Shadowing Jesus for women

06/04/2026

Calvary Exeter
April 2026

A lot happened in 3 days. Jesus was betrayed and crucified but is now resurrected; our Lord is risen.

A lot also happened in the 40 days after He’s risen. The Gospel writers and the Book of Acts tell us that Jesus walked and talked and was seen, in his restored body, by hundreds of His disciples. He has made himself known to many.

If I met Jesus after His crucifixion, with hindsight, I’d like to say I would be shouting loudly for joy, celebrating and worshipping Him. But the cruel reality of death brings tremendous sorrow which sometimes blinds our eyes and steals our peace, joy and hope. I’m a woman who cries easily. I even cry over fictional movies and often miss out on the story cos I pay more attention to my stupid feelings than to the movies!

The story of Mary Magdalene tells us that she was heart broken. Before she had time to get over the terrifying death of her Lord, she discovered that His dead body was gone too. She was overwhelmed by sorrow and mistook Jesus as the gardener. John 20:16, ‘Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means "Teacher")’ When Jesus spoke her name, she recognised His voice straight away. John 10:4 ’His sheep follow him because they know his voice.’

Jesus is our loving Shepherd - He lays down His life for His sheep. Those of us who have surrendered our lives to him are the sheep in His flock. Like Mary, we know His voice. and we have confidence in His Word.

Matthew 28:7 ‘the angels said to Mary ‘And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.’’ What an encouragement to know that her Lord had chosen her to be His messenger. This brings to mind Deuteronomy 31:6 ‘Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”

In Luke 24, when Jesus appeared to two of his disciples on the road to Emmaus, they failed to recognise Him and mistook Him for a stranger. Unlike Mary, they didn’t have blurry vision because of their tears, more likely their hearts were broken and they were confused as to why Jesus died! v16 ‘But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him.’ Jesus used their condition to draw their attention to scripture and told them how every word in the Old Testament points towards Him and His resurrection.

When they insisted that Jesus dine with them, He did so. How beautiful our Lord always has time for us and is always seeking to be a part of our lives. Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.’ I love to cook and would love to cook for Jesus - maybe one day?

Scripture is the main tool to get to know Jesus. After Jesus revealed himself on the road to Emmaus, one of the men exclaimed in v32 ‘And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?”’ John 1:14 ‘And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.’

Jesus walks with us and reveals himself in different ways to each one of His followers. There is nothing I can know of my God except that He chooses to reveal it. Matthew 11:27 ‘All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.’ We cannot grow in our knowledge of God or His ways except through His Word.

Jesus does not waste our circumstances, our trials, or our grief but draws near to us in our moments of deepest despair. In His gracious way, He calls us to follow Him even when our vision is blurred by our tears. And if our faith is small, he patiently instructs us and guides us to His Word which is the framework and foundation for seeing who Jesus really is.

It has been a harsh season, try not to feel lonely. Isaiah 55:6 ‘Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near.’ It’s also okay to cry, but try not to let the tears blur your vision so that you miss the blessings of the cross.

Our Lord is alive, He is risen. Acts 2:24 ‘But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.’

婦女靈修- 追隨耶穌的足跡
翻譯員: Lavinia Tam

三天內發生了很多事情。耶穌被出賣並被釘在十字架上，但現在又復活了。我們的主復活了。

祂復活後的四十天，也發生很多事情。福音作家和使徒行傳告訴我們：成百的門徒都目睹了耶穌在完全復原的軀體裡走路和說話。祂已經使許多人知道祂的存在。

如果我在耶穌被釘十字架後遇見祂，我想我會大聲歡呼，以歡喜，慶祝和敬拜祂的心情崇拜祂。可是死亡這個殘酷現實會帶來了巨大的悲傷，有時蒙蔽我們雙眼，竊取我們的和平，歡樂和希望。我是一個容易哭泣的女人。我甚至能為虛構的電影情節而哭泣，反而常常錯過故事內容。因此比起內容，我更關切自己的感受！

抹大拉瑪利亞的故事告訴我們她的心傷。在她還未克服失去主耶穌的時候，她還傷上加傷，發現主耶穌的屍體也消失了。她沈溺於悲痛之中，誤認主耶穌為守墓人。直到：約翰福音20章16節 「耶穌說：瑪利亞。瑪利亞就轉過來，用希伯來話對他說：拉波尼！（拉波尼就是老師的意思。）」。當耶穌說出她的名字時，她便立即認出了祂的聲音。約翰福音10章4節：「既放出自己的羊來，就在前頭走，羊也跟著他，因為認得他的聲音。」

耶穌是我們慈愛的牧者 —— 祂為自己的羊而捨命。我們當中那些向祂奉獻生命的人就是祂羊群中的綿羊。像馬利亞一樣，我們都是知道主的聲音。我們對祂的話充滿信心。

馬太福音28章7節：「快去告訴他的門徒，說他從死裡復活了，並且在你們以先往加利利去，在那裡你們要見他。看哪，我已經告訴你們了」她知道主選擇了她作為祂復活的報訊者時，十分鼓舞。這使我想到了申命記31章6節：「你們當剛強壯膽，不要害怕，也不要畏懼他們，因為耶和華─你的神和你同去。他必不撇下你，也不丟棄你。」

在路加福音24章中，當耶穌在去厄瑪烏的路上向兩個門徒顯現時，他們都未能認出祂，甚至把他誤認為一個陌生人。與馬利亞不同的是，他們並不是因為被眼淚模糊了視線，而是他們心對耶穌的死存疑，因此心碎。16節：「只是他們的眼睛迷糊了，不認識祂。」耶穌利用他們的狀況來提醒他們要注意舊約聖經裡的每一句話其實都在指向主耶穌和祂的復活。

當他們堅持要耶穌與他們一起吃飯時，耶穌就答應了。我們的主就是多麼美麗，總是有時間陪伴我們，並且一直努力成為我們生活的一部分。啟示錄3章20節：「看哪，我站在門外叩門，若有聽見我聲音就開門的，我要進到他那裡去，我與他，他與我一同坐席。」我喜歡做飯，也願意為耶穌做飯——也許有一天主也願意與我同桌吃飯？

聖經是認識耶穌的主要工具。耶穌在以馬忤斯的道路上顯現後，一名男子在路加福音24章32節中喊道：「他們彼此說：在路上，他和我們說話，給我們講解聖經的時候，我們的心豈不是火熱的嗎？」約翰福音1章14節：「道成了肉身，住在我們中間，充充滿滿的有恩典有真理。我們也見過他的榮光，正是父獨生子的榮光。」

耶穌以不同的方式與我們同行，向每個跟隨者顯現自己。除了主選擇揭露的事實，我對上帝其他一無所知。馬太福音11章27節：「一切所有的，都是我父交付我的；除了父，沒有人知道子；除了子和子所願意指示的，沒有人知道父。」我們除了通過祂的聖言，我們是無法通過其他方式增加對上帝或祂的教導的了解而成長。

耶穌不會讓我們白白忍受人生中的考驗和痛苦。祂會在我們最絕望的時刻臨近我們。即使我們的視線因眼淚而模糊不清，祂仍然會以祂的親切方式呼喚我們跟隨祂。如果我們的信心很小，祂會耐心地指導我們，引導我們去遵循祂的話語。這是便是耶穌真實身份。

我們正在經歷一個嚴酷的季節。不要感到孤獨！以賽亞書55章6節：「當趁耶和華可尋找的時候尋找他，相近的時候求告他。」你可以哭泣，但不要讓眼淚模糊你的視線，以免錯過十字架給予的祝福。

我們的主還活著，祂甚至復活了。使徒行傳2章24節：「神卻將死的痛苦解釋了，叫他復活，因為他原不能被死拘禁。」

06/04/2026

April 2026
Calvary Exeter
What is Easter

Let the world see The Hope we have in our Lord Christ Jesus.

Easter is definitively the pinnacle of Christian faith.
The crux of the matter is merely the matter of the Cross.

Luke 9:23✝️
Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. 💜

Hebrews 12:1–2✝️
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.💜

Our Lord is Risen.

He’s Risen.

04/04/2026

Calvary Exeter

Six years ago, 2020, Covid-19 gave birth to a worldwide pandemic bringing widespread fear. Governments were put alert and brought in all sorts of new rules. Before we could get over all the fear about the disease and the immunisations and the lockdown etc, war broke out in Ukraine in 2022. More fear, more turmoils, more death, and more policies introduced as a result! Then came 7th Oct attacks in 2023 with murder and r**e and as we are speaking, more wars are taking place in the Middle East.

The new normal is uncertainty with all those unfortunate events going on around us. Much mis-information and bias commentaries in among the truth bombard us day & night through the media. Much instability and conspiracy theories trouble our minds; scepticism surges through our thoughts. It’s almost like another form of pandemic has emerged and many are fearing death again and desperately want to make sure they escape it.

But there was one, 2000 years ago, who was calm in the face of impending death. Jesus is not afraid of death, indeed He conquered death and He sets us free too from anxiety and fear when we believe in Him. 2 Timothy 1:10 “but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Saviour, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”

We celebrated the birth of Jesus at Christmas as we rejoiced “Glory to God in the Highest; For unto us a child is born.” But it was a solemn occasion last year as we had very tight lockdown measures in force. Few months down the road, we are preparing to celebrate Jesus’ death and resurrection. His death was unprecedented because His resurrection brought transforming life to all those who repent. It is our biggest celebration as Christians.

We celebrate birthdays and anniversaries but we never really celebrate death. To many, death means agony, heartbreak and separation as life finishes. We send condolence or sympathy card, rather than a hip-hip hooray card. Some see death as a well-deserved punishment for someone bad but for most of us it is a tragedy with poor timing!

The process by which Jesus was crucified and died was both agonising and heart wrenching; it was the most severe torture method ever invented by the Romans. Jesus did nothing wrong. Indeed all He did was good and perfect. 2 Corinthians 5:21, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” Besides, God’s timing is always perfect. Acts 1:7, “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.” We know that God’s grand plan in Jesus’s death was for our perfection, our sanctification. John 16:7 “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.”
‭‭
We all sin, therefore we all die. Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” My husband did a great sermon on that. (https://youtu.be/Tj-2w8THOEM) It’s important to confess our sins. John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

Accepting Jesus’s death on the cross and His resurrection is vital. John 3:3 “Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.’” I once heard someone describe life as maths: either 1 birth = 2 death (physical as well as spiritual) or 2 births (physical and spiritually born again) = 1 death (only physical but the spirit is saved and has eternal life)

The birth of Jesus is God’s gift under-wraps. The death of Jesus is the revealing of the gift. Ephesians 2:8-9 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.”

Our God is love, full of mercy and grace. Romans 10:9 “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” If you’ve been born again there’s no need to be scared of death; it has no hold on you. What is the fear in your life? Would you surrender it with obedience in the Lord’s hands.

Easter is the season for reconciliation; a time to be reconciled with your Maker. Are you ready to repent your sin and to believe in Jesus? The crux of the matter is not how good we can be but is what Jesus did for us on the cross. Colossians 2:15 “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”

Have a blessed Easter.

婦女靈修- 追隨耶穌的足跡2021年3月29日至4月4日
翻譯員Lavinia Tam

就在一年多以前，引起對死亡的恐懼的冠狀病毒Covid-19將這個英國帶入封鎖期。我們的政府已經盡最大努力沒有過度反應，避免去製造不必要的混亂。但是，由病毒導致的死亡已經不再是我們在遙遠地區的新聞中聽到的事件，而是直接在我們家鄉門前所發生的流行病。

對於許多人來說，這是非常艱難的一年。經濟負擔或生活方式的改變所帶來的壓力使他們的精神能力超負荷。許多人不喜歡被告知該做什麼或不該做什麼。其他人則是對死亡充滿恐懼。為了保護弱勢群體的生命，政府必須採取封鎖措施。我們中許多人都寄望科學家能發明拯救人類的疫苗。但是有些人卻對此表示懷疑，他們擔心疫苗會反而傷害到他們。我們每個人似乎都無法免於對死亡的恐懼？但是有一個人不懼怕...

祂就是耶穌。

耶穌不懼怕死亡。祂甚至戰勝了死亡，當我們相信他時，祂也使我們自由。提摩太後書1章10節：「但如今藉著我們救主基督耶穌的顯現才表明出來了。他已經把死廢去，藉著福音，將不能壞的生命彰顯出來。」

我們在聖誕節慶祝耶穌誕生的時候感到欣喜，「至高榮耀歸於上帝；因為有一個嬰孩為我們而生。」但去年因為我們在非常嚴格的封鎖措施下，聖誕節卻成為一個莊嚴的場合。接下來的三個月，我們準備慶祝耶穌的死與復活。祂的死是史無前例的，因為祂的復活為所有悔改的人帶來了新的希望。作為基督徒，這是我們最大的慶祝活動。值得慶幸的是，封鎖已適時緩解了一點！

我們慶祝生日和周年紀念日，但我們從未慶祝過死亡。對許多人而言，死亡意味著生命的終結，這意味著痛苦，傷心欲絕和與世隔絕。我們會發送慰問卡或憐憫卡，而不是嘻嘻哈哈的祝賀卡。有些人認為死是對一個壞人應有的懲罰，對我們大多數人來說，這是一個不好的悲劇！

耶穌被釘死在十字架上而死的過程既痛苦又使人痛心。這是羅馬人有史以來最嚴厲的酷刑方法。耶穌沒有做錯任何事。祂所做的一切都是美好而完美的。 哥林多後書5章21節，「神使那無罪（無罪：原文是不知罪）的，替我們成為罪，好叫我們在他裡面成為神的義。」此外，上帝的時機總是完美的。使徒行傳1章7節：「耶穌對他們說：父憑著自己的權柄所定的時候、日期，不是你們可以知道的。」我們知道，上帝在耶穌死後的計劃是為了讓我們變得完美，使我們的成聖。約翰福音16章7節：「然而，我將真情告訴你們，我去是於你們有益的；我若不去，保惠師就不到你們這裡來；我若去，就差他來。」

我們都因犯罪而會死。羅馬書6章23節：「因為罪的工價乃是死；惟有神的恩賜，在我們的主基督耶穌裡，乃是永生。」昨天我丈夫對此做了一個精彩的佈道。 （https://youtu.be/Tj-2w8THOEM）認罪是非常重要。約翰福音1章9節：「那光是真光，照亮一切生在世上的人。」

接受耶穌在十字架上的死和接受祂的複活都是至關重要。約翰福音3章3節：「」我曾經聽過有人用數學來形容生命：一次出生= 二次死亡（物理上以及屬靈性上）或者 二次重生（物理和靈性上重生）= 一次死亡（只有肉體，但精神得以保存並擁有永生）

耶穌的誕生是上帝的禮物。耶穌的死是恩賜的彰顯。以弗所書2章8-9節：「你們得救是本乎恩，也因著信；這並不是出於自己，乃是神所賜的；也不是出於行為，免得有人自誇。」

我們的上帝是愛，充滿憐憫和恩典。羅馬書10章9節：「你若口裡認耶穌為主，心裡信神叫他從死裡復活，就必得救。」如果你已經重生，則不必害怕死亡；它不會管束你。

復活節是復合的季節，與你的造物主和解的時候。你準備好悔改並相信耶穌了嗎？問題的關鍵不是我們有多好，而是耶穌在十字架上為我們所做的。歌羅西書2章15節：「既將一切執政的、掌權的擄來，明顯給眾人看，就仗著十字架誇勝。」

祝你復活節快樂。

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

03/04/2026

Calvary Exeter

Walking past the busy wet market during my annual visit to Asia, I noticed the shop on the market corner was always changing ownership. The shop was never updated or renovated, but the new owner was always demonstrating their new trendy time-saving gadget. It always attracted a lot of inquisitive locals and a crowd soon built up at the beginning of each demo but also soon dispersed when their curiosity died down. Often, they would leave, marvelling at the technique of the sales person, but without buying anything because it was not what was expected or they were not willing to pay the price.

Life can be like this - we like to follow the crowd, we’re attracted to the popular, the latest and the bargains. We also don’t like to be seen as different, we don’t like to miss out and we don’t like to pay a high price.

The crowd in the bible had been following Jesus and were amazed by His teachings. They witnessed miraculous healings, the raising of the dead to life, demons driven out, sins forgiven and sinners converted. They wanted to follow a King with power; who would deliver them from oppression, make them prosperous or even give them some of His power.

During Jesus’ triumphal Palm Sunday entrance to Jerusalem (Mark 11:1-11), the crowd shouted out the truth. Jesus entered Jerusalem on a c**t and the crowd waved palm leaves and laid down cloaks and shouted, v10, “Hosanna! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” Jesus was the King they’d hoped for.

Sadly, it wasn’t long before the crowds were turned against Jesus. Within a week, Mark 15 says, ‘Immediately, in the morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council; and they bound Jesus, led Him away, and delivered Him to Pilate... the chief priests accused Him of many things, but He answered nothing, so that Pilate marvelled... For he knew that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy... the chief priests stirred up the crowd... they cried out again, “Crucify Him!” Then Pilate said to them, “Why, what evil has He done?” But they cried out all the more, “Crucify Him!” So Pilate, wanting to gratify the crowd... delivered Jesus, after he had scourged Him, to be crucified.’

The crowd wanted a Santa Claus type of Jesus, a vending machine Jesus, a motivational Jesus or even a politician Jesus. As soon as they were stirred up by the religious leaders, they did a u-turn and stopped following. They had been swayed and blinded by the hatred of the religious leaders. They didn’t see the truth again until Jesus was crucified. v38, ’So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, “Truly this Man was the Son of God!”’

Jesus left us His Holy Spirit and also the holy bible to instruct us. So what sort of Christian crowd are we? While we would like to imagine that we would never be one of the crowd, the reality is, we all are. For how many times have we praised His name on a Sunday but by Monday questioned His goodness? Have you not taken for granted His blessings — the same blessings for which we so eagerly prayed? Oh friend, you and I are no different than that crowd.

We’ve all been there, but let’s not be like the hypocritical religious leaders. Let’s not fill our hearts with hatred and jealously. Hatred can easily consume us and lead us into unwise actions. Hatred comes from pride and jealously and leads to unforgiveness and blindness to the truth. Someone once said, ‘it’s not how many friends you have on social media that shows your true character, it’s how many you have unfriended when you don’t like what they say’. Being corrected and having your hypocrisy pointed out and being told that you need God, are not things easily accepted by the proud.

Some of us are parents, teachers, mentors or people in authority and have power and influence over others. Proverbs 22:6, ‘Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.’ We should all be prepared to share the gospel and bring alive the hope we have in Christ.

If you were Pontius Pilate, would you stand up for the truth or would you yield to the crowd and wash your hands of the truth? Romans 12:2, ‘And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.’

As we approach Easter, let’s take a deep, honest look into our hearts. Have we nailed our colours to the mask and decided to follow Jesus - no matter what.

婦女靈修- 追隨耶穌的足跡
翻譯員:Lavinia Tam

我每年旅遊亞洲期間，走過繁忙的濕貨市場時，都會注意到市場角落的商店總是有不同的檔主。商店從未進行過翻新，但每一個新主人都在展示他們新的小玩意。它總是會吸引很多好奇的當地人，並且在每個演示的開始不久就會聚集一群人。但是當他們的好奇心消失時，他們也很快就四散了。通常，他們會驚嘆於銷售人員的技術，但是最終都不會買任何東西。因為那不是他們所需要的，或者他們也不願付錢。

生活可以如此，我們喜歡跟隨人群，我們被最流行，最新和便宜的商品所吸引。我們也不想被視為另類，不喜歡錯過事物，但也不想付出高昂的代價。

聖經中的人群一直跟隨耶穌，祂的教導令他們驚訝。他們目睹了奇蹟般的醫治：死者復活，惡魔被驅逐，罪孽得到赦免，罪人悔改。他們想跟隨一個有無限權力的國王，一個能能救他們脫離壓迫，使他們昌盛，甚至給他們一些行奇蹟的能力。

在耶穌凱旋進入耶路撒冷的那個棕櫚週日（馬可福音11：1-11），人群都大聲喊出了心聲。耶穌騎著驢進入耶路撒冷，人群揮舞著棕櫚葉，披上了斗篷，大聲喊著，「那將要來的我祖大衛之國是應當稱頌的！高高在上和散那！」（第10節）。耶穌是他們所希望的國王。

可悲的是，不久之後，人群就變成反對耶穌的人。馬可福音15章記載：「一到早晨，祭司長和長老、文士、全公會的人大家商議，就把耶穌捆綁，解去交給彼拉多…祭司長告他許多的事…耶穌仍不回答，以致彼拉多覺得希奇…他原曉得，祭司長是因為嫉妒才把耶穌解了來…只是祭司長挑唆眾人…他們又喊著說：『把他釘十字架！』彼拉多說：『為什麼呢？他做了什麼惡事呢？』他們便極力的喊著說：『把他釘十字架！』彼拉多要叫眾人喜悅…將耶穌鞭打了，交給人釘十字架。」（第1-15節）

人群想要像聖誕老人般的耶穌，自動彈出禮品的耶穌，有極大領導能力的耶穌甚至像大政治家般的耶穌。一旦他們受到宗教領袖的煽動，他們便掉頭並停止追隨主。他們被宗教領袖的仇恨所左右。直到耶穌被釘死在十字架上，他們才再次看到真相。「對面站著的百夫長看見耶穌這樣喊叫，斷氣，就說：『這人真是神的兒子！』」（第39節）

耶穌把祂的聖靈和聖經都留給了我們。那麼我們是怎麼樣的一群基督徒呢？儘管我們想像自己永遠不會成為以上的那一群人，但現實是，我們其實都是。在星期日，我們有多少次讚美祂的名字，但是到了星期一，我們又質疑祂的良善？你難道沒有想過祂的祝福是必然的—是因為我們熱切祈禱之後應該有的祝福嗎？哦，朋友，其實你，我和那群人沒有什麼不同。

我們都經歷過，但請不要像那些虛偽的宗教領袖那樣。不要讓我們心裡充滿仇恨和嫉妒。仇恨很容易消滅我們，並導致我們有不明智的動機。仇恨來自驕傲和嫉妒，導致不能寬恕別人和對真相的盲目性。有人曾經說過：「你在社交媒體上的真實身份不在於你擁有多少追隨者，而是你因為聽到不喜歡的話而絕交了多少個朋友。」。驕傲者很難接受被人對他們的虛偽的指點，不喜歡被更正，並被告知他們其實很需要上帝。

我們中一些人是父母，老師，導師或權威人士，對其他人具有力量和影響力。箴言22章6節：「教養孩童，使他走當行的道，就是到老他也不偏離。」我們所有人都應該準備分享福音，並重現在基督裡的希望應該擁有的活力。

如果您是彼拉多斯彼拉多（Pontus Pilate），你會為真理站起來？還是會屈服於人群而忘記真理之道？羅馬書12章2節：「不要效法這個世界，只要心意更新而變化，叫你們察驗何為神的善良、純全、可喜悅的旨意。」

在復活節即將來臨之際，讓我們深入了解自己的內心。我們是否已將自己的信念鎖定在主身上，無論如何都跟隨耶穌？

16/03/2026

The perfect 3:16 ✝️
三:十六是最完美的數字 💜

God’s perfect timing.

Every now and then, I read some lovely tributes of someone’s dad. They are all very beautiful memeories.

Obviously, I asked the simple question of how about my dad?

A dad who fought everyone, everything and everywhere he went!
A dad who fought to survive all his life.
A dad who fought poverty, drinks, drugs and s*x all his life.
A dad who fought within himself and pushed away his family.
A dad who was brought up with no love and knew no love.
He was rejected and he rejects.

He’s my dad.
He’s a dad who thought he knew it all.
He’s a dad who gave up everything to bring up his children. It was a regular practice that he took his only gold pen and Rolex watch to the pawn shop to tide over the household bill or to get us new uniform and books we needed.
He’s a dad who fought away all men who dare walked near my mum.
He’s a dad who protected his children so well that they couldn’t do anything without his approval. He never allowed them to do anything out of his sights!
He’s a dad who would have survived Covid! As he allowed no dirt into the house, no beach outings or playground fun as it’s all far too sandy amd muddy.
He carried unuttered pains in his characters. All you can see is a physically strong and untameable man!
He’s a dad who did a few wrongs but also not have done many wrongs!

So what sort of dad is he!

He’s a dad of brokenness who chose to miss out many blessings. But, he’s a final product of our Lord’s Love, Grace and Mercy.

I thank our Heavenly Father that He sees it all, patiently heard our cries and watched over us.

Heavenly Father is a daddy of love. He poured out His amazing love abundantly onto my dad’s dying bed. My dad turned from his prodigal way and have hope.

My dad said sorry to Jesus in Dec2010 before he went in for a major operation. He knew he might not be healed but had Peace and resumed his relationship with his Heavenly Father. He continued to fight as he would. But, this one is a spiritual battle and Our Lord got his back. March 2011, at the eleventh hours before flying home, I was called by the hospital chaplain. My dad wanted to be baptised.

I was asked to baptise him; and I was given tremendous peace and healing. That’s the dad whom I m proud of. He finally chose to follow Jesus; no turning back. The beauty of it all is, there’s no more battler for my dad to fight, as Jesus took them all and had the final victory. ( 1 Samuel 17:47 ✝️)

Joy overwhelmed my heart. I didn’t look at the paper as my eyes was on the Lord. Yesterday, I realised : the date my dad baptised was 16th March.

03.16

John 3:16 ✝️
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.💜

23/12/2025

Calvary Exeter
Names are important. Traditionally, Chinese couples always consult the older generations, and even need their approval, for choosing the names of their children. In Western countries, I’ve seen lots of books containing names for baby boys and girls with meanings and origin of the names explained. We pay a great deal of attention to choosing the right name for our newborns.

Ironically, parents often shorten our names as we growing up and nicknames can become our new identity. Sometimes the nicknames sound funny and sometimes they are for the sake of convenience. Sometimes they are based on things we’ve said or innocently done or even based upon what shape we are. In some cases, we are stuck with negative nicknames for the rest of our lives! Sadly, we can become defined by a name which we hate and some of us have had to live our lives labelled by our nickname.

In the bible, our God sometimes changed peoples’ names too. When God declared a new covenant with Abram he became Abraham (father of multitude), Sarai to Sarah (princess), Jacob became Israel (he who wrestled with God). The new name revealed the divine plan and also assured the person that God’s plan would be fulfilled in them. People’s names also changed when God changed their personalities. Jesus changed Simon’s name to Peter. Saul became known as Paul after his dramatic conversion and John, the ‘son of thunder’ became ‘the apostle of love’.

When we are born again as a disciple of Jesus, we become a child of God and our new identity is in Jesus and we therefore no longer need to be discouraged or controlled by whatever names others may call us. Isaiah 43:1 “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine.” And one day He will reveal to us our new name. Revelation 2:17 “And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.”

This week, as you maybe busy with the Christmas preparations, take some times to think about what exactly you are doing. As the name of this festive season suggested, it’s all about Jesus Christ.

Christmas means "Feast day of Christ" It’s a Christian holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus, the Son of God. It is not a cultural holiday for believers, it’s only a cultural holiday for non-Christians. We don’t call it Happy Holidays and we don’t replace Christ with an X. And we don’t put our hope in the man-made character who is said to deliver presents. We already have the best present which is the presence of the Lord. The world is trying to airbrush Jesus out of our celebration and yet He still shines through.

Over the years I’ve heard many new couples say, when rejoicing over the amazing miracle of a new birth, ‘having a baby is one of the best things that ever happened to them’. So let us rejoice this Christmas, Isaiah 9:6, ‘For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace’

Jesus is the reason for the season. There’s a perfect meaning in His name and a blessing comes along to all who believe in Him. On the 25th Dec every year, it’s not a matter of how pretty the decorations are or how much we spread on the table; those are just worldly things and the trimmings of the feast. The master piece is Christ, God incarnated as a human to show us how much He loves us and to show us the way to eternity.

Like the Chinese called it - 聖誕快樂 : Holy birth happiness.

There’s power in the name of Jesus. Philippians 2:9-11 “For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of the Father.”

19/12/2025

For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
✝️Isaiah 9:6

Let everything that has breath praise the
LORD. Praise the LORD!
✝️Psalm 150:6

Carol service this Sunday 21st Dec 1100hrs Calvary Exeter

Come & celebrate the Reason for the season.

10/06/2025

17/04/2025

Calvary Exeter
Easter 2025

English/Chinese version 中英對照


Christmas is when God sends us His only begotten Son as a free gift, while Easter is when God reveals how precious and special His Gift is, and will be, forevermore. Without accepting the Truth of Easter message, life has no meaning.

A lot happened in 3 days. Jesus was betrayed and crucified but then rose again; our Lord is risen.

A lot also happened in the 40 days after He’s risen. The Gospel writers and the book of Acts tell us that Jesus ate, walked and talked, and was seen, in his restored body, by hundreds of His disciples. He made himself known to many.

If I met Jesus after His crucifixion, with hindsight, I’d like to say I would be shouting loudly for joy, celebrating and worshipping Him. But the cruel reality of death brings tremendous sorrow which sometimes blinds our eyes and steals our peace, joy and hope. I’m a woman who cries easily. I even cry over fictional movies and often miss out on the story cos I pay more attention to my stupid feelings than to the movies!

The story of Mary Magdalene tells us that she was heartbroken and before she had time to get over the terrifying death of her Lord, she discovered that His dead body was gone too. She was overwhelmed by sorrow and mistook Jesus as the gardener. ✝️ John 20:16, ‘Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means "Teacher")’ When Jesus spoke her name, she recognised His voice straightaway. ✝️ John 10:4 ‘His sheep follow him because they know his voice.’

Jesus is our loving Shepherd - He lays down His life for His sheep. Those of us who have surrendered our lives to him are the sheep in His flock. Like Mary, we should know His voice. and have confidence in His Word.

✝️ Matthew 28:7 ‘the angels said to Mary ‘And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.’’ What an encouragement to know that her Lord had chosen her to be His messenger. This brings to mind ✝️ Deuteronomy 31:6 ‘Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”

In Luke 24, when Jesus appeared to two of his disciples on the road to Emmaus, they failed to recognise Him and mistook Him for a stranger. Unlike Mary, they didn’t have blurry vision because of their tears, more likely their hearts were broken and they were confused as to why Jesus died! v16 ‘But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him.’ Jesus used their condition to draw their attention to scripture and told them how every word in the Old Testament points towards Him and His resurrection.

When they insisted that Jesus dine with them, He did so. How beautiful that our Lord always has time for us and is always seeking to be a part of our lives. ✝️ Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.’ I love to cook and would love to cook for Jesus - maybe one day?

Scripture is the main tool to get to know Jesus. After Jesus revealed himself on the road to Emmaus, one of the men exclaimed in ✝️ Luke 24 v32 ‘And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?”’ ✝️ John 1:14 ‘And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.’

Jesus walks with His followers and reveals himself in different ways to each one of us. There is nothing I can know of my God except that which He chooses to reveal. ✝️ Matthew 11:27 ‘All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.’ We cannot grow in our knowledge of God or His ways except through His Word.

Jesus does not waste our circumstances, our trials, or our grief but draws near to us in our moments of deepest despair. In His gracious way, He calls us to follow Him even when our vision is blurred by our tears. And if our faith is small, he patiently instructs us and guides us to His Word which is the framework and foundation for seeing who Jesus really is. ✝️ Romans 10:17, ‘So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.’

If it has been a harsh season, try not to feel lonely. ✝️ Isaiah 55:6 ‘Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near.’ It’s also okay to cry, but try not to let the tears blur your vision and miss the blessings of the cross.

Take heart - our Lord is alive! He is risen. ✝️ Acts 2:24 ‘But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.’

婦女靈修- 追隨耶穌的足跡
翻譯員: Lavinia Tam

上帝在聖誕節送給我們衪唯一的獨生子做最完美的禮物。而復活節便是這份禮物真正顯示衪何等特殊及何等珍貴的見證。若未能接受復活節的真理，生命便是全無意義的吧！

三天內發生了很多事情。耶穌被出賣並被釘在十字架上，但現在又復活了。我們的主復活了。

祂復活後的四十天，也發生很多事情。福音作家和使徒行傳告訴我們：成百的門徒都目睹了耶穌在完全復原的軀體裡走路和說話。祂已經使許多人知道祂的存在。

如果我在耶穌被釘十字架後遇見祂，我想我會大聲歡呼，以歡喜，慶祝和敬拜祂的心情崇拜祂。可是死亡這個殘酷現實會帶來了巨大的悲傷，有時蒙蔽我們雙眼，竊取我們的和平，歡樂和希望。我是一個容易哭泣的女人。我甚至能為虛構的電影情節而哭泣，反而常常錯過故事內容。因此比起內容，我更關切自己的感受！

抹大拉瑪利亞的故事告訴我們她的心傷。在她還未克服失去主耶穌的時候，她還傷上加傷，發現主耶穌的屍體也消失了。她沈溺於悲痛之中，誤認主耶穌為守墓人。直到：約翰福音20章16節 「耶穌說：瑪利亞。瑪利亞就轉過來，用希伯來話對他說：拉波尼！（拉波尼就是老師的意思。）」。當耶穌說出她的名字時，她便立即認出了祂的聲音。約翰福音10章4節：「既放出自己的羊來，就在前頭走，羊也跟著他，因為認得他的聲音。」

耶穌是我們慈愛的牧者 —— 祂為自己的羊而捨命。我們當中那些向祂奉獻生命的人就是祂羊群中的綿羊。像馬利亞一樣，我們都是知道主的聲音。我們對祂的話充滿信心。

馬太福音28章7節：「快去告訴他的門徒，說他從死裡復活了，並且在你們以先往加利利去，在那裡你們要見他。看哪，我已經告訴你們了」她知道主選擇了她作為祂復活的報訊者時，十分鼓舞。這使我想到了申命記31章6節：「你們當剛強壯膽，不要害怕，也不要畏懼他們，因為耶和華─你的神和你同去。他必不撇下你，也不丟棄你。」

在路加福音24章中，當耶穌在去厄瑪烏的路上向兩個門徒顯現時，他們都未能認出祂，甚至把他誤認為一個陌生人。與馬利亞不同的是，他們並不是因為被眼淚模糊了視線，而是他們心對耶穌的死存疑，因此心碎。16節：「只是他們的眼睛迷糊了，不認識祂。」耶穌利用他們的狀況來提醒他們要注意舊約聖經裡的每一句話其實都在指向主耶穌和祂的復活。

當他們堅持要耶穌與他們一起吃飯時，耶穌就答應了。我們的主就是多麼美麗，總是有時間陪伴我們，並且一直努力成為我們生活的一部分。啟示錄3章20節：「看哪，我站在門外叩門，若有聽見我聲音就開門的，我要進到他那裡去，我與他，他與我一同坐席。」我喜歡做飯，也願意為耶穌做飯——也許有一天主也願意與我同桌吃飯？

聖經是認識耶穌的主要工具。耶穌在以馬忤斯的道路上顯現後，一名男子在路加福音24章32節中喊道：「他們彼此說：在路上，他和我們說話，給我們講解聖經的時候，我們的心豈不是火熱的嗎？」約翰福音1章14節：「道成了肉身，住在我們中間，充充滿滿的有恩典有真理。我們也見過他的榮光，正是父獨生子的榮光。」

耶穌以不同的方式與我們同行，向每個跟隨者顯現自己。除了主選擇揭露的事實，我對上帝其他一無所知。馬太福音11章27節：「一切所有的，都是我父交付我的；除了父，沒有人知道子；除了子和子所願意指示的，沒有人知道父。」我們除了通過祂的聖言，我們是無法通過其他方式增加對上帝或祂的教導的了解而成長。

耶穌不會讓我們白白忍受人生中的考驗和痛苦。祂會在我們最絕望的時刻臨近我們。即使我們的視線因眼淚而模糊不清，祂仍然會以祂的親切方式呼喚我們跟隨祂。如果我們的信心很小，祂會耐心地指導我們，引導我們去遵循祂的話語。這是便是耶穌真實身份。

我們正在經歷一個嚴酷的季節。不要感到孤獨！以賽亞書55章6節：「當趁耶和華可尋找的時候尋找他，相近的時候求告他。」你可以哭泣，但不要讓眼淚模糊你的視線，以免錯過十字架給予的祝福。

我們的主還活著，祂甚至復活了。使徒行傳2章24節：「神卻將死的痛苦解釋了，叫他復活，因為他原不能被死拘禁。」