I Decided to Return and “Give”

Posted on by Cedar Fund

[“SHARE” APR – JUN 2020 ] BLESSINGS BY OFFERING

Written by: Gloria Li (Pastor, Western District Evangelical Church)

 

Evening, Friday 7th February

 

I had just one box of masks left at home, which was to be shared between my domestic helper and I. We were counting down the number of our masks and mentally preparing ourselves to reuse them when our stock ran out. The two batches of masks that I had ordered in early January, as shown on the computer, left Japan a long time ago, which meant that they must have already arrived in Hong Kong. Did that mean they had been “hijacked”? While waiting for the delivery, there were rumours that masks were banned from entering Hong Kong due to the anti-extradition law protests. So, I was quite concerned. (Editor’s notes: With regard to the rumours, the Hong Kong Customs clarified on 28th January that surgical mask is not included in the lists of controlled / prohibited items, and that the Customs would not hinder importation of such product into Hong Kong.)

 

However, this morning I decided to give two masks and HK$50 as Lai See to the two cleaners on the street. I was thinking, the minimum wage in Hong Kong is HK$37.5, but as outsource workers, these cleaners may not even be protected by this regulation! Isn’t it a tragedy that in Hong Kong the minimum hourly wage does not even pay for a box of masks? Even though I barely had enough masks at home, sharing with others was a shot at wealth equality.

 

Under the present circumstances, having the protection of a mask when we go out to work is fundamental human dignity, and sharing our masks with others paints a beautiful picture of the sharing society. Should I contract coronavirus because I do not have a mask to wear? I have faith that God will look after me for remembering the poor in His name!

 

I decided to share my worries not because I wanted people to give me masks! I still believed in the Hong Kong Post and I would wait for the delivery from Japan. By sharing how I learned to have faith, I hope to encourage others to lend a helping hand to the needy. I believe that the situation with the coronavirus in Hong Kong was an opportunity for us, as Christians, to take actions to share what we have with others.

 

Morning, Saturday 8th February

 

The next morning, on my way to church, I saw two cleaners opening up a manhole to treat some sewage. With my hand firmly pressed on the masks in my handbag, I asked myself, “To give or not to give”? I had already walked past them, but I decided to turn back and “to give”!

 

Everyone was under so much stress, the masks were just a small gift to show my support to the needy.

 

When I got to the office, there was a huge parcel waiting for me. I was overjoyed. It was a great and abundant gift from God. I immediately thought of CEDAR’s mask donation campaign, and I promised myself that I would share my gift!

 

Glory be to God.

 

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Engage students in issue of global poverty – A primary school teacher’s vision

Posted on by 施達基金會

(Ms. Jade Lee, CEDAR’s working partner of education ministry in HK)

 

‘How many human traffickers are there in the world at present?’

 

‘Apart from Hong Kong, will CEDAR Fund be raising funds for poor children in other places?’

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2018 CEDAR’s Exposure Trip – A Tale of the Border Towns

Posted on by 施達基金會

(Starry sky in a Thai-Myanmar border town)

 

(CEDAR’s note: The writer, Dr Ho Shun Yee, joined CEDAR’s Exposure Trip to the Thai-Myanmar border towns and the northern regions in Thailand at the end of last year. In this article, Dr Ho shares her experience and thoughts about the tour. CEDAR will host another in-depth tour to Bangladesh to visit the poverty-stricken communities. For more information, please visit: http://cedarfund.org/trip/)

 

In mid-December 2018, more than ten of us from CEDAR arrived at the Thai-Myanmar border – a place that turned out to be quite different from the land of orchids, Thai silk, massages and water fights that most people would have in mind when the place is mentioned. There were cloud-shrouded mountains and singing streams, but what we heard was a song of a thousand sorrows from the border towns. Yet, in a way, it was also a song of hope.

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Mobilising Christians

Posted on by 施達基金會

[Annual Report 2011-2012] Mobilising Churches and Christians

christian

Review of 2011 to 2012

‘Network the force of Christians and provide a platform for communication and action’ is a main direction of CEDAR’s work on mobilising Christians in Hong Kong. We have reformed ‘CEDAR Club’ since last July by pro-actively gathering and mobilising the concerned Christians to help the poor more systematically. We also re-organised the monthly activities of the Club with regular sharing meetings, visiting programmes, and fellowship activities, to provide an in-depth experience for members to work at the issues of poverty, share experiences and practise serving the poor.

10 CEDAR Club’s gathering

2 exposure trip to Myanmar and Nepal

Learning and Prospect

‘Walk in Love – Low-Income Families Visit Programme’ and ‘Street-Sleepers Visit Project’ are two main long-term visiting programmes for club members to practise what they learnt at the course on poverty relief. Two programmes have been running for two to three years. We are exploring ways to help participants to move forward in their understanding and care on the HK society and the world, with the hope that their will engage locally and think globally. Furthermore, we hope more churches and Christian communities will involve as we mobilize and encourage different Christian groups to be ‘good neighbours’.

Shan’s Sharing

‘The achievement in past ministry year once again shows me how first hand experience is very significant in helping Christians to deepen their conscience and concern for poverty. It also confirms how effective organisation and a platform to practice is important to mobilizing Christians.  In coming year, I hope that we can enhance the participation, initiation and decision making of core CEDAR Club members in programme and activity planning and development .’