2020 has been an unprecedented year in many facets. It has presented us with experiences never seen before by this generation. It has left us with questions with which answers may not be given in our lifetime. Through it all, we give thanks in the circumstances and push forward with the presence and power of the Holy Spirit.
2020 brought many firsts into our church life. We halted in–house worship and went fully online from March-July, resumed in house / online worship within governmental guidelines August-November, and returned to full online service after Thanksgiving because of the Covid 19 uptick. In addition, we took other ministries online, including fellowship groups, small groups, Sunday school classes of all ages, daily Morning prayer, weekly Evening prayer, Alpha, music program, afterschool tutoring, etc. While it can NEVER replace live face to face interaction, of which many of Jesus commands regarding community must have, nonetheless, we adapt to the temporary restraints that Covid 19 has placed upon us as a church. It has been hard for all of us not to be able to fellowship face to face. I want to encourage you to stay in touch in whatever platform you feel comfortable and care for one another! Thank you to all those who have been in the forefront of leading and guiding various ministries during this pandemic. (thank Tat Suk).
Paul’s quote of Jesus in Acts that it is better to give than to receive lives out in the life of QHC. During this pandemic, while you continue to faithfully give your tithes and offerings, we also gave to the local community through food and school supplies, to a neighborhood hospital to thank the medical front-liners, and to other causes and means. I want to remind you that the Hesed fund is available to those who have needs.
As we enter 2021, I want to share with you some plans and preparations. We will continue to run many of the online programs currently in place. We have also scheduled a Deeper Life Conference and a church retreat, whether online or in person is subject to what happens in the next several months.
The 2021 church theme that the staff collaborated upon in consultation with the board is “Standing Firm in Christ.” It is based on Paul’s encouragement to the Church at Corinth culminating in 1 Corinthians 15:58, “Therefore, my sisters and brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”
Because of this pandemic, we are having this congregational meeting online. As such, we will only conduct one business item today to deflect confusion and curtail our time online. With regards to board elections, a Chinese congregation board member seat, held by Emil Moon comes to an end. The other church board position that will also come to an end is the treasurer, currently held by Eva So. Due to the special conditions created by the pandemic, I have requested and received permission from the DS, the Reverend Kelvin Walker, to take the following actions. The Chinese board position term will end and no new member needs to be elected. The treasurer position, being an officer’s position, must be filled and Eva So will assume the position for an additional year without an election. The elder board majority pertaining to the church constitution remains intact.
I want to thank Emil for serving out his term on the board. I want to thank Eva for accepting the one-year appointment to continue in the officer position of Treasurer. Having said that, I now give the time to Eva who will be sharing the financial picture of 2020 and the budget of 2021 which you will vote on after the presentation.
2020 saw various changes in the English Ministry. First, Pastor Eric Wu and Pastor Anson Ng moved on in their ministry pursuits and concluded their time with QHC December 2019. We subsequently entered the Covid19 era, taking worship and all ministries online. As a result, human face to face contact was at a minimum. This no doubt has had a negative effect on the congregation. We trust the God of all Possibilities will revive us as a congregation.
During the Covid season March-July, Sunday worship used Vimeo and Zoom platforms. When partial live Sunday worship resumed August-November, in-house attendance average in the 70s in addition to others online. Since returning to full online Zoom worship post-Thanksgiving, we have averaged 75 accounts.
Small groups met online via Zoom and other platforms. I am grateful to the respective small group leaders for their guidance and direction. College Zoom fellowship takes place Fridays at 3PM. In addition, we have various groups that meet after worship on Sundays, including “Come & See”, which reaches out to non– believers. It uses Alpha and other resources for its ministry.
I am grateful for the people who are involved in the technical aspects of online worship. Their dedication allows us to worship together. While we adjust to life in the Covid season, may God continue to make his presence felt in our lives. Thank you QHC EM members for your participation and devotion in each other’s lives.
In February 2020, our winter retreat theme was Kingdom Awakening. We explored how God moves, God’s heart for the lost and broken. The retreat was filled with powerful moments of breakthrough as well as space for community bonding. Students engaged with this theme through creative group skits and art that portrayed God’s upside-down kingdom.
Since the pandemic, we’ve tried and tested various times/dates for virtual gatherings. We will transition back to Fridays at 8pm for our weekly fellowship gatherings for 2021.
During the warmer months of this year, we’ve had several outdoor gatherings at parks and Queens County Farm for students and parents to rekindle. It was a great time of fun and games as we invited new 6th graders to join our group.
God has answered our prayers and our Youth Counselors Team has grown. Our team now consists of Joseph Hui, Alvin Cheung, Arnold Yuen, and Emily Gu. They volunteer their time to meet with students regularly on one-on-one basis as well as lead small group discussions alongside student leaders.
Youth Ministry Coordinator
Jessica Ng-Lam
Wow, 2020 has come and gone in a blink of an eye. During this year there might be some difficult time for others, a good rest for others, however, we miss the physical gathering that we may have. For the Children Ministry this has been the case as well. Children ministry has transitioned into fully remote in 2020 and it will continue to do so until we are able to assure our children’s safety. In 2021 we will continue to have our Tuesday Night Children Prayer Club from 7:45 to 8:30 pm. On Friday nights we have a Connection Friday from 7:30 to 8:00 where child/ren can interact with one another. On Sundays we have a live Sunday School class from 11:30 to 12:00 in addition to our videos that we post on our website. We also have a daily devotional with the kids that you and your child/ren can follow on our website. We would love to see the children come and participate in any of these activities that we have. And hope that we will be meet up together soon.
Children Pastor
Frank Huang
Afterschool/Camp Abba:
In 2020 with the city wide shutdown, the Afterschool closed for the rest of the school year, but provided parents with daily enrichment activities online for their children. Additionally, we were able to host a free virtual Camp Abba for 40 children with the help of our volunteer teachers which their parents were extremely thankful for. With the start of the new school year, Afterschool has gone virtual, and will remain virtual for this school year. It is our prayer and hope that we will be able to meet in person by the start of the 2021 school year. Furthermore, planning for Camp Abba 2021 is already underway and we aim to provide a 6 week camp experience once more.
Music School:
During the pandemic, music program has started to offer online piano lessons to students. Starting from April 2020, we have had about a dozen students taking classes regularly.
Parents have appreciated this effort even though it needs more preparation work from them. The teacher has to set aside more time for it as well. Some other students have chosen to wait on resuming lessons till we can reopen.