At the beginning of this year, I shared with you a dream that God had given me towards the end of 2023 – of Jesus wanting to pull up an armchair next to each one of us and to draw us into deeper intimacy with him. This led us on a journey of intimacy throughout the year that took on a variety of expressions across our church body, from the 21-day corporate fast, our Converse prayer day, and community spiritual retreats, to pulpit teachings, offsites, and individual growth and development. Our vision to Grow Big People as expressed through the River Model has taken on a beautiful diversity this year, as many of us have invested considerable time over the past 12 months in our relationship with Jesus. I sense that as a church body, we emerge out of 2024 more mature, more healed, and more prepared for all that is to come.

Our Yuen Long church plant has continued to thrive under the leadership of Tim and Ivan, and it is a joy to see us now operating as one church across two locations. Our hope is to continue to see further outreach to local communities in the area, and the spread of the gospel through Alpha and multi-generational ministry across the board.

On a personal note, 2024 saw me spend four months on Sabbatical, which was a wonderful time of needed connection with my family, with Jesus, and with myself. After weeks of rest, restoration, and inspiration, I returned to the Vine in mid-November to a church that had continued to grow and flourish beautifully in my absence. I want to give a huge thank you to our leadership team of Elders and Pastors, as well as our many volunteers, who served wholeheartedly in my absence and moved the church forward with great courage and skill. It is a real privilege to walk alongside such an amazing family of servant-hearted leaders.

As we move into 2025, I feel a real passion within me for this amazing city of Hong Kong that we all love. The years ahead are critical for our city, and we have a once in a lifetime opportunity to do all we can to bring the gospel of hope and life to so many who desperately need it. My prayer is that our year of intimacy with Christ in 2024 will lead to a year of action through the Holy Spirit in 2025. I can’t wait to see what God’s about to do!

Not only has God been moving powerfully in the lives of many guests, stirring their hearts to draw close to Him and put their faith and trust in Him, God has been moving just as powerfully in our serving teams as well. A key part of the success of Alpha is the relational connection with guests, which calls for members of our congregation to serve our guests in different areas: in small groups to connect with them and facilitate discussion, on production, in hospitality serving food and drinks, and this year, we even started catering our meals in-house. We have had very large serving teams and often, the loudest roars of laughter are heard in the kitchen from the hospitality team as they are washing up after dinner.

The following testimony is from Alpha hospitality volunteer Andre Nio.

“This is my second time serving in Alpha as a hospitality volunteer. Apart from the fact that I have this opportunity to serve, I thoroughly love every minute of it because I come from a hospitality background, and this is something that is within my comfort zone. It is also great because I get to serve alongside my wife, which helps to strengthen the bond of our relationship. Furthermore, we get to meet like-minded people, forging friendships in the process.

I think that through serving, God is teaching me to love on other people and to serve with humility. We serve the participants in the hope that they can see God’s reflection and heart through our actions, and that the testimony of God’s goodness in our lives will encourage them to come to Christ. As we serve throughout the sessions, we can feel God’s presence among us – even when I am tired, I feel this extraordinary strength while serving, that leads me to experience an inexplicable sense of joy. Serving in Alpha has been rewarding, in that it has brought me closer to God & closer to my wife, and I believe that God sees our hearts in our willingness to serve and rewards us with His joy, grace & peace.”

Notably, this year marks the 30th Anniversary of Alpha being run in Hong Kong. To celebrate, 7 churches and one workplace Alpha got together in November to run a joint Alpha Day, which is when we look at the topic of the Holy Spirit. Each church took ownership of a different element of the Alpha Day, and over 300 participants (guests and volunteers) joined the day, which was run in three languages – English, Cantonese and Mandarin. As leaders from each church intentionally honoured each other throughout the planning process, there was a beautiful sense of unity and community on that day. We know that at least 16 guests committed their lives to Christ that day. It is also significant that over 56% of participants recorded that they experienced community more after being a part of Alpha, 0ver 45% highlighted they were praying more, their faith was strengthened and they were deepening their relationship with Jesus.

FILCOM, our Filipina community, ran Tagalog Alpha this year, and as part of their efforts to extend the love of Christ and to invite guests to Alpha, they ventured out to the streets of Wan Chai to evangelise. It was their first attempt at street evangelism, and as they went out in pairs on a heavily rainy day, they demonstrated tremendous courage and humility in approaching strangers to engage in conversation. Naturally, some were not receptive, and FILCOM were discouraged and felt rejected, yet they grasped a glimpse of God’s heart as several said they saw their old selves in people’s cold responses. Two members commented that they realised they too had previously rejected God in the same way. So they gave praise and thanks that God had never left them but had continued to pursue them and be faithful to them.

Cris described how this impacted her: “After I committed to Jesus, when I saw my cousin who had been a Christian a long time, I wanted to ask them “why didn’t you tell me about Jesus earlier?!” This gave her great motivation to continue to learn and grow in street evangelism, so that she would be able to tell more people about Jesus.

April and Araceli met one lady who had just arrived to Hong Kong, having left behind her husband and two young children in the Philippines. She was adjusting to life in HK and her new employment. As the pair noticed she was downcast, they offered to pray for comfort and she accepted. They explained that they were Christians, asked if this lady had a personal relationship with Jesus, which she did not, and they asked if she would like to pray to accept Jesus. She said yes! They led her in a prayer of commitment, on the streets of Wan Chai, and invited her to join Alpha.

Going forward, FILCOM plans to engage in street evangelism regularly, trusting that even though some people reject them and God, it is ultimately God who moves people’s hearts.

The Vine Church continues to show love and care through outreach into our local community and in 2024, we had the privilege of demonstrating Christ’s love in various ways, which included detainee visits, elderly care, and outreach events in the Wan Chai area.

Detainee visits were a response to requests from immigration detainees who are asylum seekers in Hong Kong. 40 detainees were visited regularly, most of whom appreciated prayers and encouragement from scriptures, regardless of their religion.

The following testimony is from Mira (pseudonym), a detainee at Tai Tam Gap Detention Centre.

“I understand that it is hard to do volunteer work. You people are very patient and kind. I have no visitors and love every time our chat more than anything. I pray for all your volunteers’ work”

In 2024 due to the increase in our volunteers, we were able to visit two elderly homes in Wan Chai, celebrating birthdays and sharing the love of Christ with the seniors.

The following testimony is from Alice Wong, a new believer and Vine Church member.

“When I see the smiling faces expressing joy and the active participation of the elderly, it is remarkable to me. Joy can be simple. Joy does not come from material possessions, but the genuine interaction and care between humans. Thank God and Jesus that opened my eyes, ears, and heart to feel the community.”

Bernard joined Neighbourhood Conversations in 2023, and since then his perspective on issues affecting migrant workers changed from apathy, to curiosity, to action. It prompted him to make career moves to raise awareness on fair employment for domestic workers and eventually to support church and community development to combat poverty globally.

Through all of these expressions, we give thanks to God who is teaching us that being close to Him looks like caring for those around us.

Hong Kong is a multicultural society, but in recent years, it has faced significant divisions. As an international church with English-speaking attendees, Cantonese-speaking locals, and a Mandarin ministry, The Vine Church is well-suited to model what God’s love looks like in this city, and one new initiative was the Mid-Autumn Festival Mandarin Evangelism Event held at The Vine Centre on September 13th. As a celebration of family, the Mid-Autumn Festival offered the perfect opportunity for the church to share God’s love with Mandarin speakers and welcome them into His home. In a remarkable display of unity, 55 volunteers, speaking Cantonese, English, and Mandarin, came together to serve 120 adults and 10 children.

The evening was filled with love and joy.  Each guest received a thoughtfully prepared gift, and over 40 dishes were lovingly made by the food team, with 10 volunteers working from morning until evening. The atmosphere was filled with laughter from games, and hearts were lifted by worship songs. Testimonies from three speakers, blending humour and profound reflection, touched many. One guest shared that she felt a deep sense of belonging, as if she had "returned home." Another, usually part of the English-speaking group, expressed how worshiping in her mother tongue transformed her faith experience. A volunteer remarked that participating in the event opened her heart, sparking a desire to serve the Mandarin community further. During the altar call, four new friends accepted Christ. 23 participants signed up for a follow-up pizza night, and 13 attendees joined the church-wide Alpha in October.

The Mandarin Community witnessed God's abundant provision and His hand at work. This has deepened their intimacy with God and brought about many personal transformations. With a heart for outreach and service, the Mandarin Community will continue responding to God's call—building bridges and fulfilling the vision of unity in Christ while sharing the Gospel with Mandarin speakers.