ECAC News

1. English Pastor Candidate – Tim Anderson is candidating for the position of English Pastor. We are thankful for his preaching today. He will meet with the Elder Board this afternoon. If you have any feedback, please contact the Pastoral Search Team (psc@ecac.ca).

2. 2022 Elder Board – Chairman: Andrew Leung; Vice-Chairman: William Wong; Treasurer: Ryan Ho; Secretary: Roscoe Gee.
• Pastoral search committee: Terry Gee
• Re-opening team: Andrew Leung, Dong Zhang and Rocky To
• ASD/Safety: Dong Zhang and Rocky To
• Community outreach/Biblical justice team: Rocky To and Roscoe Gee
• Disciple making team: Andrew Leung and Dong Zhang
• Communication team: Roscoe Gee and William Wong
• Strategic planning: William Wong and all elders
• Financial team: Ryan Ho
• Mission Team: Ryan Ho and Terry Gee
• Human Resource Team: Andrew Leung, William Wong and Ryan Ho

3. 2021 Offering Receipt will be sent out in February 2022. If your address has changed, please email your new address along with your offering account no. and your name to office@ecac.ca no later than TODAY.

4. Please Verify Your 2021 Offering Record – The record is posted on the church bulletin board at the Life Center, or email/call the church office by Jan 30. Please provide your offering account no. and address for verification. If you have any questions, please contact the church office as soon as possible. After tax receipts are issued, corrections cannot be made.

5. 2021 Annual Report – We would like to include pictures related to different ministries in the report. If you have any soft copy pictures, please get the permission for those who are in the pictures before email to office@ecac.ca by Jan. 30.

6. In order not to trigger the church alarm, please remember to close all interior doors after all activities. Thank you for your cooperation.

7. Social Justice Responsibility with IVCF – Join us online Friday, January 21 at 7:30pm and hear from Hogan Brimacombe at Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship.… Click here to read more

1. P. Brandon is on vacation today.

2. Child/Baby Dedications: We are planning a child dedication once Omicron calms down. Please contact Pastor Brandon if this interests you. This is a practice we do to commit to raising our children in the Lord and asking the church for help in the same.

3. IGNITE – a place where believers can grow inter-generational in small huddles and where mentorship can take place. Every Sunday at 9:45 am online. Please join us if you are curious about spiritual mentorship and what that can look like. Zoom Meeting ID: 891 3125 4173 Passcode: 425944 Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89131254173?pwd=VmlvT1ByWmoxclVBZ1l1NThkalJnUT09

4. In Person Services with a limit of 100 people: Distancing and cleaning practices are in place and face masking is required. Registration will be live Thursday 12pm to Sunday 10am at ecac.ca. Families with children are welcome.

5. Wed Prayer Meeting (7:30 PM): Contact P. Brandon for the prayer meeting link.… Click here to read more

1. Save the Date! David Camp 2022 will run from August 1 – 5, 2022 (Mon-Fri). Please e-mail June at david.camp.ecac@gmail.com for further information.

2. The Discovery Christmas Break TODAY: The Discovery will return at 10 am on January 9 via zoom. The Plunge is still ongoing every Sunday.… Click here to read more

Our Re-opening Team has been actively meeting and discussing the COVID-19 developments with health professionals.

Over the course of the last month, we have successfully hosted in-person Sunday worship services in all three languages. We would like to acknowledge and thank all of those who have worked to make in-person and online worship services possible. We also thank all of you for your patience and support as we navigate technical challenges.

There is concern regarding the spread of the COVID-19 delta variant, which is why we continue to take a cautious approach and operate with the goal of protecting the health of you and our community.

In light of the variant situation, here are some updates to our church ministries as we approach the fall:

• The church will continue to monitor and assess the situation and make necessary adjustments after the province updates its direction in late September
• Sunday worship services for Cantonese, Mandarin, English will still be available both in-person and online
• Families are welcome to attend worship services together
• Parking lot and classroom bookings are available subject to certain limitations
• Other in-person ministries in the church building will continue to be postponed

We understand that some of you may feel disappointment in the continuation of restrictions. However, we must place our faith in the Lord and trust Him to see us through to safe pastures.

If any of you need help or need to talk to someone during this time, please contact your church leaders or email us at hello@ecac.ca.

“But God will never forget the needy; the hope of the afflicted will never perish” (Psalm 9:18).… Click here to read more

Pastor Derik Chan will be taking time for personal reflection and spiritual renewal in the upcoming months, including a spiritual retreat in September and October. To allow time for his spiritual renewal, his responsibilities in CMC will shift in the next several months.… Click here to read more

We have gone through ups and downs in this pandemic journey over the last 16 months, and are finally seeing progress. Both COVID-19 case and hospitalization rates have been dropping while vaccination rates are steadily rising. God has answered our prayers and we should be thankful.

As conditions are improving, the province has entered Stage 3 of its re-opening plan on July 1, 2021 involving the lifting of nearly all COVID-19 public health orders, with some exceptions. The City of Edmonton also announced the lifting of the mandatory mask bylaw effective July 1.

Following medical advice and being mindful of COVID-19 variants, the church is adopting a cautious and gradual approach in re-opening our facilities in order to protect you & your family, our community, and our staff. As a community, we will stay the course to look after the vulnerable individuals, people in high-risk groups, and children who are not yet vaccinated. Therefore, basic hygiene practices like face masking, hand washing and physical distancing will be highly recommended when entering church facilities.

At the same time, we continue to worship the Lord our God upon whom our true hope lies, and meet as a community for fellowship. The re-opening plan is outlined below:

• In-person Sunday Services:  Because of the continuous improvement of the Covid-19 situation, starting from August 15, 2021, the limit for the in-person attendance for the Sunday service in Cantonese, Mandarin and English will be increased to 75.
• Board and Council Meetings: Such meetings have been safely held at the church since June 2021, and all bookings can be made through the church office.
• Small Groups and Fellowships: Starting on July 3, 2021 parking lot use can be booked through the church office. From July 16, classrooms will be available to book through the church office.
• Dynamic Centre: At present, the Dynamic Centre is set up for the Cantonese in-person gathering. Due to logistics and cleaning requirements, re-opening the Dynamic Centre will be revisited in September.

Over the past couple of years, the Finance Committee of the Elder Board has been looking into a “Donation-in-Kind” offering to allow donors to donate publicly-traded securities, such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and ETFs. Donation-in-kind offerings are a tax-effective way to donate and provide you with another way to exercise stewardship in tithing to our church.

We are pleased to inform you that our church has now opened an account at the Royal Bank of Canada Direct Investing (RBCDI) effective immediately to directly accept Donation-in-Kind offerings. Our members can now choose to donate via cash, cheque, e-transfer, or donation-in-kind.

The Elder Board has appointed two trading officers, Ken Lam and Stewart Wong, both members from the Finance Committee, to be responsible for overseeing the RBCDI account.

The role of trading officers is to manage our trading account and the sale of donated securities. A Donation-in-Kind process and form has been created and is now available on our website.

Once securities arrive in the account, trading officers will sell the shares within the current or next trading day. Once the sale is complete, the net proceeds will be deposited into the investment account. The trading officers will then transfer the cash into ECAC’s RBC savings account.

Donors will not be charged a fee for contributing a Donation-in-Kind offering. RBCDI charges a standard flat-rate fee of $9.95 per transaction which will be covered by the church.

RBCDI will send the church monthly reports on all account activity, and the church will be responsible for issuing tax receipts to the donors based on actual value of donated securities received on valuation day.

With this arrangement in place, we will be providing another option for you to make donations to the church. There are financial implications and/or tax benefits for donors to make such in-kind donations. We advise you to consult with your accountant or financial advisor to discuss tax and financial considerations. Our trading officers and the treasurer, William Wong, are pleased to answer your questions regarding this service.… Click here to read more

By now, you may have heard about the province’s latest health restrictions to control the spread of COVID-19. It may feel like déjà vu all over again that we are back to a lockdown like last year. It can feel disappointing that after making so many sacrifices, we still do not have the end in sight.

Yet, in this uncertain time, we continue to worship the Lord our God upon whom our hope lies. At the same time, our church has adopted new measures to protect you & your family, our staff, our community, and the healthcare system while complying with all public health measures to further limit in-person attendance and move to online services, where possible.

Effective immediately, our enhanced safety measures include:

• Worship services will be exclusively online or streaming
• Scheduled baptismal services will be postponed indefinitely
• In-person church events will be cancelled or postponed indefinitely

These measures include postponing Pastor Stan’s in-person farewell event to a later date in October. You will be notified as soon as we have a finalized date.

As of now, the church building is closed to all but essential staff, and all programs and activities will remain online.

With COVID-19 hanging over us like a dark cloud, we may feel fatigued, anxious, or disappointed. Rest assured that our Lord is walking with and encouraging us every step of the way.

“He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” (Isaiah 40:29-31).… Click here to read more

During the closure of the church building, if you need to come in for ministry related activities, please pay attention to the followings:

• Use the North entrance door only and fill out the Covid-19 Assessment Form.
• Physical distancing is maintained at all time. Please wear mask if you are unable to maintain 2 meters from other people.
• Clean your hands on entry and exit.

To Give Tithes and Offering: please go to emc.ecac.ca/offering/ for more details.… Click here to read more