“RETURN TO ME WITH ALL YOUR HEART”

Reported by Susanna C

Photos by Parish Soccom Team

Sandakan – As the called by the Lord through the 1^st reading of Joel 2:12-13 during Ash Wednesday, “Return to Me with all your heart”, the Star of Yahweh Covenant Community (SYCC) and in collaboration with the Parish Pastoral Committee organised a seminar entitled, Inner Healing and Transformation in St Mary Cathedral on 7^th – 9^th March and a followed-up session on 14^th March 2019. Around 120 parishioners attended the seminar, which was delivered by invited speakers from the Light of Jesus Christ Covenant Community (LJCCC) of Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu.    

Anthony Lim of LJCC ( Light of Jesus Covenant Community) from Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu shared his talks about Inner Healing and transformation

On officiating the seminar, St. Mary Cathedral’s Rector Fr. David Garaman commended the committee for their initiative in organising the seminar as a marked of invitation call from the church in entering Lent season. He said such seminar will help the participants in strengthening their faith formation and was in line with the pastoral plan stated in the Vision and Mission Statements of the Diocese. He called upon the participants to take the opportunity to gain as much knowledge and applied them in their life. He hoped this will be a great awakening as well as to be transformed in order to carry out the mission of Christ in our diocese.

In the introduction of the seminar, Anthony Lim who had conducted such seminar locally and internationally immersed the participants with his talks and sharing. He pointed out that most of us need inner healing because of; who we are (God created us in His likeness and image), the way by which we have been brought up and because of the environment we were brought up have conditioned our life. Other speakers in the seminar, Daniel Kong and Bernard Liew were equally captivating the attention of the participants with their experiences in dealing with those affected with past inner wounds. Through the sessions, it helps the participants to become aware of their inner heart wounds and offer the process of healing through praying over for deliverance inside the Cathedral that conclude the 3 days seminar.

The participants who came for the seminar

Six days later, in connection with the seminar, a followed-up Talk entitled Living and Growing in Inner Healing and Transformation was held. “Attending this seminar once is not the end of it. Inner healing and Transformation is a process of gradual change and it needs to be nurtured and be allowed to grow into full maturity”, said Anthony. In order to achieve that change, he recommended steps through the scriptures quotations by Believing in faith that God has answered your prayer, Change the way you live, Stay focus in Jesus, Follow the Path of Growth, Be part of the Church Community, Build Faith in the Rock and Be docile to the Holy Spirit. Not only has the seminar helped the participants in their spiritual growth and formation of faith but also to understand of their own personality that might hold them captive in their life.