Church Anniversary Preaching

Yesterday I preached in a church as an invited speaker for the last time before becoming its church pastor in December 2024. I asked the Chairman during lunch about how I should answer those who may ask me when I preach in Miri in two weeks' time? Yesterday's service was packed with 140 adults with about 20 guests joining the anniversary's service. It was easy for me as I only got up just after 3am in the morning. With speeches and presentations, I got up to preach at 10am after a 8.40am start. I did not look at my watch even once, but shortened my sermons with a few more verses listed in my notes untouched. But for about 50 minutes, I felt the anointing strong, as if born by the wind of the Holy Spirit. I preached from Matthew 6:25-34 on the theme "count your blessings" and I started by asking the members to trust in a loving Father who provides all our needs but not our wants.

Let's us be content with what we have and I cited Paul's letter to Timothy from 1 Tim 6:8 about "if you have food and clothing, be content". The verse before tells that we did not bring anything into the world and we can't bring anything out of the world. Then I quoted Psalm 50:14, 23 about thanksgiving as offering to our God of which He is pleased and will show us His salvation for those who are true in His ways. Then I went on to Psalm 103 about not forgetting his benefits; God forgives our sins; He heals our sicknesses and I testified how God protected me from illness during three year of strife and pandemic. I did not fall sick once in more than three years. And how I visited a deacon and his family down with Covid-19 and prayed for them. 

God renews our youth like the eagle's. I told them, for sure we age and our body decays and will not be as strong as before or in our teenage years. But the truth of God's Word remains that He could renew our youth. I shared how I looked older in my early 30s than perhaps in my mid-50s, because I had to raise funds RM30-40,000.00 per month, quite often trembling literally before God and seeking His blessings for the church. How I travelled into 66 interior districts and preached 300 times in 3 years. I can see no one moved as they listened to the Word of God intently, from young to old. 

Then I read from Eph 1:3-5 about the spiritual blessings in heaven which are our inheritance. And we by faith experience of God's goodness, forgiveness of our sins, our election and adoption as His children. How wonderful these truths are as we are God's beloved children, princes and princesses as our God is a great King and Jesus is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Then I shared about two blessings from John 14 about peace which Christ gives and joy in John where if we pray to the Father in Jesus' Name, we will receive what we ask in His name and our joy will be full. As I was finishing I spoke about living with wisdom and not squandering God's blessings by living extravagantly or foolishly. In all, we trust in God's goodness and be content with what we have and all these are true blessings from the Lord.