Today is a special day that calls for thanksgiving.  We are celebrating our church’s 44th anniversary.  There are many things that we can thank God for but today I would like to give thanks to God for Tante Barbara, the wife of our beloved Pastor John Lim, who has been with us since the inception of this church.  It was she who stood by Pastor John Lim through years of pastoral ministries in Indonesia and the United States.  It was she who helped support her family as Oom John pastored this fledgling church. It was she who always believed in and prayed for Pastor John through the many seasons of life and ministry.  So, to her we owe her thanks.  Thank you, Tante.

On a slightly different note, I’d like to invite you to participate in our Thanksgiving Retreat.  The theme of this year’s retreat is, fittingly, “Be Thankful.”  I will speak in four sessions, starting from Thursday, November 28 to Saturday, November 30.  In the first session I will address the topic of “THANKFUL Does Not Always Lead To GRACE.”  In the second session, I will cover the topic of, “THANKFUL Does Not Always Lead To WORSHIP.”  In the third session, I will speak on the topic of “THANKFUL Does Not Always Lead To REPENTANCE.”  And in the last session, I will cap it all with the topic of “THANKFUL To See God In Everything.”  I hope you’ll come and fellowship with us.

Some say that being thankful is an inborn trait; some say that it is an acquired attribute.  The fact is being thankful is more complex than that.  It is my intent that through our studies of the Bible we will see that being thankful is not as simple as we think.  Being thankful does not automatically lead us to grace, worship, and repentance; more must happen in our spiritual walk.  And that “more” is simply being able to see God in everything.  The truth is the more we see Him, the more thankful we will be.  We who do not see God in everything will find it hard to be thankful to Him. So, open our eyes and see.

Pastor Paul