Church News (Page 47)

By Not Known What does it mean to have faith in someone? All relationships are built on faith. When we marry someone, we have faith in that someone.  Although we do not know what the future brings, we have faith in our spouse that he or she will be good to us.  At times, however, instead…

By Not Known The age of “You do, because I say so!” is over at home, at work, in school, in the social sphere, and in the political arena as well.  Norms are being questioned and challenged by new waves of assumptions and perspectives. Traditions, both good and bad ones, are continually undergoing shake-ups and reshaping.  While all these may produce some good…

By Not Known The word huddle was coined in the 1890s when Paul Hubbard, the quarterback for Gallaudet, a college for deaf students in Washington, D.C., had his team form a tight circle so they could discuss plays without the other team seeing what they were signing.  As the game evolved, huddling became an integral part of the game plan.  Some of the benefits…

By Not Known As we finish our sermon series on the Book of Ruth today, the story ends with the birth of a son, Obed, to Boaz and Ruth, and the women telling Naomi, “Praise be to the Lord, who this day has not left you without a kinsman-redeemer.  May He become famous throughout Israel! He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age.” (Ruth 4:14-15)  Who…

By Not Known Time passes quickly.  I have been serving in ORPC for three and a half months now.  By God’s grace, I am knowing more members and visiting the sick, as well as managing the challenges of ministry work. One of the challenges is managing regular worshippers with special needs. I got to know one of them quite well and even spoke to his mother and his…

By Not Known Many years ago, I was in my sister’s car when she drove to her campus during her examinations period.  Traffic jams are common occurrence in Jakarta during peak hours.  We had wanted to set out before the peak hours to beat the jam but unfortunately, my sister burnt midnight…

By Not Known On the early morning of March 9, Singapore experienced a partial solar eclipse where 90% of the sun was obscured by the moon at the maximum point of the eclipse.  A solar eclipse happens when the moon moves in between the sun and the earth.  The light and heat of the sun is temporary masked by the moon such that darkness from total to partial comes…

By Not Known Today is Palm Sunday, when Christians and churches commemorate Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem a week before His resurrection, where the crowds laid palm branches in front of Him as He rode through on a donkey. This is recorded in each of the four gospels, fulfilling the prophecy in Zechariah 9:9.  The choice of riding on a donkey, as opposed to a…

By Not Known With our focus today on Christ’s saying with “I am the true vine” (John 15) comes the issue of discipline.  In fact, one of the aspects of church life that we do not discuss widely enough is the subject of church discipline.  There are probably many reasons why this is so.  As it is not an easy matter to deal with, many leaders shun this…

By Not Known A Caring Society SMRT train is my main form of transportation to and from work.  I have observed orderly and considerate behaviors of fellow passengers – everyone queuing up in a straight line before the train door opens and giving way to outgoing passengers before boarding the train.  In the past, passengers used to crowd around and rushed in…