I thank God for showing mercy to our church. Although the pandemic may not be over just yet, we could resume most of our church activities, close to the usual routine. In the coming 28th March, our church would be holding the Annual Congregation Meeting. For many churches, this could still be impossible. Therefore, do encourage one another, be it members or friends, to treasure this event and attend. Members should have received the agenda for the meeting, including ministry and financial reports. Please read the reports before the start of the meeting for a better understand of the church situation in the year 2020, the challenges faced by the church, plans to overcome them, gaps that needs to be filled, etc. Hence, at the meeting members would have a better understanding of each issue. Everyone could ask themselves how else they could help the church in carrying out or setting up various aspects of each ministry. This would in turn enable TOLCC to help our brothers and sisters-in-Christ grow spiritually and spread the gospel effectively. The church is God’s home and is everyone’s spiritual family to which we belong. Thus, everyone is responsible for managing it. This is not only the responsibility of pastor or the church committee. God desires to build the church through every member’s effort and by working together. “From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Ephesians 4:16). The term “whole body” refers to the church; “ligament” and “part” refer to everyone in church. Every member and friend of TOLCC have the responsibility to obey God and to use the gift that God has given us to build up the church. When the ancient Israelites built the tabernacle, God taught them through Moses how to do it (Exodus 35-39). God by a miracle could have made the tabernacle appear right before the eyes of the Israelites. Afterall, He is the creator of the universe; nothing is too difficult for Him. But God chose not to do that. Instead, He used Moses and the Israelites to complete the task. The Israelites obeyed God and willingly gave of their abilities and resources to build the tabernacle. “Then Moses summoned Bezalel and Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the Lord had given ability and who was willing to come and do the work. They received from Moses all the offerings the Israelites had brought to carry out the work of constructing the sanctuary. And the people continued to bring freewill offerings morning after morning” (Exodus 36:2-3). God values our involvement and our heart’s willingness. What is the outcome of the wholehearted devotion of the Israelites? “Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would set out; but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out—until the day it lifted. So the cloud of the Lord was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the Israelites during all their travels” (Exodus 40:34-38). The Almighty God actually lives in the tabernacle that the Israelites built, and to be with them day and night, directing their path every moment.

When we are willing to build God’s home like the ancient Israelites, we too will experience God’s blessing!

Translated by Elaine Chew