The Love Connection Big Day organized by City Harvest’s JAMs church was a hit with families.
Contributed By Lim Jie Min
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| CN PHOTO: Andreas Loh |
In tune with City Harvest Church’s 21st anniversary theme of love, the Jesus for All Minds ministry, which conducts services for people with special needs, organized Love Connection day to honor the parents of the JAMs church members. Held on Saturday, July 21, the event saw almost 600 people gather at the church’s Jurong West premises wearing huge smiles on their faces.
Adiel Choy, a JAMs church core supervisor said of the event’s objectives, “We want to spread the love [that we share in church] to the rest of the members’ families; to let them have an idea of what goes on in church every week. This will assure them that their children are well taken care of here as they come to attend the JAMs Church service during weekends.”
The excitement in the auditorium was palpable. Ministry volunteers were spontaneously leading the crowd in cheers, livening up the whole atmosphere. Each person in the place was placed into either one of two teams, Love or Joy. These two teams competed against one another in a series of friendly competitions.
The service kicked off with the song “We Are Family,” to which both young and old began dancing and clapping enthusiastically. Next was a game where participants had to find hidden paper silhouettes pasted underneath the auditorium chairs. Upon finding one, each person had to try and grab a heart-shaped balloon from a volunteer and connect the paper silhouettes to them. There was a mad rush in the auditorium as individuals began looking under the chairs in search of the “prized” paper silhouettes.
Following that, six JAMs members and their parents were handpicked for the next game which tested the cooperation of each team. Parents and children had to feed each other and fold some clothes with their arms over each other’s shoulders. This was no mean feat as a certain amount of skill and creativity was needed to complete the tasks. The audience rocked with laughter but it was also a heartwarming sight to see parents and children working together, literally, “hand in hand.”
Understanding the JAMs members is important because of their special needs. Indrani, a JAMs ministry volunteer, explained, “It can be quite a challenge to look after people with special needs, but at the same time, it is also very fulfilling. Through this event, we are showing the parents what we do here at JAMs, raising their confidence in us to reach out and help their child more effectively.”
Other highlights included the screening of Jack Neo’s short movie, The Little Star, and family portrait-taking. Everyone was involved in something; no one was left out as each one basked in a time of love and fellowship.
A mother, who only wanted to be known as Mrs. Wong, expressed her gratitude, “I’m glad I came today. Now I know what my child experiences every week here in church. I’m extremely thankful for the love and acceptance the church has showered upon my child.”
