Author: Trustworthy Message
I want to ask the reader how you feel when you step into a church. What is a church?
A church is a place where believers of Jesus Christ get together. So let’s look at how a church in Toronto walks with people during the difficult time of the pandemic.
When Covid-19 broke out in 2020, this church had only a tiny congregation. The church members were physically separated because there were no longer in-person gatherings. However, their minds were closer than ever. They knew very well that Jesus the Lord would like them to share His love under all circumstances so that people could experience His joy and peace. Therefore, the church arranged monthly online gatherings for different cell groups, where members could chat and encourage each other. These online chats were not only for church members but also for their families. Besides this, the church has kept making phone calls and paying home visits (with masks worn) to needy people over the past two years.
Their children’s ministry grew despite going online. In the beginning, there were only six children. However, these children have invited their friends to join, so there are now over 20 participants. This summer, in-person Vacation Bible Camp was back, filled with the volunteers’ love and care, and fun. When it was time to wave goodbye, the campers said, “I will come back next year!” It was very encouraging to the volunteers and made all their hard work worth it.
During the pandemic, the church extended love and care to the elderly and the sick even outside the church. Only not helping the older people to participate in online gatherings but also being called to warm their hearts and cater to their needs. For example, upon receiving their call, a senior living in a nursing home said, “We are not related, and we have never met. But your calls make me feel loved!”
Ten senior church members have passed away over the past two years. An older person with lung cancer revealed that he did not want to die alone in his senior housing. Church members hurried an application for him so that he could move to a nursing home in just two weeks. On the same day of moving in, this man passed away, surrounded by nursing home staff and residents, and fulfilled his wish. Also, on the last days of another elderly woman who was cared for, including to meet the doctor’s appointment, among her final words were, “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” (Isaiah 40:8)
What are God’s commandments?
One of them is “Love your neighbor as yourself.” “Love your neighbor” is not a slogan. It entails action! Walking with people in need, feeding them, driving them around, and caring for them take a lot of time and effort. But as a disciple of Jesus, having the opportunity to share His great love is the most significant gain and blessing. Didn’t Jesus say, “It is more blessed to give than to receive”? Therefore, preaching the Gospel and living the Gospel are equally essential.
Dear All, What is your belief’s ‘Gain’ or ‘Loss’?