Annual Chuch Camp

October 8, 2005

A DIVINE AUTHORITY CHURCH

The theme of this year’s annual retreat camp was “A Divine Authority Church”.It was held in Wu Kwai Sha Youth Village. The speakers were Pastor Simon, Pastor Somthob and Pastor Gavin. Altogether there were over 300 brothers and sisters joining the camp full time and part time.

The Teaching

We had gone through thirteen valuable lessons including Divine Authority in the Christian Arena, True Submission, Authority in God’s Appointed Institutions, Privileges and Responsibilities of Those in Authority, The Characteristics of Godly People in Authority, and The Fruit of Submission and Rebellion. There were powerful praise and worship before each session. Through the teachings we had deepened our understanding on God’s will. We were also reminded that in order to receive the authority from God, we must obey Him wholeheartedly.

Hope Game

Thank God for the good weather. To warm ourselves up physically and spiritually, brother Lai and sister Jody led us to do the “ Hope Exercise” and the “Group Dance”. Following a prayer by Pastor Gavin, the “ Hope Olympic” started. We were split into eight groups by different colors and competed on the games including Throwing Water Balloon, The Pilgrim, Walking Together, and Throwing Circles. After the fun, there came the highlight with competitions on Tug of War and Mixed Relay which demanded much physical strength. Brothers and sisters really demonstrated unity in their enthusiastic participation of each game. In the end, there were two champions – the green and the blue groups with the silver group being the 2 nd runners up.

Sunday Service

There were more than 300 people attending the Sunday Service. After the powerful praise and worship, sister Hui Leng from Group 2 testified how she and her care group were blessed by God when she responded to God’s calling. Pastor Simon preached on “”Keep on, Keeping on”” from Jude 1: 17 -23. It teached us that as a Christian, we should unceasingly keep strengthening our faith in God, be submissive, rely on the Holy Spirit, and evangelize with God’s unfailing love, so as to effectively expand the kingdom of God.

Mission Night

To elaborate the theme of our Mission Night – ‘Touch the World’, the church was divided into 4 groups presenting 4 extracts of evangelis m from the Bible. They were titled ‘Jesus meeting with the Samaritan woman by the well’; ‘Isaiah seeing the vision of God with the seraphs, he asked to be cleansed and sent forth’ ; ‘Peter seeing the vision of unclean animals descending from heaven’ and lastly ‘Abraham’s calling by God to leave his home for the promised land’. From the skits, we learnt that evangelism began at home; started locally and extended to the nation and ultimately global.

Pastor Gavin challenged us to be a “World Class Christian”, one that serve d in God ’s mission and was joyous in bringing God’s love to other people. We were encouraged to grow personally by pledging ourselves to align with the Church’s vision. For local mission work, we were encouraged to ready ourselves in becoming shepherds and leaders. For international mission work, we were encouraged to contribute to the mission fund, prayers and be willing to take part in international mission work. Every brother and sister willingly pledged their lives for the expansion of God’s kingdom.

Before the evening ended, 3 balls representing Hong Kong, Far East Mission Field and International Mission Field were passed around the hall .All the brothers and sisters aimed to touch all the balls symbolizing their pledge to ‘Touch the World’.

Thanksgiving

We thank God for all the teachings of the three speakers They were encouraging, touching and humorous. We are thankful to the joyous Hope Games, powerful praise and worship and the heartening mission night. Praise the Lord for the giftings and effort of the organizing committee. Let’s all be obedient, and apply God’s authority to fulfill His great commission wholeheartedly.