Anglican Diocese of Sabah 60th Anniversary
"The Present"
Today, 24th
July is the 60th Anniversary of the inauguration of the Anglican Diocese of
Sabah. It is indeed a joyous occasion as all our churches throughout Sabah
including FCC Sunway, Thailand and Indonesia hold a special Thanksgiving
Service in their own locality.
It is a day
to remember and give thanks to the Lord for the works of the early missionaries
and pioneers – the seeds of the Gospel that they had lovingly sown through toil
and labour in unimaginable tough conditions especially in the interior of
Sabah. Lives were risked and lost. But nothing could stop their passion for the
spread of the gospel. And we see the faithfulness of God in the growth, both
spiritual and numerical, of the Diocese.
We must echo
as the psalmist did, “We will not hide them from their descendants; we will
tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the
wonders he has done.” Psalm 78:4. We must take on this task to tell the younger
generation of what the Lord has done in the Diocese – how He used unassuming
ordinary people like you and me to build His church here in Sabah. Everyone,
both young and old has a place and purpose in the Diocese and we must seek to
fulfil it.
The theme of
the 60th Anniversary is “THE PRESENT” which carries a dual meaning of “the
gift” and ‘now”. The present which is the gift of the Gospel is to be passed to
the younger generation so that the spread of the gospel here in Sabah will
continue. Now is the time to invest in the younger generation. Now is the time
to nurture them and help them to see their place and role in the Diocese. I want to take this opportunity to challenge
all the young people in our Diocese that now is the time to rise up and get
into the position that God has destined for you so that you can take hold of
the baton tightly when it is passed to you so that you will continue the work
and lead the Diocese forward in the future.
I want to
thank everyone, past and present, for your labour of love in the Lord’s
vineyard and God has richly blessed the Diocese through each one of you.
As we reflect
with thanksgiving of what the Lord has done for the past 60 years, let the
chorus of this timeless hymn rise from our hearts to God.
Great is Thy
faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning
new mercies I see;
All I have needed
Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy
faithfulness, Lord, unto me!
The Most Reverend Datuk Melter J Tais
Archbishop
of the Province of Southeast Asia
Bishop
of Sabah
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