This has been a very difficult year, and Elder David Yu shares this message to provide some encouragement and perspective from God's Word.

Many of us set goals for the New Year. Some people might want to lose weight, others want to run a marathon, and some students might have the goal of getting straight As. However, all of those goals only have value for this life. This year, considering making godliness one of your goals, as godliness has value for this life and also for the life to come. However, goals aren't easy to accomplish and often require training. In this message, we'll take a look at 1 Timothy 4:6-10 to see how we can train for godliness.

It seems that a lot of people couldn't wait for Christmas this year. Certainly, the lights, the food, and the gifts bring much needed happiness for a challenging year. But if we let Christmas be only about these cheers, we would have missed the best gift that Christmas offers. Christmas is about a Savior coming into our world. We can more fully appreciate Jesus' coming when we understand the cost of his coming into the world, the effect of him being in the world, and the decision he is asking to the world.

As we celebrate the holidays and reflect on all the things that we’re thankful for, it also brings to mind the fact that there are so many people around us and around the world, who are not as fortunate. In this episode, we'll hear about an example of Jesus' compassion from Matthew 14 and be encouraged to show compassion to those around us.

The real story of Christmas is that the True Light has come into the world, enlightening every man.  Yet the world did not know Him.  Even though He came to His own, they did not receive Him, but as many as received Him, He gave the right to become children of God.  Only through Christ, the True Light, can a person be forgiven of sins, be born again of the Spirit of God, come into a relationship with God, and receive the free gift of eternal life.  For those who have not yet received Christ as Savior and Lord, now is the time to do so, now is the day of salvation.  For Christians, we must walk in the light as children of Light and not hide from God, not hide our sins from Him, but rather confess them and find victory over darkness in Him.

Hi everyone, this is Jason.

In July, at the height of a raging summer surge in the pandemic, I received multiple questions about Operation Christmas Child for this year.  “How do we do OCC safely?” “Are we going to reduce the number of shoeboxes?” And even “Are we going to do OCC at all?”  I sat down at my kitchen table contemplating.  We had just cancelled all our family vacations for this year, postponed our missions trip, and pulled our kids out of many of their activities and summer camps.  Why should Operation Christmas Child be any different?  We left the house maybe once every 2 weeks just to get groceries.  We didn’t see anyone in person for months.  And we were all getting sick of Zoom.  How can we run Operation Christmas Child which requires coordination among multiple congregations, person-to-person donation collection, promotional activities, and in-person packing events?  It seemed absurd to even contemplate it.  But I sat there weighing the pros and cons like any managerial decision. 

On one side of the scale were all the reasons not to do OCC.  In addition to all the reasons related to the pandemic, there were the issues of time, effort, and chance of success.  In a normal year without the pandemic and being sheltered in place, we barely collect enough donations to meet our goal, and that is with a lot of promotional activities and the ability to have a presence at church.  What’s the chance of meeting our goal now when we can’t speak to donors, can’t put up any flyers, and have no way of accepting cash donations, which is usually the bulk of the donations.  There was also the issue of time.  With my kids at home full time and my job demanding more of me to fill some vacated responsibilities, I found myself with very little spare time.  I asked myself, “Do I really want to commit to something that requires so much time commitment?”  I also knew that this year, Operation Christmas Child would require a whole other level of work and effort.  Almost everything we use to do for the ministry, we would have to rethink with all the Covid limitations.  How do we collect donations and keep accounting?  How do we buy bulk supplies safely?  And how do we pack all the shoeboxes?  Just thinking about it made my brain hurt.  With so many overwhelming reasons for not doing OCC, every part of me said “Cancel it!”

But are there any reasons on the other side of the scale?  The Holy Spirit asked me a question – “Do you think the poor children will need these shoeboxes this year?”  “Do you think they will need these essential items and the hope of the Gospel more or less this year?”  I knew the answer.  Even though we are all going through difficult times together this year, it is so much harder for the poor who do not have access to good medical care, who have to work and can’t stay home, and who have to struggle with even less resources.  The Lord revealed to me where His heart was.  On this side of the scale for doing OCC were the children and their families.  

I struggled with this decision for a long time.  What if we don’t collect enough donations and I can’t reimburse the people who buy all the supplies? What if we can’t set up a safe packing event?  What if no one volunteers and I’m stuck doing it all by myself.  So many what if’s.  So many reasons not to do it.  There seemed to be no way.  But the Lord reminded me of the words of a song taken from Isaiah 43: “God will make a way where there seems to be no way. He works in ways we cannot see, He will make a way for me.”  In the end, that one reason to move forward outweighed all the reasons not to do OCC. 

Operation Christmas Child launched in the middle of September with announcements in the bulletin and a testimonial video from a former OCC recipient.  Normally, we received the bulk of our donations on the first few days after our launch.  However, this year I received no donations of any size after the announcement.  Days passed.  Then a week passed. Then 2 weeks passed and still zero donations.  I started to question God, “Lord, you told me to do this.  Where are the donations?  Why are my worst fears coming true?”  But the Lord wanted to teach me that He is faithful and He will do things in His time even if I don’t understand it.  A few days later, I received the first donation.  Then slowly but surely, the donations started coming in.  Even though we couldn’t take cash, the donations came through every other way - checks in the mail, Paypal, Venmo, Apple Pay, and some folks dropping off checks at my doorstep.  Every week, we climbed a little closer to our target.  Eventually, we hit our target and more donations still came in.  Susan and Frank who did most of the purchases for the supplies found some amazing deals and were able to do most of the shopping safely online.  And lastly, when the packing event came, we had more than enough volunteers helping out that we completed all the work in about half the time.  It all came together.  In a year which most people would consider the worst in their lifetime, when so many of us have struggled, our church congregation packed more shoeboxes than we have ever done before.  Not just a few more, 15 – 20% more.  There were so many reasons not to do this and so many reasons why it could fail, but the Lord made a way.  And since none of us did any salesmanship or promotions to get donations and volunteers, none of us can boast that it was anything other than the work of the Lord.  So is there something that the Lord has laid on your heart to do and you’ve been reluctant to answer because there are so many excuses not to do it?  It may seem illogical or even impossible but that is when God shows us what our faith can do.  God will make a way. 

Hi everyone, this is Sally...

It’s crazy how it’s already been eight months since shelter in place. Back in early March, Abound threw a party to celebrate Sarah and Steven’s engagement. I think that was the last time we were all together since SIP started pretty soon afterwards.  

2020 has definitely been a strange year. There’s been stressful news on the COVID pandemic, wildfires, protests, and a turbulent presidential election. It’s another reminder of how broken the world is; a reminder of how sin has affected everything - health, relationships, nature... Through this season, may we continue to draw strength, hope, and peace from who God is and who we are. God is sovereign and He is in control. He is a merciful, loving God. And we are His beloved children, fearfully and wonderfully made in His image. It is in Christ that we are forgiven, redeemed, and reconciled with our Heavenly Father.  

I’ve still been going into the office every week so not much has changed there. Our team has been understaffed for over half a year now so there’s been the increasing workload and multiple deadlines throughout the week. After work, I usually transform into a hermit. I don’t have the energy to interact with people because I’m so exhausted and drained from the long day. I usually sit in a quiet room by myself and listen to music, catch up on shows, or journal in order to unwind. I remember how there’d be a couple nights each week when I would stay up through the night, unable to break away from the overwhelming worries and fearful thoughts racing through my mind. There have been a couple of times when I thought about giving up, quitting my job, and moving out of the city and going to a quieter place away from the noisiness of life. 

These past months have been quite difficult, but I feel like God has given me strength through community. I am grateful for my brothers and sisters, especially during this season.

There’s been a lot of changes recently. Some of my old friends have moved away or returned to the area. I’ve also met some new faces and we're slowly getting to know one another. Ever since SIP, I’ve been getting used to meeting up with friends virtually rather than in person. It was (and still is) a struggle to adjust to this new normal of interacting with everyone. Personally, I thrive the most when I meet with folks 1:1 in person. I feel like that’s where I’m more open and comfortable to share, and this style of interaction seems more easier and natural to form deep connections with others. 

There were a lot of times when I was having a hard time with feelings of loneliness. However, I would always feel comforted by God’s love when someone reached out and texted me to see how I’ve been, or when someone was down for a quick chat to catch up. We recently transitioned to our Abound community groups and it’s been a blessing to meet up every week with my group online. We’ve also had the opportunity to meet in person sometimes, usually for Bible study or meetups. I hope we continue to encourage each other, keep one another accountable, and grow together in our walk with God. There’s also been the weekly coffee hour/fellowship time every Sunday. It’s been great seeing and spending time with the rest of our English congregation. I am continuously reminded of God’s grace, love, and mercy during our interactions together.. whether it’s through sharing about how our weeks have been, laughing together, or praying with one another. 

During this time when we’re not physically together and when we’re seeing each other less frequently, it’s even more important to stay in fellowship with one another, as well as being intentional in our relationships. Our community isn’t just found in church though; community is also in our neighborhood, workplace, and family. 

Let’s continue to care for one another, building each other up and reminding one another of the hope we have in Jesus. 

I’d like to close with Ephesians 4:2-6:

Guest speaker Victoria Mejia shares a timely message from Acts 10 where God uses Peter to begin the process of breaking down walls between Jews and Gentiles.  Today, more than ever, we need to rely on the Holy Spirit to show us which barriers to demolish, whether they are cultural, ethnic or racial.