Easter Celebration

March 27, 2005

What does a New Page mean to you? The first day in school? Graduation? Falling in love? Get married? Start a business? Praise God that 18 brothers and sisters have started a very important New Page in their lives through accepting Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour in our Easter Sunday Service on 27 March, which was held in the Hong Kong Convention Centre and attended by more than 330 brothers, sisters and friends.

Thank God for such a joyful and fruitful celebration and thank all brothers and sisters who have put in so much effort. The Program Team planned the entire service and prepared the special Flash opening, the PowerPoint Presentation and the beautiful decorations.We should not forget the warm welcome and the gift we received at the hall entrance. Thank God for all these faithful brothers and sisters.

Many brothers and sisters were touched during the praise and worship session when the lyrics reminded us of Jesus’ sacrificial love and His promise to us.

“My life is in You, Lord”

“Christ has set us free”

“And in His presence,
our problems disappear”

Becoming a Christian is like the metamorphosis of a caterpillar into a butterfly because with Christ in us, our lives have become colourful and beautiful. In the service, four brothers and sisters, Tammy (G8), Vicky & Chris (G3) and Maggie (G5), testified how they have changed from a caterpillar into a butterfly in a pre-recorded video. Tammy came to Hong Kong in 1998 and received Christ in 2000. Since she became a Christian, her life has changed significantly. She is no longer pessimistic and sad; she has joy and peace in her heart. Moreover, her whole family in Thailand accepted Jesus as well. Her mother, once a gambler, has stopped gambling now. Her family is now serving God together in a caregroup in their house. Vicky and Chris got married in November 2004, they are experiencing God’s love and blessings in their marriage, thus they know how to love one another with God’s love. They realized the purpose of their marriage is to serve God more effectively. Maggie shared with us that she experienced two heart-broken romances before accepting Christ. The first romance ended with her boyfriend died in a traffic accident while the second one ended because of misunderstanding. Both romances wounded her deeply. Since Maggie joined Hope of God Church in August 2004, God has healed her completely and she has found real joy in Him. Now she is serving God joyfully; the pain in the past can no longer affect her new life in Christ.

The sermon topic is “A New Page”. Sister Arlene preached what a real change is for a person through 2 Corinthians 5:17. A new person starts a new life with Christ. We are not merely reformed or rehabilitated. We should be recreated. We become a brand new person from within. Besides, a new person grows as the old person fades away. Old parts are not hidden but each part of our life is made new, just like a butterfly, which is totally different from a caterpillar.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Let’s not be a caterpillar by confining ourselves in the cocoon but allow the Holy Spirit to initiate a spiritual metamorphism in us so that we can grow into a colourful butterfly and live a life with colour and abundance in Christ!