spirit helps us in our
weakness. We do not know what we ought to
pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for
us…” (Romans 8:26 NIV).
May we all desire even more to commune with
God in prayer, and in doing so, grow deeper in
our devotion to Jesus.
The Praying Heart
The heart that prays soars high on strong, glad wings,
And finds strange rest beyond the strife of things,
The heart that prays in trusting self-surrender
Finds Christ's own peace and life's eternal splendor.
Through prayer GOD breathes His secret to the heart,
Speak to Him often in the busy mart,
Or call Him in the deep of sorrow's night;
His love floods in with the healing, guiding light.
From Inspirational Poems
by Nellie Jean Stratto
Special Thanks: David Chan, Cheong Mee Ling and Tang Wei Qiang for the respective article submitted for this April 2013 issue.
Newsletter collated by Margaret Khoo, and edited by Gary Choong 3
Youth Ministry by Tang Wei Qiang
Year 2012 passed by in a blink of an eye as we
embarked on year 2013. Indeed, I am grateful
to God for bringing and guiding us through the
year 2012 even when difficult times and trials
stood in our way. However, knowing that we
have a God who is ever faithful and full of grace
never fails to reassure my heart.
One of the activities in 2012 was the Youth
Camp held in December within the church
premises. The theme “Our God, the Creator,
our Provider” aimed to let the youths
experience the wonders of God and be
reminded of His abundant provision.
The story of God’s provision to the widow is
recorded in 1Kings 17: 13-16, affirms God’s care
even for non-Israelites through Elijah’s ministry.
Truly so, our God is the One who provides for
our every need. Often, we have mistaken our
“want” for our “needs”. Blinded as such, we
stressed ourselves going to God to request Him
to sustain our wants. This camp aimed to let the
youths to return to the Bible and learn to
appreciate what they already have that had
been blessed by God.
The youths participated in activities such as
night cycling at East Coast Parkway to
experience some natural wonders created by
God that we usually missed in our hectic
schedules and busy lives. Since the activities
coincided with the Geminid meteor shower, the
youths too had the opportunity to witness the
majestic astronomical event which humbled our
hearts. Each passing “falling star” and the stars
in the dark sky reminded us of the vast bigness
of the universe that is created by our God and
to know that such an almighty God cares for
each love us brought much joy and peace.
The camp was definitely a great experience for
the youths and their friends and as we move on
with our journey to 2013, may we continue to
remember God’s goodness in our lives as we
focus on discipleship and spiritual growth as
one body in Christ, as a church, Covenant
Community Church.
Pulpit April-June 2013:
As we end our mini sermon series on Revelation
1-3, “You’ve got Mail”, Pastor Gary continues
to preach from the book of Revelation chapter 4
onwards.
Apr 07
Rev 3:1-13 The Message to Philadelphia: Mission Rekindled
Rev Dr Gary Choong
Apr 14
Rev. 3:14-22 The Message to Laodicea: Love Jesus
Rev Dr Gary Choong
Apr
21
TBA Tang Wei Qiang
Apr
28
Rev. 4:1-11 Adoring God: the Sovereign Creator
Rev Dr Gary Choong
May 05
Rev. 5:1-7 Adoring God’s Son : Lion and Lamb
Rev Dr Gary Choong
May 12
Rev. 5:8-14 Adoring God’ Son: Christ, the Redeemer
Rev Dr Gary Choong
May 19
TBA Cheong Mee Ling
May 26
TBA Ps Eric Tjong
Jun 02
Rev. 6:1-17 When the Seals are opened: 1
st-6
th
Seal Judgements
Rev Dr Gary Choong
Jun 09
Rev. 7:1-17 First Interlude: Salvation
Rev Dr Gary
Choong
Jun 16
Church Retreat
Jun 23
Rev. 8:1-9:18 When the Trumpets Sound: 1
st- 6
th
Trumpet Judgements
Rev Dr Gary
Choong
Jun
30
Rev. 10:1-11
2nd
Interlude
Rev Dr Gary
Choong
CHURCH RETREAT
Date: 13-16 Jun 2013 (Thur to Sun)
Venue: Tg Puteri Golf Resort
Let’s come together to have a time of renewing
and bonding with CCBC’s family!
Special Thanks: David Chan, Cheong Mee Ling and Tang Wei Qiang for the respective article submitted for this April 2013 issue.
Newsletter collated by Margaret Khoo, and edited by Gary Choong 4
Thanks be to God for his faithfulness to
CCBC the past 18 years.
Shu Shyan with baby Kiersten.
Lunch fellowship hosted by Chee Meng and Mee
Ling.
Lunch fellowship hosted by Chee
Chee Meng and Mee Ling.
Rendering the song “If we hold on together” as
the congregation joined in to sing believing in
God’s faithfulness.
Almost everyone in the congregation came
forward to give of themselves toward the
mission-vision of a healthy growing D-M church.
CCBC’S CCBC’S CCBC’S CCBC’S celebracelebracelebracelebrating her ting her ting her ting her 18181818THTHTHTH Anniversary Service Anniversary Service Anniversary Service Anniversary Service 6 January 20136 January 20136 January 20136 January 2013
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