AN APOLOGY: In our first article on the new Sai Kung church we added a quotation about Destiny Church in New Zealand. This included a claim that the church is anti-homosexuality. We asked Pastor James about this. “That is wrong,” he said. His words are backed by a line in the “We Believe”section on the Glasgow church’s website that says God does not discriminate against people on the grounds of sexual preference. BUZZ apologises for this error.
Destiny Church held its first service in Sai Kung on November 5 with about 20 present, mostly young couples with little children. Founding pastors James and Jessica Trower, youthful themselves, greeted their first church-goers.
The first half-hour at The Hive was non-stop music and hymn singing. Matt Snelgrove was on guitar and Sarah Gerlach on Yamaha keyboard. Matt’s a professional music teacher — he runs The Living Room — and his experience shows. Sarah matched him for skill and musical sense. She was so good we asked if she was also a professional musician. No, she is a teacher. You could say there were two and a half musicians. The
half was a character who sat in shorts, long legs splayed, on a speaker, drumming flat-handed on the mesh. He has big eyes. He belted out the rhythm with relish, intensity rising as the music swelled. When it reached a crescendo his eyes got even bigger. Animal of the Muppets would have approved.
What is Destiny Church about? James says it is affiliated to Glasgow’s Destiny Ministries, founded by Andrew Owen. Its website has a section on “What We Believe”: The Bible is infallible. God made us in his own image and created this world for us. It was perfect until Adam and Eve began sinning. Satan appeared. Evil entered the world. God sent his son Jesus to atone for our sins on the Cross. Now if we give our hearts to God through Jesus we can be redeemed. There is an afterlife as well as Heaven and Hell. Believers in Jesus and God go to Heaven. Sinners go to Hell. Jesus will one day make a Second Coming to the world.
After the hymn singing young Pastor James began his sermon. He has a resonant voice and speaks without hesitation for 45 minutes. The theme on Sunday was “Work”. He is addressing the issues that cause stress in most people’s lives. On following Sundays the topics will be “Success, Time and Money”.
The gist of what James had to say: God told man to subdue the world and rule over the fish, birds, beasts and creeping creatures (paraphrasing from Genesis). But Adam and Eve sinned and darkness entered the world. Work became warped and twisted, about satisfaction and greed. Hope happened at the Cross when Jesus paid the price for our sins. But as descendants of Adam we remain sinners, if we don’t give our heart to Jesus.
Then James quoted from Ephesians. Man was “created in Christ for good works, which God prepared before hand so that we would walk with them.”
He recited from the William Wordsworth poem:
“I wandered lonely as a cloud/ that floats on high o’er vales and hills/ when all at once I saw a crowd/ a host, of golden daffodils…”
James says we are intended to do good things. We don’t have to work for money or fame, but can do God’s work. God calls us back. We can have contentment and peace in our work because we can partner with God wherever we are.
“Together we become the poem.”
YOUTH SERVICES AND 11-WEEK CHRISTIAN IMMERSION COURSE
A children’s church programme for three to twelve year olds with their families will start soon. Next year a church for teenagers (13 to 18) will be launched. Also starting in January will be a sort of Christian immersion course called Alpha lasting 11 weeks. We asked James how much. Everything is free, he said.
See www.destinychurch.hk
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