SENIOR PASTOR EXHORTATION
RE-CAPS FROM THE HEART-SHARING OF OUR SENIOR PASTOR
Genesis 8:6-8
After forty days Noah opened a window he had made in the ark and sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth. Then he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground.
Recently I received an impression of the flood in the Book of Genesis. I see that there is a parallel between our current pandemic and the flood that Noah and the people during his time had encountered.
Like the flood, when things re-open for us, a few things will happen.
- It will be a RELIEF
– We will be able to gradually get back some form of freedom and the normal ways of life like travelling and dining in at restaurants.
- It will be a time to REBUILD.
– Like Noah after the flood, when the pandemic settles down, we will see the effects; the debris of the economy; the companies that closed and those who survive; the effects on the education and the people’s mental health.
– We will have a lot of things that need to be rebuilt.
- It is a time to REFLECT.
– The world has to reflect the following questions:
– “What went wrong?”
– “How can a ‘little virus’ bring so much of destruction?”
– “With such advanced technology and progress, couldn’t it be prevented?”
– “What must the world do to prepare themselves that this will not recur with such magnitude?”
– For the Church too, that we must reflect the following:
– “Do we understand what happened?”
– “Is this the work of the devil or is it permitted by God?”
– “Is this the prelude to the second coming of Jesus and will we be prepared?”
– “Did it bring out the best of the Church or the weaknesses of the Church and the individual believers?”
I am very concerned of many brothers and sisters out there.
Praise God that many of you are faithful and drawing near to God, despite that you too may be affected.
My concerns are these –
*Some believers have lost their faith.
- Because their livelihood has been affected, they have forgotten the set aside time which is supposed to be spent with God. Some have even missed time for prayers and services in order to try to fix their problems. It should be a time to seek for God’s help instead of leaving Him to spend time trying to fix our own problems
*Some believers have taken the convenient path in their spiritual disciplines.
- We join online service at our convenient time and sometimes missed it.
- We only tune in to the preaching, but we miss out the beginning and the end of service.
- With many churches as other options to tune in, some are no longer focused and are faithful to one.
May the Lord help us to be aware of the time, season and temptations that we are facing.
From your pastor,
Lawrence Yap