Dear brethren,
Wherever and whoever you are, God’s grace and love will find you. His work in our lives continues to respond to us in unique and powerful ways according to our needs and His great plan. That is a great source of encouragement as we continue in our journey together! April and May are busy months for our youth camps and retreats. By this time, our camp in Silang, Cavite would have just ended over the weekend. And more are coming up soon. We appreciate all who are involved – our camp directors, our volunteer staff, our sponsors and friends, our prayer partners, all of whom are pulling together to make this life-changing experience available to as many young people as possible. We look forward to inspiring encounters with God in these camps. Thank you brethren, for your involvement through prayers and financial support.
One of the things I like to share with you in this weekly personal is my excitement about the new name of our fellowship – Grace Communion International. Some may think, “What is in a name anyway?” A lot, I believe!
I come from a brood of ten children, and being the eldest of ten, I had the unique privilege of participating in finding the best possible name for my other brothers and sisters. It was exciting, but challenging because we are not just after any name, but we wanted the best one that can describe our aspirations for the new member of the family. We considered famous people who are remembered for their good lives. We also thought of names that sound great, or those that connect with us in a special way.
That was how my name was chosen. My full name, Eugenio Juan, came from my grandfather’s and father’s names combined. I did not realize until long after, that my name means “good beginning”. And being the eldest of ten, and having some interesting beginnings in my life, I can truly say that I can totally relate to that name.
Grace Communion International says a lot about us too. It is a name that was carefully chosen, as it beautifully describes who we are, Who we belong to, and speaks of our vision and calling. Having gone through an incredible spiritual journey, and the amazing favor that we have received from God, “GRACE” is one short but powerful word that best describes it. The word “COMMUNION” reflects our deep inter-connectedness with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit in Jesus. The word “INTERNATIONAL” shows that our fellowship with each other has no borders. It reminds us of our dynamic vision, “all kinds of churches for all kinds of people in all kinds of places.”
Of course, we have some emotional attachment to the name “Worldwide Church of God”, because it says a lot about where we came from in our spiritual journey. But I hope that the feeling is much like that of a bride who is about to get married and take on a new surname. The prospect of giving up her maiden name is overwhelmed by how much is in store for her ahead.
It is for this reason that we are planning to use the new name, “Grace Communion International” as our official denominational name for the Philippines and North East Asia Region and the United Arab Emirates. It will be shown in our new logo and communication materials. It is also good that flexibility is available for our churches to use the local name “Worldwide Church of God”, should they decide to continue doing so. But I encourage all to adopt our new name, because it reflects our identity today, and it symbolizes who we are called to be.
More importantly, let us all endeavour to live up to that name!
Your servant in Christ, Ka Eugene
