Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
During the Chinese Heritage Church Minister’s Collective this week, I had the chance to meet with other ministry leaders (pastors, campus ministry staff, etc) who have been in ministry for 15-20 years. As we introduced ourselves, I asked if we could all share, “What keeps you serving the Lord (in a Chinese Church)?”
I was encouraged to hear many other of the brothers there share that they still had great hope. They had hope that God has been faithful to the Chinese Heritage church in the past and he is still being faithful and will continue to be faithful to us. They had hope as they have seen the kindness and accommodation of the Chinese side which not only tolerates a different language congregation (through holding meetings in English), but also who works to encourage and strengthen the hands of brothers and sisters in the English congregation. For example, we have had deacons for CrossPoint from outside our congregation (Tony and Yajwu) and they have worked and continue to work to help our congregation be and do what the Lord wants us to be and do. They want to help our congregation to succeed in the task and role that God has given us. Moreover, one brother shared that he views the Chinese church as the future of Christianity in a post-Christian cultural context. We can’t rely on people having a Christian vocabulary or a Christian worldview. But this ministry setting is the same that the Chinese side has always faced. And still God is working at changing lives. Within the church, we may feel like we are overlooked or our preferences are ignored since we are a smaller congregation. But the truth is that our preferences within the culture will be overlooked because we are not in the majority as followers of Jesus. I shared that I am still in ministry because the Lord is with me and he continues to provide. I’m hopeful that He will provide for us in the coming weeks, months, and years, as we seek to go where He is leading, to listen to what He says, to love those whom He sends our way – For the glory of God alone.
Reminders: tomorrow, on Saturday, May 10, Minister Charles will walk for his Graduation from Seminary (as will a brother in the Mandarin congregation). Saturday afternoon at 2 pm, Minister CJ (Mandarin Ministry) will become Pastor CJ through his ordination service. Then on Sunday, May 11, we have a combined Mother’s Day service, beginning at 9:45 am in the Main Sanctuary. Afterwards, we are planning to have a time of fellowship and connection in rooms A-216 and A-218, as we won’t have regular Sunday School.
Then later in May, on the 18th, the Youth Ministry is doing a STM fundraiser (The Annual 5k). Also, the Empower Fellowship will start. That is our college student ministry which typically runs in the summer and during Christmas break.
Please continue to pray for the nations of Israel and Ukraine and South Sudan. Pray that the wars would end and the ceasefire in Gaza would be reinstated. Here is a suggested list of prayers if you are at a loss for words in how to pray: https://send.org/story/hh_pray_for_ukraine. And https://worldrelief.org/blog-prayer-for-israel-and-gaza/ And here are other prayers for peace in general: https://worldrelief.org/prayers-for-peace-in-the-world/ Thank you for kneeling on behalf of the people of Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Gaza and Lebanon, Sudan and South Sudan, and taking a stand (or a knee in prayer) against the forces of darkness in this present age.
This Week (May 9-May 15, 2025):
1. Tonight, May 9, 2025, the Living Stones Friday Night Bible Study is meeting from 7:30-9:30 to study “The Sign of His Presence”. Tim and Jack are leading. You can read John 6:16-21 if you want a sneak peek of the content! Join in person in Room A-218 or online via the following link at 7:30 pm:
https://zoom.us/j/685376249?pwd=cWtyUk1pckJiRHJxZVZCSGdJZWw2UT09
Meeting ID: 685 376 249
Password: 840840
Join by phone: +1 929 436 2866 US (New York)
2. CrossPoint Community Sunday School takes a break this Sunday – May 11. We will have a fellowship hour in the Koinonia Room (A-216) and the Friday Night Bible Study Room (A-218).
3. This Sunday, May 11, 2025, at 9:45 am, we will have a whole church combined worship service for Mother’s Day. Pastor Nathan (I) will be preaching. Pray for him (me)! Join us for worship at CBCGL.
Text: Genesis 29
Title: Princess Leah
Live stream via Youtube: https://www.cbcgl.org/live-stream/
4. Each Wednesday, such as this coming week (May 14) at 7:45 pm, you are invited, encouraged, and requested to join our weekly prayer meeting. We will not grow in Christ without growing in our dependence on God through prayer. In May, we will be praying with a focus on Special Events this month and summer. The link is found below in the section on prayer.
Administration / Events
1. We have a missions update (so check out the missions tab in the bulletin)! You can pray for Rev. Aritung Kikon. His recent update is from the Seminary that he runs in India to equip native church leaders to bring the gospel and lead churches in India. They just had a graduation! For more information, check out the missions tab of the bulletin. Also, if you’d like to help with providing mission updates for CPC – let Pastor Nathan know!
2.***Cancelled this week due to Min. CJ’s Ordination*** CPCM has reserved the Multi-Purpose Room on Saturday’s from 1:30 to 4PM for sports. In general, we can play any game: Ping-pong, badminton, pickleball, volleyball, basketball; we can do it all. The room is reserved only for CPCM members and their guests, so it is highly likely you will have lots of space and time to play whatever you want. The goal is to build deeper bonds through shared interest and activity. The contact person is Joshua Zhang.
3. Sunday Lunch Service is available at CBCGL with $5 lunches that are first-come, first-served. Pizza is $2 per slice and Ramen is available (priced variously according to size).
4. Women’s Bible Study – “KEEPING IT VERTICAL” meets the first and third Tuesday of each month to learn, share and grow in the Lord. We are studying the Fruit of the Spirit. Come join us and meet new friends and bring more friends along! Contact jeannemic50 (at) icloud.com (Please note, on May 6, this begins at 10 am.)
5. VBS Registration is open for CBCGL’s VBS held August 4-8 (It’s Full Day this year!). To register please follow this link. Also, the VBS committee is looking for materials to make decorations. You can find that announcement here: VBS decoration material donation request
6. All other announcements can be found here (in our CrossPoint Community bulletin).
For Prayer:
1. From Bishop J.C. Ryle – “To be prayerless is to be Christless, Godless, and in the high road to destruction…It will always be found that when prayers are few, grace, strength, peace, and hope are small.” Please join our Wednesday night prayer meeting (7:45 – 9:00 pm) even if you can’t participate the whole time.
https://zoom.us/j/758587937?pwd=aS9sZUdxcm1janNNM2I2aXJ6Smx2QT09
Meeting ID: 758 587 937
Password: 030086
Join by phone: +1 929 436 2866 US (New York)
2. We’d be glad to pray for you. If you need prayer, you can submit your prayer request via the following link: https://www.cbcgl.org/pray/
In Christ, your servant, SDG,
Rev. Dr. Nathan Willems
Associate Pastor of CrossPoint Community – A Ministry of CBCGL