Express'O Issue Four

Issue #Four

Mother’s Day

1

1

Issue #4

Content Page

English Spiritual Article 4

Chinese Revelation Article 7

Church Service Summary 9

Recommendations 11

Photo of the Month 16

2

2

The Contributors

Jeanette Zee English Revelation

Hannah Xu Qian Ru Chinese Revelation

Chris Benhard Armanda Church Service Summary

Yvonne Teo Yen Pin Recommendations

Jason Lee Photo of the Month & Newsletter Design

3

3

English Spiritual Article

A Mother’s Love by Jeanette Zee There are times when only a mother’s love can understand our tears, can soothe our disappoints, and calm all of our fears.

There are times when only a mother’s love can share the joy we feel When something we’ve dreamt about Quite suddenly is real.

There are times when only a mother’s faith can help us on life’s way And inspire in us the confidence we need from day to day.

For a mother’s heart and a mother’s faith And a mother’s steadfast love Were fashioned by the angels And sent from God above.

--Author Unknown I came across this poem about a mother’s love and sometimes I feel that God puts the role of a mother in our lives for a divine purpose.

His intention is for us to receive the outpouring of love and concern in the natural realm, while God, of course, portrays the role in the supernatural realm.

Fathers and Mothers each play different roles. For some, a Father symbolizes responsibilities, or decision.; while Mothers feel as if they take a backseat, well maybe except when it comes to laundry. However, one can never deny that the kind of warmth and love Mothers exude is something that feels different from that of a Father. Similarly, although God is the God Almighty, the Lord of Sovereignty, the King of Kings, the kind of warmth that God surrounds us with to touch our hearts is what we call Love today. It is amazing how God wired men to be stronger, the natural hunter, but, at the same time, their stronger nature lacking

4

4

English Spiritual Article

in affection and nurturance as compared to their female counterparts.

That’s why we have our mommies, to show us how to love and care with Agape love. There is so much we can adore and learn from each and every mom!

Back to the article, as you are reading this article, you might be wondering... what has my mom done for me actually?

Try recalling the smallest of things that your Mum has done for you, and you will realise how great and important mothers are. “Simple� chores like doing your laundry, tidying up the house, and making sure your 3 meals are settled, the sacrifices they make and the noble love they have for us is strongly demonstrated through the simplest, yet constant, acts for the family. They might not have made it obvious, but mothers truly love and care for each and every one of us. No mother on earth would

5

5

English Spiritual Article

boast to everyone of what they have sacrificed, simply because it feels as if the sacrifice is worthwhile, and no reward is needed because she loves unconditionally.

Mothers can be a great pillar of strength in life. Sometimes even if you fail, you know that your mom will always be there to support you. Just like how Mother Mary has always been there to support Jesus. In John 19:25, it says that “Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.” Even though she could not do anything to help Jesus while He was on the cross, she still gave Him moral support during the entire ordeal. Just like how Mother Mary supported Jesus even when she was helpless and what was in her hands seemed insignificant, our mothers will do exactly the same - Mothers are our pillars of strength to overcome the world. Your mother is a person that you can not only lean on in times of hardship, but also a person whom you can seek advice from. She is like a friend, your confidante, the best listener and, ultimately, your greatest supporter.

We are truly blessed to have such loving, noble, selfless mothers in our midst. So start showing your mother the gratitude and appreciation for the courage and sacrifices she has made for you and the family! ☺

6

6

Chinese Spiritual Article

母爱的伟大

by Hannah Xu Qian Ru

5月的第二个星期天是母亲节，是一个感谢母亲的节日。这一天，母亲们通常会收 到礼物或者康乃馨。虽然父亲是撑起一个家重要的人物，但母亲也不可忽视，毕 竟她给予了我们生命。我们先天健康与否都和母亲辛苦孕育了10个月有关。然而 我们逐渐成长，因为忙绿的生活时常让我们忘记了去关心我们的妈妈。 从小，妈妈就很照顾我们。洗衣，做饭等等，家里的大小事妈妈无所不知。渐渐 的，我们觉得那是一种责任，而忽略了这是件该感恩的事情。我们应该感谢主赐 给了我们一个妈妈。因为她完全可以有理由让我们自己洗衣，自己做饭，自己照 顾自己。 我们手脚健全，为什么这些生活琐事是妈妈的责任？妈妈们除了白天要忙绿的上 班赚钱，下班回家后还要继续做家务，24小时不停歇的干活是出自于伟大的母 爱。因为她无条件的爱我们，所以如果那些忙绿能换取我们的茁壮成长，她就觉 得很欣慰了。 1976年7月28日，中国唐山大地震死亡人数高达30万。凌晨3点多，地震发生时， 很多人都在家里，未能及时逃脱。有些母亲为了能让孩子活着出去，紧抱着孩子 却牺牲了自己。 搜救队曾救出一个新生儿，母亲为了等待搜救队的到来，为了不 让孩子饿死，让孩子喝着自己的奶水。当搜救队救出这对母子，妈妈的身体已经 非常冰冷，却还是保持着紧紧抱着孩子姿势。 让我们在这个母亲节，无论用什么方式献上对母亲的爱。让我们从此记住，任何 一件母亲为我们做的事情都值得感恩。世界上有多少没有母亲的孩子渴望拥有妈 妈的爱。让我们拥有一个感恩的心，这不但能促进我们和妈妈之间的关系，更能 让上帝的大义爱中展现！ 推荐电影《唐山大地震》。

7

7

Chinese Spiritual Article

8

8

Church Service Summary

EASTER WEEKEND SERMON: “SUNDAY’S COMING!”

by Chris Benhard A. Sembiring

On the Easter Weekend (19/4), Ps. Kong preached on the three days leading to the day when Jesus was resurrected. He began his sermon, titled “Sunday’s Coming!”, by reading John 13:1-2, which happened on the day now called as the Maundy Thursday. Ps. Kong noted how Jesus humbled Himself by washing the disciples’ feet during the Last Supper.

“The word ‘maundy’,” said Ps. Kong, “came from the Latin word which means ‘mandate’”.

The mandate Jesus gave his disciples that day was written in John 13:34.

Later on that night, Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss in the Garden of Gethsemane, and Peter denied Him three times. The Maundy Thursday was filled with betrayal for Jesus. Ps. Kong further explained that to be rejected and betrayed by loved ones can be very painful. But Ps. Kong assured, “It’s Thursday, but Sunday’s coming!”.

In the Good Friday morning, Jesus was brought before the Governor, Pontius Pilate. Pilate found Jesus to be innocent according to both Jewish and Roman laws, and pleaded with the people to let Him go. The people demanded Pilate to issue the order to crucify Jesus, which brought the bitter fact how the Creator was standing before His creation who wanted to condemn Him to death. To satisfy the people’s bloodthirstiness, Jesus was scourged and whipped before He went to the Calvary. As Jesus was nailed on the Cross, all seemed to get worse. Jesus bore all our sins, sicknesses and diseases on the Cross. Again, Ps. Kong assured, “It’s Friday, but Sunday’s coming!”.

The day after He died on the Cross, Jesus was bound up by Satan and dragged His soul into the prison-house of death. As prophesied in Isaiah 53:6, Jesus took on all the sin and evil of the world. In Psalm 88, Jesus was described as a man without God, that God’s wrath was vented fully upon Him (verse 7) and He was destroyed by God’s terror of Justice (verse 9

9

Church Service Summary

16). Such was the terror which Jesus endured that the day is now referred to as the Black Saturday. “That was Saturday, but Sunday’s coming!” Ps. Kong underlined his point.

On Sunday morning, Jesus rose from the dead and conquered Satan. As written in 1 Peter 3:18, Jesus was made alive by the Spirit. On the Easter Sunday, Jesus has destroyed the power of sin and death over us. You may be living in the Thursday of betrayals and broken hearts, or Friday of sickness and disease, or Saturday of sin and bad habits, but Sunday is coming, Ps. Kong emphasized.

“It looked bad that Thursday evening, even worse that Friday afternoon, and all hope seemed gone that Saturday. But our entire Christian faith is not based on what happened on Maundy Thursday, or Good Friday, or Black Saturday!” Ps. Kong enthusiastically remarked, “The Lord we worship is not a dead Saviour!” No matter what circumstances you may face before the coming of Sunday, always remember that Jesus Christ rose from the dead on Easter Sunday morning, and is alive!

10

10

Recommendations

The Way to Her Heart.

by Yvonne Teo Yen Pin

Ever since she has been married to your dad, she probably haven’t felt romance for long time. Though Mother’s Day has passed, are you still thinking of a gift for her? Hold on hold on, you’ll never know what to get her if you don’t know how to make her feel loved. Firstly, get her love language right, know through which channel she will feel loved.

“But, how?” you may ask. Well, by asking yourself how she shows affection to you!

There are 5 languages of love and I’ll give you some examples.

So, for all you people who don’t bother to at least google ideas and hope by sitting around the house you’ll get some revelation, or even by shopping around the mall to find the seemingly perfect gift, I’m going to provide you with ideas for each language of love!

11

11

Recommendations

1. Words of affirmation Does she constantly say “I love you”, or does she enjoy talking and sharing?

This is easy; a mother in need of love words can be easily appeased! I mean how hard can this be? However, I cannot deny our generation of children doesn’t train its communication muscles. Hard to even utter “Love”? Well, this happens a lot to guys, and what I can recommend you is to save on presents, save on the Swarovski crystal you thought of getting her. Go to Art Friend and get really nice letter sets, write down your thoughts about her and tell her how much you appreciate her. This will really make her motherhood more joyful! If you are not a words person and can hardly come up with one sentence to express how much you love her, a few important words like “I LOVE YOU MOM” will do- you can compensate the lack of words with more decorations and design.

2. Quality Time Does she follow you wherever you go? Or, is she very particular about the things you spend your time on? Does she say things, like “Son, go to the market with me?” Or, “We should have family time every weekend!”

Well, this requires a lot of effort. To reiterate, this is quality time, not quantity time. I believe my Mom is sort of a quality time and a gift giving person because whenever I have exams and feel stressed, she will bring me out for sumptuous dinners and shopping! For me, I know what a privilege it is to be spending time with my mum because when will I ever have that chance whenever I want? I always cherish it so much, and as such, throughout the whole quality time spent, rather than just wallowing in my depressing state, I talk a lot and I make fun of myself to make her laugh. We don’t really show affection as she is not a words or physical touch person, but we share a lot and I ask a lot about her life through our time together. I ask about her friends, her work, just to get her to share about how she feels while I can listen to her and make her feel 12

12

Recommendations

connected. Communication is a two-way traffic, get yourself to share as well, talk about what you have been doing recently, open up yourself if you want her to share! Even though she doesn’t know what is going through exactly in my life, neither do i know about her problems, I still feel a lot better knowing that someone still loves me and someone is still worth loving. So, quality time is not just being fruitful in whatever you are doing in that day- it isn’t finishing all the rides in USS on time and rushing for another game because you want to stretch the “quality-ness” of your effort; it is to slow down, and get to know her inside out, build a communication channel which doesn’t require mushy words, and your presence is sufficient to tell her you love her. Quality Time is an art you children must master!

3. Acts of Service Does she do a lot of housework without complaints? Making sure your house is squeaky clean, packing your school bag, and is totally a “housewife kind” mom?

Are you ready!? Get your hands working! Do some house chores for her, and offer to cook a meal for her! Well, if you know neither house chores nor cooking, offer your services in whatever you are good in- simply, do something for her!

Personal tip, I am good at make-up, so I offer to help my mum do a makeover; this is just to make her feel beautiful again, in hopes that she will love herself more. If you are good at writing, write her a poem!

If you are good with instruments, play her a song! If you are good at photography, snap a picture of her and print it out.

Give it to her and write “P.S. I love you mom!” even though she might not know what P.S. means…

13

13

Recommendations

4. Physical Touch Does she hug you a lot? Give you kisses everyday?

Your task is to hug her for more than 5 seconds and tell her you love her.

Simple enough? Try not to giggle!!!

5. Gifts Does she get you a lot of gifts? Maybe she gets you a new toy every now and then? Does she always ask if you need anything?

Well, the main of my topic is here. What is a pinpin-article if there isn’t any good recommendation? I know right!!! Oh c’mon if the presents that I will be recommending can be done by spending bucks, why do I even need to bring you a solution? Just get a part time job, duh! You are here simply because you want something exclusive for her! Mothers of gifts probably love to shop a lot, and love jewelry especially! They love glamorous items! How do I know? Cause that’s my mum yo! Sometimes I feel as children, we find it a little awkward to spend so much to get her presents, afterall, that’s her money right? So, it is as if she is spending her own money to get herself a present. Save up on luxurious goods, and do something for her! I just thought of a hanger! It is just a way of me appreciating her efforts around our house. One hanger like this costs less than $10, but it takes more than effort to accomplish this. (refer to image photo on the next page)

14

14

Recommendations

15

15

Photo of the Month

“Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children�. William Makepeace Thackeray