Sunday morning at Kudjip

We have been living and working on the Kudjip Station for 5 months now, and I realize that we have never really shared about our local church that we attend on Sunday mornings. So...I thought that it would be nice to give you all a glimpse into the Sunday morning service. 

When we are not visiting a bush church off-station, we attend Emmanuel Church, which is located right outside the main gate of the station. This is quite convenient, because only a short stroll is required to get to church, and there is no issue of finding parking. :)

This morning, as I walked to church, I was greeted by smiling children in their Sunday clothes playing a game of tag, one of the security guards patrolling our street, a stray dog roaming around looking for scraps, and several other missionary neighbors. I was joined by Dr. Jim on my walk, and sat with him and his two daughters during the service…since Teddy is still stranded in Dusin. (You’ll hear all about that in his blog post when he gets back)

Walking into church

Similar to church in America…and probably everywhere…people stroll in casually at the time that suits them, but the pews are packed by the time the message is delivered. I have been quite impressed with the worship band at our church. Most local churches have several people on acoustic guitars and a keyboard if they are lucky…Emmanuel Church has a full-blown worship band. 

 They have a keyboard, electric and acoustic guitars, bass guitar, drums, and sing in three-part harmony! I LOVE it!! One of the songs they sang this morning that I really enjoyed was “Jesus Christ Em Inap”… "Jesus Christ is Enough."   Most Sunday mornings, we are pleasantly surprised by the band leading us in a song or two in English…with a little PNG rhythm and melodic flare. It’s quite fun to sing along. 

 Here are 2 video snippets of some worship from this morning.

After worship, there is a time for sharing testimonies. Testimony time is something I grew up with and love, but have noticed that many modern/Western churches don’t include anymore for various reasons. During testimony time at Emmanuel, there are usually at least 3 or 4 people that get up and share. This morning there were several testimonies that were quite encouraging. One woman shared about a death in her family and how God provided all the resources and funds needed to prepare the funeral. Another man shared some scripture about King David that he had found encouraging.

Next up in the service was the collection of the offering. I am amazed every week by the generous hearts of the people in our community who have so little. Simple plastic baskets are passed and children are encouraged to participate…it’s wonderful!
After the offering is a time of announcements, “Tok Save,” for the church. Information about youth and children’s programs are shared, as well as upcoming events for the church. Information is presented by one person and it’s kept short, sweet, and to the point.

The best part of all church services is the message. Your heart has been prepared to receive from the Lord during worship, and you are a sponge waiting to absorb whatever the speaker has been led by the Lord to share. Although my speaking Pidgin is not quite up to par, since I don’t have many opportunities to practice, I can understand nearly all spoken Pidgin. It’s quite fun to sit through a whole service in another language and understand nearly everything that is being said. 

This morning, Pastor Robert gave the message. He is an Associate Pastor at the church and wears many hats…leading worship…directing youth and children’s programs, etc… The scripture passage that Pastor Robert taught from was Matthew 23:16-22. Pastor Robert gave a message all about the importance of the altar of sacrifice and how it is a form of worship to build our relationship with God. He also reminded the congregation that although we no longer offer sacrifices, our bodies are the temple of the Lord, and our day to day life is a living sacrifice to God. Then he challenged the people, “Is your ‘sacrifice’ a pleasing aroma to God?” What an inspiring and challenging message from a young pastor!

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I took the picture below as I was leaving the MK School one afternoon last week... It reminded of the following scripture verse:

"Look, He comes with the clouds of heaven,
and everyone will see Him..." - Revelation 1:7