09/25/2016 English Sunday Service

Chinese for Christ Church of San Jose

English Worship Service

Worship Service: 10:00 –11:10 am followed by snacks in the Fellowship Hall.

Call To Worship* – Hannah Lee

Praise & Worship*- Praise Team and Congregation

Welcome & Announcements – Daniel Chen

Sermon  “The Spirit in Our Sufferings”  Job 32:1-22 (page 438)- Pat Yao

Song(s) of Response* – Praise Team

Doxology (Words of Praise)*- Congregation

Prayer & Benediction (Lord’s Blessing)* – Kenny Chan

*Please stand, if physically able. Also, please set your cell phones to “silent.”

Please exit through the ‘front’ of the sanctuary at the end of service.  Thank you.

We are glad you are here this morning to worship God together with us! We hope that through this service you would experience God’s blessings to you — and know His love for you through Jesus Christ and the presence of His Spirit!

If this is your first time here, please fill out one the pink cards in the pew and pass onto any of our ushers if you would like us to contact you with more information about our church.

Sermon Notes

Announcements

  1. Serving Lunch: Our College and Adults are scheduled to serve lunch today. For more information, please see Daniel Chen (dantchen83@gmail.com)
  2. Baptism Class: Our baptism class is starting today from 1:00-2:15pm in the church office. For more information, please see Pastor Kenny (pkennychan@gmail.com).
  3. Friday Night Fellowship (9/30): Our summer fellowship for adults (college/working) will meet this Friday (9/30) from 8-10pm. Location is TBD.  For more information, please contact Joshua Chang.
  4. Saltshakers (10/1): We will be continuing our series on “Relationships” this Saturday (10/1) from 7-9pm in the Church Sanctuary. For more information, please contact Daniel Chen (dantchen83@gmail.com).
  5. Awana (10/1): Our church will start AWANA children’s program on Saturday (10/1). If you are interested in volunteering or want more information, please contact George Sya (georgesya@gmail.com).
  6. Pastor Joey Wang Returning: He will be concluding his sabbatical and returning back to pastoral ministry on Sunday (10/2).

Prayer Requests & Praises   

  1. Praise God for our church’s blood drive yesterday that it was a great witnessing opportunity as well as a practical way to make a gospel impact to those who are in need.
  2. Pray for Pastor Joey and his family as they continue and grow together and honor the Lord as a family. Pray for Pastor Joey as he transitions back into pastoral ministry.

What is a “Sabbatical”?

The principle behind the sabbatical comes from Genesis 2:2-3 and Exodus 20:8. As Christians we are all commanded to “sabbath” (rest) weekly.  God has created us to work and then to rest.  The rest commanded is not just physical rest or to busy ourselves with other projects or distract ourselves with entertainment but a deep rest where worship of God is the source of our rest.  Our rest is mean to refuel us to work.  Our rest is also meant to remind us that we are not God (i.e. in complete control) but that God is God!

For CFCCSJ, we have an extended sabbatical policy (3 months) for our full-time pastors.  This sabbatical is not the same as a vacation.  The purpose behind the sabbatical is for pastors to be refreshed, refocused and renewed.  This extended time allows the pastors to take classes, have extended time to read, spend time with their families, visit other churches, etc. As author Thom Rainer writes, “A pastor has emotional highs and lows unlike most other vocations.  In the course of a day, a pastor can deal with death, deep spiritual issues, great encouragement, petty criticisms, tragedies, illnesses, and celebrations of birth.  The emotional roller coaster is draining.  Your pastor needs a break – many times a break with no distractions…Most pastors don’t have an “off” switch.  They go to sleep with the knowledge they could be awakened by a phone call at anytime of the day.  Vacations are rarely uninterrupted.  It can be an exhausting vocation, and a sabbatical can be a welcome time to slow down.

New City Catechism (from www.newcitycatechism.com/intro.php)

We hope that this will be a tool for us to use in disciplining our children, one another and ourselves as a church community.  The New City Catechism is also available online & for your smart phones.

Question 50: What does Christ’s resurrection mean for us?

Answer: Christ triumphed over sin and death by being physically resurrected, so that all who trust in him are raised to new life in this world and to everlasting life in the world to come.

Passage(s): 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14