THE YOUNG PEOPLE PRAISE GOD!

Testimony of Church Camp 2015 by Clyde Wong

I want to thank God for the camp we just had. I have learnt much from it. I desire not just to be a hearer of God’s Word, but also a doer (James 1:22).

After much self-reflection, I am grateful for a particular lesson that God has taught me through this camp. I normally limit myself to the things I think I can do, and am afraid to move out of my comfort zone. However, there may be times where God will require me to so in order to accomplish His will. All we need is to trust in God and He will grant us the grace to overcome the challenges.

When my fellowship group leader raised the suggestion to perform the skit during Thanksgiving Night in Mandarin, I was reluctant to do it as my Mandarin was never my forte. Even after he gave me the reason behind his suggestion, I accepted it grudgingly as I had no choice. It was only when my leader explained the reason to me the second time that I realised I was self-centered, only wanting to do things for myself, and not pleasing God in the process.

By the mercy and grace of God, I decided to change my attitude towards the play. I asked my leader for the “Han Yu Pin Yin” of the Mandarin words for my lines. I resolved to speak all my lines in Mandarin. Even though my leader permitted me to speak a certain line in English as it was a little more difficult than the others, I cheerfully declined, because it was important for me to trust in the Lord. I thank God that he had seen me through the skit. I hope that the skit was a blessing to everyone to the glory of God’s name.

Ebenezer Christmas Gospel Chalet 2015 Report by Javan Koh

Ebenezer held their annual Christmas Gospel Chalet from 14th-16th De-cember 2015 at Fairy Point Bungalow 3 at Aloha Changi Chalet. The youths were strongly encouraged to invite their friends to come and hear the good news of Jesus Christ during this joyous Christmas occasion. It was also an opportune time of sweet fellowship among Ebenezer brethren.

Thank God for the 4 newcomers who came on 14th December. We had a time of icebreaker games led by Gideon before listening to God’s Word through Preacher James Chen and Preacher Clement. Preacher James spoke on the topic “You Only Live Once (YOLO)” taken from Psalm 39:1-13.

Synopsis of Preacher James’ Message:

1) You only live once?
All men agree that life is short. Men try to make the most of their lives, to achieve something, to be remembered, but to what avail?

2) The struggle with life
Life is never a smooth path; we often find ourselves wrestling with sin, as David expresses in verses 1-3.

3) The brevity of life
David acknowledges that life is frail. “Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am.”

4) The hope of life
However, the answer to life is not found in man, but in his Creator. True hope is only in God. When Jesus Christ died on the cross and rose again on the third day, He paid the penalty for our sins and man can now have eternal life if they repent of their sin and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.

5) The plea for life
Finally, there is a cry to God for help. Life itself would ultimately be a meaningless pursuit without God.

You only live once, what are you doing with your life right now?

On 15th December, we woke up to breakfast prepared for us lovingly by Rachel, Sarah and Lucy. We then had our own Quiet Time with the Lord, followed by a round of games organised by Matthew Teng. Lunch was again lovingly prepared by Rachel, Sarah and Lucy. We proceeded to an outing at Changi Beach Park led by Jian Jun. Praise the Lord for the good weather! We cycled, roller-skated and built sandcastles.

After the outing, we had the privilege to eat dinner together before head-ing off for the church’s weekly prayer meeting. We spent one more night at the chalet before checking out on the morning of 16th December.

Testimony by Games ICs (Matthew Teng & Gideon Yeow)

Thank God for this opportunity to serve in the planning of the Christmas Gospel Chalet games. This was our first time planning for the games and it was difficult for us because we both found it hard to give explanations clearly. We were afraid that the participants would not understand the games that we had planned. By the grace of God, we were able to explain the games clearly. We truly thank God for grace, strength and wisdom to run the games properly. We are also thankful for the safety of the participants throughout the games. We pray that we would be able to serve Him in more areas in the near future.

Preacher’s note: We are thankful for God’s leading and protecting hand upon the youth throughout the Christmas Gospel Chalet. Let us continue to pray for our young people, that they may grow in spiritual maturity and love for the Lord Jesus Christ.