What better way to start the year and the second semester than worshipping God through thanksgiving right after the holiday break? On Wednesday, January 11, 2023, the whole studentry, faculty, and staff of Manado Independent School (MIS) celebrated its annual Thanksgiving Day. In honoring God’s abundant blessings and protection for MIS for the year 2022, the theme ‘To God be the Glory’ is especially fitting.
The Thanksgiving program included the reading of some Bible passages. There were also several song renditions and skits by students and teachers alike. Pastor Widodo Purwanto, MAR, served as a conduit of blessings on this said occasion through the sermon he delivered during worship. The central theme of the devotional message is the phrase “count on.” It emphasizes the total dependence on God for the believer’s faith to grow, to have a close encounter with God, and experience the salvation offered to man through Jesus. Only then shall all people be able to praise and say, “To God be the glory.”
Filmorevo Tatemba, a 9th-grade student, said, “The program is meaningful because it draws students closer to God. The presentation, hymns sung, skits performed, and the sermon delivered made the whole program enjoyable and significant to MIS students and teachers.” His takeaway from the message was that people must come to God at all times, not only during those struggling moments. He posited, “Sometimes humans rely too much on themselves and forget God. It should be a Christian principle that in happy or sad moments, one should trust God and not themselves. At all times, we need to trust and count on God to handle any situation that comes our way. Revo, as friends fondly call him, further stated, “Thanksgiving is being grateful to God not only when there is an occasion but every day because God has given us the breath of life and takes care of us all our days.”
