Happy Valentine 2020

Today is Valentine Day for the year 2020 !
This is our Connect Group Meeting on 14 February 2020 !

The smiles on our faces, the joy of sharing food together, the tender sharing of our hearts. 

So much joy and love in our hearts ! 💜

The company of friends

The gathering of saints

The faithfulness of sisterhood

The strength of brotherhood

The solidarity of faith

The sharing of our lives

The doing of life together

The being of ourselves

The salvation by grace

The justifications by faith

The sanctification of inner men

The process to glorification 

We exist to bless others

We come to receive

We connect to give 

We are the Redeemed of the Lord!

Thank you Shannon for sharing her lovely Valentine John 3:16 Artwork.
http://www.swtblessings.com/2014/01/john-316-valentines.html

The Lord said to me, "You are my valentine. I am always yours."
https://ellenlandreth.wordpress.com/2011/02/14/gods-valentine/

Let your heart not be troubled - John 14

Let's your heart not be troubled - John 14
Text : John 14

Ps Renny Khoo

9 July 2017

Chapter 14 began in v1 and ended with v27 both verses exhorting the disciples - “Do not let your hearts be troubled”. In our present context, are we troubled by family crisis, no end to some existing challenges, relationship problems, financial worries, work pressure or situations with no solutions that we learn to live with it. We are troubled because we are fearful of insecurity and uncertain about the future. Likewise, the disciples were troubled because in the previous chapter, Jesus said that he is going to a place where they will not be able to follow. They were perplexed, for they have left everything and followed Jesus. They cannot understand where they have gone wrong. They cannot fathom why Jesus will want to leave them. Jesus in respond calmed their troubled heart by the following assurances in v2 – 8.

1.  Assurance of our Final Home

Where is Heaven ? 

 A place, a country, a kingdom ?

Heaven is a real place not a product of religious imagination. It is a place where God dwells, Jesus sit on the right hand of the Father. Heaven is described as a kingdom in 2 Peter, inheritance in 1 Peter, a country Hebrew 11, a city and a home. In John 13 to 17, these 5 chapters with the word “Father” appeared 53 time and usually in the phrase of “my Father’s house.” John 14: 3 clearly states that He will return for His people. He is going to the Father and He is the only way to the Father. Heaven is a real place, loving and exclusive place but it is also inclusive, and is open to all who believe. Those who trusted in Jesus Christ will be there.  

The way home does not lie in a pathway, programme or manmade processes but through a person call Jesus Christ. He is not someone who points the way but He is the Way, the truth. The only way to heaven. No amount of good works or endeavour will get us to heaven. Only Jesus and He is coming back for those who believe and love Him.

The question now is “Do you KNOW this person” for the way to heaven is through a person.

A call to trust God for God cares for us and has our best interest at heart. He knows us better than we know ourselves. So when we trust God, we will not have a troubled heart. There is a correlation in knowing and trusting for when we know God, we can also know how we can trust God. Trusting God is a journey, as knowing God is a progressive journey. So we should examine ourselves if we know our God personally, relationally and experientially. Do our believe affect our lives and how we live it? Do we do the will of God out of obedience and have we grown in loving God. Have we got a testimony to share of our experiences in God?

2. Provision of a Helper 

Apart from the Spirit of God, we cannot live out our Christian lives. We must know who the Holy Spirit is. He is called the Advocate or Parakletos, - Helper or Comforter. He is someone who is called alongside to assist. The Holy Spirit do not work instead or in spite of us but always work in us and through us. He strengthens us to face life bravely and to keep on going. He does not rob us of the responsibility or make it easy for us to give up. We are comforted for strength in our inner lives to face all adversities. We need to guard our response to adversities that we do not develop a “Bean Curd” reaction where we cannot take any criticism or correction. Our inner lives must be strengthened by the Holy Spirit to produce a positive response. As we struggle as illustrated in the Mount Kinabalu climb, the role of the Holy Spirit is to point and guide us in the right direction but we need to put in the effort and do our part.

He is also known as the Spirit of truth where he is the Spirit inspired word of God illuminating the Word so that we may understand the word of God. Thus no excuse for negligent on our effort to study the word of God. We need to be keeping the word of God through our obedience to it. The call intimacy with God through corporate prayer to pray against temptation, breakthrough, empowerment of the Holy Spirit, discipline and to be accountable in our lives.

Counselling - Latin word Come alongside to Help

Comforter - Sometimes Counsellor has to help them to break it or weaken their dependency on certain things. It may not be always comforting but strengthening.

Comfort is to strengthen to move onward and brace for future.

3.  Gift of peace

God’s peace is not based on the world’s resources but depends on our relationship with God and our spiritual adequacy in Christ all receive in faith. God’s peace is peace in spite of trouble or trials for through Jesus, we can truly say, let not my heart be troubled for He has conquered the world - John 16:33. 

Questions for reflection and response

1. Trusting God is a journey of knowing God. Share how you are growing in your trusting/knowing God. What are some obstacles in fully trusting/ knowing God.
2. Share your experiences of the Holy Spirit as your helper/comforter/advocate. 
3. How do you understand peace" in times of trouble? Share (if any) of such experiences

I like the blue hue hovering at the backdrop of church yesterday. It reminds me of the blue ocean.

My Personal Reflection :-

Heaven is certainly a place worth to prepare for before our arrival. I have been reminded, now that we all could afford to travel and to see more of the world with budget airlines and budget hotels, we spend a lot of time preparing for a trip, be it alone or with family or friends. I think Holy Spirit is grieved to see that more than half of the Christians do not spend enough time to prepare for their homeward bound trip to heaven. 

Like a trip ill-planned, many Christians would be shocked to realise that they have not prepared enough for this heaven trip and it is to return home to a place where we have not been.

Like-minded Community

Church Family Series:

Like-minded Community

Pr Lo Yi Ping

12 March 2017

Enrollment Service 

Phillipians 2:1-11

1 If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,

7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.

8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-even death on a cross!

9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,

10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Philippi was a cosmopolitan city. The Philippian church consists of people of diverse backgrounds and walks of life. The church was facing some strife and disunity. In order for the church community to be united Paul exhorted them to be likeminded, have the same love and to be one in spirit and purpose. How can we be likeminded in the midst of diversity? 

United by the Same Faith

To be likeminded we must have the mind of Christ to see things as he would see them and to respond as he would respond. We show the same love to others that the Lord has shown us. We are one in spirit and purpose to work together in harmony toward a common goal.

Empowered by the same spirit

By our own strength we can do nothing. When empowered by the Holy Spirit we can do all things that is in line with God's will. Even though we are given different gifts it is given by the same Spirit to edify the body of Christ.

Humbled by the same attitude of Christ Jesus

To be likeminded we must follow the humility of Jesus who was willing to give up his rights in order to obey God and serve people. Like Jesus we should have a servant's attitude serving out of love for God and others. We can choose our attitude in life, expecting to be served or look for opportunity to serve others. 

Conclusion: When our Church and Connect Groups are like-minded and determined we can change history.

Questions

1) Share how God used someone who is different from yourself (can be a CG member) to help you grow in your walk as a disciple?

2) 1 Cor.12 mentioned different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. What are the gift(s) you received and how are you using it to edify the body of Christ?

1 Corinthians 12:4-11 Message Version :-
4-11 God’s various gifts are handed out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. God’s various ministries are carried out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. God’s various expressions of power are in action everywhere; but God himself is behind it all. Each person is given something to do that shows who God is: Everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits. All kinds of things are handed out by the Spirit, and to all kinds of people! The variety is wonderful:

wise counsel
clear understanding
simple trust
healing the sick
miraculous acts
proclamation
distinguishing between spirits
tongues
interpretation of tongues.

All these gifts have a common origin, but are handed out one by one by the one Spirit of God. He decides who gets what, and when.

3) Share one incident where you glorified God by having the same attitude of Christ Jesus?

Discipleship Series : Are you Connected

Discipleship Series: Are you Connected

Acts 2:42-47

Hebrews 10:24-25

Pr Yi Ping

26 Feb 2017

Connect Group Sunday

Topic: Discipleship Series: Are You Connected?
Text: Acts 2:42-47; Hebrews 10:24-25

- Let's change terminology to CONNECT GROUP

1. It is not good for man to be alone
a) Man's nature to be in a relationship: Ge 2:18 (also Ge 1:27)
b) Man falls easily when alone
- RELATIONSHIP because it's harder to stand firm when no one to urge us or journey with us
- Example of Peter who denied Jesus
- Pr YP's own experience: was very active in Canada and wanted to be low-key when back in KK but was spotted and connected with a young adults' fellowship group because a sister was persistent in connecting; Lesson? One can be very involved in church yet still not connected with church

2. Disciple-making in the Connect Group

- INTIMACY in faith community together

- Ac 1:12-14 after Jesus' ascension the disciples gathered; and in Ac 2:42 we see they devoted themselves to apostles' teachings and fellowship 

- Fellowship here refers to koinonia , i.e. participation, communion, sharing in something in common, which is the Great Commission 

- Strengthening of the church whenever we gather; a time for self reflection, and together remember what the Lord has done for us 

3. Meet together in order to go out
- TRANSFORMATION in maturity and multiplication
- The disciples made disciples together (Ac 2:43-47);
- Not merely lip service, but they lived live together and participated in God's mission, out of their comfort zone; the Lord added to their number because of their lifestyle; they did not live for themselves
- Meeting together in small groups is not an end in itself, but a means for us to make disciples

Connect Groups are just a mean to an end. 

How abt the Connect Groups of KKE? 
- Revisioning Discipleship - relook into the Word concerning "discipleship"
- As we come together in CGs, learn to establish RELATIONSHIP with God and people; allow safe space for Authenticity, Brokenness and Courage to take place, producing INTIMACY. Empowered by the Holy Spirit we experience TRANSFORMATION of lives, where people mature and multiply!
- Pr YP talked abt what happened to the 12 disciples - 11 out of 12 disciples remained faithful to the Lord until their death; they were an unexpected group sent forth to reach the world yet Jesus used them to form backbone of the Church; and this Great Commission is given not only to the early disciples but to you and me too!
- May this verse (He 10:24-25) and the bookmark remind us all to be connected and make disciples 🙂

Questions:
1. Share one of your AHA moments in the Connect Group (CG), something that you struggle/wrestle with alone and unable to find a solution, but found revelation as you share it with CG member(s).
2. How does the Connect Group help you in your growth as a disciple? In what way can you make disciples within your Connect Group?
3. In two years' time, what kind of disciple do you want to see yourself growing into?

New Year 2017 Leaders Meeting

New Year 2017

Leaders Meeting by Ps Renny Khoo

1 January 2017

1-4 pm

Statement for Revisioning Discipleship 

A living Relationship births forth Intimacy which leads to Transformation.

Relationship- Connect with God in Word and Prayer, Join a Connect Group

Intimacy - Be Authentic, Broken, Courageous 

Trasnsformation - Maturity. Multify.

Pastoral exhortation for leaders in 2017 :-

1) Grow Leadership Resonance

2) Invite people to join Connect Group

1) Grow Leadership Resonance

Three paradigm Shifts :-

1) Move from Strategy Focus (highly instruction based) to romance of leadership (inspire one another)

Call to Leadership is a call to relationship with each other.

2) Move from blueprint focus to following Christ's footprints 

Help one another to follow the way of Christ.

3) Move from program focus to reproducing ourselves

At the heart of growing Leadership, mentoring is central. 

We choose to "prefer" the good, acceptable and perfect will of God. 

Not a "no choice" syndrome.

2) Belong to Connect Group

Hebrew 10:24-25

Provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together...

Helping one another to journey through life.

A great way to give back to our community.

Receiving and Giving - how Connect Groups work.

Small Groups : Health and Dynamics

Connect Groups 

Tenure 

CGL 2 years ZL 5 years

Each CGL to have 1-2 Interns in consultation with ZLs 

After 2 years, CGL may take 1 Year sabbatical break  

Structure & Philosophy

Two main aims of CG and each member :- Maturity and Multiplication 

Format & Setting of CG Meeting :-

Welcome

Worship

Word

Wallop

Mentoring sessions :-

Grow personal life - Authenticity in our worship, Brokenness and Courage in our walk.

Grow personal Leadership - FAT (Faithful, Available, Teachable) and stay hungry (Piritual appetite) 

Once a month ZL to meet CGL, Intern to lead CG that night.

Expectations of all CGLs

Regular participation of Church services & Prayer Meetings

Attend mentoring meetings once a month.

Lead and report weekly meetings.

Willing to be equipped and mentored as guided by KKE.

Church Obligations 

To equip, train, mentor all ZLs, CGLs

Ensure availability of resources necessary 

Extend prayer covering