City Harvest Church basks in the glow of the candlelight services.
Contributed By Jeremy Chua
Remembrance. Keeping vigil. Being at peace. These, and many more, are reasons for holding a candlelight service. Both a communal and private affair, a candlelight service has roots that stem from a myriad of traditions, and dates back more than a thousand years. But more than mere tradition and a pretty photo opportunity, a candlelight service marks an occasion to spend a little time in fellowship of others, in reflection, in prayer, and perhaps most importantly, in hope.
Over the weekend of Dec. 18 and 19, City Harvest Church held its annual candlelight service, a week before Christmas weekend. With the halls at both the Jurong West premises and Singapore Expo packed with people, there was no need for snow as the services had everyone getting into the Christmas spirit by starting off with popular carols, followed by a song performance by the resplendent Millennial Choir capping off the festive mood.
Kong Hee, founder of CHC then took to the pulpit. “You cannot spell ‘Christmas’ without ‘Christ.’ Shopping, eating and merry-making is fine, but let us not forget that Jesus is the reason for the season,” Kong reminded the church. “And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace,” he shared out of a passage in Isaiah 9, reintroducing Jesus to the crowd. With each point punctuated with amazing real life testimonies, Kong highlighted the reality of Jesus to all mankind.
Pointing out the fact that the darkest day of the entire year falls in December, Kong shared that God chose to send His Son Jesus into the world to be our light. With that, the lights were turned down and the familiar refrains of “O Holy Night” and “Silent Night” set the mood for the rest of the evening as a gentle glow and warmth slowly suffused the entire auditorium. Smiles, love and hope were plastered across the huge LED screens in the hall while others whipped out their cameras to capture the magical moment.
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| CN PHOTOS: Michael Chan |
With the dramatic backdrop of light dispelling the darkness, it was only fitting for the church to pray for themselves, their family and loved ones before blowing out their candles. As each of the services came to a close, an altar call was given to those who wanted to receive salvation and hundreds came forward for prayer, bringing an end to a truly memorable candlelight weekend.
