Gradually reopening the church building

It has been six weeks already since we have resorted to YouTube livestream for our Sunday worship service. This has been a new experience for all of us especially for me who is not technologically inclined at all. However, we have managed to worship God virtually together as one body of Christ. At first, it was awkward for me to be in the sanctuary with a small group of Magnification Team members praising God and preaching to them. I felt like I was in a recording studio. But as weeks went on, all of us who came out to church to provide worship service for New Life ...

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Sunday Corporate Worship Service in Response to COVID-19

The entire world seems to be consumed with COVID-19 the past several weeks. Houston, where we live, is not any exception. Just a few days ago, one major university announced that they are shutting down the school for the remainder of the semester and all the students except few whose homelands are more susceptible to COVID-19 are asked to go home. The students will receive their instruction from their professors through online teaching. New Life has been committed to “Give, suffer and die” for Christ and his kingdom. And I think I can honestly say that we have done ...

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My Sabbatical Plan

In about a month from now, I will be taking my first sabbatical ever. Since I have never done this before, I don’t know what to expect or what will come out of it. But because it is in our pastoral staff policy and the Holy Spirit seems to be leading me to this, I am obeying His guidance. At first, I thought about completely staying away and resting from church ministry. So, I planned not to come to church for any reason even when I am in town. Instead, I thought about attending different churches to experience different styles of worship and learn from them. After ...

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My Sabbatical and Vote of Confidence

On November 30, 1994, my family (Lynette, Enoch, Caleb in Lynette’s womb and I) left Watertown, MA to come to Houston and serve as a youth pastor at Seoul Baptist Church. We loaded our belongings into a Budget rental truck while it was snowing, towed a white Honda Accord LX, and drove 1,850 miles in four days and three nights. We made stops to sleep in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Alabama. We arrived in Houston on Saturday, December 3. The church helped us to find an apartment on Jones and West Rd. Several deacons and their wives from the church helped us unload our ...

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Biblical Explanations and New Life’s Stance on Tithing

We take the Bible very seriously at New Life. If the Bible says it is, then it is. If the Bible says do it, then we do our best to do it. This is the spirit of the New Testament church. Since we teach what tithing is through Class 201 and Living Life Bible Study, I will not go in detail to deal with it. But just briefly, all throughout the Bible, tithing is used to do mainly three things. One, to express our gratitude to God. Two, to demonstrate our faith in God. And three, to protect us from worshipping and idolizing money. Therefore, tithing does all these three ...

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All 76 House Churches Multiplying in Three Years!

I don’t have three year, five year or ten year plan. I never had and I don’t think I ever will. It’s because I am not a visionary and the future is in God’s hands. As I look back the past 21 plus years of New Life’s ministry and history, I think I have tried to be faithful in doing what I am called to do one day, one week, one month and at most one year at a time. Just recently, however, I have sensed God impressing upon my heart with this thought, “Eric, I want you to challenge your house church shepherds and members to go all out in reaching out to VIPs ...

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Let’s Keep Our Promises

I would like to remind you of the policy we have in regards to Christians trying or wanting to come to New Life. If they are from Houston, we are very strict with them. Unless they have a very legitimate reason such as their church dissolving or their pastor contacting and asking me to take them for a very convincing reason, we don’t welcome or receive them. We do this because we don’t want Christians to hop around from church to church never learning the importance of humbling themselves and working out the interpersonal conflicts they may have with other church ...

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