U Matters

This Saturday, October 19th, we pause and give thanks for the 175 years of ministry in Hong Kong. We hope you will join us for an evening of celebration featuring choirs, speakers, fellowship with old friends and much more.

Union Church has a tremendously rich history and we can rejoice in the Lord’s faithfulness to us. We can rejoice in brothers and sisters before us who were faithful and purposeful to the mission of the church.

In 1849 James Legge, a Scottish missionary and pastor of Union Church, wrote the plan and direction for the church:

   1. Our duty is to confess Jesus Christ and to do what we can to win men and women to the faith of the Gospel

   2. Our duty is not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together, but by a union with Christian Brethren, to maintain the Ordinances of Divine Worship

   3. And our duty is to proclaim to the world our attachment to the truth as it is in Jesus

This sounds like a Biblical plan and a plan that works. Therefore, let us stay the course and let us keep focused on our mission and purpose. In the words of the Apostle Paul, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith…” Hebrews 12:1-2a

May God give us what we need to run the race, to lay down all that prevents us from running freely and serving joyfully. May we be faithful to His calling. To God be the glory,

Pastor Michele

This Sunday

U-Cafe and Youth Sunday School resume in Hotel Indigo.

Invitation for Lunch:
Come and learn more about Myanmar and Laos and hear about how you can pray for the future pastors there!
You might have noticed some new faces at Union since the beginning of September. Six students from the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Tao Fung Shan, Shatin have been helping with our Sunday School. Their names are Mung Dang, Ling Naing, Langh Cin Kim, Mung Ngaih Lian, Maninout and Soe Saing. Five of them are from Myanmar and one from Laos. The Missions Committee would love to invite the congregation to join us for lunch on Sunday October 20th at 12:30 PM in the sanctuary and learn more about these students, their faith, their communities, and how we can pray for them. Please email for details. RSVP for lunch.

ReCharge

Join us for dinner, worship and study together on Wednesday nights, 7:00-9:00 pm.
Study opportunities include:
- October 23: Catriona Woodrow will lead us in a study of Jewish faith and practices in Biblical times, enriching how we read and understand both the Old and New Testaments. (one week only)
- The Keys to a Blessed Life (Young Adults), facilitators: Timothy Ng, Joshua Ng, KK Ip and Ken Morrison
- Revelation, facilitator: Chris Fung is NOT meeting in October, but will return November 13.

Stewardship
After working in the banking and finance industry for almost twenty-five years, Roger Lam discovered that Stewardship is his true calling. He is now a full-time, alternative missionary with a God-given vision to unveil the deceitfulness of wealth to Christ followers globally, in hope to cure the root problem of many social ills.
Union Church has several opportunities to hear and learn from Roger:
Wednesday, Oct 30 at ReCharge (dinner at 7, talk at 7:45)
Sunday, Nov 3, 12:30-2:00. Light lunch and talk after the 11:15 service.
Please sign up at the Welcome Table or online so we can order enough food!

Prayer. All are welcome to join us for weekly prayer.
Tuesday Morning Prayer - 7:30am
Wednesday Discernment Prayer - 7:00-8:00pm
Sunday prayer for the city after each of the worship services

175th Anniversary

 

Worship and Celebration Service: Please join us on Saturday, 19th of October for a special Celebration Service commemorating the 175 years of Union Church. The service, at the Methodist International Church, will feature guest preachers Pastor Bill Teng and Rev. Eden Fletcher and choirs from both Union Church and the Hop Yat Church from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM. The service will be followed by a light reception. Please sign up using the QR code or this link - http://www.unionchurchhk.org/event/1421393-2019-10-19-175th-anniversary-service/ 

 

Mission Offering
We will be taking up an offering during the 175 service with a bold goal of raising $175,000 on the 175th anniversary, for the Kun Sun Association in Hong Kong and Light of the World Church in Myanmar. In the spirit of missions we are hoping to generously give to these organisations so they can continue to share the good news to those in need.

 

Opportunities

Jonah: The Prodigal Prophet
Throughout October, Union is running a sermon series about Jonah. Much more than just a children's story, Jonah teaches us about running away from and answering God's call, and about just how big and unexpected God's mission is. Pick up your copy of Tim Keller's book, the Prodigal Prophet: Jonah and the Mystery of God's Mercy, available at the welcome table for $100.

Evangelism Workshop
Scripture says, "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have." (1 Peter 3:15).
Yan Yu is going to lead a group in a relaxed workshop to practice sharing our faith in everyday conversations. We will reflect on why we evangelise, before practicing in pairs. We will then discuss as a group any difficulties we have come across. Our prayer is that our Union Church congregation will indeed be prepared to witness our faith to others and will do so "with gentleness and respect".
Sunday, October 27, 12:30 PM - 2:00 PM Youth Room. Light lunch provided. Sign up at the Welcome Table or online.

Right Now Media
We're excited to give your free access to RightNow Media, a wonderful library of video resources for all ages to help you develop and grow as both a disciple of Jesus and disciple-maker.
Link to join:https://www.rightnowmedia.org/Account/Invite/UnionChurch

Mental Health Videos on Right Now Media
In this month of mental health awareness, we want to highlight Compass & Light: A Series on Mental Health, a 7-part documentary series that tells the story of those affected by mental illness and gives practical knowledge about the varying issues surrounding mental health. This series consists of seven short films covering the topics of anxiety, bipolar, depression, addiction, eating disorders, PTSD and suicide.
Link to join:https://www.rightnowmedia.org/Account/Invite/UnionChurch

Sons & Daughters
Sons & Daughters share God's love with men and women in the red-light districts of Hong Kong. They have asked for our assistance with providing practical items, such as food, toiletries, and household items, for use in their drop-in centre and family home. If you are willing to donate items, please see the list of items needed at the Welcome Table.

SAVE THE DATE:
Halftime Summit: Friday, 25 Oct 1:30 PM - 6:30 PM and Saturday, 26 Oct 9:00 AM - 6:30 PM
What would give my life more meaning? What is God's plan for the second half of my life? The Halftime Summit is designed to help you clarify your core abilities and passions and help you discover creative ways to channel your passions and talents toward Kingdom-significance. Facilitated by Halftime leaders, for more information contact Andrew Lo:  or go to halftime.org

One Worship, 17 November 2019 10.30am at Tang Shiu Kin Secondary School

The 5th Annual Ladies Retreat will be held in Penang on Friday February 28th to Monday March 2nd. There are early and late flights available to accommodate individual preferences. Hope you can join us. Details are forming if interested let us know by signing up at the welcome table.

Prayer and Discernment for Union Church - Wednesday, 6:15 PM to 7:00 PM or 7:45 PM to 9:00 PM.

Prayer & Discernment Update. The Prayer & Discernment Group continued to meet throughout the summer and as people return from travel, we encourage the community to join the group on Wednesday evenings at 7PM. Those who attended the 23rd March AGM and/or church meeting on 9th June, learned that the Prayer & Discernment Group was created to support Union Church with entering a time of Healing, Waiting on the Lord, and a Season of Stillness. We have clearly discerned that the first priority is to prayerfully seek greater alignment and healing to deepen our trust and become a more Christ-centred community. As such, we have not discerned that we should be in any hurry to commence a search for a Senior Pastor. We believe that unless we first "put our house in order" and seek deep healing through unified prayers, old strongholds will remain entrenched, and issues that have surfaced at various times in Union Church's past, will recur, in various forms. We can be likened to the Israelites, who waited to move only when the fire by night or the cloud by day led them to go forward. We firmly believe the Lord is telling us to 'wait' before we move forward towards a search. Meanwhile, God is doing great things at Union Church. We are working with Pastor Michele to ensure that the staffing is suitably resourced and that ministries are properly supported. We welcome all to pray as a community while we wait on the Lord to lead us forward. 

Join the Union Team:
We are looking for a Young Adults Director, Assistant Youth Director, and a Crèche Coordinator. Please contact stating which role you are interested in. We will contact you with more information about the role.
 

Small Groups

Small groups are one of the main ways we connect with each other and connect with God, learning what the Kingdom of God is all about. Interested in joining or starting a group? Contact Monte Peterson. 
 

Ladies

Fertility & Pregnancy/Infant Loss Support Group - Struggling and could use some fellowship, friendship and support? Contact Sonia Lee. 
 

Baptism and Membership

If you have been attending Union Church for a while and have never gone through the official process to become a member, now is your chance! Please collect a green form and make it official!
If you have never been baptised and are interested, please see Pastor Michele.  
 

Youth

Friday Youth Group - Friday October 18
Juniors (11-13) are asked to arrive from 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
Seniors (14-18) are to arrive from 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
This Friday will be a Scripture Night, where Youth are given a passage from scripture as well as discussion questions and have a chance to break off into small groups. The theme we will be discussing this Fall is Expectations.

Sunday Youth Group - Sunday October 20
Youth can attend at either 9:45 AM or 11:15 AM in Indigo Hotel 29/F
Juniors (11-13) will be following the Be Bold curriculum, dealing with big questions around their faith.
Seniors (14-18) will be following the Bible Project series on Spiritual Beings.

NO Wednesday Recharge - October 23
We have finished our Lord of the Rings and The Gospel series and will be taking a short break, and will return in a couple weeks with the Gospel of John Series.

Kingdom Kids 

Hallelujah Party, SAVE THE DATE: Saturday, 2 November, 2:30 PM to 5:30 PM
Kingdom Kids invite Union Church families and friends with children aged 1 to 11 years old to join us for our annual family "Hallelujah Party". There will be a live performance by Dove Tales Theatre Co titled Daniel in the Lion's Den and lots of games, prizes, face painting, cotton candy and snacks. Please sign up at CHILDREN MINISTRY or at the Welcome Table - with the number of people coming we would appreciate it if you could bring baked goods and/or savouries to share (NUT Free). DON'T MISS IT and bring your friends along too.

Children's Christmas Musical, SAVE THE DATE: Sunday, 8 December, 9:45 AM and 11:15 AM services
We are excited to inform you that this year Children's Christmas Musical will take place on Sunday, 8 December 2018 at both the 9:45 AM and the 11:15 AM services.
Important dates for this year Christmas Musical Rehearsals:
Audition - Sunday, 13 & 27 Oct
Sunday Rehearsals - Sundays, 27 Oct, 3 Nov, 10 Nov, 17 Nov, 24 Nov, 1 Dec
First Dress Rehearsal - Sunday, 1 Dec, 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM
Second Dress Rehearsal - Saturday, 7 Dec, 8:30 AM to 11:00 AM
More details on our Children's Christmas Musical will be emailed to all the parents with registered kids in our Sunday School. If you have not yet registered your children with us, kindly do so at your earliest convenience.

Sunday School 2019/2020 Registration
In order to help us plan our program well and serve your family better, we would appreciate it if you could kindly register your children HERE. All children enrolling in our Sunday School and Creche Center MUST BE REGISTERED by filling in and signing the Registration Form. For more information, please visit Union Church's website or contact us at or 21010414. Thank you.

Filipino Ministry 

1:00PM - 1:50PM     Congregational Prayer
2:00PM - 2:50PM     Bible Study Groups
3:00PM - 4:00PM     Worship Service
Every 1st Sunday of the Month from 9:00AM to 12:00PM Outreach & Evangelism.
 

Stephen's Ministry

Are you Going Through a Difficult Time?
A Stephen Minister can help. Stephen Ministers are members of our congregation who listen, care, encourage, and provide emotional and spiritual support to people going through a crisis or a difficult time. Please contact Pastor Michele if we can help ( ).

Family in Need (FIN)

If you would like to help support our family in need ministry, which helps people monthly with basic needs, please mark your envelope "FIN".
 

Last Week's Sermons

"Prayers from the Belly" by Monte Peterson

Protest/Weather Procedures

In the light of the recent protests and their impact on Hong Kong, we need to ensure the safety of our congregation and staff. We will always try to hold our services as normal, but we will implement the following procedures for our Sunday services when needed:

• All services will proceed as normal as long as there is no protest planned for the area directly around Sunlight Tower.

• In case of spontaneous events that might impact our congregation coming to Church, then our staff will make a decision on whether to suspend services. An email will be sent to all of our members to inform them of which services will be suspended.

We will try wherever possible to give as much notice as possible should we feel the need to suspend any service. Please make sure that you check your email before setting off for Church. You can help us by ensuring that we have your most up to date contact information. If you think your information may be incorrect, please contact .

At this time, we would also like to remind you of our Typhoon/Severe Weather policy:

All Church activities remain unchanged when tropical cyclone warning signal number 1 or 3 is hoisted. They will also be unaffected by the amber or red rainstorm warning signals.

When the Hong Kong Observatory issues a ‘Pre No.8 Typhoon Warning Signal’ on a Sunday, we will complete any service taking place and ask people to leave the Church and make their way home. Services planned for after this will be suspended

When the black rainstorm warning signal or tropical cyclone warning signal number 8 or above is hoisted on a Sunday before 07:30AM, all Church activities (Worship services, Classes, Youth and Children’s programs etc.) scheduled at 9:45AM or before will be cancelled. If the signal is subsequently lowered 2 hours before the 11:15AM service, the 11:15AM service will be held as scheduled. If the signal is lowered after 1PM, the Church will remain closed for the rest of the day.