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International Church of Bangkok

Advancing the Work of Jesus!

Welcome to our weekly newsletter

Sunday, 1st January

“HAPPY NEW YEAR !”
In Person Worship
MORNING WORSHIP – 10am
Our Service is at
Student Christian Centre

328 Phayathai Road.   

(NOTE: Our venue location!)
100m from BTS Ratchathewi Exit 1 (one stop from Siam Station)

Google Maps ref: Click here

13°45’01.7″N 100°31’50.7″E

(SCC Creative Space Coffee Shop)
Please note: The above reference is correct. The Student Christian Center may be incorrectly positioned on Google Maps.

 

The map here will help you find our
In-person
  morning  worship service held at this location:      Scroll down for more details

We will join together

in-Person

 this NEW YEAR’S SunDAY

 

1st January 2023

at 10.00 am

Student Christian Centre

 

Our Sermon this first Sunday after Christmas is delivered by our minister,
Revd. Chee Keong Yong
This week’s theme: “Is Christmas over?”

Scripture Readings for this week:
Old Testament: Isaiah 63:7-9*
Psalms: Psalm 148*
Epistle: Hebrews 2:10-18*

Gospel: Matthew 2:13-23*
(*click for online Bible)
Pastor Chee introduces this week’s theme:

 

Christmas Day has passed. Whew! Time to put up your feet and have a rest before the holidays are over. Relax while you can before school starts and get back to work. After all, there is a need to return to “normal”.

Returning to “normal” is not what the Gospel reading has to say to us. Here, Matthew is at pains to inform Theophilus that the first Christmas did not have a happy ending. In fact, it did not have a good beginning.

There are harsh realities to be faced. Back when I was in Australia and New Zealand, the media offers the grim statistics of those killed in accidents over the new year period. It is not the news that we want to hear. Remember the tsunami that hit SE Asia, eighteen years back with more than 200,000 lives taken?

The Gospel reading records the fact that babies under two years of age were slaughtered by King Herod for he feared any would-be contender to his throne.

How does one return to “normal”? I am not sure about you but I rather think that what is “normal” has pretty much changed since the pandemic struck two years ago. It is now the “new normal”. Churches all over the world have reported shrinking services and the number of people attending. It is as if there is a departure from an adherence to a faith-based way of life. Is God in charge anymore?

So come to this New Year with renewed faith, hope and love in Christ. See you on Sunday at 10:00 am at our morning service.
Blessings,

 

Chee
Sunday School is now meeting again for young children during part of the worship time (see below)

ICB Choir: If you enjoy singing, please join in by arriving about 45 minutes before the service for practice. All are welcome, even if you have little experience. We welcome new singers to take part!

Our heartfelt gratitude to all among us who contributed to the Pot-Bless Christmas Feast on Christmas Day!
Our first such event for a very long time.

Not least, our thanks to the Filipino community for their magnificent roasted contribution which we will never forget!!

Sunday School has resumed
in-person on Sundays at SCC
(morning service).

For more news, please keep an eye on the
ICB Sunday School Facebook Page

HERE
https://www.facebook.com/ICB-Christian-Education-106748784983710
(copy this URL into your browser)

SCROLL DOWN BELOW FOR MUCH MORE ON OUR COMMITTEES AND COUNCIL SEARCH
Call for for 2023 Church Council and church committees:
Volunteers and Nominations

A plea to get involved:
We all have our part to play to ensure a more meaningful response to Jesus’ call
Don’t just leave it to others

Each year at this time we ask ICB members and other regular attenders to consider how they can best support the church in the next 12 months.
One important way to do this is by serving on the Church Council, either as

  • Head (or member) of a committee: Worship; Outreach; Education (incl. Sunday school & study groups); Membership; Fellowship; Property & personnel; Finance & stewardship.
  • the Council Chair or Vice-Chair,  or
  • one of the at-large positions (council adviser; minute secretary).
    The Council meets 4 to 6 times per year, and is open to all ICB members and regular attendees.

Are you interested in serving our church this way?
Christian leadership

  • can be a fun opportunity for spiritual growth
  • is an excellent way to get to know other church members better
  • enables more involvement in the life and direction of ICB.

No prior leadership experience is necessary, and as always, we would like next year’s council to reflect the diversity of nationalities and worship backgrounds at ICB. All Christians are welcome.
Details about specific church positions are at this link. You can also ask for more information from the contacts shown below.
Please don’t be shy about serving our community in this way in 2023.
If you are interested to serve – or have an idea of someone else whom you think would fill one of the roles well – then please contact either
Pastor Chee (minister@icbangkok.org) or
Cameron Macky (current Council Chair) (cameronmacky91@gmail.com),
preferably by 15 January 2023.
We look forward to hearing from you soon
Thank you!

Covid Care and How to Get to
ICB Morning Services

At our present location at
SCC Creative Space Coffee Shop
Student Christian Center
328/1 Phyathai Road

A very short walk from BTS Ratchatewi.
Click here for Google maps reference or follow the map near the top of this newsletter.

Please remember the COVID Code:
As still recommended by the health authorities, all are advised to follow social distancing to keep others safe. We have members who have been infected lately and we do not wish others to be also infected. If you are not feeling well, please stay at home. Bottled water is available.

If you plan to come in your own car:
It is best to enter Phayathai Road from the Patumwan intersection (at Discovery Center/MBK) and drive across Hua Chang (elephant head) Bridge, taking the left-most lane. Then, immediately over the bridge, turn left into the SCC/CCT compound just before Evergreen Place and Asia Hotel.
There are limited parking spaces (free) just inside the compound but if full, you can park in the CCT Tower Building at the back of this same compound. Please get your vehicle entry slip stamped at our worship room.

ICB Evening Service at
Bangkok Christian Guesthouse (BCGH)
has been suspended until further notice.
 

We, at ICB, support displaced individuals and families in Bangkok with regular financial support through Life Raft International.

We also offer congregational, emotional and spiritual assistance.
Who qualifies?
Those who have been granted (or are applying for) recognition as refugees by UNHCR.
Why do we need to help these people?
Ongoing support is needed to help them bridge the gap while they seek and wait for resettlement in another country, which most often takes many years.
UNHCR recognition very rarely means they can live and work freely in their country of asylum.

Read more about ICB’s partnership with Life Raft: click here
See more about the problem, and how
YOU can be part of the solution with Life Raft International: click-here
Donate to ICB Ministry to Displaced Persons:
KBank: 003-1-09408-9 mark MDP and email transfer slip to: office@icbangkok.org
Thank You!!
ICB URGENTLY needs people like YOU!

Owing to several people leaving ICB and Thailand over the past months, the ICB Church Council is seeking people to fill the following positions as soon as possible:

  • Outreach – continuing contact with and support for our 8 social service partners
  • Worship – overseeing Church services
  • Fellowship – organising ICB community activities
  • Membership – welcoming new people to our church and maintaining contact with all members.
  • Personnel and Property – overseeing needs of our employees and facilities

None of these positions requires specialist skills nor a large amount of time.
All you need is the motivation to help us to develop our ICB community and outreach partners with Jesus as our guide.

To find out more, please contact
Cameron (Council Chair)              or Pastor Chee
cameronmacky91@gmail.com            minister@icbangkok.org

ICB – Caring for Displaced People through partnership Life Raft International 

An updated document relating to the above has now been uploaded to the Policies section of our website. The ICB Council has been working with Life Raft International for many years in seeking to relocate people to various countries for resettlement. The uploaded document gives clear parameters of our relationship with Life Raft International.

*Link: Church Policies

Fellowship is essential for the wellbeing of any true community – but it’s not so easy when we cannot all meet personally face-to-face, and have no social events.
At ICB, we wish to develop new ways to extend Christian fellowship among all of us during 2022. We invite you to help with your ideas for such fellowship activities.
Contact Pastor Chee: minister@icbangkok.org
ICB CHRISTIAN OUTREACH
The International Church of Bangkok
partners with Christian ministries throughout Thailand to advance the work of Jesus.

5% of ICB’s yearly total income goes directly to the outreach partners. Members and friends are also encouraged to give directly through the Church account.

In the first half of this year, a total of 78,000THB has been given to eight of our mission partners. Reports from three of them have been uploaded to our FB page – https://www.facebook.com/ICB-Outreach-Ministries-105101068484139. These are from Cornerstone Chapel Hatyai, Rahab Ministries Bangkok, and Concordia Welfare & Education Foundation Bangkok.

Find out more about our outreach partners

www.icbangkok.org/outreach/

For further information, please contact Pastor Chee (minister@icbangkok.org)
The ICB Outreach Committee welcomes new members to join our hardworking team to help ICB share the love of Jesus with Bangkok.
ICB is a fully self-supported congregation.
We gladly receive your donations.
KBank a/c 003-1-09408-9
More information on the ICB WebsiteThank you!
You can email the ICB office for a covenant form
office@icbangkok.org
Our minister, Pastor Chee, and members of the Church Council can be contacted as and when needed:
Email: minister@icbangkok.org
Internati­onal Church of Bangkok (ICB)

Advancing the Work of Jesus!

ICB is an English language congregation, composed of native and non-native speakers.
We are committed to welcoming people of all backgrounds to Christian worship for a diverse, inclusive and unifying faith experience.
We seek to advance the work of Jesus Christ by promoting and supporting spiritual growth, community and service to others.

ICB has a specific policy on “Diversity, Inclusiveness & Unity” recently adopted at our annual congregational meeting. You can download the file here (click).

Scan these QR Codes to
find out more about
International Church of Bangkok

This upper link will guide you to our
ICB Website

This lower link will guide you to our
ICB Facebook page

For personal inquiries, more information and
church membership, please email
Rev. Chee Keong Yong: minister@icbangkok.org

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Office Phone Number (Mon-Thur) +66 (0)2-258-5821
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