By: Kassandra Nicole S. Aguilar
The Evangel Family Church Macambol celebrated its 20th Thanksgiving and Church Founding Anniversary on August 27, 2023, with the theme “Whoever sows sparingly will reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will reap generously” (2 Corinthians 9:6), to reaffirm the believers that the Lord can pour out His blessing on those who follow Him.
The celebration commenced with the roar of applause as the master of ceremonies welcomed everyone to the celebration. The Young Teens offered a dance to the Lord with the song “Tribes” by Victory Worship. Everyone was elated as the praise and worship team exuberantly led the praise and worship. The church was blessed to hear the young teens sing “Imomg Guhit,” while Sis. Angel Tempora encouraged the congregation to give generously.
The congregation also enjoyed hearing Sis. Chiara Calambo sing “One Day at a Time,” followed by a dance performance from the EFC Macambol kids.
The central part of the celebration is the Word of God given by Pastor Greg Simpas with the theme “The New Me” or “Ang Bagong Ako”. He was introduced as “a man with a seed of faith, and that seed of faith speaks of himself.” His sermon was taken from Luke 19:28–34 and 2 Samuel 6:3. He began by noting, “We are different.” Pastor Greg Simpas highlighted the lines blessings, “are not behind us, but always ahead of us.” As Christians, we must keep moving forward. He emphasized that “what carries the glory must be new” and “God does not want anything old.”
We must embrace new viewpoints and transform our hearts to follow the Lord. No matter what has occurred, he emphasized that “you will never see your future when you focus on your past,” he said, “babangon tayo,” and added that as Christians, we should always be prepared for a new season of our lives. Anyone in Christ is a new creation; the old has gone, and the new has come. According to 2 Corinthians 5:17, Christians must transform from broken to blessed, victorious, and accessible. He emphasized that whoever has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. I’ll offer part of the buried manna to the victor. I’ll give him a white stone with a secret new name engraved on it (Revelation 2:17). In this line; he exhorted everyone to look ahead rather than back when their name was called in the world since God had given us a new name, one that is blessed rather than cursed, delivered rather than bound, and chosen rather than rejected. After that inspiring Word of God, everyone in the assembly felt profoundly satisfied as Pastor Greg Simpas concluded: “Failure is not a failure but a stepping stone to permanent success.” As followers of God, we are not below but are above.
Pastor Emerita Aquino was tasked to pray so that everyone would fully comprehend and put the message into practice in their daily lives. Everyone could express their gratitude to God with a grateful heart as Pastor Renante Miguel led the closing prayer.
Everyone enjoyed a feast while thanking God for his plentiful blessings and exquisite food. It was a success to celebrate both Thanksgiving and the founding anniversary. On a physical and spiritual level, everyone sensed grace and felt content. All praise and glory are due to God.
