[3185] Tainan East Gate Barclay Memorial Church celebrates 110th year with fun compentitions and new goals

Tainan East Gate Barclay Memorial Church celebrates 110^th year with fun compentitions and new goals

Reported by Chen Yi-hsuan

Written by Lydia Ma

Tainan Presbytery’s East Gate Barclay Memorial Church is celebrating its 110^th anniversary this year. On March 10, 2013, the church rented the auditorium of Chang Jung Senior High School to hold a special worship service. After the service, the congregation went to the school’s track and field court to take part in some fun competition games that the church had planned for that day. As many as 400 people took part in those games.

During the worship service, the church’s senior pastor, Rev. Luo Jen-kuei, urged his congregation to become Christ’s elite soldiers, students, and witnesses. He announced that his church had designed a series of events for the rest of the year to help members grow stronger spiritually and physically.

Before the games began, the congregation did some warm-up exercises and praise dance to get themselves ready. Once everyone was warmed up, they competed in 5 groups in various amusing games including a three-legged race, water bottle games requiring contestants to rearrange water bottles, finding contestants’ shoes from a big box, and playing hockey using a broom and a basketball. At the end of the day, the congregation had so much fun that people vowed to meet and play again at the church’s 120^th anniversary.

For the remainder of this year, East Gate Church will promote a Bible-reading movement whereby individuals will try to read through the Bible once in one year. There will also be a seminar on culture and a choir workshop scheduled in April. Rev. Luo is also planning to hold a thanksgiving service in May whereby 110 married couples in the church can renew their wedding vows at a formal ceremony where the men will wear suits and the women will wear wedding gowns.