For those of us who have school-aged children and as the end of another academic year approaches, we find ourselves in a whirlwind of activities. Students, teachers and parents are preoccupied with impending final exams, end-of-year trips, concerts, awards and graduation ceremonies. Just recently, I had the pleasure of attending an award ceremony with a special young man. The headmaster of the school focused his podium speech around apples, in particular, a familiar saying: “the apple does not fall far from the tree”. To emphasize his point, a shiny red apple adorned a corner of the podium. As each student proceeded up on stage to receive his award, the audience cheered and applauded. When the headmaster’s son went up to receive his award, the headmaster took the red gleaming apple off the podium and dropped it besides himself. Needless to say, the headmaster made his point and all the “trees” in the audience were amused and were proud of their “apples”. On many levels, the headmaster was stating that children reflect their parents, whether positively or negatively – such as the saying “one rotten apple spoils the bunch”.
In much the same way, as children of God, we reflect His character and who He is to a broken and hopeless world.
Thus, God has given us the community of believers, the church, to nurture and grow our faith so that every believer will reach maturity in Christ and will be equipped for every good work. I sincerely extend a Thanksgiving tribute to Pastors, Deacons & Elders, Teachers, and Counselors who faithfully serve to spiritually nurture the people whom God has entrusted to their care. May the Lord bless you and keep you!
Please be in prayer for the following:
- 2018 Summer Fun – Pray for campers, youth & adult volunteers, program directors and all who are involved with this important children’s ministry. Pray for safety in travel and field trips. Pray for group leaders to take concerted efforts to connect with campers. Pray for strength and perseverance for all involved. Pray gospel truth and precepts will be communicated clearly and faithfully. Pray campers will be encouraged to draw closer to God as a result of attending Summer Fun.
- Urban Promise – 20th-anniversary celebration. Pray for the Youth Group as they will be joining in the celebration this Saturday, May 5th at Peoples Church. Pray they will be inspired by the stories and encouraged by the faithfulness of the Urban Promise leaders. Pray they will be affirmed in their knowledge that they worship a living God who is at work in their city. Please also pray for SCBC Urban Promise Short Term Missions this summer. Pray the Lord would raise up 10 individuals for this short-term missions team. If you are interested in this great outreach opportunity or know of someone who is, please contact Felix Tam.
- Alpha – session began on April 24th and runs for 8 weeks. Please continue to pray for seekers as they explore life, faith, and God in a welcoming and informal environment. Pray for group leaders to lend a listening ear and have discernment in leading discussion. Pray the seed of the gospel will be sown and it will take root.
- City of Toronto – recent tragedy along Yonge Street & Finch Avenue. We remember and continue to pray for the grieving families of this tragic incident. For victims who were injured and still in the hospital, we pray for recovery without complications. For those who have lost loved ones, we pray for peace and comfort though they may struggle to understand why this happened. Pray for the affected neighbourhood, that they would not live in fear but have the courage to carry on. Pray this community will become stronger as a result of this tragedy.
Looking forward to a time of fellowship and prayer together this Sunday at 8:30 am in the Community Room.