几年来,更新网站的呼声颇高,希望看到教会生活的新的内容。我也常在祷告中纪念这件事。感谢主,现在ERIC弟兄帮我们更新了网页,也教会了我一些简单的文字更新操作方法。
那么,人们要在这个网站上看到什么呢?我只能通过自己的想象和推测,将这个网站作为一个见证神恩典的窗口。你来到这里的时候,就是进入了我们的家门。
曾几何时,我们当中的绝大多数人来到这块陌生的国度,迷茫、彷徨、沮丧甚至绝望。但是,神的怜悯竟然也临到了我们这些中国大陆来的新移民,不仅让我们拥有了自己的教会,而且还被美国长老教会接纳为当中的一员。
我盼望你不仅通过这个网站在我们这个家里走一走,更盼望你也可以来到我们教会坐一坐,聊一聊。如果你是主内的弟兄姊妹,我们请你来和我们一起敬拜、服事主。如果你尚在信仰的路上奔波求索,就请你来与我们一同畅谈信仰,认识耶稣,那位我们曾听说却未深知的奇妙救主。即使你是路过,想停一停,歇一歇,我们也乐意奉上香茶或咖啡。无论如何,这里总有一席之地为你而预备。我们欢迎你,并乐意认识你。相信你在这里看见的不是“热闹”,而是神奇妙的作为以及祂赐予我们的满溢的恩典。
2015年9月
亲爱的弟兄姊妹,平安!
网站不是新奇的事,但新奇的是我们竟然也有了自己的网站。这样,就让我们和全世界架起了沟通的桥梁。
当你来到这里时,我希望你和我一样,有欢喜,有快乐,有感恩,有自豪,因为神的儿子耶稣基督在我们中间行了大事。
我要为我们可爱的弟兄姊妹感谢赞美我们的主。我们来自五湖四海,今天在美国这片陌生的土地上建立了自己的教会,这是神何等奇妙的作为啊。
我们今天仍然很小,很不成熟,但神的祝福却让我们的福杯满溢。我们的前面不会是通途,因为主耶稣的十字架道路本身就有很多的艰难险阻。然而,我们彼此扶持相携同行在这条道路上时,因有耶稣的怜悯慈爱保守我们,我们就欢喜快乐地与神同行。
我们深深地知道我们是何等的软弱,信心是何等的小,所以,我们天天祈求神的怜悯,帮助我们在生命上长进。我们是一群天国的新移民,本身仍带着过去世界在我们身上留下的烙印。因此,我们就学习彼此包容,彼此扶持,彼此忍耐的功课,以期让我们的教会渐渐成长为我们属灵的家园,培养生命的学校。
愿我们微小的声音,不息地唱着赞美主的歌。愿赞美的诗歌成为我们孤独时的陪伴,软弱中的力量,病痛中的安慰,失意时的盼望。
主耶稣是葡萄树,我们是枝子。我们愿意将我们的生命连接在十字架的恩典上,结出荣耀神的果实。我们的祷告是:求耶稣,赦我罪,入我心,做我主。
唯愿我们常在祷告中彼此纪念,同蒙主恩,天天长进。阿们。
黄志宏牧师 Bob Huang
黄志宏牧师,1958年生於中国大连。一九七六年插队于新金县大田公社刘沟水库。一九七七年底参加文革后的第一次高考,成为“七七级”的一员,主修英文教育。先后任教于大连第四十中学,大连教育学院,美国Troy State University。曾于1992年被评选为“辽宁省优秀青年教师”。
黄牧师喜爱音乐,擅长文学,创作和译作颇多。其主创的电视连续剧曾在中央电视台播出并获得国家三等奖。来美后,其英文短篇小说“I Wish I Could Buy Yesterday”一举成为1997年阿拉巴马州英语协会举办的年度小说诗歌大赛的唯一获奖作品。其诗歌“Never Old to Me” 被美国 International Library of Poetry 收录进 The Best Poems and Poets of 2004之首,并于其网站收录了黄牧师的二首英文诗
(http://www.poetry.com/claims/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&poet_keywords=Zhihong+Huang&commit=+++Search+Poets+++)。
其蒙召见证登载于《海外校园》第三十六期。
黄牧师1993年于大连信主,1997年10月于阿拉巴马州受洗。1998年夏,被神“强征入伍”,先后就读于改革宗神学院, 基督工人神学院,台福神学院,中华归主神学院,旧金山神学院。黄牧师也因此而自谑为“seminary shopping”,因为神不放过他,让他多得操练。
黄牧师于2002年1月以台福神学院的神学生的身份至房角石教会实习。2003年7月,接受赵庆年牧师的邀请成为教会全职传道人。2004年1月,受 Arcadia Presbyterian Church按立为长老,并于2008年5月,通过美国长老教会全部考核,被按立为美国长老教会的首位新中国背景的华人牧师。黄牧师清楚蒙召,与神有过多次真实的“过招”角力,因此,虽多经忧患而心志未尝动摇。正如其创作的诗歌《永生福气》中所唱:“我虽历风险却不致遭害,纵经沉沦却依然能站起;虽然饱受苦难痴心终究不改,恩主领我赐永生福气。”
黄牧师最大的心愿就是让更多的人认识、接受耶稣,这位向他真实显现的“客观存在”的神,并让神的话语将每一个渴慕寻求的心都得着。
黄牧师在此特别邀请您,一起来探索生命的真意,敬拜全能的上帝,同心建造地上的天家。
Rev. Bob Zhihong Huang was born in 1958 in Dalian, China. During the Cultural Revolution, he was down to the countryside to be “re-educated” for 2 years, but was so lucky that he was enrolled as one of the first college students after the Revolution. Since 1985, he began teaching in Dalian Education College, and was rewarded in 1992 as Excellent Young Teacher of Liaoning Province. In September 1997, he came to teach in English Department of Troy State University.
Bob loves literature, having composed thousands of poems, edited 18 books, composed a TV opera shown on CCTV in 1998, and is the first person that translated “Lord of the Rings” into Chinese. His highest achievement in English literature are the awards for his short story “I Wish I Could Buy Yesterday” in 1997 in Alabama and his poem “Never Old to Me” that is selected in Best Poems and Poets of 2004 by International Library of Poetry.
Bob has an amazing faith journey. He was converted in the summer of 1993 in Dalian, baptized in First Presbyterian Church in Troy, Alabama in October 1997. In August 1998, he answered the high call to follow Jesus, and started his equipment in the following 7 years in 5 seminaries, which he often teases this as “seminary shopping”. Though having experienced all sorts of hardship, he has never thought of giving up. In January 2002, he served as an intern in Capstone Chinese Church, where he began his full time service since July 2003. In May, 2008, after passing all the exams and being certified ready, he was ordained as the Minister of Word and Sacraments, the first one who is from People’s Republic of China.
Looking back and forward, Bob acknowledges that he does not deserve to serve the Lord. “It is of all His grace” he often says. In his business card, he declares: “I am a big sinner. The reason why Jesus Christ chose me is to reveal to the world how great His forgiving grace is, in order to save whoever believes in Him.”
Dear brothers and sisters in the Lord, Peace be with you all.
Nothing is weird about websites, but what is exciting is we even have our own website, so that we are connected to the other parts of the world.
When you come to visit this website, I hope that you will feel like me to have excitement, joy, gratitude and pride when you find out that “Jesus Christ, Son of God has done great things for them.”
First of all, I praise the Lord for having brothers and sisters so lovely as you are. We are Chinese mainly from all parts of China. It is God’s wonderful work that we can establish a church of our own in this strange land of the United States of America.
Today, we are still very small and quite immature, but our cup has been overflowing with blessings from the Lord. We know for sure that our future is not an easy way at all, since God’s way itself is very challenging. However, we have been experiencing the presence of God and been full of joy when we walk together by helping with each other.
We do know how weak we are, how little the faith we have, so everyday we pray for God’s mercy to help us grow in our faith. We are a group of new immigrants in the Kingdom of God, still carrying with us the brands stamped onto us in our old life. Therefore, we learn to be patient with each other, to support each other, and to be tolerant of each other, in order to build our church gradually to be our spiritual home as well as a school nurturing life.
May our little voice keep singing hymns to praise the Lord, and may the singing be our companion in our loneliness, the strength in our weakness, comfort in our sickness, and hope in our depression.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the vine, and we are branches. We are to connect our lives to the grace of the Cross to bring out fruit to glorify God. Our prayer is: Dear Lord Jesus, forgive our sins, enter our lives, be our Lord.
May we pray for each other often, enjoy Lord’s grace together, and grow in faith day by day.
Amen.