Centenarian Pastor marks birthday with words of encouragement for younger pastors

["Taiwan Church News" <enews@pctpress.org>]

3074 Edition

January 24-30, 2011

Headline News



Centenarian Pastor marks birthday with words of encouragement for younger 
pastors



Reported by Chen Yi-hsuan

Written by Lydia Ma



Born in 1912, Rev. Lai Ping-hung celebrated his 100th birthday recently as 
a crowd of well-wishers remembered his 75 years in ministry as a pastor and 
missionary. Besides ministering as a local pastor for many years, Lai was 
also active in several organizations, including PCT General Assembly’s 
“Indigenous Ministry Committee” and Christian publishing houses, and 
serving as the first director of Bible Society in Taiwan.



Though he officially retired as a PCT pastor long ago, Lai is convinced 
ministers should never retire from their calling to preach the gospel 
everywhere they go – and those were his words of encouragement for younger 
ministers on his birthday. 



Lai reminisced that when he was still a seminarian in Tainan Theological 
College and Seminary, he took a class on the “Acts of the Apostles” 
lectured by Rev. Thomas Barclay, founder of Taiwan Church Press. As the 
president of the seminary’s student council, he would later be one of the 
pall bearers at Barclay’s memorial service held in Tainan. 



Besides serving at various churches in Taiwan during his years in ministry, 
Lai went to Philippines and Brazil as a missionary. Though officially 
retired at the age of 70, as mandated by PCT Church Law Committee, he never 
retired from ministry – God’s calling for his life. At the age of 70 and 
carrying only one suitcase of personal belongings, he went to Penghu Island 
(also known as Pescadores Island, one of Taiwan’s off-shore islands) to 
preach the gospel in Makung, the county seat of Penghu.



It was in Makung that Lai met the then-pastor of Makung Presbyterian 
Church, Rev. Lin Hsien-ping, and the two bonded instantly. Now, Lai 
regularly attends the church Lin is pastoring in Tainan City.



Lai urged younger pastors to be brave and plunge ahead noting that younger 
generations of pastors lack this kind of tenacity in their ministries. As a 
pastor himself, he is convinced that those called into full-time ministry 
should never retire, but preach the gospel everywhere they go. As for lay 
members, he urged them to prioritize prayer and serving in church 
ministries so that they can become “vibrant” Christians.



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