An exclusive event calls brothers and sisters from the Chinese Independent Baptist Church (CIBC) to attend a retreat that honors their service on Oct 8.

Pastor Evans Kwok, the adult pastor for the Cantonese congregation at CIBC said, the event "is for our church brothers and sisters who serve in different ministry groups," so that they can be "encouraged and serve more fervently."

It is an "appreciation for their leadership," he added.

About 80 honorees will come from the leaders who serve the different ministries at CIBC, the Sunday Schools, and the administrative body.

In the Cantonese congregation, they have over 400 members, with ministries and fellowships for college to adult and for couples to families.

The leaders will be given an opportunity to reflect on the past year, recalling on how their ministry has grown, and how they continue to remain humble in doing God's work.

"It's good for them to get together and share their experiences," Pastor Evans said, who saw the need for the leaders at CIBC to be honored.

"We want to honor and encourage them to continue to serve with the right and humble heart," meanwhile, "challenging them to pick up responsibilities for future ministries," he continued.

Future ministries would include serving the after school tutoring program, the Mandarin congregation, or taking part in short term mission trips.

To describe the meaning of the event, Pastor Evans used Ephesians 4:11-13, and said "leadership emphasizes, according to the bible, that we are priests because we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit," and that is how we can join together in one body, he added.

Another aspect of the event deals with how the congregation can unite and serve together, "so that they will not feel alone," Pastor Evans said. He added that larger churches tend to have more responsibilities, and a lot of the leaders need a time to share the difficulties and the accomplishments with one another, so that they can learn from each other.

The Church deacons have been organizing this event for the past month, but Pastor Evans said that he is still praying. He will deliver a message alongside his colleague Pastor David Tong, the youth pastor at CIBC, and is anticipating how God will move his congregation.