Medford Special Meetings

November 7-9, 2008

by Bryan Hinkle

Did you know that if you were to fly to the moon, it would take approximately eleven days? If you want to fly to Mars, you had better pack the cooler—it will be 5.3 years before you land. Reverend Ritchie Ho, from St. Louis, Missouri, the guest speaker for this year’s special meetings at our church in Medford, Oregon, presented the above trivia, as well as a seminar about the “God of Wonders.” While there was a good turnout of all ages from our branch churches up and down the West Coast, there was an abundance of young people who attended the weekend of meetings with a desire to hear what Reverend Ho and God had for them.

Following a dynamic testimony service Friday night, Reverend Ho began the sermon with his familiar and expanding greeting, “Aloha from Hawaii; howdy from Texas; and greetings from the great city of St. Louis, Missouri.” The theme for his message was “coming humbly before God with each request.” If earthly fathers are willing to give their children good things, how much more is God, who is all-powerful and loving, willing to give good things to His children. All who desire to receive must come before God with a child-like expectation that He will work on their behalf.

Saturday morning everyone arrived back at the church in anticipation of the presentation by Reverend Ho to demonstrate how small man really is. Using powerful  pictures obtained from the Hubble space telescope, he showed the vast expanse of our solar system, galaxy, and universe, while asking the audience to contemplate the question: What is man, and why does God consider us? Beginning with the ratio of 1 in 50,000 (capacity of Busch Stadium where the Saint Louis Cardinals play) and ending with 1 in 6.4 billion (approximate population on earth), multiplied by 9 (number of planets in our solar system), multiplied by 250 billion (estimated number of stars in our galaxy, with our sun being just one), multiplied by 125-300 billion (number of galaxies in the universe), Reverend Ho drove home the point that man (and woman) is nothing but a speck compared with the size of God’s total creation, yet He still cares enough to know the number of hairs on each one’s head.

Saturday afternoon allowed for some free time and the opportunity for many of the young people to go to the Niantic Youth Center for games and pizza. Later that evening, everyone assembled in the church sanctuary for a young people’s service, where once again those who testified had to be quick to their feet because many wanted to give a shout to the Lord for what He had done in their lives. Reverend Ho stated during his sermon, “By getting saved, you are changing your destiny!” He impressed on the congregation that God has a plan for their lives if they would only embrace it and have the patience to see it unfold. Of course, a sermon by Reverend Ho is usually not complete without a few laughs thrown in, and this sermon was no exception. He told the story of how he proposed to his wife with the help of a purple gorilla card that said, “I am APE for you!”

Sunday was a full day, starting with Sunday school. The orchestra began the morning worship service with a rousing arrangement of “Majesty,” and then the choir sang “We Declare Your Majesty.” Reverend Ho’s wife, Polin, shared her testimony of how she found the Lord and the joy and contentment He provides in her life. After a lovely solo by Polin, Reverend Ho brought a thoughtful and challenging message about Christ being “The Rock.” Although Christ has often been “put to the test,” He has never been “bested.” He always comes out on top and when Christians put their faith and trust in Jesus, who is “The Rock,”  He will hold them steady through all the stages of life and the challenges that will come.

Reverend Ho wrapped up the weekend Sunday evening with a sermon about sanctification and being part of the Bride of Christ that is without spot or wrinkle. He brought out that being part of the Bride of Christ should be a Christian’s whole purpose, and with God’s help each one can live a holy life. The God who is more than big enough to create 300 billion galaxies (and counting) is also the God who is small enough to live in the heart of each one who will let Him.

At the end of a weekend full of praises, laughs, and prayers, everyone who attended the Medford special meetings can agree that they truly serve a “God of Wonders.”