Editor's Notes by Ng Kwok Kit In recent years, many Hong Kong people have been plagued by various negative emotions. Internationally, the trade war between China and the United States has brought about a political crisis, the war between Russia and Ukraine has caused inflation, and the COVID-19 epidemic has led to lockdowns. Locally, the anti-extradition bill turmoil has torn apart interpersonal relationships, changes in the political situation have given rise to conflicting emotions, and parting sentiments have emerged amid the wave of immigrants in Hong Kong. All these have directly and indirectly affected the mood of Hong Kong people, and the city seems to be shrouded in a thick haze. A 2023 statistical study pointed out that the happiness index of Hong Kong people ranks last in the Asia-Pacific region; especially young respondents have the lowest happiness index and are generally pessimistic about life. As a church community sent by God to be salt and light on the earth, how should we respond to the times and bring light to a dark world? This issue of "Sandow Journal" is themed "Living Faith in Hope" and hopes to bring enlightenment to modern Christians in difficult situations through scholars' research on the Old Testament, the New Testament and spiritual theology. ...

Editor's Note When Wong Fuk-kwong published this issue of "Sandow Journal", Hong Kong was under impact: the COVID-19 epidemic was still prevalent, and a large number of people immigrated to other places. In response to these phenomena, the special topic of this issue is "Gathering and Dispersion". There are a total of six special articles in this issue, three of which are in the biblical studies category and three in the practical theology category. ...

Hospitality - Fulfilling the Integral Mission of Missions Hospitality to the Little Stranger In the New Testament, hospitality is the mark of a Christian. Extending hospitality is not only polite and civilized behavior, it is also deeply spiritual. Martin Luther and John Wesley, the forefathers of the church, regarded hospitality as a sacrament and the mystery of the incarnation of Jesus Christ, "Immanuel." More importantly, the Bible has a lot to teach about hospitality. Romans 12:13 says: “Be hospitable to guests.” Here “hospitality” can be translated as “opening the door of your home.” Mark 9:37 also records Jesus’ teaching: “Whoever welcomes a child like this in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.” Hebrews 13:2 also says: "Do not forget to welcome strangers in love; for some who have welcomed strangers have even welcomed angels without knowing it." There is also Matthew 25:35, 40. Verse: "I was a stranger and you welcomed me in...Truly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did these things to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me."...

An "understanding" from the caregiver - empathic understanding of the life experience of the person being cared for. Everyone longs for the love and care of others, and hopes that their encounters and experiences on the road of life will be regarded as real. Be able to gain acceptance and attention from others. This is human nature and basic needs. ...

Teaching: Establishing a Christian community to think about the importance of "teaching" and "relationship". At the opening ceremony of the new school year, I invited teachers and students to engage in new learning topics together. In the past six years, our study focus has included preaching, missions, pastoral studies, etc. In this school year, we will have more thoughts and explorations in the field of church education. ...

Teaching: Know and discern that Christian education is "education of love." In the last issue of "Words from the Dean," I mentioned that "love" is the greatest gift. People who love are filled with the Holy Spirit, and love is a gift of the Holy Spirit. From the interpretation of 1 Corinthians 3, 12 to 14, we see that the church’s teaching is to build up the body of Jesus Christ and the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit in love. Christian education is "an education of love." ...

Discernment of the Church In the last issue of "Teaching: Discernment by Knowing," I pointed out that discernment is not a method of solving problems in a parliamentary debate, but a process of pursuing the truth. It is an act of practical wisdom. This process of discernment includes “the truth we feel,” “the truth we think about together,” “the truth we receive,” and “the truth we experience in prayer.” In short, discernment is to seek a more comprehensive and abundant truth, a truth that can set people free. Such truth can bring about spiritual transformation and collaboration and companionship in life. ...

Moving forward in the direction of preaching, I became the dean in 2009, and before I knew it, it had been exactly ten years. Looking back on these ten years, God often taught me in subtle and subtle ways. His wisdom is truly unfathomable and astonishing. Whenever I feel that the road ahead is difficult and I don’t know how to move forward, God always guides me step by step. Sometimes He sends inspiration through the environment, and sometimes through the voices of teachers and students, or the calls of church members, He guides the college to move forward step by step from many aspects. ...

A sad season The issue of the sewage pumping station resurfaced again last year at the beginning of the new semester, and I had a feeling that the 2018-19 school year would not be an easy year. In June last year, we learned that the government planned to build a giant sewage pumping station only 5 meters away from the college gate. In fact, as early as March 2009, not long after I took office as dean, I had already begun to face this difficult problem. At that time, nearby villagers took the initiative to contact the college, hoping to gather the voices of neighbors to oppose the plan. ...

Trust each other and preach the goodness of trusting each other for God. On May 1 this year, the annual conference service of the Hong Kong Baptist Convention was held. I was invited to be the speaker and shared the message about "trust". I very much hope that all the Baptist churches can trust each other, and as pastors leading the churches, we should also strive to make the sheep we shepherd trust us. During my sermon, I also mentioned topics such as power, service, and calling. ...