By Winnie Lee

My dear, sweet, sentimental husband bought us hats for Christmas…not just any ordinary cold weather hat, mind you. These were fancy Skida hats, handmade in Vermont, in these trendy floral and polka-a-dot patterns that were velvety soft on the inside. They are supposed to keep you super warm on extremely cold days. In fact, commercial fishermen in Alaska and cross- country skiers wear these Skidas! Well, I’m embarrassed to say that out of the three of us, only my youngest was excited about the present. My oldest does not like hats. I like them, but hats have never looked good on me because I have a rather large circumference crown! Read more →

by Elliott Kwong

It was an honor to minister at the annual Youth Winter Retreat a couple of weekends ago. The theme of the retreat was “Consecration.”

Sessions:

Saturday Morning – A Nazirite is Set Apart – Salvation/Recommitment
Saturday Night – A Nazirite is filled with the Holy Spirit
Sunday Morning – Personal Sharing: Journey with the Holy Spirit
Sunday Evening – A Nazirite is a Worshipper
Monday Morning – A Nazirite is on Mission

On Sunday Night there was a breakthrough in worship. The worship set went as usual and ended with the song “Set a Fire.” We came to the end of the song, and then there was a moment of lingering. We told the Youth to press in, and suddenly it broke and we went into worship for another 20 minutes. For the next 20 minutes, Junior Highers and High Schoolers broke out into spontaneous worship, singing their hearts out, making their own melodies, and worshiping freely until it fell to a holy hush. Then we sang just with our voices “Lord I Give You My Heart.” As soon as we sang the first line, I sensed hearts opening up and tears flowed. Read more →

By Dorcas Cheng

What happens when you end a season of serving many years at Kids Club? You prayerfully move on, trusting in the Lord to direct your path. Yet, the Lord reminded me that before I move on, I need to remember the mighty acts He has done already. In order to move forward with faith, it is important to remember the truths learned in the past. One of the truths that I learned and witnessed first hand is that God’s powerful love transforms. His love transformed me to lead with passion instead of fear. His love transformed our wonderful team to serve in unity instead of disaccord. His love transformed the students at Kids Club to live with hope instead of hopelessness. All this and much more, the Lord brought to my mind. But one transformation, in particular, is most near and dear to my heart. Read more →

By Randy Lee

i·ro·ny1
ˈīrənē/
noun

1. a state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result.

Everyday, ironies surround us out of the mundane and unremarkable events of our lives. As Christians living in this earthly realm, we must remain vigilant to remember that this world is not our home. Our lives are for a far greater calling than what we see and feel around us on a daily basis.

During a recent office visit to our dentist, the receptionist asked my daughter, “Do you have your Christmas tree up yet? When she said, “No.” the receptionist responded, “Oh, so you don’t celebrate Christmas?” Later that same week, our music teacher was leaving our home when she made the comment, “Oh, I see you don’t have a Christmas tree. You don’t celebrate Christmas?” Read more →