PASTORAL
LETTER 2 22nd June 2004
Dear Members and Friends,
It gives me great delight to greet you in our Heavenly Father's Name. God is Good! (Shout your
response: "All the Time".)
Reminder
We all have short memories. And therefore, need to be reminded over and over again, especially
about important things. Here is a gentle reminder of the 3 things God placed in my heart that serve as
The Direction for us here at Wesley Methodist Church, Penang. (as shared in my I" Pastoral letter)
1. The Call To Brotherly Love
2. Leaders Must Be Praying Leaders
3. The Church Must Be A Missionary Church
And our Posture: a) Be humble Ps.25:9
b) Fear the Lord Ps.25:12,14
The Call To Brotherly Love
On Sunday, 30"' May I shared a message from Ephesians 4 that can help us heed the above call. How?
4:25 "put off falsehood / telling of lies" - we should stop telling lies about each other.
4:26 "do not let the sun go down on your anger" - we should not harbour anger against
anyone. We should settle all outstanding scores before sunset.
4:27 "do not give the devil a foothold" - we should not let the devil to fan the sparks of
anger and turn it into resentment / bitterness.
4:29a "do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth" - we should not speak
evil of others or hurt others.
4:29b instead talk "only what is helpful for building others up" - we should speak words of
comfort, encouragement and hope etc.
Friends, it is difficult to believe that Christians would act in ways that destroy relationships and
undermine unity. But we do!
Paul gives us the reasons why we should not act in these ways within the Church community:
a) we are citizens of God's Kingdom 2:19
b) we are God's family 2:19
c) we are God's temple 2:21
113'th Church Anniversary, Sunday 15 August
After taking into consideration all factor, we have decided to hold our Anniversary Service
at the City Bayview Hotel at 10.00 a.m. to be followed thereafter with our Anniversary Lunch.
I am really looking forward to the above Service and Lunch as it will give us all an opportunity
to come together
to get to know
to be integrated
to be the One Body of Christ
Let us do our part to foster friendship and maintain our unity in Christ Jesus.
Cost for the Lunch: Adults RM15/-
Children RM8/-(4-12yrs)
Tickets for Lunch are available from Ms Ivy Tan, CG leaders and organizational heads.
Marriage Enrichment Month July-August 2004
I have planned for the above emphasis during our Sunday Services in July-August.
Let me share with you that I am committed to teaching God's truth about Marriage & Family with
special interest in Marriage Counseling / Enrichment Program.
Marriage / Family is God's idea. He instituted Marriage and created the family to provide personal,
social and spiritual enrichment for human beings. The health of a society depends on the health of its
family units.
Marriage / Family has always had its troubles. The modern day Marriage / Family is no exception. In
fact the scenario is alarming - Marriage / Family is coming apart at an alarming rate and is falling
short of God's ideal. Today, there are more dysfunctional Marriages / Families then there are healthy
ones. Even here in our Church, I've come across I I Marriages / Families (I believe there are more)
that are dysfunctional!!! And I'm doing my best to minister to them.
Setting aside July - August as Marriage / Family Enrichment Month shows our commitment here at
Wesley Methodist Church, Penang to ministry towards marriage and family enrichment.
See enclosed Brochure / Flyer for details. Each weekly teaching is rooted on a solid biblical base, a
sound theology and practical experience.
It is my prayer that you will take this opportunity to invite your non-Christian and Christian friends -
so that together, you will find these messages enriching enough to enable you to build strong, stable
and growing families.
Marriage Enrichment Workshop (Level 1) 31 Jul-2 Aug
Facilitators: Mr & Mrs Yoong Fan Ngian
This is a stay-in Workshop and attendance is by invitation only.
Appeal to remember me and the leaders in your prayers.
"God does nothing but in answer to prayer. "
-John Wesley
Grace and Peace be yours always.
Sincerely In Christ Jesus
