Bishop Rennis Ponniah's Ash Wednesday Pastoral Letter

..The Year of Jubilee for Singapore indeed became the year of the Lord’s favour for many of our parishes and deaneries. The Diocese was immensely blessed financially and responded to this blessing by cancelling the building-related loans of some of our deaneries and parishes that totalled about S$ 2 Million. This sparked a ripple of joyful praise and glorious freedom in God across the Diocese.

I also thanked God for significant growth and movement in different parts of our Diocese. God’s work in Nepal has been truly outstanding. Over the last year, since the double earthquake, the number of people worshipping the Lord in the Deanery of Nepal has grown from 9,000 to about 12,000 through baptisms and confirmations. A wonderful experience of amazing Kingdom advance! We learn yet again that ”˜hunger for God’ and ”˜desperation’ are the vital antecedents for Revival.

That brings me to my invitation to one and all to make this season of Lent a time of intentional prayer and fasting. “Lent” has already begun with Ash Wednesday falling on the third day of the Lunar New Year on 10th February this year. It will last for 40 days (not including Sundays) and lead up to the celebration of Jesus Christ’s resurrection on Easter Sunday. It is a reflective period when we ”˜re-live’ the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Cross dominates our thoughts and our emotions, leading us to deep contrition, deep awareness of God’s grace, deep surrender and deep desire for God and His glory.

How can you and I enter the spirit of Lent and emerge stronger pilgrims and disciples of the Lord? Allow me to suggest a 3-pronged approach:…

Read it all

print

Posted in * Christian Life / Church Life, Church Year / Liturgical Seasons, Lent